Getting to Santa Cruz

By car:

Santa Cruz is about a 30-minute drive from San Jose and the Silicon Valley, 45 minutes from the Monterey/Carmel area, and 75 minutes from San Francisco. On summer weekends and holidays, the traffic can be heavy (and the drive times longer), so be sure to leave enough time to be able to enjoy everything Santa Cruz has to offer.

Scenic Highway 1 stretches along the breathtaking Pacific Coast and Monterey Bay from San Mateo County in the north to Monterey County in the south. Highway 17 is a beautiful drive from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz through the redwoods and the Santa Cruz mountains.

North:

• The fastest route from San Francisco and other points north is through San Jose: Take Interstate 280 south or US Highway 101 south to CA Highway 85 and then take CA Highway 17 south to Santa Cruz.
• The most picturesque, ocean-side route from San Francisco: Take CA Highway 1 south through San Mateo County and Half Moon Bay to Santa Cruz.

East:

• From Oakland, other East-Bay cities, and Sacramento: Take Interstate 80 west to Interstate 880 south which becomes CA Highway 17 to Santa Cruz.
• From Los Banos, Merced, Fresno, and other points south: Take Interstate 5 or CA Highway 99 to CA Highway 152 west to CA Highway 156 west CA Highway 1 north.

South:

• From Salinas and points south on CA Highway 101: Take CA Highway 183 West to Highway 1 north.
• From the Monterey/Carmel area: Take CA Highway 1 north.

• Real-time traffic conditions and highway webcams in the Santa Cruz County area Regional Transportation Commission's Commute Solutions Traffic Conditions webpage
• Current road conditions by phone, call the CalTrans (California Department of Transportation), (800) 427-ROAD
• Visit the California Department of Transportation website and enter the number of the highway you're taking (e.g., Highway 1, 9, 17, 129, 152, or 156)
• Call 511 or visit http://511.org/ for up-to-the-minute Bay Area traffic, transit, rideshare, and bicycling information, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from anywhere in the nine-county Bay Area

Parking in Santa Cruz:

22 public parking lots are located throughout the city of Santa Cruz. Download a parking brochure (PDF), or visit http://www.downtownsantacruz.com/ for more information.

By bus:

The Amtrak Highway 17 Express bus takes you from downtown San Jose to downtown Santa Cruz in an hour. Santa Cruz Metro buses can help you get around the County from the north coast to Watsonville and around town.

By plane:

The nearest airports for commercial travel include San Jose International Airport (SJC), Monterey Peninsula Airport (MRY), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), and Oakland International Airport (OAK). Watsonville Municipal Airport is a public general aviation airport and  Monterey Bay Academy Airport is a private airport. Shuttle and taxi service is available from all airports.

By boat:

The Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor provides permanent moorage and guest berthing to boaters, averaging 15,000 visitor-nights per year. Santa Cruz Harbor is situated between Monterey Harbor and Pillar Point Harbor of Half Moon Bay. Coordinates of Walton Lighthouse at the harbor entrance are 36° 57’ 36” north, 122° 00’ 06” west.