weekender.

Weekend trips from Azusa Pacific

Hidden spots near Azusa, day trips and weekend road trips from Azusa Pacific in November, scored 1–10 on price, timing and what's happening, with gas, park fees, a campsite or room and food included.

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Local finds near campus

Eaton Canyon Falls

Local find · drive 20 min each way
$69.6/10

A creek-hopping walk to a waterfall, 15 minutes from Pasadena.

The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens

Local find · drive 25 min each way
$69.6/10

A garden near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.

California Botanic Garden

Local find · drive 25 min each way
$69.6/10

A garden near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.

Los Angeles

Local find · drive 35 min each way · or train
$79.6/10

Griffith Observatory over the lights, Koreatown at midnight and the Broad's mirror rooms.

Ontario Peak

Local find · drive 35 min each way
$79.6/10

A summit hike near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.

Mount Baldy

Local find · drive 50 min each way
$89.6/10

A 10,000-foot summit above LA, with a ski lift and a lodge serving chili.

Day trips

Palm Springs

Day trip · drive 2h each way
$1910.0/10

Midcentury pool motels, palm oases in Indian Canyons and a rotating tram up the mountain.

Anza-Borrego & Borrego Springs

Day trip · drive 3h each way
$2610.0/10

Giant metal dinosaur sculptures in the desert, wildflowers in spring and a dark-sky town.

Calico Ghost Town

Day trip · drive 2h each way
$2810.0/10

A silver-mining boomtown on the way to Vegas, with a mine you can walk into.

Laguna Beach

Day trip · drive 1h each way
$169.6/10

Hidden coves, tide pools and the Thousand Steps beach.

Vasquez Rocks

Day trip · drive 1h each way
$169.6/10

Tilted sandstone slabs where Captain Kirk fought the Gorn, and a hundred other westerns and sci-fi films. Free.

Palos Verdes

Day trip · drive 1h each way
$179.6/10

Tide pools, a sea arch and the Portuguese Bend coves on LA's quiet peninsula.

Weekend trips

Anza-Borrego & Borrego Springs

Weekend trip · drive 3h each way
$479.9/10

Giant metal dinosaur sculptures in the desert, wildflowers in spring and a dark-sky town.

Salvation Mountain & Salton Sea

Weekend trip · drive 3½h each way
$479.9/10

A hand-painted hill, Slab City's off-grid art town and the eerie shores of the Salton Sea.

Mojave Preserve & Kelso Dunes

Weekend trip · drive 5h each way
$489.9/10

Booming sand dunes that hum when you slide down, and free camping under the stars.

Pismo Beach & Oceano Dunes

Weekend trip · drive 4h each way · or train
$529.9/10
🦋 Monarch butterflies

Drive or sandboard on the only beach dunes you can camp on, then clam chowder in Pismo.

Joshua Tree

Weekend trip · drive 3½h each way
$549.9/10

Twisted trees, boulder scrambles and some of the darkest skies near LA.

Death Valley

Weekend trip · drive 5½h each way
$619.9/10

Salt flats below sea level, rainbow-colored hills and the darkest night sky in California.

Long weekends

Salvation Mountain & Salton Sea

Long weekend · drive 3½h each way
$689.3/10

A hand-painted hill, Slab City's off-grid art town and the eerie shores of the Salton Sea.

Mojave Preserve & Kelso Dunes

Long weekend · drive 5h each way
$699.3/10

Booming sand dunes that hum when you slide down, and free camping under the stars.

Pismo Beach & Oceano Dunes

Long weekend · drive 4h each way · or train
$739.3/10
🦋 Monarch butterflies

Drive or sandboard on the only beach dunes you can camp on, then clam chowder in Pismo.

Joshua Tree

Long weekend · drive 3½h each way
$759.3/10

Twisted trees, boulder scrambles and some of the darkest skies near LA.

Death Valley

Long weekend · drive 5½h each way
$829.3/10

Salt flats below sea level, rainbow-colored hills and the darkest night sky in California.

Valley of Fire (Nevada)

Long weekend · drive 5½h each way
$829.3/10

Swirling red and pink sandstone, petroglyphs and the Fire Wave, an hour past Las Vegas.

Personalize it

Set your budget, how many friends are coming, your car (or no car: train and bus), and what you're into (hiking, beaches, camping, stargazing, food and more), and Weekender re-ranks every trip for you, with a day-by-day plan, directions and campsites.

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