The Corridors: from San Luis Obispo to San Diego by train - Pacific Surfliner

Halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, San Luis Obispo is a charming town on the Californian Central Coast, gathered around the historic Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, founded by Franciscan friars in the eighteenth century. Its lively, welcoming pedestrian centre comes alive every Thursday evening with one of the most renowned farmers' markets in the state, amid stalls of local produce, live music and the aroma of barbecue. All around stretch hills cloaked in vineyards: the Edna Valley area is famous for its wines, perfect for days of tasting. A few minutes away lie the beaches of Pismo Beach and Morro Bay, dominated by the imposing Morro Rock, while a little further north stands the opulent Hearst Castle. San Luis Obispo, often named among the happiest cities in America, offers an authentic taste of California's most relaxed side.

Ventura stretches along the Californian coast between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, a laid-back beach town that keeps its historic wooden pier and a walkable downtown lively with art galleries, vintage shops and restaurants. Its Spanish past lives on in Mission San Buenaventura, founded in 1782, while the seafront invites strolls, surfing and Pacific sunsets. From here ferries depart for the Channel Islands, a wild archipelago protected by a national park where sea lions, whales and endemic species can be spotted among cliffs and pristine coves. Inland, the Ojai Valley adds vineyards, citrus groves and a spiritual atmosphere. With its slow pace and mild year-round climate, Ventura is an ideal destination for those seeking sea, nature and authentic Californian coastal life away from the crowds.

Los Angeles, home to Hollywood, Disneyland, and Universal Studios, is the epitome of carefree living for visitors: year-round sunshine, palm trees swaying in the wind, movie stars with luxurious residences in the hills of Beverly Hills, stunning museums, avant-garde architecture, and surf beaches.

In the 200 km that separate Los Angeles from San Diego, stretches the Orange Coast, 70 km of beaches, natural reserves, coves, tourist ports, and legendary waves: the homeland of US surfing. Oceanside spreads along California's southern coast, between San Diego and Los Angeles, famed for its long beach and historic wooden pier. A relaxed, sunny beach town, it offers surfing, lively promenades and spectacular Pacific sunsets. A marina, historic missions and a mild year-round climate round out the experience. San Diego stretches across the southernmost tip of California, along the Pacific coast just steps from the Mexican border, blessed with the mildest, sunniest climate in the United States and an unmistakably laid-back seaside spirit. This is where California's first Spanish mission was founded, and that past survives in Old Town, where adobe houses, courtyards and Mexican cooking recall the city's origins. Its monumental heart, however, is Balboa Park, a vast urban garden home to Spanish Colonial Revival architecture, some fifteen museums and the famous San Diego Zoo, among the most important in the world. Towards the harbour, the Embarcadero waterfront lines up historic tall ships such as the Star of India and the floating museum of the USS Midway aircraft carrier, while the Gaslamp Quarter pulses with evening life among Victorian buildings, restaurants and bars. The beaches set the city's rhythm: the elegance of the Coronado peninsula with its historic hotel, the surf at Pacific Beach and Mission Beach, the cliffs and coves of La Jolla where sea lions and seals bask in the sun. The cuisine celebrates the closeness to Mexico with its fish tacos and a lively craft-brewery scene that has made San Diego a capital of American craft beer. All around, scenic roads lead to theme parks, nature reserves and, across the border, to Mexican Tijuana for a day trip. Between sunshine, ocean and an ever-living Hispanic-Mexican heritage, San Diego invites you to experience the most authentic California at the slow pace of days by the sea.