California's 5 Best Under-The-Radar Spots To Visit In Santa Cruz, According To Locals

Santa Cruz, at the northern end of Monterey Bay on California's Central Coast, has been a destination for tourists since the late 1800s. And even today, there's still a plethora of places that draw tourists to this coastal city. There's the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, famous for its historic and high-adrenaline rides, and the nearby Santa Cruz Wharf with its tasty restaurants and views of Monterey Bay. There are quirky destinations like The Mystery Spot, along with beautiful beaches and redwood forests to explore.

All those major tourist attractions can definitely be well worth visiting. But there are other, more under-the-radar places that I came to prefer and fell in love with after living in Santa Cruz for over 10 years. Narrowing down the best of the best in a place that's rich with natural beauty and culture was a challenge, but after consulting friends in Santa Cruz along with social media and travel blogs, these five places made the list (with a couple of honorable mentions).

If you're going to be flying in for your Santa Cruz trip, the closest airport is the San José Mineta International Airport (SJC); it's about a 45-minute drive if the traffic is light. And it's about 90 minutes south of San Francisco International Airport. You can arrange shuttle service or get a rideshare from SJC or even from San Francisco, but you'll likely want to have a car when you're exploring Santa Cruz. Even though there is public transportation, a car gives you a lot more freedom. Some people make Santa Cruz a day trip from San Francisco. But to see all five of these spots and really appreciate them, you'll probably want to stay at least a night or two.

The Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History, aka The MAH, is in downtown. You'll know you're here when you see the suspended red marine buoys hanging outside in an exhibit called "Beacons." Inside, you can see a rotating set of exhibits over three floors that highlight regional history and culture. To get a flavor of what types of things are on display, some of the 2026 exhibits include "High Score: Vintage Arcade Games from the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk", "Surf Live Oak", and "Honoring Our Relatives: Amah Mutsun Botanical Illustrations." There's also a permanent rooftop sculpture garden and history gallery. And for Instagram's @kathleenfitz, who's lived in Santa Cruz for nearly two decades, a perfect day in the city requires a visit to The MAH, per Visit Santa Cruz.

It's $10 for general admission, and the museum is free on First Friday, an event throughout Santa Cruz that promotes local art. After wandering through the exhibits, you can eat at the Abbott Square Market, which is a part of the museum's public plaza. It has multiple restaurants, and it often hosts live music and other events, like trivia and comedy.

The MAH also manages the Evergreen Cemetery, which is an honorable mention for the best under-the-radar spot. It dates back to 1858, making it one of the state's oldest public cemeteries. It's free to visit, and you can take a self-guided tour to see the gravesites of notable early Santa Cruzans, like Belle Dormer, a gold prospector and journalist, and London Nelson, a former slave who settled here in the 1850s and was one of just two Black residents at the time.

Seymour Marine Discovery Center is a working marine laboratory for the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC), and it's open for visitors to discover more about Monterey Bay and the marine research being done at UCSC. Beyond the educational aspect, it's right on the cliffs above the ocean, so it's got great views. One of the iconic symbols of the Seymour Center is Ms. Blue, an 87-foot-long blue whale skeleton that washed up on shore in Pescadero and has been on display since 1985. She's currently being restored with some high-tech 3D printing, and her return is being eagerly awaited, according to Santa Cruz Works. 

Even without Ms. Blue on display, the center is a fun visit. You can get an up-close look at some of Monterey Bay's animals, like an octopus and sharks, and there are some touch pools where you can feel creatures like sea stars and hermit crabs. It's $12 for adult general admission. One Redditor said, "[it's] not [to] be compared with a visit to Monterey Bay Aquarium (also a must), but right here in town, and pretty cool for what it is, especially if you love nature." On Yelp, a Santa Cruzan wrote: "If you are looking for a place to take out of town guests, this is the spot! All age[s] enjoy exploring the center, learning about the bay's marine life."

