Seeker

The Channel Islands are an archipelago of 8 islands in the Santa Barbara Channel, 5 of which were designated the Channel Islands National Park in 1980. Ferry service is available from Ventura Harbor and takes you on an enjoyable 1-2 hour ride through the Santa Barbara Channel—a literal playground for schools of marine life including California sea lions, harbor seals, common and bottlenose dolphins and various species of whales such as humpbacks and blue and grey whales, depending on the season. Channel Islands National Park is comprised of 5 islands: Santa Barbara Island, San Miguel Island, Santa Rosa Island, Santa Cruz Island and Anacapa Island. The second largest island in Channel Islands National Park, Santa Rosa is a popular island and easily accessible by ferry.

The National Park Service controls the recreation and protection of 4 areas: Redwood National Park, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Over 90% of the old-growth redwoods that grew along California’s northern coast were logged in the early 1900s prior to protection of this area. Walk amongst the giant trees at Big Tree Wayside Located right off Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway in nearby Prairie Creek State Park, this short, flat walk takes visitors to “Big Tree”, a 1,500 year old, nearly 300 foot tall redwood. The family-friendly hike at Trillium Falls in Redwood National Park takes you through old-growth redwoods, ferns, fir trees, maples, and trillium flowers to a small waterfall deep in the forest.

If your ideal day includes chilling out on a sun lounger by the beach (Kuta Beach is one of our favorite things to do in Bali), getting a $5 massage before heading out to the bars, and dancing the night away, Kuta could be the perfect place for you to stay. It’s the ideal area for a surfer’s getaway, a lover’s retreat, or a beach bum’s break. Nusa Dua is For: Family Trips, Luxury Resorts, and All the Wining and Dining Nusa Dua, feeling a world away from all of the hustle and bustle happening on the West Coast, is the perfect vacation spot for those looking to indulge in a bit of full-service luxury, and for those dreaming of that quintessential family holiday. Think a little town full of world-class resorts featuring private white sand beaches (home to Gunung Payung: one of the best beaches in Bali) with a calm ocean perfect for swimming, perfectly manicured acres of gardens, water-sports of all kinds, and fine dining overlooking the ocean.

Meanwhile, Central California has a stretch of sunny recreational areas situated along a similar latitude, from Sequoia and Kings Canyon to Pinnacle and Death Valley National Parks, all within reach of Yosemite. There can be nothing in the world more beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of the giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of the Colorado, the Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Three Tetons; and our people should see to it that they are preserved for their children and their children’s children forever, with their majestic beauty all unmarred.” Yosemite National Park topped that list—and is the most-visited national park in California—for good reason. This is no paradisiacal Yosemite and you won’t find any massive redwoods, but that doesn’t mean the rugged desert and its salt flats—like Badwater Basin, which boasts the lowest point in North America below sea level—don’t offer otherworldly views with vibrant colors. A Joshua Tree, the namesake of one of California’s most-visited national parks, isn’t a tree per say, but in fact a rather fragile but tough-looking yucca.