Things To Do

Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park

Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains and is most famous for the 40-acre grove of towering old-growth redwood trees. Its historical significance and spectacular scenery draw travelers from around the world. Visitors can enjoy hiking, horseback riding, picnicking, swimming, and camping on more than 4,650 acres of forested and open land. Take a walk beyond the redwood grove and you’ll find four diverse habitats that this park preserves: grasslands, river/riparian, sandhills, and redwoods. The tallest tree in the park is approximately 277 feet tall, about 16 feet wide, and around 1,500 years old. Keen-eyed visitors may spot banana slugs, black-tailed deer, coyotes, bobcats, or steelhead trout.

Capitola Village

A Maddy and Sam fave! The quaint seaside village of Capitola began as a humble tent camp along the shore of the Monterey Bay. Camp Capitola, as it was known, welcomed its first guests in 1874 making it the first beach resort in California. A few years later, it premiered a magnificent wood-frame Victorian hotel — Hotel Capitola — that echoed grand contemporaries like the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego and San Francisco’s original Cliff House. The hotel succumbed to fire in 1929, but the romance of the original beach resort still exists in the colorful, seaside shops and restaurants tucked into a hillside along Soquel Creek. Wandering the village and its bayfront promenade — window shopping and snacking along the way — is a quintessential part of a Santa Cruz experience.

Humble Sea Brewing Co.

Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

An admission-free boardwalk spans a wide sandy beach along Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary where it's not unusual to see otters, dolphins, sea lions, and even whales swimming just offshore. It's the last of the great seaside amusement parks remaining in the United States and home to two National Historic Landmarks – the 1911 Looff Carousel and 1924 Giant Dipper wooden roller coaster. The entire property is also a State Historic Landmark.

Mount Hermon Adventures

Mount Hermon Adventures is the home of the Redwood Canopy Tours zip line tour and the Sequoia Aerial Adventure course. The Redwood Canopy Tour is a fully guided zip line tour with six zip lines led by our amazing guide staff. The Sequoia Aerial Adventure is an adventure course with three levels, multiple challenges, and the exciting "quick jump" free-fall challenge. Reservations are required so please make your reservation and plan ahead for an amazing adventure in the redwood forest.

Roaring Camp

See California’s towering redwood trees from two historic railroads. Ride steam trains to Bear Mountain or Beach Trains to Santa Cruz. Visit an 1880s logging town located in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Between San Francisco and Monterey Bay in Felton.