Top California Day Trips

My husband and I did a sunset sailing tour in San Francisco, and it ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. Even though there were other people on board, the seating is arranged in a way that feels more private—kind of a horseshoe layout—so it still felt like an intimate experience. What we really loved is that it wasn’t a guided tour with constant narration. It made the whole experience feel more relaxed and romantic since we could just enjoy the moment and talk with each other without interruptions. Captain Dave was great—very knowledgeable and clearly focused on keeping everything smooth and safe. The first mate, Mike, was also fantastic. He was super attentive, offered to take photos for us (which we really appreciated), and made sure we had everything we needed, including drinks. The two included drinks were a nice touch, with options like wine, beer, soda, and water. The route was beautiful—we sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge, around Alcatraz, and back to Pier 39—and the timing was perfect. The sunset gave us all the stages, from golden light to full sunset, and it lasted right around two hours. Overall, it was such a special experience, and we would absolutely do it again.

This tour was an excellent introduction to Joshua Tree National Park. Our tour guide Austin was very knowledgable and friendly. Stopping at very scenic places for photos and quick walks around, for someone like me who had never been to the park, it was a great experience (without the hassle of navigating the roads myself). We had excellent weather and views are amazing! Definitely worth the time and cost!

Perfect trip in Napa. Professionally run, informative and interesting and overall just right. Lewis, our guide super knowledgeable and had fun along with us. Boxed lunch at the 2nd vineyard was perfect. The others on the tour were friendly and engaged. And of course lots of outstanding wine throughout our 5 hour adventure

We had a great experience on this tour! Daniel was an fantastic guide. He was kind, helpful, and knowledgeable. By chance it was just my mom and I on our tour, which we were a bit disappointed about, but Daniel made us feel comfortable and at ease! Daniel even asked for our feedback on the way home to improve the experience for future tours. I strongly recommend taking this tour. We had a great time and would even do it again!

I couldn’t have chosen a better tour for our Sequoia National Park experience! Paul, our guide, was incredibly knowledgeable, informative, and had a great sense of humor — so down-to-earth and easy to talk to. I really appreciated that it was a semi-private tour with only six of us; the small group made it so much more personal and enjoyable. Paul made sure we not only saw the beauty of the giant trees but also truly appreciated their history and significance. It was both educational and unforgettable — I learned so much! 🌲✨

The tour included San Franscico, Muir Woods, Sausalito and Alcatraz. My favorite was Muir Woods and Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. The San Francisco part of the trip was more of a very high-level drive through for the most part. It was fine to give a better idea of what to see in more depth. Per was a wonderful tour guide and highly recommend him. Dylan Tours is a smaller tour company and I recommend booking tours with them.

Picked us up right outside of our hotel in Anaheim and took us into LA where we spent the day sightseeing. Our tour guide was very accommodating, knowledgeable, and fun. We had a great time, and we didn't have to drive in LA traffic! Would highly recommend this tour.

Wear a jacket, windbreaker. Fantastic, ! Exceeded expectations! Boats communicate with each other regarding location of whales and sightings that day. We saw 20 whales; breaching, playful. Crew said it was the closest to the boat breeach they experienced- about 20 yards away. We were in the middle of a pod of hump back whales.