Bakersfield

About Bakersfield

Bakersfield doesn't try to be a resort town, and that's exactly why it's useful. Sitting at the southern end of California's Central Valley where Highway 99 meets Highway 58, it's the practical overnight for anyone crossing the state, heading up to the southern Sierra, or driving the long haul between Los Angeles and the Bay Area. Hotel rates here run well below the coastal cities — and member pricing pulls them lower still, with a set of rates the big public booking sites don't display.

There's more to the town than a highway stop. Bakersfield is the birthplace of the "Bakersfield Sound" — Buck Owens and Merle Haggard put it on the country-music map, and the Crystal Palace still keeps that history alive. It's a serious food town in an under-the-radar way, with some of the best Basque restaurants in the country, a legacy of the sheepherders who settled the valley. And it's the launching point for Sequoia National Forest, the Kern River, and the drive up to the giant sequoias.

Our Travel Editor's Bakersfield advice: this is a value play, not a splurge. Book a comfortable, central hotel, eat a Basque family-style dinner, and use the savings on the rest of your California trip. Summers are hot — spring and fall are the comfortable windows.

— Our Travel Editor