32 Day Trips in Northern California You’ll Wish You’d Known About Sooner
Most people think San Francisco is Northern California, and anything above it might as well be Oregon. After years of vanlifing through the state, I found this region to be some of the most underrated territories in the West. Some of the best places I discovered were north of the Golden Gate, tucked away in corners most people skip on their way to more obvious stops.
These day trips in Northern California are pulled from the places I kept returning to whenever I needed cooler temps and quiet yet epic landscapes. Some are barely a couple hours from the Bay, others are farther flung, but every one is worth the drive.
Best Day Trips in the Bay Area & Nearby
1. Muir Woods National Monument
This redwood sanctuary has trees more than 600 years old and reaches heights of over 250 feet. The towering canopy creates a cathedral-like where you can hear your own footsteps.
Arrive early and stroll along the main boardwalk trail or veer onto the quieter Bootjack or Ben Johnson Trails, which climb into denser forests. You’ll pass fern walls, mossy boulders, and a creek that runs even during dry months. Parking reservations are mandatory or you can book many tours from San Francisco to Muir Woods to save yourself the parking nightmare..
2. Mount Tamalpais
On a clear day, the East Peak of Mount Tam has views crossing from the Farallones to the Sierra Nevada. That’s a third of the state in one place.
The drive up is scenic in itself, with switchbacks through thick forest and sudden cliffside views. Once at the top, fire roads and single tracks sprawl in all directions. Hike the Matt Davis Trail for a route that dips through oak groves, or go for a side trip to the Gravity Car Barn.
3. Mount Diablo State Park
Mount Diablo’s summit stands just over 3,800 feet, but because it’s surrounded by lowlands, the view spans more than 200 miles on exceptionally clear days. Even Yosemite’s Half Dome is visible.
The road to the summit is a winding climb through grasslands, chaparral, and exposed ridges. Stop at Rock City on the way up, the Summit Visitor Center, and the observation deck for a full panoramic effect.
4. Point Reyes National Seashore
The Point Reyes peninsula was shifted 20 feet in the 1906 earthquake and sits directly on the San Andreas Fault.
Start with a stop at the Bear Valley Visitor Center, then pick a trail like the Earthquake Trail or the Tomales Point hike, which ends at dramatic bluffs with tule elk often grazing nearby. Drakes Beach feels like the British Isles, with its moody cliffs and slate-gray water. If it’s winter, the elephant seals at Chimney Rock are loudly impossible to miss.
5. Marin Headlands
From Hawk Hill, you can watch birds migrate across the Golden Gate by the thousands each fall. The fog often clears first here, too.
The Headlands feels like a film set with everything from military ruins to hidden beaches. Battery Spencer gives a postcard view of the iconic bridge, but keep walking for less-trafficked spots like Black Sands Beach. Rodeo Beach is surfer territory and good for tidepooling at low tide. The Point Bonita Lighthouse requires crossing a suspension bridge clinging to the cliff edge.
6. Half Moon Bay
Mavericks is where the world’s top surfers tackle 60-foot waves just offshore. Half Moon Bay has a rugged coastline lined with walking trails, beaches, and farms. The Coastside Trail follows old railway tracks with stops at secluded coves and open bluffs.
Pop into local nurseries or one of the largest pumpkin patches in the Halloween season. Fitzgerald Marine Reserve at low tide reveals alien-like anemones and starfish.
6. Año Nuevo State Park
Año Nuevo is one of the largest mainland breeding grounds for elephant seals in the world. During peak season, more than 10,000 seals come ashore.
Tours are required in winter and fill fast. The guided walks take you across windswept dunes and coastal grasslands to roped viewing areas. You’ll see enormous males battling for space and attention while pups squawk nearby. Outside of elephant seal season, the area still offers good hikes and wildflower displays in spring.
7. Santa Cruz
The Giant Dipper, one of the oldest wooden roller coasters in the US, has been running since 1924 on the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
Start at the Boardwalk for super-fun, all-year-round carnival games, or head straight to the surf breaks at Steamer Lane to see wetsuited locals carve into the cold Pacific sets. Downtown has vintage shops, or for something quieter, Natural Bridges State Beach has rock formations that frame the waves perfectly at sunset.
