Do
Natural Bridges State Beach
Iconic rock arch, tide pools, and the best sunset spot on the Westside.
$·Westside·half-day
scenicchilllocal
Guide
Best Places to Take Out-of-Towners
Updated March 2026
Every Santa Cruz local has the out-of-towner problem. Someone visits and you have to figure out what to actually show them. The tourist playbook is boring (Boardwalk, Mystery Spot, wharf clam chowder), and the "I'm too cool for tourist stuff" playbook means your guests don't see anything memorable. The right answer is somewhere in between: the genuinely great stuff that happens to also be uniquely Santa Cruz.
The formula I've landed on after years of hosting visitors goes like this: start with the best coffee they've ever had, blow their mind with redwoods, feed them food they didn't expect, show them the coastline, and end with beer that ruins them for their hometown brewery. It works every single time. I've had friends from New York, Portland, and LA all admit that their day in Santa Cruz was the highlight of their California trip. That's not hype — that's just what happens when you skip the tourist traps and show people the real stuff.
One important note: resist the urge to cram too much in. Your visitors don't need to see everything in one day. Pick three or four things from this list and do them well. They'll remember a long lunch at Laili and an unhurried walk through the redwoods way more than they'll remember being dragged to eight locations while you narrated the history of every building on Pacific Ave.
1
This is the beach you take people to. Not the Boardwalk beach, not Capitola — Natural Bridges. The rock arch, the tide pools, the monarchs in season. It's the Santa Cruz that makes people understand why you live here.
2
Place not found: henry-cowell
Walking through old-growth redwoods hits different when you're showing them to someone who's never seen one. The grove loop is short enough for anyone and impressive enough to make jaws drop. This is a non-negotiable stop.
3
Place not found: laili-restaurant
The meal that makes your visitors say 'wait, this is in Santa Cruz?' Afghan-Mediterranean food that would be a destination in any major city. This is where you take people to prove the food scene here is real.
4
Place not found: west-cliff-drive
Walk them from the lighthouse toward Natural Bridges. The surfers at Steamer Lane, the ocean views, the seal rock — it's all free and it's all genuinely stunning. This is the postcard that sells the town.
5
Drink
Verve Coffee Roasters
Santa Cruz's homegrown specialty coffee brand that actually lives up to the hype.
$$·Downtown·1hr
socialchilllocal
Start their Santa Cruz education here. Verve is legitimately one of the best coffee roasters on the West Coast and it started right here. Your visitors will become insufferable about coffee quality after this. Worth it.
6
Place not found: sante-adairius
If your visitors drink beer, this is mandatory. SARA is world-class and people fly from other states to drink here. It's in a strip mall in Capitola because Santa Cruz doesn't care about appearances.
7
Place not found: boardwalk
Okay fine, take them to the Boardwalk. But do it for one ride on the Giant Dipper (a legit historic wooden coaster) and then leave. Don't eat there. Don't spend the whole day there. One ride and out.
Updated March 2026
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