 Another honorable mention where you can learn more about Monterey Bay is the Sanctuary Exploration Center near the Wharf. It's free to visit, and while it doesn't have the live animals that you can find at Seymour, it has interactive exhibits and short films that teach you about the wonder of the ecosystems right offshore.

Arana Gulch is a 63-acre park in Midtown above the Santa Cruz Harbor. As you walk along the few miles of trails here, it feels as though you have almost left the city altogether, passing through fields of wildflowers in spring and beneath the gnarled limbs of the massive live oaks. And there are benches where you can relax and take in the views out over the Upper Harbor. In short, as one Redditor noted, "Arana Gulch is a treasure."

You can't find many more coastal terrace prairies like it, according to Good Times. You can sometimes see cattle grazing here; they're a part of a plan to protect the endangered Santa Cruz tarplant. The cattle munch on the non-native grasses to help give the tarplants more room to grow. You may be able to see their yellow blooms around June. The gulch area is also home to all kinds of wildlife, and it's a fun place for birding. Keep an eye out for herons along the water and raptors in the open prairie spaces.

If you're up for a longer exploration of this part of Santa Cruz, the Arana Gulch trail connects to the sidewalk that runs along the length of the harbor and out to the Walton Lighthouse. Keep an eye on the water for harbor seals as you go.

Visiting Natural Bridges State Beach is one of the best things for tourists to do in Santa Cruz. It can be busy on a warm weekend, but if you go on a weekday morning, you could practically have the place to yourself. The standout feature at this locally loved beach is the natural rock arch right at the edge of the shore. And if you time your visit for low tide, the tidepooling up along the rocks just above the sandy beach often has sea stars and sea anemones in abundance. It's sometimes possible to walk to the other side of the arch at very low tide; just pay attention to your timing, as you don't want to get caught there when the water rises.

Make a day of it by bringing a picnic to enjoy right on the beach. There are also picnic tables beneath the pine and eucalyptus trees near the visitor center. And each February, the center hosts the Migration Festival; it's a free, family-friendly event that celebrates all the animals that migrate through this area. That includes monarch butterflies.

If you're visiting from around mid-October through mid-February, you may be able to see the overwintering butterflies in the hundreds to thousands in the protected eucalyptus grove at Natural Bridges. Each year is different when it comes to butterfly count, but Natural Bridges has consistently been a great place to see them. And it's quite the sight. A Redditor, who lived in Santa Cruz for 20 years, said that when you go during migration season, "the trees look like their leaves became butterflies." And when it gets above about 55 degrees Fahrenheit, the butterflies will start to fly.

The 44-acre Neary Lagoon Park is just a mile from the often bustling Beach Boardwalk, but as one Yelp reviewer pointed out, it "feels a million miles away from [the] city."

This peaceful escape features a mile-long floating walkway that lets you safely explore the 14 acres of freshwater marsh. Pro tip: bring binoculars — birders like it here because you can see a variety of species, like black-crowned night herons, marsh wrens, wood ducks, and purple finches. It's also habitat for the western pond turtle, the only native freshwater turtle in the state. Along with wildlife spotting, the park has a playground, tennis courts, a pollinator garden, and barbecue pits.

Santa Cruz is known for its accessible natural spaces, like Neary Lagoon, which can be enjoyed pretty much year round. Temperatures rarely go above the mid 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and while it can get rainy and chilly in winter with highs in the low 50s, all you need are the right layers to get outside. You can be birdwatching in a light jacket while much of the rest of the country is buried in snow.

I lived in Santa Cruz for over 10 years, and I know that in the eyes of some who grew up there, I might not be considered a real local. However, I combined my own expertise with that of friends who've been there even longer than I have. I also combed the internet, including Reddit, social media, and local travel blogs, to pick out five of the most fantastic under-the-radar spots that the everyday Santa Cruz tourist might not know about, but that they would likely have fun exploring. Then there's the fact that "best" can be a relative term, so I went with places that received multiple recommendations. And while Santa Cruz has some excellent restaurants, I kept it focused on activities and destinations that help provide a unique perspective on what makes Santa Cruz so special.