Comic & Sci-Fi Tour: A Geek's Guide to California

Comic books and sci-fi weren't born in California, but they were perfected here. The world's most famous comic con takes place in San Diego, and the theme parks where you can step into the worlds of film and comics are all concentrated in this one state. For anyone who loves the movies, California is genuinely hallowed ground. Among the redwoods the air is cool and damp, and the scale of the trunks makes every story feel bigger.

Northern Redwoods & Star Wars

Start in the north. George Lucas, a Modesto native, turned two redwood forests into the moon Endor. At Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, roughly 100 locals played stormtroopers in the scenes filmed among the giant trees, while the speeder chase in The Phantom Menace was shot at Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park. Walk the trails behind E.T., The Lost World, and Star Wars filming sites — a perfect circuit for any sci-fi fan. Stand among those trunks and the light falls in long green shafts — easy to see why Lucas picked this forest for a moon.

Santa Rosa's Peanuts

Drive about 250 miles south to Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, and you can meet Snoopy. Cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, creator of Snoopy and Charlie Brown, lived here from 1969. Following his footsteps leads to Snoopy's Home Ice, an ice rink he built. The centerpiece, though, is the Charles M. Schulz Museum — the single biggest attraction — while metal Peanuts sculptures scattered around town make for a warm, nostalgic trail.

Bay Area Geek Spots

San Francisco, home of Star Trek's future headquarters, has appeared in countless films. The Walt Disney Family Museum in the Presidio and the Cartoon Art Museum near Fisherman's Wharf (with more than 7,000 pieces of original artwork) are the headline stops. For the working-and-creating scene, Isotope Comics in Hayes Valley and Cape & Cowl Comics in Oakland anchor their local communities.

• San Diego Comic-Con — the world's biggest comic convention, usually in July; book far ahead.
• The Cartoon Art Museum — original animation and comic art, great for fans old and new.

Southern Giants

Head south and you can pass through Death Valley National Park, where parts of the desert homeworld Tatooine were filmed. Down in LA County, Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge and a cluster of major theme parks await. Depending on which side of fandom you favor, you can drive eight-plus hours toward the desert or the city. Either way the drive itself is part of the fantasy, long highways unrolling like a title sequence.

San Diego Comic-Con: Badges, Hotels and Alternatives

San Diego Comic-Con runs four days each July at the Convention Center, drawing over 130,000 attendees. Four-day badges run about $300, single days $50 to $75, and the returning-attendee presale plus open registration both sell out within an hour — create the member ID months ahead and join the sale queue early. Downtown Gaslamp hotels charge $450 to $700 a night that week with four-night minimums; the official hotel lottery opens in spring, while Mission Valley rooms near $200 plus the trolley ride work as the budget play. Hall H line culture means overnight queuing for the biggest panels — bring a folding chair and a phone charger. Travelers who miss badges still get plenty: the Gaslamp's free outdoor activations, the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park ($25 admission, open year-round) and the walkable downtown displays need no badge at all.

Bay Area Stops: Lucasfilm, Cartoon Art and Silicon Sights

The Presidio's Letterman Digital Arts Center hosts the Yoda statue in its courtyard — free to visit and photograph, open daylight hours, with street parking nearby. The Cartoon Art Museum downtown charges about $10 to $15 and rotates exhibits on Peanuts, underground comix and animation cels; allow 90 minutes. Across the bay, the Computer History Museum in Mountain View ($20 admission) covers the gaming and internet hardware behind modern sci-fi fandom. San Jose's Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum ($10) doubles as a filming-location curiosity for genre fans tracing pulp-era inspirations. The Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa charges about $15 for adults and pairs with Snoopy's Home Ice next door — combine with a Sonoma wine stop to justify the 60-mile drive north. Book nothing in advance except weekend Schulz tickets; everything else takes walk-ups.

Los Angeles: Studio Tours, Backlots and Bookshops

Warner Bros. Studio Tour in Burbank runs $70 to $90 for the three-hour base tour through backlots, the DC Universe exhibit and working soundstages — the deluxe five-hour version near $150 adds lunch and deeper soundstage access. Universal Studios Hollywood single-day tickets run $110 to $150, with the studio tram segment delivering the actual backlot, Jaws lake and Bates Motel facades. The Academy Museum on Wilshire ($25 admission) holds the ruby slippers, E.T. models and rotating craft exhibits genre fans want. For retail therapy, Golden Apple Comics on Melrose and Illusive Comics in Santa Clara County stock variants and signings; call ahead for event nights. Griffith Observatory's Tesla coil and planetarium shows ($7 per show) close the loop on the science side. Skip the Walk of Fame costume-photo gauntlet at peak hours — mornings before 10 a.m. photograph cleanly.