From Sacramento, you can reach Yosemite National Park, Lake Tahoe, CA and Napa Valley in only 3 hours or less. Be sure to visit the Sacramento State Capitol – right in the heart of this beautiful city. And, there is plenty more to see and do in the Sacramento area proper. The Railroad Museum, Sutter’s Fort and the Crocker Art Museum are all waiting to be explored. Don’t miss the opportunity to get up close with the giraffes at Sacramento Zoo. But don’t forget there are also many things to see in places nearby. Here are just a few of them to take in on your visit.
San Jose is the gateway to the Silicon Valley. The highlight of any visit to the city of San Jose is surely a visit to the Tech Museum of Innovation. Their hands-on, interactive museum features its own IMAX theatre and exhibits on innovation of all kinds across the eras.
In the afternoon a visit to the Winchester Mystery House makes for a great addition to a day trip in San Jose. The Winchester Mystery House is a quirky, old mansion with a series of rather odd design features that is said to be designed specifically to confuse ghosts. Make sure to look out for the staircase that leads to nowhere.
The El Dorado National Forest is a truly wonderful landscape to explore. Featuring pine forests, tranquil lakes and easily accessible hiking trails; if you want to reconnect with nature this is the place. Sacramento is a hustling, bustling city and as such El Dorado National Forest provides a welcome contrast. It is possible to camp overnight at this National Forest should you arrive and not want to leave.
That El Dorado National Forest is a quiet park and never overcrowded or particularly busy, means that often day trippers have the hiking trails all to themselves. Pretty perfect indeed.
Truckee is a small, sleepy Californian town with a heap of hidden gems to explore. The Emigrant Trail Museum shares fascinating insights into the history of the region and has some really interesting artifacts on display too. Donner Memorial State Park also makes for a relaxed afternoon stroll. Perhaps if you’re feeling a little more energized, you can take a walk around Donner Lake itself. Truckee is best known as a ski town and there is a great selection of ski trails that tower over the town.
Northstar, California is the most popular ski resort, closely followed by the Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area.
In addition, Rainbow Bridge located in Folsom, CA, is only about 40 minutes northeast from Sacramento. The Rainbow Bridge – now part of Greenback Lane – connects Folsom's historic district with the easternmost part of the city and nearby Orangevale. The structure itself is a vast concrete arch - the fourth-largest arch span in the world at the time it was built, according to the city of Folsom.