It’s FINALLY here! Spring Break!!!!!!!! So, now that we have time off, where do we go? Her Campus Boise State has your back! Here is our guide to Spring Break, HCBoiseState Style! (All travel times are by car from Boise.)
Camel’s Back Park, Idaho
A 10 minute drive from campus, and about a 15 minute hike up and you got a breathtaking view of downtown Boise and the surrounding area. Travel Time: 12 minutes
Restaurants: Java, Sunray Cafe, 13th Street Pub and Grill
Things To Do: Drive through the North End neighborhood to see all the historical houses and cruise down Warm Springs to see all the humongous mansions on both sides of the road.
Bruneau Sand Dunes, Idaho Â
One of the tallest sand dunes in North America is here in Idaho, not too far from Mountain Home. Travel Time: 1hr 13 minutes
Restaurants:Â Pack a lunch! This is a park, so unfortunately no fine dining to be found. Sorry!
Things To Do: Bring a boogie board or sled to go down the sand dunes. If you don’t have one, bring a slate of cardboard!
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (small parts of it crossover into Idaho and Montana)
So many things to do here! You can go on an adventure by hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking or just driving through this humongous park to see all the natural treasure it holds. Travel time: 5hr 45 minutes
Restaurants: Cafe Madriz, Roosevelt Lodge, Woodside Bakery, The Raven Grill
Things To Do: Go see Artist Point, Grand Prismatic Spring, and Norris Geyser Basin; these are quite breathtaking sites to experience with your own eyes!
Walla Walla, Washington
So many W’s! Maybe they did that intentionally, because this part of Washington is known for their WINE. After a long drive or trip to here, take a break and indulge yourself in some sophisticated wine, while looking out onto the whimsical vineyards that encompass a good chunk of this aged beauty. Travel time: 4hr 16 minutes
Restaurants: Marc Restaurant, The Maple Counter Cafe, Grandma’s Kitchen
Things To Do: Whitman Mission, Basel Cellars Estate Winery, Waterbrook Winery
Forks, Washington
Does this place sound familiar? Well, to some of us who were (and still are) huge Twilight fanatics, this is the setting for the books! Take a trip out to this cool place; I promise there are no vampires!
Travel time:11hr 9 minutes
Restaurants: Pacific Pizza, Creekside, Puffin on 101
Things To Do: Second Beach Trail, Marymere Falls Trail, Twilight (the movie) tours
San Juan Islands, Washington
So many islands, but what a pretty place to go island hopping! Or, you can just stay on one island and take in the scenic views of the dark, fading blue waters of the Pacific Ocean. Travel time: 11hr 4 minutes
Restaurants: New Leaf Cafe, Brown Bear Baking, Gere-A- Deli
Things To Do: Moran State Park, Dolphin and Whale Watching, Pelindaba Lavender Farm
Cannon Beach, Oregon
OMG, look at the Rock (Haystack Rock)! This rock is a towering 235 feet tall thing that literally makes this beach looked like an intact Cannon hit the Beach and never exploded! Ever seen the cult classic, The Goonies?! If you look closely, maybe you’ll see One-Eyed Willie! Travel time: 8hr 23 minutes
Restaurants: The Irish Table, Lazy Susan Cafe, Crepe Neptune
Things To Do:Â See the “Goonies House”, Haystack Rock, Coaster Theater Playhouse, collect shells at low tide
Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
From up above, this place looks like a giant crater! This place is one of the coolest bowl-like lakes to see, with a single lonely island-like landmass out near the middle of its pristine blue water. Travel time: 7hr 5 minutes
Restaurants: Annie Creek Restaurant, Crater Lake Lodge Dining Room, Rim Village Cafe Â
Things To Do: hike to the Toketee Falls, Â take a boat out to Wizard Island, walk the Cleetwood Cove Trail
Lake Tahoe, California
Doesn’t the name sound fun? When you think of Lake Tahoe, you think of the water and winter sports you can do! Take a vacation or road trip to where California and Nevada meet and hold this hidden treasure of a place. Travel time: 7hr 48 minutes
Restaurants: Sprouts, Base Camp Pizza, Azul Latin Kitchen
Things To Do: The Gondola at Heavenly, Vikingsholm, Mt. Tallac Trail
Big Sur, California
Drive a little farther (about six hours, give or take) until you hit the coastline coming down from Lake Tahoe.There you are, in Big Sur! Travel time: 12hr 22 minutes
Restaurants: Nepenthe, Sierra Mar, Deetjen’s Restaurant
Things To Do: Take Photos in front of/explore Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, Bixby Bridge, or McWay Falls; all of these places are breathtakingly beautiful!