In San Diego, the weather is warm, and the sun shines brightly, even in January. As a family favorite for years, San Diego is a haven for outdoors-loving families and animal lovers. From its beaches to its parks to its…
Palm Springs, California, blends mid-century cool with outdoor adventure. Visitors will find stunning desert scenery, a national park and an airplane museum. The serene desert makes an ideal winter getaway with bubbling springs near Joshua Tree; it’s a quick weekend…
East of Los Angeles, the Mojave Desert is the world’s largest protected desert. In the rain shadow of the towering pine-covered mountains about 100 miles west, Mojave National Preserve features creosote and Joshua trees. Located between Interstates 15 and 40,…
Death Valley National Park is more pleasant than the name implies, and due to its unforgettable name, it became famous in movies,. This Southern California park is a warm winter escape that offers hiking, biking, scenic drives and even a…
Colorful trees pop against crisp mountain air; head for the hills this fall. You’ll find granite-topped mountain peaks, towering evergreens and pops of yellow, orange and even red. Get outdoors with a hike, then make it a weekend with camping.…
Joshua Tree National Park is minutes from Palm Springs in Southern California and offers hiking, bouldering, night sky viewing and camping. Conveniently located off Interstate 10, this national park is easy to drive through. You can also explore Joshua Tree…
Southern California is an outdoor lover’s dream. Travelers can choose from desert hikes to tide pool hunting to camping. Hard to believe that a national park is less than four hours from Los Angeles. From the beach to the desert…
Claremont, a Los Angeles suburb, offers some of the top colleges in the U.S. With a walkable downtown and the colleges clustered together, it’s easy to see the best of Claremont in a couple of days. If your student wants…
This Northern California gem boasts fewer crowds than the national parks of Southern California. Lassen Volcanic National Park is known for its majestic mountain scenery covered in evergreens, like the more southerly Sequoia or Yosemite. Located in the Cascade Mountain…
Straddling the border of Nevada and California, Lake Tahoe is a top lake destination in the U.S. as a year-round destination. Boating, mountain biking, hiking and historic tours are top summertime activities. Tahoe, as the locals call it, beckons everyone,…
On the northern side of Lake Tahoe, Incline Village is one of the largest communities in the Lake Tahoe Basin. From hiking to kayaking to biking, visitors can enjoy the Sierra Nevada mountain views in every direction. As the largest…
Take a road trip through the U.S. this summer for spectacular scenery. Using its scenic byways, you can see Maine’s rugged Atlantic coast to the coffee-growing coast of Hawaii. From the top of Colorado’s fourteeners to the hills of South…