I’ve visited the California beach resort of Santa Cruz when I was young enough to eat the fried clams and candied apples without mentally planning two weeks of Atkins, when I was pregnant and too large and nauseous to do anything more than loll on the beach and try not to get mistaken for a distressed whale, when I was celebrating career triumphs, when I was nursing a giant case of professional rejection.
And never once have I had anything but a fine old time.
There is just something about the kitschy, rowdy, unabashedly retro charms of Surf City, USA,* that gets me every time.
Here are some tips if you’re thinking of visiting.
HOW TO GET THERE
About 70 miles south of San Francisco. Take I-280 to CA85 from San Francisco, I-880 to CA 17 from the east side of the bay. Traffic can be hideous, definitely don’t hit 17 at 11 a.m. on a summer Saturday, try for early or late and check traffic apps ahead of time so you’ll at least know what to expect.Once you’re there, map out everywhere you want to go on a smartphone app. This city isn’t built on a grid system and random one-way streets will further mess you up.
WHERE TO STAY:
Splurge: If you’ve got the bucks, the Dream Inn is IT. Every room an ocean view, modern, bright, room service if you want it from the very excellent Aquarius restaurant, fancy in-room coffee machines, nice bathrooms and a fabulous pool/hot tub area overlooking the beach. It’s a short walk from the Boardwalk but distanced from the string of cheap motels and eateries that cluster around the amusement park and it’s bang on the West Cliff Drive hiking/biking path, a picturesque 3-mile cliff-top path that ends at Natural Bridges state beach. (I am old enough to remember when there were actual natural stone bridges at this beach, as opposed to indeterminate hunks of rock.)
Save: If you don’t have the bucks, the Sea & Sand Inn next door to the Dream Inn is quite a bit cheaper (although still far from cut-rate), clean, same views. But take earplugs. Walls are thin and there are metal security gates that clang all night long and will have you tossing and turning and casting your vote in favor of some nice, quiet cat-burglary.
Steal: If you’re really counting pennies, Ocean Pacific Lodge is about a block inland from the Dream Inn/Sea & Sand location. No view and rooms are a bit basic, but clean and so, so much cheaper than the ocean-fronters. Continue reading “Santa Cruz: The complete how-to guide”