Spectacular California, also called the Golden State, is perhaps known best for the San Diego Zoo, the Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, and Hollywood. But California is home to several smaller towns that have unique attractions, as well. From quaint Julian, just over an hour northeast of San Diego, to stunning Crescent City, around twenty miles south of the southern border of Oregon, these towns possess some awesome natural, historic, and cultural attributes that encourage people to visit over and over again. Here are 12 of the small towns in the state of California that were ranked among U.S. favorites in 2025.
Dunsmuir – Siskiyou County
Mossbrae Falls in the Shasta Cascade in Dunsmuir, California. Image credit JoeRoe via Shutterstock.
The town of Dunsmuir is home to some stunning waterfalls, including Hedge Creek Falls and Mossbrae Falls. Known by the locals as Dunsmuir Falls, Mossbrae Falls is considered to be one of the best waterfalls in northern California, cascading over 50 feet into the Sacramento River. Hedge Creek Falls, with a 30-foot cascade, has a trail that allows visitors to pass behind the waterfall itself.
Dunsmuir is also home to its own botanical gardens as well. Within the environs of Dunsmuir City Park, these fabulous gardens possess a variety of gorgeous plants and ornamental trees, including Japanese maples and Shasta lilies. There are also several historic markers in the area, including one at a nearby ballpark where Babe Ruth once played baseball.
Jamestown – Tuolumne County
A historic building in Jamestown, California. Editorial credit: travelview via Shutterstock.com.
East of New Melones Lake, Jamestown has a variety of attributes that showcase history as well as nature. From the Jim Town Gold Mining Camp, where you can mine for gold along Wood’s Creek, to Railtown 1897, with some vintage steam engines and a working roundhouse, history is fully portrayed in Jamestown. Railtown 1897 even offers a “Polar Express” hour-long train ride for kids of all ages during the holiday season.
Some cultural attractions near Jamestown include several vineyards and wineries, like Arthur Michael Winery and Gianelli Vineyards. And, for those who appreciate the beauty of nature, the Red Hills Recreation Management Area offers horseback riding and hiking on several great trails, like the Serpentine Loop and the Red Hills Loop.
Laguna Beach – Orange County
Sunset over Laguna Beach, California. Image credit James Kirkikis via Shutterstock.
The town of Laguna Beach, just outside of Los Angeles, is perhaps one of the more popular towns along the Pacific coast, possibly due to its multiple stunning beaches. Treasure Island Beach and Victoria Beach are both quite close. There is Monument Point, a part of Heisler Park, with two memorial plaques and a time capsule as well, offering leisurely walks through stunning gardens.
Laguna Beach is also home to Crystal Cove State Park, which is located just north of downtown. Having some awesome attributes and activities, from hiking El Moro Canyon Loop to primitive and coastal bluff top camping overnight with friends or family. Plus, in case you are looking for more interaction with nature, the Pacific Marine Mammal Center is also in Laguna Beach.
Murphys – Calaveras County
Vineyard in Murphys, California.
Home to several vineyards and wineries, from Val Du Vino Winery to Brice Station Vineyards, the town of Murphys has a cultural thread that allows guests, as well as locals, to enjoy the community spirit. With this many phenomenal vineyards in and around this town of just under 2,000 people, those who love to experience nature through wine establish the town of Murphys as a place to visit.
Murphys is also home to Mercer Caverns, offering a taste of history to the north of downtown. Not only were the remains of native Americans from the Mi-Wuk tribe, which were 1,500-2,000 years old, found by Mercer and his fellow explorers in 1885, but they also discovered the bones of an extinct Sierra Ground Sloth, said to be over seven feet in length and weighing around 140 pounds.
Calistoga – Napa County
Old Faithful Geyser in Calistoga, Napa Valley, California. Editorial credit: Iv-olga via Shutterstock.com
Calistoga, an hour and a half west of Sacramento, is home to natural attractions well worth seeing. The Petrified Forest, west of town, and Old Faithful Geyser of California, north of downtown, both call this small town home. The Petrified Forest consists of petrified Redwood trees over 3 million years old. The 80-foot Old Faithful Geyser, a slightly smaller version of the 140-foot Old Faithful Geyser in Wyoming, erupts several times every day.
The Robert Louis Stevenson State Park is another natural attraction in the area. Located to the north of town, this park has some awesome hiking trails. Along with being a part of the Mount Saint Helena Trail, it is home to the Robert Louis Stevenson Memorial Trail, which climbs Mount Saint Helens to its majestic summit and offers panoramic vistas of San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.
Mendocino – Mendocino County
The stunning coastline of Mendocino, California.
Further up the coast of the Pacific Ocean lies the town of Mendocino. It is home to Russian Gulch State Park, named to honor fur trappers from Russia. This awesome park has several great amenities, including hiking the Waterfall Loop, which passes 36-foot Russian Gulch Falls, as well as camping within a stunning redwood canyon.
Mendocino Headlands State Park is also near town, around the same distance south from town as Russian Gulch is to the north. Some of Mendocino Headlands State Park’s amenities include hiking, fishing, and painting. Featuring 70-foot bluffs that offer a panoramic view of the Pacific, this park may possibly have more painters and photographers visiting its environs than any other park in northern California.