8. Capitola
Capitola is California’s oldest seaside resort town, established in the 1860s. The colorful beachfront houses are more than just Instagram bait. They anchor a walkable strip of shops and galleries that spill down toward the sand.
Capitola Beach is gentle enough for paddleboarding, and the wharf is the place to watch for seals cruising by. On summer evenings, local musicians take over the esplanade stage, and the whole town is so lively.
9. Napa Valley
Napa Valley has more than 400 wineries and spans just 30 miles. I don’t even drink, and this place was so much fun. Many wineries feature sculpture gardens, live music, or small museums.
The Napa Valley Wine Train lets you coast through it all in vintage railcars, while many tours come from San Francisco if you don’t want to drive. Yountville hosts art walks featuring large-scale installations, while Calistoga offers hot springs and volcanic mud. Even if you skip the wine, the rolling vineyards and restored estates are worth the trip alone.
10. Sonoma
The Sonoma Plaza is the largest town square in California, dating back to 1835. That makes it older than the state itself.
Surrounding Sonoma’s Mission San Francisco Solano are shops, tasting rooms, and the old barracks that once housed Mexican soldiers. Beyond the plaza, the countryside has quiet roads that pass old barns and family-run wineries. It feels more grounded than Napa, less polished, and definitely better for your wallet overall.
11. Sacramento
This state capital has more trees per capita than any other city in the US. Spending a day in Sacramento feels small and is pretty underrated.
Old Sacramento is the obvious starting point with its wooden sidewalks, gold rush buildings, and the California State Railroad Museum. From there, walk the Tower Bridge and follow the river trail. The Capitol building and its grounds are open to the public. Midtown is a mix of art galleries, vintage shops, and creative street murals.
12. Empire Mine State Historic Park
Empire Mine produced 5.8 million ounces of gold during its 106 years of operation. The mine’s tunnels reach 11,000 feet below the surface.
You can tour the surface estate where the owner’s cottage still stands with manicured gardens and hand-carved furniture. The mine yard has old machinery, headframes, and a blacksmith shop that’s still functional. A short walk leads to the entrance of the old mine shafts, sealed now but no less haunting.
Epic Day Trips in the North Coast & Redwood Country
13. Sea Ranch
I loved Sea Ranch’s distinctive architecture that blends nicely into the coastline. The original design guidelines emphasized natural materials and unobtrusive lines, making it feel like a neighborhood that belongs to the landscape.
The bluff trail is a great walk along the rugged shoreline, passing pocket beaches and sea caves. The Sea Ranch Chapel is a surreal stop, looking like something between a hobbit house and a wind-carved shell. If you’re staying overnight, many homes are rentable, and some include passes to the community’s pool and sauna. Public access points can be hard to find, so mark them down on a map first.
14. Mendocino
Mendocino is one of the few towns in California designated as a historical landmark in its entirety. That explains the Victorian homes and wooden water towers.
The Mendocino Headlands surround the town on three sides with cliffs and powerful blowholes. Catch the waves from above or head down to Big River Beach, where the estuary meets the sea. Downtown has dozens of galleries, bookstores, and offbeat museums worth exploring.
15. Glass Beach (Fort Bragg)
Glass Beach exists because Fort Bragg used to dump its garbage into the ocean and now its one of the most unique beaches in the country. Waves did the rest, tumbling the glass until it resembled gemstones.
There’s not much actual beach for lounging. Instead, visitors spend their time crouched over tidepools or running their hands through sand made of sea glass. The main area is often picked over, so wander north for more color. Collecting is technically prohibited, but you’ll still see people pocketing pieces. Combine the trip with a stop at the nearby Coastal Trail or walk into Fort Bragg’s downtown.
16. Bodega Bay
Bodega Bay was the filming location for Hitchcock’s The Birds, and the schoolhouse still stands up the hill in Bodega proper.
