Situated in the southwest of America on the Pacific coast, California’s northern neighbour is the State of Oregon and to the east Nevada and Arizona.

The State capital is Sacramento, worth a visit in its own right – especially Old Sacramento, Sutter’s Fort and the State Railroad Museum.


Crocker Museum, Sacremento

Despite the need for irrigation during the summer months agriculture and viticulture play a significant role in California’s economy along with revenue from oil, electronic technology and tourism. San Francisco’s Silicon Valley, where many leading companies have based their head offices, provides the world with computers and sets the pace for the business world of IT.

The State is packed with attractions for holidaymakers - there is the lure of Disneyland; California’s stunning National Parks; its wine growing regions and the resorts along the Pacific coast. Visitors also come to explore Los Angeles to see Beverley Hills and the film sets, and to discover the charms of San Francisco.

Early visitors to the State were the Forty Niners – the hoping-to-get-rich pioneers who made their way to the Sierra Nevada when gold was discovered in 1849. Today’s visitors to the Sierra Nevada come to climb mountains. Mount Whitney is the highest mountain in the state at 14,495 ft.

Los Angeles and beyond

125 miles away from the border with Mexico, the vast sprawl of Los Angeles has grown from small beginnings on the riverbank where the original settlers put down roots in 1781. Downtown marks the spot, but you can travel for miles around the enormous freeway system and still be in Los Angeles, which is, in effect, a huge collection of suburbs linked together.

Spend a night on the famous liner Queen Mary at Long Beach, take in the glamour of Hollywood and Beverley Hills or lose yourself for days at Disneyland. The Golden Triangle especially Rodeo Drive is full of expensive shops and restaurants. Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame is where 2,000 polished stars mark the visits by the film greats of the past. The Hollywood Bowl in the Hollywood Hills is where the Los Angeles Philharmonic has been playing every summer since 1922. Palm Drive and surrounding streets of Beverley Hills is where you will find the mansions of today’s celebrities.


Famous sign in Hollywood Hills

In Santa Monica you can see The Getty, the museum built with the oil millions of J. Paul Getty. In addition to its breathtaking contents, it has a commanding and beautiful location in the Santa Monica Mountains. Palisades Park is on the cliffs in Santa Monica, and The Binoculars, the office building designed by Frank Gehry, has to be seen.

Sea World is in San Diego County and San Diego itself has a very attractive downtown Gas Lamp Quarter. It also has a world famous zoo, with conservation and the provision of closest-to-natural habitat for its inmates its priority.


Hearst Castle, San Simeon

Half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco, is Hearst Castle at San Simeon, the extraordinary folly and home of the late media tycoon William Randall Hearst. Take in the wild beauty of the magnificent Big Sur stretching along the central coastline, call in at Monterey and Carmel. Death Valley in the south east is popular with tourists and Furnace Creek Visitor Centre offers accommodation and facilities.

San Francisco

San Francisco’s Gothic Grace Cathedral sits atop Nob Hill, the steepest of the city’s many hills. It is a good starting point as the panoramic views act as an aerial map. You can ride there on the cable car. These famous cable cars were designed by Andrew Hallidie to cope with the steep slopes of San Francisco after a horse-drawn tram slid down one of them. The first cable car ran in 1873. At the height of their success, some 600 cable cars were in use, but now only three of the original lines have been retained, one of them being the Nob Hill route.


Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

Cross over San Francisco’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge; unwind in the beautiful Golden Gate; see Alcatraz Island from the ferry; pay a pilgrimage to the Haight Ashbury district, which was the heart of the Flower Power Summer of Love in1967 and rock focus of the world. Go and see the incredible redwood trees in Muir Woods and the black squirrels that live there.

Include a visit to Union Square, the heart of shopping land, and admire the graceful Victory monument in the Square and don’t forget Fisherman’s Wharf with its trendy and bohemian restaurants and shops.

For information on the many airports serving California visit www.VisitCalifornia.co.uk

For up to date visa requirements visit www.projectvisa.com