A Local’s Guide to the Top Weekend Trips from San Francisco
Whether you are living in the San Francisco Bay Area and want a short getaway, or traveling to SF and want to explore some of the top California cities around, this guide is for you! Being born and raised in the Bay Area, these are tried and true weekend trips from my own and friends+family experiences.
1. Napa Valley | Sonoma County
Driving Time from San Francisco: 1 hour 30 minutes
At the top of the list is having a wine weekend away in either Napa or Sonoma. This is the perfect relaxing weekend to splurge on a spa-day and wine tastings at world-class vineyards. Although both small-town feels, you’ll find the more prestigious wineries in Napa and the more locally-visited, affordable wineries in Sonoma (but by no means less beautiful!).
You can expect to pay anywhere from $50 to $150 for a wine tasting, pending on the winery and tasting package you select. I highly recommend making a reservation in advance as many no longer take walk-ins and will be booked weeks out. For a tasting hack, I recommend purchasing a bottle from a winery where you have not done a tasting but want to visit. When purchasing, they will typically let you sample the wines on their list and explain the history/key notes of the wine as they would in a tasting. You’ll get a tasting and bottle of wine for sometimes less than a winery’s tasting fee!
My Top Pick Wineries:
- Beringer Vineyards (Napa) – The oldest winery in Napa and now a California historic landmark.
- Chateau Montelena (Napa) – A beautiful stone castle with a Japanese garden, lake, and vineyards on property
- Gundlach-Bundschu (Sonoma) – The longest family-owned winery in California, boasting organic wines and a beautiful property and views.
- Ram’s Gate Winery (Sonoma) – This is a converted rustic barn turned into a beautiful winery spot for tastings.
2. Carmel-By-The-Sea | Big Sur | Monterey
Driving Time from San Francisco: 2 hours 30 minutes
Although each worthy of their own article, all three are lumped into this section as they can be done together in one weekend. Coming from SF, you’ll first hit Monterey which has the famous aquarium and many of the more tourist shops and restaurants along Cannery Row. Just a 15-minutes drive North, you’ll hit Carmel which is one of the cutest seaside towns in California. Ocean avenue is lined with numerous cafes, boutique hotels, and local shops before reaching the white-sand beach at the end. And then 30 minutes further up on Highway 1, you’ll begin the famous drive to Big Sur.
The Best Things to Do:
- Stroll along Ocean Avenue in Carmel to window shop, walk through art galleries, and enjoy a great meal. I highly recommend eating lunch at PortaBella and then stopping at the Cottage of Sweets next door for dessert!
- Rent bikes! Go for a bike ride through Monterey on the designated path alongside the beach. Make a pit stop for ice cream at Revival Ice Cream (get their award-winning Bee’s Knees flavor)!
- Drive up Highway 1 to the iconic Bixby bridge and then up to many of the cafe’s along the highway with breathtaking views of the water.
For booking a place to stay, I recommend looking at Monterey for more affordable options as this area can be quite expensive. For a more unplugged weekend getaway, I recommend booking one of the boutique inn’s nestled into the trees along the Big Sur Drive.
3. Half Moon Bay
Driving Time from San Francisco: 1 hour
Half Moon Bay is a beach town just south of San Francisco with numerous beaches, great hiking trails, and a quaint downtown area. The only caveat to this beach getaway is that you’ll likely be bundled up rather than tanning on the sand. The weather is typically overcast with a chillier breeze, albeit you can find sunny days here if lucky with timing.
Accommodations: I personally recommend Costanoa Lodge, which is “glamping” with various price points and experiences, for a real unplug from the city. You can pick an accommodation from a tent bungalow to a full cabin with a central lodge that everyone on-site can use. Only 10 minutes from the beach, it is still nestled into the wilderness with a spa and restaurant on-site with food from their organic garden.
Food Stops: An absolute must on this list is getting lunch at The Barn along Highway 1. They have farm-fresh food, fresh fruit milkshakes, and a cute outdoor picnic area. I personally recommend the “Cluck-Cluck” sandwich and their seasonal fruit milkshake (I would travel to Half Moon Bay just to get one of these)!
Top Activities:
- Stop by Highway 92 Succulents to walk through the nurseries; my favorite is Half Moon Bay Lavender!
- Have a picnic at the beach – I recommend Montara State Beach or Mavericks
- Go horse-back riding
- Hike the HMB Coastal Trail
- Visit the Farmer John’s Pumpkin Farm or Arata’s Pumpkin Farm in the Fall (Half Moon Bay is actually the pumpkin capital of the world!)
- Visit the flower fields along Highway 1 if visiting around February or April
4. Lake Tahoe
Driving Time from San Francisco: 3-4 Hours
Lake Tahoe is a top weekend trip from San Francisco in both the winter and summer. You’ll get to trade the city-life for the lakeside, cabin life just a few hours drive away. In the summer, I highly recommend embarking on some of the hikes and doing some lake activities.
In the winter, visit Northstar Village for ice-skating and s’more-making around the fire pits and enjoy world-class skiing/snowboarding at many of the resorts in Tahoe. I recommend opting for a hotel in Incline Village to be central to many of the ski resorts or to rent an Air BnB if going as a larger group.
5. Sausalito
Driving Time from San Francisco: 30 minutes
Sausalito is just over Golden Gate bridge, offering views of the San Francisco skyline and giving Amalfi Coast vibes with houses lining the hills. While a small town, this is absolutely worth visiting to eat at one of the incredible waterfront restaurants and walk along Main Street.
6. Capitola | Santa Cruz
Driving Time from San Francisco: 2 hours
Santa Cruz is really one of the gems of Northern California. As you drive down to Santa Cruz, you’ll drive along the windy road of Highway 17 which is nestled between the redwood trees. Santa Cruz has everything from the Boardwalk, Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Garden of Eden, and the town of Capitola.
I recommend basing yourself in Capitola, which looks straight out of a European coastal town, with colored houses lining the beach and a beach town with laid-back restaurants, ice cream spots, and shops. I recommend spending one day at the beach and another exploring Big Basin or Garden of Eden!
