Visits are by guided tour only, with tours leaving multiple times an hour (tour regularity depends on time of year). The attraction is a lot of fun, especially if you are visiting Santa Cruz as a family. The attraction features a house built upon a specific location, where you can see all sorts of odd things happening, like balls appearing to roll uphill. The Mystery Spot has been a popular attraction since the 1940s, and is today listed on the California Registry of historical places. This is a very popular and fun attraction just outside the city, where you can appear to witness the laws of gravity bending before your very eyes! Now for a few locations outside of Santa Cruz, starting with the Mystery Spot. These include the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History, The Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, the Seymour Marine Discovery Center, Santa Cruz’s Children’s Museum of Discovery, Capitola Historical Museum and the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Exploration Museum.Īs you can see, whatever your interests may be, we are sure you will find a museum you will enjoy in Santa Cruz. If you’re interested in visiting a museum whilst in Santa Cruz beyond the surfing museum, the city has plenty of options for you to consider. Bring a neutral density filter for some great long exposure opportunities! There’s an excellent view of the sunset from the vantage point carpark above the beach, but my favourite spot was down on the beach itself looking at the arch, with the sun setting off frame. This is a 65 acre national park, with the highlight being that natural bridge out in the water, which is coated in birdlife, including pelicans and cormorants. If you continue along the West Cliff Drive Road for a couple of miles, you’ll come to the Natural Bridges State Beach National Park. Because I like sunsets, natural beauty, and taking pictures of both of those things. Ok, so this was my favourite thing to do in Santa Cruz. No guide to what to do in Santa Cruz would be complete without mentioning one of the cities most famous activities – surfing! If a surfing museum sounds a bit dry for your tastes, then just hop into the water below, at the aforementioned Steamer Lane surfing hotspot, which is just below the lighthouse.Īccess is easy to this well known spot, and it’s believed that the modern day surfing wetsuit and leash were developed here by Jack O’Neill, who had his shop just nearby.īeyond Steamer Lane, there are 10 more locations you can surf at in Santa Cruz, including the legendary Pleasure Point, so you certainly aren’t going to be bored, whatever your level. This is around a 15 – 20 minute walk from the pier, and features all kinds of information on the history of surfing, from its origins in Hawaii as well as the 100 years or so of surfing history in Santa Cruz itself. If you want to learn a bit more about the history of surfing though, you should take a moment to drop in at the Santa Cruz surfing museum in the Mark Abbott Memorial lighthouse, found on Lighthouse Point. Sure, you won’t get the white knuckle thrill rides of some of the larger parks in California, but there is a wooden roller coaster and numerous more classic fairground attractions to keep you entertained.Īll of West Cliff Drive is worth visiting, as it offers excellent views of the pier and city, not to mention giving you the chance to watch the surfers playing in the waves of “Steamer Lane” down below. This is California’s oldest amusement park and is free to enter, with payment on a per ride basis. The takeaway fish and chips is a popular option, just watch out for hungry gulls…īack on dry land and just next to the wharf is another classic attraction, the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. It’s also offers up a good variety of places to eat, many of which specialise in seafood of course. It’s just celebrated its centenary, and offers gorgeous coastal views, not to mention sea lion spotting opportunities. Further Reading for your Visit To Santa CruzĬertainly one of the most popular activities to do in Santa Cruz is to take a walk out on the west coast’s longest pier.
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