weekender.
Weekend trips from Sacramento State
Hidden spots near Sacramento, day trips and weekend road trips from Sacramento State in November, scored 1–10 on price, timing and what's happening, with gas, park fees, a campsite or room and food included.
Plan your own trip from Sacramento State →Local finds near campus
Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area
Free: thousands of geese and sandhill cranes in winter, and millions of bats leaving the causeway on summer evenings.
Sacramento
Gold Rush boardwalks in Old Sacramento and the farm-to-fork capital's food halls.
Folsom & American River
Rafting and paddleboarding near Sacramento, and Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison museum.
Carpenter Hill
A summit hike near campus, found in OpenStreetMap.
Day trips
Lake Berryessa
The 'glory hole' spillway drain that looks like a portal in the lake.
Nevada City & South Yuba
A gaslit Gold Rush town and emerald swimming holes on the South Yuba River.
Sonoma Valley
Bike between family wineries, then picnic on Sonoma's mission plaza.
San Francisco
Mission burritos and murals, cable cars, the Castro and fog rolling over Twin Peaks.
Columbia State Historic Park
Pan for gold and ride a stagecoach in a preserved 1850s mining town.
Calistoga & Napa
Volcanic mud baths, an erupting geyser and the valley's grand wineries.
Weekend trips
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
Nevada City & South Yuba
A gaslit Gold Rush town and emerald swimming holes on the South Yuba River.
Bodega Bay & Sonoma Coast
Where Hitchcock filmed The Birds: whale-watching headlands and secret coves.
Muir Woods & Mount Tam
Old-growth redwoods in a canyon, then the sunset over the fog from Mount Tamalpais.
Big Sur
McWay Falls dropping onto a beach, Bixby Bridge and the purple sand at Pfeiffer Beach.
Angel Island
A ferry to a car-free island with 360° bay views and the immigration station's poems.
Long weekends
Monterey & Carmel
Sea otters on kelp, 17-Mile Drive and Carmel's fairytale cottages.
Big Sur
McWay Falls dropping onto a beach, Bixby Bridge and the purple sand at Pfeiffer Beach.
Hearst Castle & San Simeon
A newspaper tycoon's hilltop castle with a marble pool, and elephant seals below it.
Ashland (Oregon)
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Feb–Oct, cheap student rush tickets) in a small town with no sales tax.
Solvang & Los Olivos
A Danish-style village with windmills and aebleskiver, next to Santa Ynez wine country.
Ojai
An artsy valley known for its 'pink moment' sunset and an outdoor bookstore.
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.
Find my trips from Sacramento State →