California
California is a diverse state on the western seaboard of America that contains some of the most wonderful scenery on Earth. Within its borders are snowy mountains, stands of giant Redwood trees, low and high deserts where life survives blistering daytime temperatures and freezing nights, glitzy Hollywood the home of the movie industry and laid back beach cities where life slows to the ebb and flow of the Pacific Ocean.
The state contains both the highest and the lowest points in the contiguous US (i.e. excluding Alaska and Hawaii). Mount Witney stands at 14,459 feet above sea level and Badwater in Death Valley is 282 feet below sea level.
To get a sense of scale, California covers an area of 158,693 square miles in comparison to the UK's 94,500 square miles. The distance between Los Angeles and San Francisco is around 500 miles, about a 9 hour drive. In total, the coastline from its northern border with Oregon to its southern border with Mexico stretches some 1,264 miles.
Explore Further
For fun and thrills there is Disneyland and the Californian Adventure in Anaheim. If you fancy some shopping then where better to go than the internationally acclaimed South Coast Plaza & Metro Pointe at Costa Mesa.
San Diego as well as being a fascinating city is also home to Sea World.
No holiday is complete without a visit to one of the famous Southern California beaches such as Venice Beach, Newport Beach or Huntington Beach.
Also take a look at the Californian deserts, missions and the breathtakingYosemite National Park.
When you've had enough sightseeing and want to unwind then you must try the beautiful island of Santa Catalina just 26 miles away from Los Angeles.
Getting There
Two major gateways and more than 90 non-stop flights from the UK each week make getting to California easy. A wide choice of daily services to Los Angeles and San Francisco from Heathrow is offered by British Airways, American Airlines, United Airlines, Air New Zealand and Virgin Atlantic.
Flight times are about 10 hours and 50 minutes to San Francisco and 11 hours 15 minutes to Los Angeles. Good connections are also available with other carriers via US cities such as Chicago and New York City.
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), is located 19 miles from the city’s downtown area and 32 miles from Anaheim. Free shuttle buses link the airport with Aviation station on the Los Angeles MetroRail system, which serves Long Beach, Hollywood and Downtown LA. Free shuttles also operate to the airport’s bus station. Shuttle buses offering door to door services to the city’s hotels-pick up and drop off in front of each terminal. Taxis are also plentiful.
San Francisco International Airport (SFO), 13 miles from the city’s downtown area. The local BART light-rail system has also been expended to the airport allowing easy access to the city centre. There is also a 24 hour bus service to the city. Journey time to downtown is 30 minutes.
Road traffic in the cities can be heavy, particularly during morning and evening rush hours when journeys often take at least double the normal length of time.
National Parks
Channel Islands National Park
Ventura, CA
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley, CA
Joshua Tree National Park
Southern California between I-10 and Hwy 62; headquarters in Twentynine Palms, CA
Lassen Volcanic National Park
Mineral, CA
Redwood National and State Parks
Del Norte & Humboldt counties , CA
Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park
Richmond , CA
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
San Francisco, CA
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
In the southern Sierra Nevada in Tulare and Fresno counties, CA
Yosemite National Park
the Sierra Nevada, CA
National Preserves
Mojave National Preserve
Southern California between I-15 and I-40; headquarters in Barstow, CA
National Monuments
Cabrillo National Monument
San Diego, CA
Devils Postpile National Monument
the Sierra Nevada near Mammoth Lakes, CA
Lava Beds National Monument
Tulelake, CA
Muir Woods National Monument
Mill Valley, CA
Pinnacles National Monument
Paicines, CA
National Historical Site
Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site
Danville, CA
Fort Point National Historic Site
Presidio of San Francisco, CA
John Muir National Historic Site
Martinez, CA
Manzanar National Historic Site
Independence, CA
National Memorials
Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial
Concord Naval Weapons Station, CA
