10 good reasons to travel to California

Traveling to California is not like going to any other corner of the United States. This is the land of pioneers, where the gold rush took hold, the beat generation arose, surfing was reinvented or the dream industry of cinema was manufactured. California is much more than Hollywood or the famous streets of San Francisco and its cable cars. Her bohemian and free spirit, her passion for technology, the good life, good wine and organic food make her different.

It is also a land of wild mountains, giant trees, extreme deserts, beaches for all tastes and huge national parks. Its tradition of cultural fusion is expressed in its cuisine, its diverse cities and its intense artistic life. These are 10 (only 10), of the many reasons we could find to travel to California.

01 To see the movie stars

Los Angeles is a strange city for Europeans and by itself it would be worth the trip. It is not a city to see on foot and the typical “downtown” is missing among so many highways and grand boulevards. But once we get our bearings, we can fully enjoy the multi-cultural neighborhoods and even the red-carpet nightlife of Hollywood.

The richest and the poorest in the United States live in Los Angeles. Its inhabitants include descendants of gold diggers, movie stars and would-be-everythings. LA County is very large and difficult to get to know without a car. In the center, downtown, is the history, culture and the new heart of young artists and professionals who have filled the area with lofts, bars, galleries and restaurants; in Hollywood, to the northwest, we will find artists and film studios and in West Hollywood, chic urban design and the gay community. To the south is Museum Town and to the west is luxurious Beverly Hills, full of masseratis and incredible mansions, the pretentious Rodeo Drive and the Getty Center, at the top of the hill. If we want to go to a tourist beach, we can go to Santa Monica; if we prefer elegant, we have Malibu. Bohemians surely refer to Venice or Long Beach.

02 To walk the streets of San Francisco

The city of freedom and experimentation, of green and technological companies, of the first hippies and the first homosexual community; San Francisco is the flip side of Los Angeles. The 43 hills of the city and the more than 80 artistic venues stimulate the legs and the imagination of the traveler, who in return can enjoy magnificent views. Nearly all of the historic landmarks are in the Mission, while newer and more exciting destinations await in Golden Gate Park. Among the oldest, the Mission Dolores, the most traditional building in the city, standing since 1776; and among the new, the Castro neighborhood, with its rainbow flags and the GLBT History Museum. More essential visits: the Golden Gate Park, the mythical Alcatraz prison, Chinatown and the Ferry Building Marketplace, where we can taste fresh seasonal products.

03 To surf

In sunny San Diego and Orange County you can go on the hunt for the perfect waves. Anyone who has seen the series The OC or Real Housewives will believe that they have already been in these residential neighborhoods that join Los Angeles and San Diego: wealth, aspiration and anxiety in large doses. Many people live in Orange County in style, and so does a thriving arts community that enjoys 40 miles of beautiful beaches. Next to Orange is the poshest beach community, Newport Beach, and beyond that we come to San Diego, where everything is just about perfect: the weather (22 degrees year-round), the beaches and forests, and the (good) standard of living. . It is the ideal place to practice surfing and windsurfing, with many specialized centers and a unique atmosphere. Among the local meccas for surfers: Huntington Beach, the capital, Black's Beach, in San Diego, the beach of Rincón de Santa Bárbara or the beaches of Santa Cruz (Steamer Lane and Pleasure Point).

04 To drink wine and bathe in mud

You can go to Napa to see vineyards, but if you want a really original experience, we can go to Calistoga, where we will enjoy a nice mud bath. Napa Valley is in northern California and is the main wine region in the United States, with many tasting centers designed by prestigious architects (and prices to match). In Sonoma, however, you can sample wines at more affordable and friendly wineries, even meet the viticulturist's dog.

10 buenas razones para viajar a California

There are 230 wineries in this 30-mile-long valley, along three major routes. There are places as curious as the tiny Yountville, a former stagecoach stop that today houses the famous The French Laundry and that has more Michelin-starred restaurants per capita than any other gastronomic corner of the country. In rustic Calistoga, probably Napa's least gentrified town, there are hot spring spas and mud bath emporiums made from ash from adjoining Mount St. Helena.

05 To see the tallest trees

They are in the Redwood National & State Parks, one of the natural spaces of Northern California. This union of Redwood National Park and Prairie Creek, Del Norte and Jedediah Smith State Parks has been declared a World Heritage Site and contains almost half of California's old-growth redwood forests. The entrance to the national park is free while the state parks have a daily fee in some of their areas and the only camping areas allowed. It is wonderful to lean out of the tent and see the colossal trunks of the huge redwoods. Plus, we're right next to a pristine coastline, where redwoods peek over cliffs.

