California is a destination par excellence for health-minded travelers who expect more from their holiday than just a hotel gym (or those looking to simply unwind). Few other places can offer such an ideal combination of wellness benefits, like the Golden State, thanks to consistently sunny days for all-season outdoor activities, a holistic approach to California cuisine that starts with the farmer, and a trove of natural resources to revitalize and nurture body and mind.
What’s more, these self-care options are never too far from reach. Travelers can access majestic hikes right in the heart of Hollywood and find secluded yoga retreats just minutes from Orange County’s major cities. Enjoy healthful eating all over the state, from the buzziest restaurants to the most modest of diners.
Whether self-betterment is the primary goal or upgrading your California adventure with extra adrenaline, there are seemingly a million diverse ways to enjoy this state mindfully. Here are just a few of our favorites.
Shop farmers’ markets from Los Angeles to San Francisco
Vendors at San Francisco’s Ferry Building offer the best of the Bay.
Courtesy of Visit California
For more than 50 years, California has consistently paced the rest of the country in agricultural output, but it’s not only about quantity. Whether almonds or artichokes, baked goods or biodynamic wine, California quality is also beyond compare.
Opportunities abound throughout the state to taste the goods directly from growers and makers. The Original Farmers Market always offers something interesting in Downtown Los Angeles. Santa Monica’s market has a rotating calendar with exceptional vendors.
San Francisco’s Ferry Building is a delightful place to enjoy local products like Pacific oysters, artisan sourdough, and coffee all week long, and it has its own colorful farmers market in the plaza outside every Saturday. Further north, from May through September, Point Reyes hosts a weekly marketplace featuring organic summer crops, handmade goods, and the local cheeses that put the Marin County community on the map.
Eat at farm-to-table restaurants in San Diego, Ojai, and beyond
Fresh, colorful cuisine—that’s healthy, too—abounds in California.
Courtesy of Visit California
Though it has many influences and flavor profiles, California cuisine always makes the most of the state’s excellent farms, allowing local ingredients to take center stage with a simple, sustainable, and healthy approach to fine dining. In a state with more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other, it’s hard to choose only a few. Perhaps the most highly lauded is in San Diego, where Addison constantly pushes the limits of what Southern California cuisine can be.
For vegan gastronomy, Oakland’s Millennium Restaurant has been at the forefront for two decades and remains popular with all kinds of eaters. In Los Angeles, look to n/naka for extraordinary kaiseki-style tasting menus that combine California’s best ingredients with an innovative approach to Japanese cooking. Ojai’s Ranch House has served fresh, plant-centric cuisine in an accessible fine dining environment since 1956.
Eco-friendly shopping in Los Angeles
California retail is the epicenter of eco-chic.
Courtesy of Visit California/David Collier
Southern California bursts with designers and retailers driven by an earth-friendly ethos, from independent boutiques to eco-conscious chains. Located in Los Angeles’ Westside, Beverly Center is an eight-story shopper’s paradise with sustainable shops, including Wolford and its Cradle to Cradle Gold Certified™ bodywear and Earthbound Trading Co., an outpost for healing crystals and bohemian looks.
Further south, Costa Mesa’s South Coast Plaza is known for its boutiques, including Reformation, Los Angeles’ go-to source for sustainable women’s fashion, and a branch of the historic Florentine apothecary, Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella. Near Newport Beach, Fashion Island is an open-air mall on the coast where shoppers can stock up on California-inspired activewear at Vuori or browse the soothing botanicals at Saje Natural Wellness.
Visit spas and hot springs in Los Angeles and Palm Springs
There are many ways to unwind in Palm Springs.
Courtesy of Visit California/David Collier
Whether it’s a post-workout recovery session or a much-needed wind down after a busy day, California has many pathways to well-being. The hot springs of the Coachella Valley are a natural source of rejuvenation dating back centuries. Desert travelers can soak in style at one of several outstanding resorts, including Sensei Porcupine Creek in Rancho Mirage and the Spa at Sec-he in Downtown Palm Springs.
Located steps from Los Angeles’ ever-electric Sunset Strip, the 1 Hotel West Hollywood’s new Bamford Wellness Spa offers a full menu of alternative treatment options, like an Infrared Crystal Sauna and binaural acoustic and dynamic stimulation therapy. Pendry Newport Beach features CBD pain relief massages and cryotherapy sessions from a spa just a few feet from the sea.
Self-care on the coast
Finding calm in the woods at Alila Ventana Big Sur
Courtesy of Visit California/Max Whittaker
One of the first dedicated yoga studios in the United States opened in West Hollywood in 1947, and California has continued to be a haven for devotees of the practice ever since. Guests at Alila Ventana Big Sur can find their center with starlit “cosmic” yoga, then turn in for the night in an elegant cottage immersed in an ancient redwood forest.
In the hills above San Luis Obispo, Sagrada Wellness hosts a wide-ranging calendar of themed retreats combining yoga with other sources of mindfulness, like Qi Gong and poetry workshops. Santa Monica studios like Beach Yoga SoCal lead barefoot yoga sessions on the sand. Retreats at the Pearl Laguna feel exceptionally secluded and restorative despite being only 30 minutes from Disneyland.
Hike in Southern California
The views in Griffith Park are a worthwhile reward, to say the least.
Courtesy of Visit California
From the Hollywood sign to the most widely viewed telescope on the planet, Los Angeles’ Griffith Park already has more going for it than the average public park. There’s no better way to explore its 4,130 rugged acres than by foot on one of its many hiking trails.
Further south, Laguna Beach’s Crystal Cove State Park is popular for dolphin sightings and marveling at the diverse marine life in its tidepools. Go north for the wilds outside of Palm Springs—from Indian Canyons to Joshua Tree—with waterfalls, palm oases, and excellent topography for bouldering.
Go for a superlative swim
Kayaking in California
Courtesy of Visit California/Stephen Lam
With 840 miles of coastline, 13,400 miles of protected rivers and streams, and over 3,000 lakes and reservoirs, California is a celebrated destination for a wide range of watersports. Legendary surfing destinations lead the way, including Mavericks just south of San Francisco, San Onofre in San Diego, and Huntington Beach, known as Surf City, USA. Even beginners can learn with lessons at Santa Monica’s Aqua Surf School.
The home of the first Winter X Games, Big Bear Lake, is an excellent (and scenic) choice for wakeboarding or water skiing. Kayaking or standup paddleboarding can be a relaxing way to navigate the wineries and redwood groves along the Russian River.
