California: Things to Do and See

Things to See in Los Angeles

1. J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, California: Apart from the museum, J. Paul Getty is also an educational centre for the study of arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome and Etruria. This museum is home to European paintings, drawings, manuscripts, sculpture and decorative arts, and European and American photographs. Each year, approximately 1.3 million visitors visit this museum to explore the collection of 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities dating from 6,500 BC to 400 AD
2. The Getty Center: The Getty Center is famous for its beautiful gardens and amazing architecture. There are about 1.3 million visitors, who annually visit this place. It is one of the best art museums of United States. Also there are about 500 different plants that have been planted in the gardens of Getty Center. Another important thing related to this art museum is that, it is totally free and people don’t have to spend any dollar to visit this place.
3. Santa Monica Pier: The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier located at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California and is a prominent, 100-year-old landmark
4. The Hollywood Walk of Fame: The Hollywood Walk of Fame comprises more than 2,500 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California. The stars are permanent public monuments to achievement in the entertainment industry.
5. Universal Studios Hollywood: Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and theme park in the unincorporated Universal City community of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood film studios still in use.
6. Venice Beach Boardwalk/People Walk: The World famous Venice Beach Boardwalk is not to be missed. If you are visiting the Los Angeles area, you owe it to yourself to come to Southern California’s number one visitor attraction. Stretching about one a half miles along the manicured sands of the Pacific Ocean, the boardwalk is a large part of what makes Venice unique. On the west side of the “walk” are hundreds of street vendors and performers.
7. Hollywood Sign: The Hollywood Sign is a landmark and American cultural icon located in Los Angeles, California. It is situated on Mount Lee in the Hollywood Hills area of the Santa Monica Mountains. The sign overlooks the Hollywood district of Los Angeles.
8. Disneyland:
9. Manhattan Beach:
10. The Queen Mary:
11. Sunset Boulevard:
12. Warner Bros VIP Tour:
13. Page Museum:
14. Zuma Beach:
15. Sony Pictures Studio Tour:
16. Rodeo Drive:
17. Knott's Berry Farm:
18. Griffith Observatory:
19. Grauman's Chinese Theatre:
20. Capital Records Tower:
21. SkySlide: Starting on the 70th floor of the tallest building on the west coast known as the US Bank Tower is a 45ft 1.25" thick glass slide you can travel down to the 69th floor observation deck while 1,000ft above street level.

Things to See in San Francisco & Wine Country (Sonoma & Napa Valley's)

1. Golden Gate Bridge: Golden Gate Bridge is basically a suspension bridge that links San Francisco to the Marin County. Golden Gate Bridge is a master piece which was built in 1937. Total height of this bridge is about 227 m. This Bridge is famous due to its beautiful orange color. There is a beautiful sea view from this bridge. One can enjoy a long walk or bike ride on this bridge in foggy or rainy weather without any cost. Over all view of the sea at day and night time makes this place lovely.
2. Dutch Windmill: The Dutch Windmill was built in 1902 to harness the power of the pacific winds to pump fresh water from well’s to irrigate the Golden Gate Park. Prior to the construction of the windmill the city of San Francisco was provided water by the Spring Valley Water Company at exorbitant rates which only provided enough water for 75 acres
3. Japanese Tea Garden: It was originally created as a “Japanese Village” exhibit for the 1894 California Midwinter International Exposition, the site originally spanned about one acre and showcased a Japanese style garden. When the fair closed, Japanese landscape architect Makoto Hagiwara and Golden Gate Park Superintendent John McLaren reached a gentleman’s agreement, allowing Mr. Hagiwara to create and maintain a permanent Japanese style garden as a gift for posterity. 
4. Painted Ladies & Alamo Square: “Painted ladies" is a term used for Victorian and Edwardian houses and buildings painted in three or more colors that embellish or enhance their architectural details. The term was first used for San Francisco Victorian houses by writers Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen in their 1978 book Painted Ladies - San Francisco's Resplendent Victorians
5. Twin Peaks: The Twin Peaks are two hills with an elevation of about 922 feet and are almost exactly located in the center of San Francisco.Except for Mount Davidson, they are the highest points in the city.
6. Castro:
7. China Town: China Town's southern entrance known as "Dragons' Gate" is located on Grant Ave and is a symbol of the largest Chinatown outside of Asia and the oldest Chinatown in North America. Established in 1848 it is popularly known as a "city-within-a-city" and retains its own customs, languages, places of worship, social clubs, and identity.
8. Lombard Street: Lombard Street is best known for the one-way section on Russian Hill which has eight sharp turns known as switchbacks that have earned the street the distinction of being the crookedest street in the world. The switchback design was first used in 1922 to reduce the hill's natural 27% grade that proved too steep for most vehicles.
9. Pier 39:
10. Palace of Fine Arts: is a monumental structure originally constructed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition to exhibit works of art presented there. Today it is a popular attraction for tourists and locals and is a favorite spot for weddings and other such events. It was one of ten palaces and is one of few Exposition buildings still standing
11. Coit Tower: honor's Lillie Hitchcock Coit who donated money to beautify the city of San Francisco. Built in 1933 it stands 210 ft and was constructed in an art deco style. Its base contains fresco murals by 27 different artists. It was designed to resemble a fire hose nozzle due to Coit's appreciation to the fire department and firefighters for saving her life when she was a young girl. She often dressed up as a firefighter and went on every call.
12. Ghiradelli Square:
13. Alcatraz Island: Located just a short distance from the San Francisco shoreline sits one of the most infamous prisons in the country; Alcatraz. While currently a National Park, open to visitors year round, Alcatraz has a storied past as a military fort, military prison, federal prison and Indian occupied during the late 60’s and early 70’s
14. Sausalito:
15. Muir Woods National Monument: Nestled at the foot of Mt Tamalpais is Muir Woods National Monument, one of the last few remaining old growth coastal redwoods. These giant trees and other creatures like the banana slugs survive by absorbing water from the fog that rolls in from the pacific ocean and Redwood Creek that flows through Muir Woods on its way to Muir Beach and the coast.
16. Madonna Estate Wine Tour:
17. Sanoma Valley:
18. Napa Valley:
19. Cline Cellars:
20. Jacuzzi Family Vineyards:
21. Fisherman's Wharf:
22. Cable Car's:
23. Jelly Belly's Factory Tour: Step into the factory and smell the aroma of chocolate, peach, cinnamon, pineapple, or whatever is being cooked up that day. Visit their candy making factory in Fairfield, California. During the 40-minute walking tour, Jelly Belly tour guides will show you a real working factory where we cook up over 150 different sweet treats. Learn the secrets to how we create the legendary Jelly Belly jelly bean and discover why it takes more than a week to make a single bean. website

