Tours in Soledad

In addition to flight-training experiences and flight lessons, Specialized Aviation's professional pilots guide thrill-seekers on exhilarating scenic tours of the skies. The 20-minute helicopter whale-watching tour offers splendid views of marine life—including blue, humpback, and gray whales—from well above the water line in Monterey Bay.

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens, the former estate of philanthropist and art collector Miss Ima Hogg, was completed in 1928 according to classical designs by renowned Houstonian architect John F. Staub. The elegant mansion houses the Early American decorative arts and paintings collection of Houston’s Museum of Fine Arts, a congregation of nearly 2,600 furnishings, paintings, and ceramics that populates 28 period rooms in the carefully renovated house. The objects date back as far as 1620, letting the viewer observe the evolution of American taste from the Colonial to Victorian eras. Bayou Bend’s eye-widening assemblage of still lifes, armchairs, and silver was labeled a “treasure-trove” of Americana by Frommer’s, as well as a “must-see” for antiques collectors and gardeners.

The mansion at Bayou Bend is flanked by 14 acres of formal gardens and natural woodlands. Hogg designed the formal gardens as outdoor rooms for hobnobbing and decorated them with statues of a goddess and two muses, inspiring the northern blooms to write sonnets about honeybees. Today, organic gardening methods maintain the flourishing magnolias and crape myrtles.

From the shore, Seal Rock—with its rounded crags and compact shape—looks like an oversize filet mignon floating on the Pacific Ocean. Upon closer examination, one can see its silhouette shifting as hundreds of sea lions atop the rock bob their heads or dive into the water. In addition to hosting this majestic hoard, the rock makes for a popular stop for Segway Santa Cruz tours, which peer at it from shore on their way to other sights. Aboard eco-friendly two-wheelers, guides lead groups along Westcliff Drive en route to an array of seaside attractions, including Santa Cruz Lighthouse and Santa Cruz Surfing Museum, as well as Santa Cruz Wharf's boardwalk, restaurants, and shops. The tours are even open to guests with no experience driving a segway, as guides prep each person on the machine's workings before taking off on sightseeing around the town.