With a laid-back surfer vibe and famous for its boardwalk and a wide range of watersports such as windsurfing, Santa Cruz (pop. 63,000) on Monterey Bay also has a great downtown for restaurants, shopping, and entertainment. Fantastic for an overnight or longer!

And it's just one of the enticing stops on Tripatini member Teresa Brashear's post A Fantastic California Road Trip: San Francisco to Carmel.

Matt314