Spring break near San Francisco

[crl]

Where would you go for spring break near San Francisco? With a nine year o,d and a just turned three year old?

Here's what I've thought of so far

Tahoe. Maybe snow, but maybe not. And if not, probably too cold for mini golf and such.

Monterey Bay Aquarium. We did this before when older ds was 4 and it was lots of fun. But I'm not sure it's a whole week?

Napa? Never been with kids.

Santa Cruz? Never been.

Vegas? Not really a Vegas girl, but cheap, short flights and warm enough to use a hotel pool, right?


Thanks for any thoughts!
Catherine

[citymama]

I love the SC/Monterey area - redwoods, aquarium, good hiking, eating, beach walks. Train rides thru Roaring Camp redwoods near Santa Cruz are wonderful. You might even be able to see elephant seals at Ano Nuevo (or it might be too late in the spring) but you have to sign up soon for that. Big Basin is also wonderful.

Eta that's all one trip!

[SnuggleBuggles]

My family from the Bay Area say:
Rent a house in Stinson Beach
Yosemite
Santa Cruz
A trip down 1 and day trips, down to Santa Barbara

Not Napa- no fun with kids

[Aarohismom]

How about Monterey, Big Sur, Hearst Castle?

[crl]

Excellent suggestions. I am thinking maybe Santa Cruz as a base with a day in Monterey. . .

Any suggestions for where to stay. Maybe I should go check Vrbo.

Thank you!
Catherine

[tny915]

For Santa Cruz accommodations, we stayed at the Dream Inn in June and were very pleased. If you want to swim, the pool is really warmly heated, but the shallow area is pretty small.

Years ago, we rented this lovely house. It's in a residential area of Santa Cruz.
www.dragonflyhouse.com (http://www.dragonflyhouse.com)

[crl]

Thank you!

Catherine

[egoldber]

We did Spring Break in Monterey a couple years ago. :)

We splurged and stayed downtown on Cannery Row, but there are lots of other options. We did day trips all over from there including Santa Cruz, Capitola, Cowell Redwoods state park, etc.

[Snow mom]

Another vote for Santa Cruz/ Monterey. Unless you like winters/snow activities spring break is too early for the sierras or Yosemite. Don't know how the snow is looking this year either because I only care when it melts so I can enjoy summer activities ;)

[crl]

We did Spring Break in Monterey a couple years ago. :)

We splurged and stayed downtown on Cannery Row, but there are lots of other options. We did day trips all over from there including Santa Cruz, Capitola, Cowell Redwoods state park, etc.

What were your favorite day trips? We are thinking seriously about staying in Santa Cruz.

Thanks!
Catherine

[egoldber]

Other than the Aquarium, my kids favorite thing was the Cowell Redwoods. They loved that. They were not so crazy about the beaches, mainly because they are used to the wide, sandy Atlantic beaches.

ETA: We actually spent a day in San Jose visiting old friends. The loved the Tech Museum if you haven't been there. Your DS is the perfect age.

[crl]

Other than the Aquarium, my kids favorite thing was the Cowell Redwoods. They loved that. They were not so crazy about the beaches, mainly because they are used to the wide, sandy Atlantic beaches.

ETA: We actually spent a day in San Jose visiting old friends. The loved the Tech Museum if you haven't been there. Your DS is the perfect age.

Thanks! We have not been there. Sounds especially like a good rainy day possibility.

Catherine

[citymama]

Other than the Aquarium, my kids favorite thing was the Cowell Redwoods. They loved that. They were not so crazy about the beaches, mainly because they are used to the wide, sandy Atlantic beaches.

ETA: We actually spent a day in San Jose visiting old friends. The loved the Tech Museum if you haven't been there. Your DS is the perfect age.

FYI the Henry Cowell redwoods are adjacent to Roaring Camp (where the steam trains are) that I mentioned in my post. Alas, HC has been hit by state budget cuts and is only open on weekends and select days, so check the schedule before you go. Roaring Camp is private. Both are wonderful.

Is the Tech museum the Children's Science museum? It's terrific, but a lot like Exploratorium.

[essnce629]

Years ago, we rented this lovely house. It's in a residential area of Santa Cruz.
www.dragonflyhouse.com (http://www.dragonflyhouse.com)

Very nice! I'm bookmarking this as DBF wants to go to Santa Cruz sometime.

[egoldber]

There is a Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose, which is different from the Tech Museum. We did that too and the kids liked it, but it is like most children's museums, although quite big. If you go there, I would recommend going as soon as they open or after lunch. We were there during spring break week and it was packed with camps. But the camps all left right after lunch.

http://www.thetech.org/

http://www.cdm.org/index.asp?f=1

[crl]

Thanks everyone!

Catherine