The harbor is a hub of activity with fishing boats, kayaks, and paddleboarders crossing paths. Hiking trails at Bodega Head lead to overlooks where gray whales are often spotted during migration seasons. Doran Regional Park has a long sandy beach that’s calmer than the outer coast.
17. Tomales Bay
Tomales Bay is 15 miles long and straddles the San Andreas Fault, which means it’s actually splitting California in two. It’s narrow and calm, ideal for gliding through by kayak or paddleboard.
Tomales Bay State Park offers hiking trails that dip into secluded coves like Heart’s Desire Beach. For the best experience, rent a kayak and paddle out in the evening when the water sometimes glows from bioluminescent plankton.
18. Avenue of the Giants
The Avenue of the Giants is a 31-mile highway lined with some of the tallest trees on Earth. These coast redwoods tower over 300 feet and are up to 2,000 years old.
Driving the Avenue means pulling over constantly. There are marked groves with names like Founders and Rockefeller. The Immortal Tree has survived fire, flood, lightning, and chainsaws. The Shrine Drive-Thru Tree still allows small cars to pass through its hollowed-out trunk.
Make sure to tuck in your side view mirrors, as there is plenty of evidence of people who drove a little too close to the edge of the road.
19. Redwood National and State Parks
Together, the Redwood National and State Parks protect nearly half of the remaining old-growth redwoods in the world. Some trees here are so big they have names.
Start at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park for crowd-friendly access to Fern Canyon, where walls drip with moss and ferns. Roosevelt elk roam the meadows near Elk Prairie, and the Gold Bluffs Beach section gives a break from the forest with coastal access. Campgrounds are spread out and uncrowded if you book early.
Adventurous Day Trips In the High Sierra & Inland North
20. Lassen Volcanic National Park
Lassen Peak is the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range, and last erupted in 1915. You can still see scorched trees and lava rocks from that explosion. Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of the few places on Earth where all four types of volcanoes coexist in a single park.
Bumpass Hell is the main draw, with boardwalks winding through boiling mud pots and steaming vents that smell like rotten eggs. The hike there is moderately challenging but worth it for the alien landscape. Manzanita Lake is perfect for kayaking or a quick swim, and it reflects Lassen Peak like a mirror in the early morning. For more isolation, head to Butte Lake and the lava tube trail that cuts through jagged terrain left by a 17th-century eruption.
21. Lava Beds National Monument
There are over 800 lava tube caves at Lava Beds, more than any other location in the continental US. Some are pitch black and belly-crawl-tight. Others feel like underground cathedrals.
Pick up a flashlight at the visitor center and explore caves like Sentinel, which is beginner-friendly, or Skull Cave, which ends in a subterranean ice floor. Above ground, Petroglyph Point features ancient carvings, and trails lead to high desert views dotted with volcanic rubble.
22. Mt. Shasta
Mount Shasta stands over 14,000 feet tall and is visible from more than 100 miles away. It’s a spiritual hippie magnet for some and an alpine playground for others.
Even if you’re not summiting this beautiful mountain, the base area has countless trails with sweeping views. Castle Lake is a beautiful, glacier-formed alpine lake that is worth visiting or hiking up to Heart Lake for an elevated view of both the lake and Mount Shasta itself. The area gets snow late into spring, so summer is best for full access. Not too far are some of the best hot springs I’ve ever soaked in along Highway 395.
23. Castle Crags State Park
Castle Crags rise like granite sentinels above the forest at over 6,500 feet and are even older than the Sierra Nevadas.
The Crags Trail is steep but leads to a granite platform with panoramic views of Mount Shasta and the surrounding spires. The Pacific Crest Trail also passes through the park, so you might see long-distance hikers resupplying at the campground. For a shorter option, the Vista Point Trail has a great view without the same effort.
24. Table Mountain Ecological Reserve
For about six weeks each spring, Table Mountain turns into one of the most photographed landscapes in Northern California. The wildflower bloom brings carpets of color across basalt tablelands with waterfalls threading through.
