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The Most Beautiful Places in California to Visit

The most beautiful places in California to visit span from the Napa Valley wine country in the north to the glamorous beach towns of Santa Barbara, Malibu and Los Angeles in the South. California is one of the most diverse and beautiful states in the USA, so there is more than enough to visit in California to justify multiple trips just to this state alone! Ancient redwood forests, dramatic coastlines, deep beaches, rugged mountains and world renowned wine country is just the beginning. Relax in glamorous seaside beach towns, explore powerhouse cities and wander through charming college towns as you make your way through the most famous state in the USA.

Planning a trip to California can be overwhelming, because there are so many beautiful places to visit and things to do see and do. When I was researching my own travel to California, I was surprised by how many places I found that I hadn’t heard of before – they might be locally known, but I’d never heard of them in Australia! To help you plan your own trip to this lovely part of America, I’ve rounded up the most beautiful places in California to visit.

Related: The Best Places in the USA to Visit

The Most Beautiful Places in California

Click to jump to:

  • Big Sur
  • Santa Barbara
  • Carmel-by-the-Sea
  • Los Angeles
  • Solvang
  • San Francisco
  • Napa Valley
  • Sonoma
  • Santa Maria Valley
  • Monterey
  • Malibu
  • Los Angeles

Big Sur

With rugged coastlines, crashing waves and the rolling fog, Big Sur is one of the most beautiful places in California. Big Sur is a stretch of California’s Central Coast, between Carmel and San Simeon. Wedged between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Lucia Mountains, it’s one of the most beautiful scenic drives in the world.

I travelled through Big Sur as part of a California road trip between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and can’t recommend it more!

Read more: Big Sur Road Trip

Big Sur Highlights

  • The Bixby Bridge
Big Sur in California

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara is California’s answer to the French Riviera. This chic seaside town is more glamorous than your average beach town, with the prices to match. Striking Mission Revival architecture, towering palm trees and the dramatic Santa Ynez mountains make Santa Barbara one of the most beautiful places in California. The wide, sandy beach and the rolling Pacific Ocean are just the icing on the cake!

Santa Barbara is less than a 2-hour drive from Los Angeles, making it easy to visit on a day trip from the city.

Santa Barbara, California

Carmel-By-The-Sea

Carmel is tucked away on the coast of Northern California, between San Francisco & Big Sur. This tiny, wealthy seaside town is kind of like NoCal’s version of The Hamptons, with the summer traffic to match!

Despite the crowds, Carmel is one of the most beautiful places in California, and is worth a detour. I particularly loved the beautiful Romantic Spanish Revival and Arts & Crafts architecture.

Carmel is a 2-hour drive from San Francisco, so it’s an easy overnight trip from the city.

Carmel-By-The-Sea, California

Los Angeles

Los Angeles conjures up images of smog, highways and traffic jams, so I was surprised to find such a beautiful city on my first visit. My favourite spots are the Griffith Observatory and Runyon Canyon, which both play up the city’s natural beauty. Perched in the Hollywood Hills, the Griffith Observatory offers beautiful views over Los Angeles, and is especially beautiful at sunset. Runyon Canyon is a beautiful spot for a city hike, and offers loads of beautiful vistas over the city. I love the stark beauty of Los Angeles’ desert-like, rocky hills, and think it’s one of the city’s most attractive qualities.

If you know where to look, it’s easy to understand how Los Angeles can be considered one of the most beautiful places in California.

Read more: 3 Days in Los Angeles

Highlights from Los Angeles, California

  • Griffith Observatory
  • Runyon Canyon
  • Venice Beach
Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles

Solvang

Solvang is unlike anywhere else in California. In a state scattered with Spanish names, Solvang stands out like a sore thumb. Most Danish immigrants to American in the 19th century flocked to the Midwest, where you can still find lots of Northern European heritage today. In the early 20th century, some of these immigrants decided to flee the brutal Midwestern winters, and settle in Southern California instead. In the 1940s, enterprising town planners decided to play up this heritage with windmills and Danish architecture. None of it’s authentic, but it’s surreal – and very pretty!

Solvang is 2.5 hours outside Los Angeles. There’s not enough to do and see here to justify a day trip in its own right, but you could pair it with a trip to wineries in the Santa Maria Valley or lunch in Santa Barbara to make a day of it.

Related: 6 Charming Small Towns in the USA

Solvang highlights

  • Danish bakeries!
Solvang, California

San Francisco

Once known for free love, the Beat movement and a visionary literary scene, today San Francisco is more closely associated with Silicon Valley and our super rich social media overlords. San Francisco is facing some big issues these days, but it’s still a beautiful city full of big ideas.

Read more: Three Days in San Francisco

Highlights in San Francisco

  • Street art in The Mission
  • Chinatown
  • Golden Gate Bridge

Napa Valley

The Napa Valley is not only the most prestigious wine regions in the United States, but it’s also one of the most beautiful places in California to appreciate wine country. It’s just a couple of hours outside San Francisco, so it’s possible as a day tour or weekend trip from the city.

Sonoma

The Napa Valley’s little sister used to get overlooked in favour of prestigious Napa vineyards, but today Sonoma is recognized as one of the best wine regions in America too. Sonoma, which includes the Sonoma wine region and the town of Sonoma, is one of the prettiest small towns in California and a perfect day trip from San Francisco. It’s right near Napa, so you can visit both in the same day or on the same weekend trip.

Santa Maria Valley

California is full of wine regions, beyond the household names of Napa and Sonoma. Just outside Santa Barbara, the beautiful Santa Maria Valley is a lot less touristed and has a very cool, down to earth feel. It reminded me of Australia’s Yarra Valley wine region!

Monterey

Monterey is a seaside town in Northern California that has had it’s fair share of the pop culture spotlight. John Steinbeck’s Depression-era novel Cannery Row was set in Monterey, when it had a thriving fishing industry. Reese Witherspoon’s recent adaption of Big Little Lies put Monterey on the map once again, but now as an enclave of wealth and privilege. Monterey still has a beautiful harbor, and a rickety old pier with a retro seafood shack and wholesale seafood. From the pier, you can spot seal lions splashing in the water and sunning themselves on the rocks, or under the pier.

Highlights of Monterey, California

  • 17 Mile Drive
  • Fishermen’s Wharf
Seal spotting at Fishermens Wharf, Monterey

Malibu

Malibu is one of the most iconic beach towns in California. Just outside of Los Angeles, Malibu is known for glamorous, multi-million dollar celebrity homes and a chic SoCal lifestyle. We stopped by on the drive into Los Angeles, coming from Santa Barbara.

Highlights from Malibu, California

  • Malibu Pier
  • El Matador Beach
Malibu Pier

Santa Monica

I wasn’t expecting one of the most beautiful places in California to be what must be the state’s busiest beach. Santa Monica is just outside Los Angeles, and thanks to urban sprawl it’s basically part of the same city now. I was totally unprepared for how gorgeous it would be! The Pacific Ocean, the mountains and the palm trees are almost too much.

Santa Monica Highlights

  • Santa Monica State Beach
  • Pacific Park
  • Santa Monica Pier

Where is the most beautiful place in California you’ve visited? Are you planning a trip to anywhere on this list? Use either of the Pinterest tiles below to save this post for later

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