Top 10 Tourists Attractions to Visit in California
The State of California is the most attractive and visited place in the United States of America. Lucrative beaches, vibrant nightlife, top-rated amusement parks, and natural wonders make California an intriguing land of possibilities for Americans and international travelers.
San Francisco and Los Angeles need no words to explain their splendor and remain home to the most striking tourists landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge, Hollywood, and Disneyland.
California is prominent among travelers for its national parks, all-encompassing mountainous terrain, lush forests, deserts, beaches, and coastal areas. Whether you’re traveling for some family fun or accomplishing your adventurous appetite, California has all the fun in the world for you.
Read more to discover some of the top attractions we suggest you must visit during your visit to this great state.
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park, located in northern California, is the most beautiful and visited national park in the United States. Magnanimous mountains, lush green valleys, fast-flowing rivers, spectacular waterfalls, and turquoise lakes have attracted tourists, artists, and adventurists for decades.
Yosemite Falls, Half Dome, and El Capitan are some of the most famous landmarks. However, the Tioga and Glacier Point Roads lead to alpine areas, sightseeing points, and scenic driveways.
The best way to enjoy this marvelous park is by hiking, trekking, camping, or guided day walks.
The Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is the iconic landmark of San Francisco. Tourists love visiting this gigantic suspension bridge that spans over 2.7 kilometers, connecting to the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.
If you’re interested in spanning the bridge on foot and knowing more about it, San Francisco City Guides offer free walking Bridge tours twice a week.
Disneyland
This massive amusement park is a dreamland for children and adults to enjoy. There are theme rides, games, shows, entertainment areas containing recreated worlds and cultures, and gastronomy options.
The park consists of nine unique themed areas: Main Street, Adventureland, Frontierland, New Orleans Square, Critter Country, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Adventure Park, and Mickey’s Toontown.
It’s recommended that you reserve your rides and entertainment events in advance to avoid the long lines, which will make your enjoyment seamless.
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley is the largest park in the U.S. outside of Alaska. The extremely difficult and inhabitable terrain of Death Valley has not only made it strange, but attractive and beautiful. Dry mountains, snowcapped peaks, barren sandy fields, dry patched land, amazing rock formations, vast salt fields, and a lake lying below sea level are great features to visit in the valley.
Stovepipe Wells, Badwater Basin, Zabriskie Point, and Dante’s View are several accessible dunes for the adventurous appetite.
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
The Central Coast of California is famous for its beautiful natural stretches. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park is the region’s top highlight, where camping and hiking remain popular among visitors. There’s waterfalls like Pfeiffer Falls, sunbathing sites, well-maintained camping areas, and several natural escapes.
Big Sur is a place where dreams come true for nature lovers.
Lake Tahoe
In the Sierra Nevada Mountain range, Lake Tahoe is the most stunning feature that travelers focus on throughout the year. It’s not simply a lake, but a picturesque and breathtaking water body circumference by pine forests and small beautiful towns. Turquoise coves, a deep blue lake, a snow-capped backdrop, and some sandy beachfront equally draw families and travelers during the summer and winter seasons.
Hiking trails, camping grounds, and skiing resorts are the main focus for adventurous tourists.
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park are known for housing the largest and some of the oldest trees on earth, some more than 2,000 to 3,000 years old. The parks cover 1635 square kilometers and 1869 square kilometers, respectively, and are home to majestic mountains, granite peaks, deep gorges, deep blue lakes, fast mountain rivers, and lush green pine and sequoia forests.
You need a week to explore what these parks offer. Sequoia National Park is unarguably the best attraction in the state to explore walking trails. Kings Canyon National Park is more rugged and barren, with fast rivers, jagged peaks, and wilderness where you can avoid crowds and have a tranquil trip.
Redwood National and State Parks
Walking through the dense forest with towering trees up to 300 feet takes you to a wonderland. These redwood trees are a treat to watch and remain one of the greatest treasures of California.
Stretched along the Northern California Coast Redwood National Park, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park offer great adventure opportunities and natural landscapes to admire.
Stout Grove, Lady Bird Johnson Grove, Fern Canyon, Gold Bluffs Beach, Avenue of the Giants, Boy Scout Tree Trail, and Elk Meadows are some of the highlights of Redwood National and States Parks.
Joshua Tree National Park
A landscape filled with Dr. Seuss-like Joshua trees, gigantic granite boulders, eye-catching rolling mountains, and an almost lunar-like terrain, Joshua Tree National Park is more like a children’s storybook. Visitors grade the Park as a magical and spiritual place that you only come to know when you visit the site.
The park is a land of many walking and hiking trails, bisected roads like the Park Boulevard and the Pinto Basin Road, and a combination of vegetated and barren land. Park Boulevard is the most traveler-attracting section of the Joshua Tree National Park.
Hidden Valley Nature Trail, Keys View, Barker Dam Trail, Cholla Cactus Garden, Skull Rock, and Ryan Mountain Hike are some of the highlights you must note in your to-do list if you wish to enjoy the park optimally.
Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal Studios Hollywood Park is the perfect vacation spot. From routine roller coasters to theme-based rides, it has a lot to offer in between. Tour huge movie sets on studio tours like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Fast and Furious – Supercharged, Jurassic World, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, and The Walking Dead.
Your best bet is to purchase a Skip the Line ticket, which would allow one-time fast entry to each ride and show, saving you time and energy for more. To feel more like a VIP, you can get a guided tour of the studios and see what’s going on behind the scenes of some popular movie sets.