Expect crowds during peak bloom weekends, but there’s enough space to find your own stretch of trail. Phantom Falls is the most popular hike, with a seasonal waterfall dropping into a hidden canyon. Outside of bloom season, the trails are quieter but still scenic, with distant views of the Sierra foothills.
25. Burney Falls / Feather River Canyon
President Theodore Roosevelt once called Burney Falls the “eighth wonder of the world.” It spills at a rate of 100 million gallons per day, even during dry seasons.
The falls are located in McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, and the main loop trail takes you down to the base, where the spray cools the air. Feather River Canyon is a lesser-known detour nearby, with scenic pullouts and railroad history carved into the cliffs.
26. Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park was the first piece of land set aside by the US government for preservation in 1864. It’s now one of the most visited parks in the country.
El Capitan and Half Dome dominate the skyline, and even first-time visitors recognize them from postcards and screensavers. Take the Mist Trail to Vernal and Nevada Falls for a steep, watery reward. Glacier Point gives a front-row view of the entire valley without much hiking, and Tioga Road offers alpine lakes and granite domes.
Beachy Day Trips In the Central Coast & Inland Parks
27. Monterey
Monterey Bay is one of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems in the world. It drops off into an underwater canyon deeper than the Grand Canyon just offshore. That’s why the whales, seals, and otters stick around.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium is a national headliner. Outside, walk Cannery Row, a street immortalized by John Steinbeck that’s now packed with shops and galleries. For a break from the crowds, rent a bike and cruise the coastal trail that runs past tidepools and cypress trees. Fisherman’s Wharf may be touristy, but it’s still worth a lap for sea lion sightings.
28. Carmel-by-the-Sea
Carmel has no street numbers, no mail delivery, and more art galleries per capita than most major cities.
Start with a slow walk through downtown’s maze of courtyards and storybook cottages. Even the gas stations are banned from having neon. The beach sits at the base of a hill with soft white sand and waves that crash hard.
29. Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
Point Lobos is often called the “crown jewel” of the California state park system. The coastline is jagged, the water impossibly blue, and wildlife shows up everywhere.
Parking fills up quickly, so arrive early or be prepared to walk in from Highway 1. Trails wind along the cliffs, through Monterey pine groves, and down to coves like China Cove and Gibson Beach. You’ll almost definitely see harbor seals hauled out on rocks and otters cracking open shells in the kelp. The Cypress Grove Trail loops past gnarled trees that have been shaped by decades of wind and salt.
30. Big Sur
The Big Sur coastline stretches for about 90 miles with no traffic lights, just a two-lane road, and some of the most dramatic cliffside driving anywhere in the world.
Start south from Carmel, and you’ll immediately hit highlights like Bixby Creek Bridge and Hurricane Point. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park has riverside hikes and redwood groves, while Julia Pfeiffer Burns features McWay Falls, a gorgeous waterfall that drops directly into the Pacific.
31. Pinnacles National Park
Pinnacles is the newest national park in California and one of the few places where you might see a California condor in the wild. These birds have wingspans up to 10 feet and glide right over the rock spires.
The park is split into east and west sides with no road connecting them, so pick your entrance wisely. The High Peaks Trail is the signature route, full of tight switchbacks and steel handrails bolted into the rock. Bear Gulch Cave offers a totally different feel, with passages so dark you’ll need a flashlight even in the middle of the day.
32. Bolinas
Bolinas is infamous for removing road signs that point toward town. It’s one of the most off-the-grid beach towns in reach of the Bay Area.
Once you find it, the vibe is somewhere between a coastal artist commune and a surf shack village. Smiley’s, the saloon on the main drag, is one of the oldest in California. Agate Beach has solid tidepools and long sandy areas. Bolinas Lagoon attracts herons, pelicans, and the occasional curious seal.
Catherine, a seasoned travel writer, has lived in 4 different states and explored 36 states and 28 national parks. After spending two years embracing van life, she's now dedicated to sharing her vast knowledge of day trips across America. Catherine's other works has been referenced in major publications like MSN, Self, and TripSavvy.
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