Santa Cruz (and the surrounding area) over the years
Marc works in Santa Clara quite often. Sometimes I go along and we stay in Santa Cruz. It’s about an hour commute, but Marc likes the change from the boring hotels in “Silicon Valley.”
We stay at the Dream Inn. All rooms in this retro-chic hotel have a balcony or patio overlooking the ocean.
We’ve been to Santa Cruz several times. Here are some odds and ends of photos taken over the past few years:
We always stay in Dream Inn’s tower rooms (taller building on the left). The building in front (with the big windows) is the hotel restaurant.
The time we got upgraded to a suite
Looking to the left from our balcony and looking to the right from our balcony
We often eat at one of the restaurants on the wharf
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Amusement Park
I love the West Cliff Drive walking path that stretches 3 miles from the Municipal Wharf to Natural Bridges State Beach. Though it runs alongside the road, it’s directly on the ocean with fantastic views of the sea and surfers.
I usually walk at least as far as the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse on Lighthouse Point (which houses the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum)
Downtown area of Santa Cruz
UC Santa Cruz Arboretum & Botanical Garden
Roaring Camp Redwood Forest Steam Train
Day trip to Half Moon Bay – November 2018
Smokey drive. This was a horrible year for California wildfires, including the deadly “Camp Fire.”
Point Montera
Half Moon Bay Coastside Trail
You can see the smoke in the air here as well. We parked in the 25-space parking lot on the left side of Miramontes Road, as you’re driving up to the Ritz-Carlton, and walked the southern part of the trail between the lot and the Ritz. You can also park at the Ritz, which provides public parking for the coastal trail in one of their parking garages. I understand the trail extends a lot farther to the north of the Ritz, but it’s a bit more rugged.
