Santa Cruz, California, has ranked high as a surf town since 1885, when three visiting Hawaiian princes rode the local waves on redwood planks, or so the story goes. But there’s much more to this coastal enclave than surf and boogie boards. It’s also a freethinking college town and a park-rich community where natural beauty is revered and protected.
Get a sense of the city’s many personalities over the course of a lively three-day weekend.
As always, check for travel restrictions and closures before planning your trip.
Friday: Stroll a Pier and a Boardwalk
Start off the day at the century-old Santa Cruz Wharf, the West’s longest wooden pier at 2,745 feet. Stroll its full length, passing fresh fish restaurants and water sports rental shops.
Stop in the Made in Santa Cruz souvenir boutique for skateboard art and lifeguard sweatshirts. Strike up conversations with anglers fishing off the pier and watch the antics of the sea lions that splash and bark among the pilings.
If you have kids in tow — or even if you don’t — pay a nostalgic visit to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, California’s version of New York’s Coney Island. Try the saltwater taffy, eat a corn dog, play arcade games, let the coin-operated fortuneteller reveal your destiny and scream your head off on the Giant Dipper roller coaster.
This creaking wooden icon has starred in Hollywood movies and thrilled more than 66 million riders since its opening in 1924. Don’t miss the equally delightful 1911 Looff Carousel with its 73 colorfully painted horses trotting along in mesmerizing circles.
Take a short stroll to the water to hit Main Beach. It’s a great spot to plop down on a beach towel, watch the sand athletes play volleyball or wade into the Pacific. Santa Cruz faces south, not west, so the ocean water here is warmer than elsewhere in Northern California.
Sooner or later, when you feel like you’ve had enough sun, head for the cool shade of Santa Cruz Mission State Historic Park.
Next, tour a circa-1791 adobe structure built by Native Americans. While many of California’s missions honor Spain’s contributions to California history, this park reveals a much broader story, focusing on how Spanish missionaries permanently altered the Native Americans’ way of life.
For a tasty, no-fuss dinner, sample some of the city’s exceptional Mexican cuisine. A few blocks from the Mission, Los Pinos and Taqueria Los Pericos are both great choices for a laid-back meal of tacos and tortas.
For more of a nightlife vibe, head a mile west on Mission to Copal for mezcal, mole and walls full of Oaxacan art.
Saturday: Let Mother Nature Be Your Guide
Spend the day exploring Santa Cruz’s natural beauty. Take a winding drive in the Santa Cruz Mountains to see the ancient trees at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. Admire the sky-reaching redwoods by walking the easy Redwood Grove Trail or gaze at the big trees while riding in a 19th-century narrow-gauge steam train.
Roaring Camp Railroads‘ authentically preserved steam engines once hauled giant redwood logs out of the mountains, but now they carry visitors over trestles and up a steep grade to the summit of Bear Mountain.
While you’re exploring these forested hills, go see the Mystery Spot, where the laws of gravity seem not to apply. People look tilted even when standing straight up, and it’s not clear what causes this glitch. Aliens? Unseen forces? Optical illusion? Since 1939, the Mystery Spot has inspired nonstop speculation.
Move from the supernatural back to the purely natural along Santa Cruz’s shoreline. Watch for migrating whales and sea lions cavorting in the waves at Natural Bridges State Beach, home to a graceful sea arch populated by pelicans and other seabirds. In winter, walk a short trail near the beach to see monarch butterflies roosting in eucalyptus trees.
Grab picnic supplies from New Leaf Community Markets and head inland and uphill to visit the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum & Botanic Garden. Stroll gentle paths past lush flora from California, Australia and South Africa and keep an eye out for the constant buzz of flitting hummingbirds. Dozens of areas in the 135-acre gardens provide sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean.
Follow Highway 1 north for 2 miles to enjoy an easy walk along dramatic oceanfront bluffs. Wilder Ranch State Park‘s Old Cove Landing Trail hugs the coastline and skirts past diving seabirds and crashing waves. Learn about the lives of mid-19th-century ranchers by visiting the park’s historic dairy ranch buildings — an 1859 Gothic Revival farmhouse, 1897 Victorian home and several barns.
Head back to modern civilization in Santa Cruz’s West End. At Venus Spirits, craft distiller Sean Venus has created a stunning space dedicated to local eats and potent potables. Try the Wayward Whiskey made almost entirely from California-sourced ingredients.
Sunday: Go Surfing — and Shopping
Take a stroll along West Cliff Drive’s 3-mile-long pathway, where runners and cyclists burn calories on the waterfront. Find your way to Lighthouse Point, a bluff-top park with a crowd-pleasing view of Steamer Lane, one of California’s most famous surf breaks.
Watch surfers commandeer the swells — the waves are wildest in the winter months — then step into the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum, housed in a brick lighthouse replica. This surfing temple is filled with century-old surfboards and an astounding collection of surfing books and vintage photos.
If you’re feeling inspired, shimmy into a wetsuit and take surfing lessons at Cowell Beach, just west of the wharf. Pro instructors at Club Ed or Surf School Santa Cruz will outfit you with a light foam board and teach you the skills to master your pop-up.
For a less adventurous ocean immersion, head into the Seymour Marine Discovery Center, a museum and marine lab where UC Santa Cruz scientists study the Pacific. Snap a selfie with the 87-foot-long blue whale skeleton, admire the seashell collection and pet the sea stars and hermit crabs in the touch tank.
Let afternoon turn to evening as you stroll, shop and eat your way through tree-lined downtown Santa Cruz. A good place to start is Pacific Avenue, a six-block promenade of flowering gardens, sidewalk cafés, galleries and boutiques.
Dive in to the literary rabbit hole of Bookshop Santa Cruz. See the works of California artists at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History. Admire the Octagon, an eight-sided brick building dating back to 1882. Sample Santa Cruz’s food culture at Abbott Square Market, a culinary venue with a dozen eateries (pizza, poke bowls, po’boys and more).
As your weekend nears its end, cap off your trip with a sweet treat to remember: Scoop up some whiskey custard or a brown-butter pecan sundae at the Penny Ice Creamery, a Santa Cruz institution.