Other Things to See in California

1. The Tech Museum of Innovation: The Tech Museum of Innovation is a hands-on technology and science museum for people of all ages. The museum consists of three floors, each with its own significance. The ground floor has the IMAX Theater, and an area reserved for special events. The upper level and lower level of the museum consists of four major theme galleries: Communication, Exploration, Innovation and Life Tech. The exhibits at Tech Museum provide information about the latest technology developments in areas of energy efficiency, customization, exploration, and the force of gravity, such as the G-Force.
2. Cabazon Dinosaurs: Have you always been fascinated by dinosaurs? Make sure to check out the world's biggest dinosaur display at the Cabazon Dinosaurs Park. Take a photo with Mr. Rex which is a towering three story concrete beast or climb up D inny, the 150 foot long Apato.
3. World's Tallest Thermometer: Standing 134 feet tall, this monument located at the Death Valley, California's high desert. In 1991, successful businessman Will Herron paid Young Electric Sign Co. to come up with this majestic thermometer as a tribute to the world's highest recorded temperature which is at 134 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. Coronado Beach: Coronado beach located in San Diego, California has been identified as the No. 1 beach by coastal expert Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, a professor at Florida International University. This beach stretches 1.5 miles in front of the iconic Hotel Del Coronado with its pointed red roof and classic Victorian architecture. The beach is famous for swimmers, bodysurfers, sunbathers and sand sculptors. The beach is very flat, making it perfect for taking a romantic walk and the sand gives a silver shine because of the presence of mica.
5. Big Sur & the Pacific Coast Highway: An exhilarating driving experience, this twisting, cliff-hugging, 123-mile (198-kilometer) route along the central California coast takes about five hours to complete at a leisurely pace. Designated an All-American Road—among the nation's most scenic—the drive encompasses both the Big Sur Coast Highway and the San Luis Obispo North Coast Byway. Bixby Creek Bridge, also known as Bixby Bridge, is a reinforced concrete open-spandrel arch bridge in Big Sur, California. The bridge is located 120 miles south of San Francisco and 13 miles south of Carmel in Monterey County along State Route 1
6. Pebble Beach: Located along the Monterey Peninsula is 18,000 acres of land where today stands one of the most world renowned golf courses. It was the vision of Samuel Morse who was hired by the Pacific Improvement Company. Shortly after its grand opening Morse bought the property.
7. San Diego Zoo: renowned for its 3,700 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies, San Diego Zoo is a must for any visit to Southern California. It is also part of San Diego Zoo Global, the largest zoological membership association in the world, with more than a half million members. Three giant pandas, including three-year-old cub Xiao Liwu, reside here, providing a rare sight for visitors. For the best view of the park, head to the Skyfari® Aerial Tram to glide over animal habitats and scope out your next move. website
8. Channel Islands: encompasses five remarkable islands and their ... place where visitors can experience coastal southern California as it once was
9. USS Midway Museum:
10. Joshua Tree National Park:
11. Lake Tahoe:
12. Yosemite National Park: