California attractions

No trip to San Francisco is complete without a picture under the legendary Dragon Gate, but there’s so much more to Chinatown than a photo op. One of the oldest and largest Chinatowns in North America, the neighborhood is a treasure trove of historical and cultural attractions, from Buddhist temples and art galleries to souvenir shops and Cantonese restaurants. The combined effect transports you on a trip within your trip.

San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts dates to the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition. One of the only remaining buildings from the World’s Fair, the Greco-Roman–inspired ruin is a favorite Bay Area venue. Walk under the picturesque rotunda; wander the grounds; and visit lagoons that are home to ducks, swans, and geese. And don’t forget to bring a camera to capture views overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge.

Scottish-born conservationist John Muir, who spearheaded Yosemite National Park’s founding, famously wrote, “No temple made with hands can compare.” While the phrase may seem cliché, many would argue it’s true. Of Yosemite’s natural landmarks, Half-Dome, the mammoth rock formation that looks like a mountain from another planet, is best known, but hardly less inspiring than the high-altitude meadows, giant sequoia groves, and waterfalls dispersed over this expanse of protected wilderness.

Once the stomping grounds of Italian fishermen, Fisherman’s Wharf is now one of San Francisco’s most popular tourist destinations. The bustling waterfront strip is filled with souvenir shops, seafood restaurants, and a wealth of family-friendly attractions—most notably a colony of sea lions that sunbathes and poses for photos on Pier 39. It’s also the departure point for many San Francisco bus tours and other sightseeing excursions.

The largest natural island in San Francisco Bay, Angel Island—a California state park—is often overshadowed by the much smaller Alcatraz Island. Yet with an equally interesting history as a West Coast version of Ellis Island, Angel Island also offers hiking, biking, and picnicking, all with views of the San Francisco Bay, city skyline, and Golden Gate Bridge.

Griffith Park is one of the largest city parks in North America, covering a vast 4,310 acres (1,744 hectares). An oasis amid Los Angeles's urban sprawl, this expansive green space offers something for all ages, with hiking trails, picnic areas, and major attractions such as the Los Angeles City Zoo, the Griffith Observatory, and views of the iconic Hollywood Sign.

Located on the southern tip of the Point Loma peninsula, which separates the Pacific Ocean from San Diego Bay, Cabrillo National Monument honors Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo. This Portuguese explorer led the first European expedition in 1542 to discover the area that’s now the West Coast of the US. Visitors come for sweeping views of the coast and the San Diego skyline, and to admire local wildlife in protected tidepools.

One of San Francisco’s most recognizable waterfront landmarks, the Ferry Building is part transit hub, part food hall and marketplace. Here, visitors can find artisan food shops, wine bars, specialty retailers, and restaurants—while soaking up views across the bay. The lively Ferry Plaza Farmers Market is a big draw for locals and visitors alike, with delicious fresh produce and some of the best flavors in California.

Set along California’s Pacific Coast Highway, Santa Monica has two claims to fame: the beach and the pier. At Santa Monica Beach, miles of sand host playgrounds, parks, picnic areas, staffed lifeguard stations, and the original Muscle Beach. More than 10 million visitors frequent the area each year, most of whom follow the boardwalk to the Santa Monica Pier, whose neon-lit arch and Ferris wheel are instantly recognizable from films and TV.

One of the most-visited destinations in San Francisco, the multilevel Pier 39 complex is home to shops, restaurants, street performers, and a video arcade. Many boat tours depart from the pier daily, making it a key stop on the tourist circuit. Its location on the San Francisco Bay means visitors can also admire panoramic views and even watch sunbathing California sea lions.

Across the bay from downtown San Diego, the small resort town of Coronado, with its wide sandy coastline and tree-lined main street, is ideal for scenic strolls, browsing boutiques, or stopping for a bite to eat on Orange Avenue. Visitors also come here to relax on the beach or explore historical sights, or just to unwind and watch the sunset.

Known for its free-spirited vibe, Venice Beach in Los Angeles is fronted by the iconic Venice Boardwalk, officially known as the Ocean Front Walk. Encounters with pickup basketball teams, fortune tellers, and roller-skating sunseekers are pretty much guaranteed—especially on hot Southern California summer days. Beyond the sand, visit the skate park, the famous Muscle Beach outdoor gym, the canals, and Abbot Kinney Boulevard, featuring trendy restaurants, stylish boutiques, galleries, and cafés.

San Francisco's man-made Treasure Island was created for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition and then became home to a naval training station and other military sites. In recent years, the small isle has become a trendy destination for its urban wineries, cultural events, and unbeatable views of downtown San Francisco and the bay. Though it’s grown in popularity, the area still maintains a neighborhood feel that makes it a welcome escape from the city.

From the Hills to the Sign, the Los Angeles neighborhood of Hollywood is synonymous with the entertainment industry and its glamorous appeal. Match your handprints and footprints to those of 2,800 Hollywood stars on the Walk of Fame; look out for local celebs; and visit famed theaters, such as Dolby Theatre, home of the Academy Awards, Grauman's Chinese Theatre—now the TCL Chinese Theatre—and adjacent to it, the Egyptian Theatre.