Half Moon Bay – San Mateo County
The Half Moon Bay boardwalk in California at sunset
Half Moon Bay, situated 30 miles to the south of San Francisco, is home to a plethora of pristine beaches, including Mavericks Beach and Miramar Beach. It is also home to several state beaches, like Half Moon Bay State Beach. With all the beaches situated along this particular region of California, there is no wonder that Half Moon Bay is one of the towns ranked as a favorite in the United States.
Half Moon Bay is also home to several historic attributes that encourage people to return, like it being the oldest settlement in the county of San Mateo. Along with the International Order of Oddfellows Cemetery, first opened in 1865, another famous landmark in Half Moon Bay, the James Johnston House on Higgins Canyon Road was built in the mid-19th century and is now a museum honoring his success in the California Gold Rush.
Crescent City – Del Norte County
Battery Point Lighthouse in Crescent City, California, USA, during a low tide, in the early morning.
Home of Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, the quaint town of Crescent City is located just south of the Oregon border, across the Klamath National Forest from Yreka, California. Named after the explorer who was the first American to travel from the Mississippi River to California, this state park has many great scenic hiking trails. The Grove of Titans trail even includes 1,500 feet of elevated boardwalk designed to protect the forest floor.
Some other features of Crescent City include Battery Point Lighthouse, first lit in 1856 and is one of the first lighthouses along the California coast, and Ocean World, located just outside of downtown. This amazing aquarium features sharks, sea lions, sting-rays, and seals. Some attributes to Ocean World include “Touch and Feel” tide pools, Seal & Sea Lion performances, and the chance to actually pet a real-life shark.
Tahoe City – Placer County
The Welcome to Tahoe City sign in Tahoe City, California.
On the western shore of Lake Tahoe, the tiny town of Tahoe City has several attractions that will appease everyone. Home to Inspiration Point Vista, which looks out over stunning Emerald Bay, and several awesome scenic hiking trails in the area, including Eagle Falls Trail, there is no end to the beauty one can see. Eagle Falls Trail passes by both Lower and Upper Eagle Falls.
Crescent City also has a historic thread through buildings like the Hellman-Ehrman Mansion, which was first constructed in 1903 in Sugar Pine Point State Park, and the Gatekeeper’s Museum. With engaging exhibits on certain dogs of the area, like the dog associated with Snowshoe Thompson, the original Lake Tahoe mailman, and Heidi the Dachshund, which took third place in a dog sled race in Kings Beach in 1962, Tahoe City is an informational wonder.
Julian – San Diego County
Main road in Julian, California.
Sixty miles northeast of San Diego, the town of Julian is home to some intriguing historic attractions, including Eagle and High Peak Mines, which were two different mines in 1870 but banded together just after World War I, and the turn of the century Julian Gold Rush Hotel. Now a bed & breakfast with its own restaurant, a fitness center, and a fireplace in the lobby, this 1897 establishment is one of the oldest continuously running hotels in Southern California.
Julian is also home to a plethora of natural attractions. Both the Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve, with a 5-mile round trip hiking trail, and the California Wolf Center, dedicated entirely to the study and care of the California Wolf, call Julian home. There is also Lake Cuyamaca, just south of town, offering hiking throughout Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, as well as options to fish and boat.
Cambria – San Luis Obispo County
The charming coastal town of Cambria in California.
Home of Moonstone Beach and Leffingwell Landing, the small town of Cambria is a nature lover’s paradise. Leffingwell Landing, to the north of Moonstone Beach and a part of Hearst San Simeon State Park, offers a great vista of the majestic Pacific. There are a variety of hiking trails in the vicinity, as well, including Berry Trail, Bluff Trail, and the Fiscalini Ranch trails.
There are also several art galleries in and around Cambria, including the Vault Gallery, Garden Shed, and Ephraim Pottery. Some phenomenal farmers markets are also in the area, like Cookie Crock Market and the Cambria Farmers Market. The historic East Village has several commemorated buildings as well. The Red House, built in 1899, is the only remaining building to have been built by the Chinese.
Eureka – Humboldt County
Historic downtown of Eureka, California.
The most populated of the towns on this list, the town of Eureka, just north of Humboldt Bay, is home to several natural amenities that urge people to return to this part of the Pacific coast. From the Redwood Highway, also called the Avenue of the Giants, to Humboldt Botanical Garden, to Humboldt Bay itself, all of these wonders of nature can be thoroughly enjoyed by every member of the family.
Humboldt Botanical Gardens, with almost 50 acres of land, features stunning vistas of Humboldt Bay and the Pacific Ocean, as well as 10 gorgeously-tended scenic gardens. These include the Dedakam Ornamental Terrace Garden, the Arnot Family Garden of the Four Seasons, and the Moss Family Temperate Woodland Garden, the last allowing the more tender of the plants in the Botanical Gardens to flourish along the California coast.
Whether you wish to take a hike through majestic forests to view awe-inspiring works of nature or just want to wander around a breath-taking garden, there are some truly gorgeous natural attractions in the sunny state of California. From the spectacular botanical gardens, situated in Eureka, with a multitude of species of flowers and plants, to the exhilarating Mosbrae Falls of Dunsmuir, the attractions within some of the small towns in the Golden State are some of the best ranked towns off the Pacific Ocean.