06 To look out over the Pacific

California overlooks this immense ocean in its more than 1,700 kilometers of varied coastline. There are all kinds of coastline: rugged and unspoiled in the north, sophisticated and packed with beautiful people in the south, ideal for surfing, kayaking or strolling. It is difficult to stay with one or the other beach. So we are left with five essentials, according to preferences: Coronado, to sunbathe in the narrow strip of Silver Strand, which closes the bay of San Diego; Huntington Beach, to enjoy beach volleyball; Zuma Beach, with crystal clear waters, foamy waves and fine sand north of Malibu; Santa Cruz, the queen of surfing, with a lively promenade, and Port Reyes, with wild, windy beaches, ideal for spotting wildlife.

07 To discover mountains and deserts

California's diversity ranges from snowy peaks to old-growth forests, and from a sparkling sea to magnificent deserts that also exude a serene spirituality and are visited by bohemians, rockers, movie stars, climbers and off-road adventurers. The mecca is Palm Springs, which in the fifties and sixties was the escape route for Sinatra, Elvis and other great stars. Then it was filled with boutique hotels and works by great architects, and visitors set out to tour the desert cities: from Cathedral City to glamorous Palm Desert, all linked by Highway 111.

To see remote and empty mountains, you have to go to the north of the state, the perfect setting to explore its nature. The backbone of California is the Sierra Nevada, a succession of peaks carved and chiseled by erosion along 643 kilometers. Home to three national parks (Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon), the Sierra is like a wonderland for mountaineers, hikers, and climbers: You can climb the highest peak in the continental United States, Mt. Whitney, from 4,421 meters (second only to Mt. McKinley, 6,194 meters, in Alaska); contemplate some of the highest waterfalls in North America and stand before the tallest trees in the world, such as the General Sherman, the most voluminous, with 83.3 meters high, 11.1 in diameter and a volume of 1,500 cubic meters.

08 To sit at the table

California is one of America's great food destinations, thanks to its fertile land, great chefs, and insatiable appetite for the new. The gastronomic experience in California includes shopping at farmers markets, tasting some of its excellent wines or dining in one of its famous restaurants.

In San Francisco, for example, there are more restaurants than any other city in the country and a true obsession with local and sustainable food. To see for yourself, just make a reservation at places like Chez Panisse (Berkeley), where Alice Waters, pioneer of the organic food revolution, has been cooking since 1971. We're in fusion cuisine heaven (Japanese, Chinese, Hawaiian, French , Hispanic…) and although the most popular flavors are still intercultural, there is now more emphasis on local and sustainable products, such as oysters from Sonoma, champagne from Napa or seaweed noodles from Mendochini. Good references for gastro-travelers are Benu, with ingenious mixes of Eastern classics and the best Western ingredients, and Aziza, with cheerful flavors that mix California with Morocco.

In Los Angeles, where everything is a show, so are some chefs: Matsuhisa, Thomas Keller, Mario Batali or Michael Boltaggio are among the culinary celebrities favored by resident and passing foodies. The city is brimming with farmers' markets, market cafes and great vegetarian and vegan restaurants.

09 To tour the Wild West

In Death Valley National Park we can walk among the dunes and explore the ghost towns of the Wild West, almost like in a movie. Death Valley evokes hellish conditions with its name, but seen up close, you can appreciate its enormous beauty and the irresistible attraction it exerts. It is a land of exaggerations, which holds the national temperature record (57 degrees Celsius), the lowest point of altitude (Badwter, 85.9 meters below sea level) and the largest national park (12,959 kilometers square), except Alaska.

Another encounter with the authentic American West can be found in the Gold Country, the Californian settlement where the mythical Gold Rush began in 1848, with a stampede that attracted more than 300,000 seekers to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. There are preserved small towns that were once violent communities and today live from the sale of antiques and souvenirs of the gold rush.

The more adventurous can take the opportunity to let themselves be carried away by the rapids of the American River and its tributaries.

10 To walk on cliffs

The drive along Highway 1 will take us over sea-sculpted cliffs along Big Sur's rocky coastline. Much has been written about the unspoiled beauty and energy of this rugged 100-mile stretch of coastline wedged to the south of the Monterey Peninsula, but Big Sur is more a state of mind than a place on the map; there are no traffic lights, no banks, no shopping malls. It is not cheap either and it is convenient to reserve the hotels and the entrance to the state parks of the route if we do not want setbacks during the route.

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This is an ideal tour for those seeking different experiences, such as visiting the Esalen Institute, 16 kilometers north of Lucía, famous for its esoteric workshops and baths in hot springs overlooking the ocean. Bohemians have several attractions along the route, such as the beatnik Henry Miller Memorial Library, which in addition to its excellent collection organizes live music concerts and DJ sessions, open mic nights and open-air cinema.

Those who prefer landscapes to closed spaces have fantastic hiking trails that pass through redwood forests, coastal waterfalls and almost virgin landscapes where the waves of the Pacific Ocean break strongly against the cliffs. Another Finisterre, on the other side of the world.

More information at www.lonelyplanet.es and in the Lonely Planet guide to California.

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