Cool Places to Stay to Make this Summer Special
Summer vacation has started for so many families in California! School is out and summer is rolling in. Are you ready for the fun?
Make it a Californian vacation if you are not traveling overseas to visit family and friends. There is so much to see and do right here, and summer especially is the perfect time to go and experience California inside-out.
Take your family on the spectacular scenic route along the coast, on the famous Highway 1, covering San Francisco all the way to Santa Barbara or even San Diego. Along the way take in not only the stunning views but also some history, and visit some of California’s historical treasures, the early missions. The “Queen of the Missions” you’ll find in Santa Barbara, but don’t miss the one in Carmel, which was the 2nd California mission built in Moorish design in 1770, and the one in San Luis Obispo, which has a rare collection of early California photographs.
Along the way stop in one of the following quite unusual lodgings. They are for sure not your typical hotel, but you will undoubtedly add character to your trip!
Live The Life Of The Wild West
Would you like to go back in time and experience living like the Indians or does the life of an early American settler during the Gold Rush appeal more to you? Along the Coast you can settle in for some great adventurous overnight stays, 
and choose between staying in furnished tepees at Ventura Ranch KOA in Santa Paula or having a camp out in covered Gold Rush wagons arranged around camp fire pits at Rancho Oso Guest Ranch & Resort .
If this is too rustic for you and you would rather have it a bit more luxurious, give Flying Flags RV Resort a try. Vintage Airstream trailers still give you the feeling you are camping, but you can enjoy all the amenities of our modern times. In these glamorously restored and updated vintage Airstream models you’ll get the latest in technology like an iPad bar, and you can enjoy a 21st century camping vacation in an iconic setting.
Staying Aboard But Not In The Open Ocean
Okay, early California life is not for you, but you have always dreamed of owning your own vessel, and you wish nothing more than to be rocked to sleep softly by the waves . Dockside Boat & Bed in Long Beach offers you just that. Feel like a captain for a night. The quite different Bed & Breakfast Inn offers a variety of boat types to chooses from, from luxurious to cozy. Located near the Convention Center many Long Beach attractions can be reached on foot.
The queenly neighbor of Dockside Boat & Bed Inn is just around the corner. Queen Mary, historic ocean liner gone hotel, let’s you step back in time. 
Originally built in 1936 the luxury liner did 1001 transatlantic crossings and is now berthed in Long Beach. Book one of the historic staterooms for a night and feel like going on a transatlantic voyage during the 1940’s. The location is prime, close to the Aquarium of the Pacific, Shoreline Village and the revamped downtown of Long Beach. The Queen Mary Hotel offers an all-round experience, so while you are aboard make sure to check out the various tours that bring alive the glamorous history of this majestic ocean liner. It might give you a glimpse into why the Queen Mary has been voted one of the Top 10 Most Haunted Places in America!
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Photos: Tepee by Ventura Ranch Koa; Queen Mary by Twentieth Century Ocean Liners .