I'm taking liberty in describing CA, since I have lived there most of my life. It really depends what scene you are looking for.
South Coast (San Diego up to LA) - lots of people, sun, beaches. Good food. Nice hotels.
San Diego has a hippie scene (Ocean Beach) and an upscale scene (Pacific Beach).
To the east is Anza Borrego Desert State Park which is hot weather, desert flowers, hiking.
Orange County is mostly money. Tons of beaches, and of course Disneyland, Knotts, 6 flags, etc. Laguna Beach is a great town. It has a great art scene.
LA is fashion, food, beaches, big boobs and blond hair. Hollywood. Hummer limos.
North of LA, you have more quiet beach towns. It's really pretty. If you like driving, you can drive hwy 1 up the whole coast of CA and see some really pretty country. Big Sur has some great backpacking.
North of there is the Monterey Bay and Santa Cruz. Monterey Bay is lovely. The acquairium there is very popular and world class. There is great boat trips or kayaking on the bay there. Santa Cruz is a great, hippie/art town. They have a fun boardwalk with rides.
North of there is the Bay Area. San Fransisco is classic, of course. Foggy and cool. Great food. Every kind of museum and activity. Lots of unique neighborhoods.
The East Bay has Berkeley, which is a wonderful college town. Great atmosphere near the college and lots of art and craft to explore.
To the East of the Bay Area is the Sierra Nevada mtn. range. GORGEOUS! The foothills has lots of little mining towns and wineries. The high country is the best. Seqouia, Kings Canyon, Yosemite are all amazing national parks in the mountains. Don't miss Yosemite, period. Tahoe is fabulous, as well. Clear water. Evergreen trees.
To the north of the Bay Area is more rolling hills with woods and lots of hot springs resorts (yay!) and endless wineries. They have a fun wine train.
Keep going north and you get to the big trees (redwoods). Arcata is a lovely town a few hours south of the border of OR. Redwood National Park is there. Great hiking in the quiet woods. Due east of there is some great backpacking and clear rivers.
In the north is Lassen National Park and Mt. Shasta, both of which have some fabulous hiking, mountain biking, and skiing.
Feel free to PM me for details!
