Santa Cruz Attractions
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The Beach Boardwalk
Ride the world-famous Giant Dipper roller coaster and enjoy our spectacular beachfront setting on beautiful Monterey Bay. The ADMISSION FREE Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk amusement park has something for everyone!
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Roaring Camp Railroad
Steam Train excursions through the redwood forest in Felton and Beach Trains traveling to Santa Cruz through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.
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Pacific Avenue and Capitola Mall
Everyone loves a visit here, where shopping is tops and fun is everywhere. Get inspired by great fashion at your favorite specialty shops. Get it all at our stylish department stores.
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Shakespeare Santa Cruz Festival
“Shakespeare Santa Cruz strives to cultivate the imagination, wit, daring, and vision that the greatest playwrights demand of artists and audiences alike.”
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Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS), designated in 1992, is a Federally protected marine area offshore of California’s central coast.
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Cabrillo Music Festival
Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music concerts and events focus on new contemporary classical music by living composers.
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Santa Cruz County Symphony
The Santa Cruz County Symphony provides exceptional musical performance and life-long education for the enjoyment, enrichment and growth of our culturally vibrant community.
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Beaches
- Cowell’s Beach is one of the best places in the world to learn how to surf. All the energy pulsing around Lighthouse Point mellows out by the time it gets to Cowell’s, and the result is a long, gentle, easy wave that breaks for a very long time.
- Capitola Beach is along an intimate beach village tucked in a river valley on the Monterey Bay. Capitola Village is located along a wide beach with a breathtaking view of Monterey Bay and is home to a wharf, numerous craft galleries, boutiques and restaurants.
- Manresa State Beach features a beautiful expanse of sea and sand, with surf fishing, surfing, and recreation. Visit Online »
- Davenport Beach is located north of Santa Cruz along highway 1. This uncrowded, natural, and dog-friendly beach is a great destination to watch wind surfers and kite surfers catch a ride.
- Sunset State Beach features pine trees, mountainous sand dunes, and ocean side picnic spots. Bordered by large agricultural fields west of the city of Watsonville, the beach is a year-round destination for thousands of visitors. Visit Online »
- Natural Bridges State Beach, with its famous natural bridge, is an excellent vantage point for viewing shore birds, migrating whales, and seals and otters playing offshore. Further along the beach, tidepools offer a glimpse of life beneath the sea. Visit Online »
- New Brighton State Beach features picnic areas, swimming, fishing and a nearby forest of Monterey pine and Coastal Live Oak. Visit Online »
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Mystery Spot
The Mystery Spot is a gravitational anomaly located in the redwood forests just outside of Santa Cruz, California. Within the Mystery Spot you will be stunned as your perceptions of the laws of physics and gravity are questioned.
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State and County Parks
- Wilder Ranch State Park has 34 miles of hiking, biking and equestrian trails winding through coastal terraces and valleys. To help visitors explore the history of early ranchers and farmers of the area, the park offers tours and living history demonstrations. Visit Online »
- DeLaveaga Park features ball fields, picnic areas, hiking and mountain biking trails, a golf course, disc golf course, and archery range. Dogs are permitted off leash in some areas of the park. Visit Online »
- Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park offers 15 miles of hiking and riding trails through a variety of forested areas including redwoods, mixed evergreens, riparian, ponderosa pine, as well as rare ancient marine deposits called Santa Cruz sandhills. Visit Online »
- Big Basin State Park is California’s oldest State Park, established in 1902. Home to the largest continuous stand of ancient coast redwoods south of San Francisco, the park consists of over 18,000 acres of old growth and recovering redwood forest. Visit Online »
- The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park offers rugged semi-wilderness, rising from sea level to steep coastal mountains of more than 2,600 feet. Once the site of logging operations until the 1920s, visitors can still find evidence of logging operations, mill sites and trestles in the park. Visit Online »
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UCSC Arboretum
The Arboretum is home to a world-class living collection. Come and see native flora from around the globe, including California, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and Chile. The Arboretum offers many rich opportunities for casual visitors and students
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U.C. Santa Cruz
This public university is like no other in California, combining the intimacy of a small, liberal arts college with the depth and rigor of a major research university. The campus is nestled into the redwoods, and includes an organic farm and arboretum.
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Capitola Village
This quaint beach community is home to numerous craft galleries, boutiques and restaurants. The Begonia Festival takes place here each Labor Day weekend, featuring flower-draped floats and the must-see sand castle contest.
Visit Online » - With all these attractions, you’re bound to enjoy your vacation in Santa Cruz, California. Whether it’s the Santa Cruz downtown Santa Cruz Motels or Santa Cruz Beach hotels that you are searching for, let the convenience of our beach lodge put you in the middle of all Santa Cruz, California has to offer.