Top Five Day Trips from San Francisco

by Graham Charles

Sometimes you just need to get out of town, y'know? My wife and I used to love to spend a weekend up- or down-coast, meandering through antiques stores or just walking the Central Coast beach.

Then naps happened. Our two-year old daughter Fern never really sleeps in cars, so we've had to get very strategic about how to manage a day trip. Usually we leave really early and just hope for a nap-of-exhaustion on the way home, or else stretch the definition of "day trip" and actually stay the night somewhere.

Anyway, here are my personal favorite day trips with a preschooler from San Francisco:

• Monterey. The Monterey Bay Aquarium, obviously, is beyond fantastic -- we could spend days there -- but the rest of town is also worth a visit, not to mention the great beaches and tidepools down in Carmel or at Point Lobos State Reserve.
• Oakland. Like so many San Franciscans, I find the bay a psychological block, but I shouldn't. Although it might seem a little close to be called a "day trip," Oakland has a lot of fun spots for kids, from the Oakland Museum of California to Children's Fairyland down by Lake Merritt.
• San Jose Children's Discovery Museum. Ten years ago I would have expressed surprise if you'd told me I would ache to go to San Jose, but now that we've located this wonderfully interactive science museum, I want to go as often as possible. Definitely worth the trip south.
• Point Reyes. Great beaches and outdoor exploration. See the lighthouse, elephant seals, birds, and whales, and -- best of all -- enjoy the most remote plate of fish and chips ever at the Drake's Beach snack bar. You can even pick up some oysters from the farm on your way home, if you're so inclined, or stop for a quick shop in Inverness.
• Tilden Regional Park. In the hills between Berkeley and Orinda, this wide park offers lake swimming, a little farm, trails and general outdoor fun.

So there you go -- when we want to take a day out of town, that's what we do! How about y'all -- any great day trip destinations you want to share?