Easy Weekend Getaways

Looking for that special getaway to put a bit of spice back in things? There are options for the mountains, desert or the coast depending on your desires. Lake Tahoe is always a great getaway with vistas of the Sierra Nevada mountains along with the clear blue of the lake. A train ride to Las Vegas turns a routine trip into a fun journey. Santa Cruz offers the chance to enjoy the beauty the California coast has to offer.

South Shore of Lake Tahoe

Tahoe makes a great getaway anytime of year. During the winter, there is world class skiing at Heavenly, Alpine Medows, or Kirkwood. During the spring and summer, Lake Tahoe itself becomes the attraction. It provides a chance for boating and water skiing with the breathtaking backdrop of the peaks of the High Sierra. For the indoor recreation enthusiast, there is a strip of casinos on the Nevada side of the lake. The casinos regularly host concerts in their intimate venues.

Most of the lodgings are in walking distance of both the lake and the entertainment, so it is great for walking hand in hand on a brisk evening. A shared kiss at the lake as the sun sets is an incredible experience.

Las Vegas by rail

If there is a stereotypical place to get away it is Vegas. However, with the onerous hassles at airports these days, there is another way to get there, and that is via rail. Well, the entire trip isn't by rail, but rail to LA, then a Throughway Motorcoach the rest of the way into Sin City. The rail trip is a throwback to a time gone by when the journey was about more than the destination. No traffic to deal with, and a chance to sit back and enjoy an alcoholic beverage and watch the scenery roll by.

When staying in Vegas, I recommend being away from the Strip. The downtown casinos along Fremont Street offer more of the character of Old Vegas, before the corporations took over. Enjoy the light show in the ceiling of the Fremont Street Experience with your arm around a lover.

Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz is a wonderfully offbeat city. It offers some of the best coastline for playing in the ocean in Northern California. It is being surfed nearly year around. The weather is nearly always perfect. There is the world famous Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, which offers an amusement park on the beach. It was once considered the Coney Island of the West Coast. Along the Santa Cruz pier, there are shops and a chance to get a good look at sea lions which are everywhere.

Away from the coast, the downtown of Santa Cruz is quirky. It is there that the college town atmosphere comes out with brew-pubs and cafes nearly everywhere. The majority of the businesses are still mom and pop type family owned shops.

Whether in mountain, sea, or desert, there are weekend getaways to be found within a few hours of Northern California. Its not just the destination that makes for a great getaway, but the journey.