I honestly don’t think I’ve ever felt visiting a place for the first time the way I felt about California. Immediately I gravitated toward it. It had been a life long dream to visit and it 100% lived up to the hype. So much so that when I returned home I applied to 10 jobs in southern California and almost had my family convinced to pack up and move. Sadly though, not one interview :/ It wasn’t my time. I’ve now pivoted to another goal, a vacation beach home on the Cali coast. Some would say the people are fake and the traffic is horrendous and that may be true. But the constant sunshine, 70’s most year around, the ability to take a beach trip and ski trip in the same day, and just the unique energy that it possesses is enough to visit at least once. If I’ve convinced you, check out the California travel guide I created below.
Where to Stay in California:
For LA, rent an Airbnb in Venice near the boardwalk or close to the beach in Santa Monica. Highly recommend splurging on where you sleep in Santa Monica. It cost us $200 a night but to be able to walk to the beach and enjoy a morning run to the Santa Monica Pier and walk through the Farmer’s Market at the 3rd Street Promenade was definitely worth it. If you stay close enough to the boardwalk in Venice, some Airbnbs will have bikes for you to use.
For the drive up the coast to San Francisco, I recommend taking your time and stopping overnight in Santa Cruz. For only $80-$90 the Ocean Pacific Lodge doesn’t look like much. I’m very boujee about my hotels but man was I impressed for the cost. Easily the cleanest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. And the hardwood floors and Keurig were a nice touch. When you wake up the next morning you’ll only have a 1.5 hour drive to San Fran. For San Fran, stay at the Motor Inn at Nob Hill. Nothing fancy but clean and one of the cheapest places in the city.
Transportation in California:
In LA, The Metro has four light rail (above ground) lines and two subway (underground) lines that serve 93 stations, ranging from Hollywood & Culver City to Pasadena and East LA. Each fare is $1.75 or you can buy a $7 Metro Day Pass or a $25 seven day pass. If you’re not comfortable navigating the Metro, renting a car is a viable option due to LA being so spread out.
What to Do in California:
- Ride bikes on the Venice Boardwalk and walk the Venice Canals.
- Catch the sunset at the Santa Monica Pier
- Farmer’s Market at the 3rd Street Promenade on early Saturday mornings.
- Visit my happy place, Point Dume in Malibu. Park at the more public part of Zuma beach and make the trek up to the top of the hill where you can enjoy the view overlooking Malibu. Then make the trek down to the more secluded, peaceful part of Big Dume Beach. When the tide’s high it’s a bit of a pain in the ass to walk over the rocks to get to the actual beach. But once you do it’s worth it.
- Hike up to the Griffith Observatory to see one of the best vantage points of the Hollywood Sign, and views of Downtown Los Angeles to the southeast, Hollywood to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest.
- If you’re a nerd like me you should check out the La Brea Tar Pits. They’re located on top of an oil field, which produces the tar. These tar pits trapped sabretooth tigers, mastodons, and many more insects and animals millions of years ago. 5 million fossils have been found here and there’s ongoing excavations that you can witness. Admission is only $12 and it’s well worth spending an afternoon here.
- Urban Light at the Wilshire Boulevard entrance to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
- Concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, an amphitheater in the Hollywood Hills.
- Treasure hunt for books at The Last Bookstore, the largest new and used bookstore in California that’s also supposedly haunted.
- Drive along the coast to San Francisco. We drove along the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) for as much as we could before having to make a detour inland due to landslides blocking portions of the highway. Some sweet places to check out along the drive are the Carpinteria Bluffs (literally a minute off of the highway) and one of the rest stops off of Hwy 154 in Santa Barbara (great view of the mountains). The views along the coast are everything I expected.
- Walk the Golden Gate Bridge. My favorite pics of the trip.
- Walk amongst the infamous Redwoods at the Muir Woods National Forrest (40 min drive from San Fran).
- If you’re on a budget, go winery hopping in Napa’s cheaper cousin, Sonoma. Cline Cellars is a must stop. $10 for a 5 glass tasting (actually gave us 7 and waved the tasting fee for buying a bottle). Very nice and laid-back winery. They also took us on a tour of the vineyard and the onsite mission. Buy a bottle of the Cashmere Black Magic if it’s available.
- Take a day trip to San Diego (~ 2 hour drive from LA) and have a beach day at Coronado Beach and go seal watching in La Jolla Cove.
What to Eat & Drink in California:
- The infamous In & Out. How can you beat a double patty w/ animal sauce, fries, and drink for $7?! By far the cheapest meal you’ll have on the trip. Click here for their secret menu.
- Casablanca (Name & theme based off of the movie) in Venice. We randomly stumbled upon this place during my first trip and very thankful that we did. Easily the best top shelf margarita I’ve ever had. I highly recommend the Carne Asada Combo with the Chile Relleno.
- Alcove Cafe for lunch before you hike up to Griffith Observatory.
- Kogi BBQ, the iconic Korean taco food truck
- Ramen and tsukemen noodles at Tsujita Annex
- Mazemen (Japanese ramen but without the broth) at Mogumogu
- Nashville hot chicken at Howlin’ Ray’s
- BBQ at Slab
- Malibu Seafood – No frills seafood shack on the coast
- ONYX Rooftop Bar at the Shangri-La Hotel. Drinks are overpriced but you can’t beat the rooftop views of Santa Monica.
- Dealer’s choice cocktails at The Varnish (Live jazz Sundays & Mondays).
- 80’s themed karaoke bar at Break Room 86 in Koreatown.
- Dim Sum at Good Mong Kok Bakery and Dragon Beaux in San Francisco. Can’t visit San Fran and not eat Dim Sum.
- Sundaes at Ghiradelli’s at the Wharf in San Francisco.
- Sonoma Springs Brewery in Sonoma if you need a break from the wine.
- HopMonk Tavern in Sonoma. Best flank steak.
Tips for Visiting California:
- Most Airbnbs in California do not have AC. This takes some getting used to.
- The Pacific Ocean is cold af, even in the middle of summer.
- June Gloom. Overcast skies are a thing most mornings in June, and sometimes linger into the afternoons, ruining your beach day plans. Click this link to find out why this phenomenon happens.
- Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco is super touristy and not worth wasting your time.
- San Fran can get cold on summer nights and the uphill walking is not for the out of shape.
- Fun fact: Los Angeles, aka The City of Angels aka La La Land, was not always the land of show biz. Originally that honor was placed on Atlantic City but Thomas Edison owned so many film patents and basically had a monopoly on the industry that everyone started to move out West to get away from him.
Bucket List for Visiting California Again:
- Hike, kayak, and whale watch at Point Reyes (~ 1 hour from San Fran)
- Bixby Creek Bridge on the Big Sur (One of the most photographed bridges in the world)
- Andrew Molera State Park on the Big Sur coast
- Angel Island for some of the best views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Area
- Haight-Ashbury – The hippy district of San Francisco
- Twin Peaks (Not the show) – a pair of 922-foot-high summits where you can get a 360 degree view of the Bay Area
- Glass Beach (liyerally, ~ 4 hour drive north of San Fran)
- Tri Tip sandwich (Courtesy of Peter King) at Firestone Grill
- Hike Runyon Canyon Park in Los Angeles
- El Matador State Beach – A secret beach and rock cave in Malibu. It’s not visible from the Pacific Coast Hwy and there’s only one small sign so you really have to be on the look out for it (Across the street from the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses).
- Dunder Mifflin (Chandler Valley Centre Studios in Panorama City, California)
- Fish tacos at James’ Beach Restaurant in Venice.
- Sit on the couch at Central Perk in Warner Bros Studio ($69 for 2 hour tour)
