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No matter how much you've indulged in ice cream, funnel cakes and cotton candy at this historic seaside amusement park south of San Francisco, you'll be able to experience a feeling of true weightlessness if you're brave enough to try the new Double Shot ride unveiled this year. Thrill-seekers strapped onto a kind if inside-out elevator at the base of Double Shot are pushed to the top of the 125-foot tower with more than three times the force of gravity, then dropped back down fast enough to feel the negative G-forces of free fall. The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk boasts a total of 35 rides — including an impressive 80-year-old wooden roller coaster and a lovely vintage carousel installed way back in 1911 — along with gaming arcades, laser tag, miniature golf and a newly remodeled 26-lane bowling alley. Admission to the boardwalk and the wide, sandy beach below is free, so you'll pay only for parking, rides, games and those tempting high-calorie snacks you loved so much as a kid.

Orientation

About 45 miles north of Monterey and 70 miles south of San Francisco, Santa Cruz makes an easy day trip from anywhere in the San Francisco Bay Area, and there are plenty of nice beaches outside of town for folks who prefer a quieter day by the ocean. Just try to get an early start on summer weekends to avoid traffic jams along the way, and take extra care driving the accident-prone stretch of Highway 17 that winds through the Santa Cruz Mountains southwest of San Jose. One particularly scenic way to arrive is aboard the Beach Train (www.roaringcamp.com), which carries passengers on a one-hour journey from Roaring Camp in the Santa Cruz Mountains right to the boardwalk.

Information
www.beachboardwalk.com and www.scccvc.org

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