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Weekend trips from Cal State San Bernardino

Hidden spots near San Bernardino, day trips and weekend road trips from Cal State San Bernardino 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

Oak Glen

Local find · drive 1h each way
$710.0/10
🍎 Apple picking

Apple orchards in the mountains above Yucaipa: pick your own and apple pie, September to November.

Mount Rubidoux

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

Riverside's sunrise hill, topped with a stone bridge and a peace tower.

California Botanic Garden

Local find · drive 40 min each way
$79.6/10

A garden near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.

Lake Arrowhead

Local find · drive 35 min each way
$89.6/10

A pine-forest lake an hour from campus, with the Heaps Peak trail and fall colors.

Ontario Peak

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

A summit hike near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.

Lake Perris

Local find · drive 45 min each way
$119.6/10

A swim beach and boulder-climbing at Big Rock, 25 minutes from Riverside.

Day trips

Palm Springs

Day trip · drive 1h each way
$1710.0/10

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

Anza-Borrego & Borrego Springs

Day trip · drive 2½h each way
$2510.0/10

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

Calico Ghost Town

Day trip · drive 1½h each way
$2610.0/10

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

Joshua Tree

Day trip · drive 2½h each way
$3010.0/10

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

Big Bear Lake

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

Snowboarding at the closest real ski resort to LA, or kayaking the lake in summer.

Los Angeles

Day trip · drive 1½h each way
$179.6/10

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

Weekend trips

Salvation Mountain & Salton Sea

Weekend trip · drive 3h each way
$4410.0/10

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

Anza-Borrego & Borrego Springs

Weekend trip · drive 2½h each way
$469.9/10

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

Mojave Preserve & Kelso Dunes

Weekend trip · drive 4½h each way
$469.9/10

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

Joshua Tree

Weekend trip · drive 2½h each way
$519.9/10

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

Death Valley

Weekend trip · drive 5h each way
$599.9/10

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

Valley of Fire (Nevada)

Weekend trip · drive 5h each way
$599.9/10

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

Long weekends

Salvation Mountain & Salton Sea

Long weekend · drive 3h each way
$659.4/10

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 4½h each way
$679.3/10

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

Death Valley

Long weekend · drive 5h each way
$809.3/10

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

Valley of Fire (Nevada)

Long weekend · drive 5h each way
$809.3/10

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

Kern River (Kernville)

Long weekend · drive 3½h each way
$689.0/10

Whitewater rafting through a granite canyon, a few hours from LA.

Alabama Hills & Lone Pine

Long weekend · drive 4h each way
$699.0/10

Free camping among the rock arches where hundreds of westerns were filmed, under Mount Whitney.

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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