Joshua Tree National Park straddles the Colorado and Mojave deserts and spans nearly 800,000 acres (323,749 hectares) of windswept Southern California plains. By day, backpackers, rock climbers, and visitors from Palm Springs and beyond admire the rich landscape’s peculiar rock formations and cartoonish yucca trees. After sundown, campers and night owls take in the park’s signature starlit skies.

The TCL Chinese Theatre—formerly and still commonly known as Grauman’s Chinese Theatre—is one of Hollywood’s iconic landmarks. Known for its grand architecture, star-studded movie premieres, and celebrity handprints pressed into the forecourt concrete, this theater has been drawing in film fans since 1927. It’s an atmospheric place to soak up some Tinseltown glamour, and a prime photo stop along the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Union Square is San Francisco’s main hub for dining, entertainment, and shopping. There’s so much to see and do here: browsing shops, stopping by major department stores, visiting art galleries and theaters, or staying at luxury hotels. The food scene is also a big draw—you can find everything from upscale restaurants and rooftop bars to casual cafés, juice bars, and coffee spots.

Lombard Street is best known for a single block in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood. Zigzagging from Hyde Street to Leavenworth Street, this red-brick-paved block has given Lombard Street the nickname “the crookedest street in the world.” With eight hairpin turns lined with well-manicured flowers, trees, and tidy million-dollar homes, Lombard Street is a popular photography spot, and visitors can choose to drive down or walk.

The heart of San Francisco’s 1967 Summer of Love, the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood will forever be associated with the hippie movement and American counterculture. Today the district’s mix of boutiques, smoke shops, vintage stores, restaurants, and bars makes it a favorite among locals. It also has a high concentration of the beautifully restored Victorian homes the city is known for.

Fort Mason’s use as a military site dates to 1864, but it’s now part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The 13-acre (5-hectare) site houses art spaces, a bar, restaurant, and coffee shop and is also known as the Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. Its Great Meadow is a favorite for a warm-weather picnic.

Since it was founded in 1776, the Presidio of San Francisco has had many lives, from a Spanish military site to an American Army post to a National Park Service location. Today, it draws visitors for its cultural sites, hiking trails, public art, restaurants, and views of the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay.

Home to the soaring rock faces, summits, and waterfalls that Yosemite National Park is famous for, “the valley” is the heart of the action. Its well-known sights include El Capitan and Half Dome, as well as Bridalveil Fall and Yosemite Falls, and there are endless opportunities to enjoy hiking, climbing, photography, nature walks, and more.

Open since 1934, the Los Angeles Original Farmers Market draws both locals and visitors to its food stalls, eateries, specialty shops, and produce vendors. It’s a great place to sample Southern California bites while browsing everything from gourmet ingredients to flowers, skincare, candles, and gifts. With its constant buzz, you can easily spend a couple of hours here browsing, eating, and people-watching in the open-air space.

Acting as both the waterfront and major road along the eastern edge of San Francisco, the Embarcadero stretches from Fisherman’s Wharf to South Beach, passing through some of the city’s most popular destinations. It attracts visitors and locals with its restaurants, bars, hotels, tourist attractions, event spaces, bay cruises and ferries, and a wide pathway for walkers and joggers.

Though it’s the epicenter of San Diego’s party scene, the lively Gaslamp Quarter offers more than just nightlife. The charming downtown neighborhood is also rich with museums, galleries, concert venues, and symphony halls, plus destination-worthy eateries. In the evenings, clubs, dive bars, and cocktail lounges draw student crowds, while diverse audiences fill the Spreckels and Balboa theaters for performing arts, comedy shows, and live music.

Hollywood's Dolby Theatre (formerly the Kodak Theatre) is best known as the home of the Academy Awards. This 3,400-seat entertainment complex features an incredible sound system comprising 215 powered speakers. Although it's best known for the Oscars, the Dolby Theatre hosts all sorts of other live entertainment, from concerts to comedy shows.

San Francisco's Painted Ladies are a pristine example of the city's candy-colored, Queen Anne-style architecture. Also known as Postcard Row—and one of the most-photographed sights in the city—the houses stretch uphill right across from Alamo Square Park and boast impressive views of the downtown skyline beyond. They are known for featuring in the opening credits of the late-1980s TV show Full House.

One of the first waterfalls that you'll see as you enter Yosemite National Park, Bridalveil Fall is a towering, plunge-type waterfall measuring some 620 feet (188 meters) in height. It flows year-round and reaches its peak around May. On windy days, it sometimes almost looks like the waterfall is falling sideways.

This San Diego landmark goes beyond the typical museum experience—its collection includes a working fleet of watercraft spanning sailing ships, steamships, and one of the deepest-diving submarines in history. Inside the museum itself are exhibits exploring navigation, model ship building, and more, in both rotating and permanent exhibits. The museum is also a starting point for harbor tours aboard historic and replica vessels.

The Pacific Coast Highway—also known as the PCH or Highway 1—runs north–south along most of the United States’ West Coast. The incredibly scenic California stretch is known for its rugged cliffs, hidden coves, and numerous beaches, making it one of the nation’s most popular road-trip routes. From San Francisco to San Diego and the many charming stops in between, it’s truly one of the most beautiful places on the planet to take a drive.