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NSHSS California College Tour

In June of 2023, thirty two NSHSS members visited ten of the West Coast's most sought after universities on our six-day all-inclusive California College Tour. We visited:

University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley/Cal), Stanford University, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Southern California (USC), California Institute of Technology (Caltech), University of California, Santa Barbra (UCSB), University of California, Irvine (UCI), University of California, San Diego (UCSD), California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona), and California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (SLO)!

In addition to these university visits, we explored some amazing historical, natural, and tourist attractions in the many West Coast cities we traveled through. We explored:

The coastal nature in La Jolla, Old Town San Diego, Downton Disney, The Santa Monica Pier, Old Town Pasadena, and Santa Barbra Beach!

As soon as attendees arrived at the airport we began to bond and by the end of the trip our members might as well have been old friends. We hope these friendships will continue on into their college years as they use this tour to pick the best schools for them and get a head start on making connections with their new community! Members learned what questions they should be asking of campus officials, how to compare schools to one another, and what factors are most important in their college selection process. We got an insider's look into the unique features of each university and city we visited and took the opportunity to get familiar with where some of our members will be living in the next couple of years.  

Please take a look below to see a more in depth recap of the trip and all the fun we had! Consider joining us for our next tour and be sure to sign up early before we sell out!

We will be posting the tour information for our 2024 California College Tour soon so stay tuned for updates!

NSHSS California College Tour
June 25-30, 2023

Testimonials From 2023 Tour Attendees

The Results Are In

We asked our attendees what their favorite day of the tour was:

Day four (USC, UCLA, and Santa Monica Pier) was the winner with 80% of respondents stating it was their favorite!

We asked what their top choice of school was after touring all ten:

University of Southern California was the winner with University of California, Berkeley coming in close second.

Lastly, we asked them what their favorite meal was:

The majority of attendees said Urban Plates was their favorite place to grab a bite to eat on this tour!

 

Pictures From The Tour!

We Took in the Sights and Sounds of La Jolla on Our First Evening of the Tour!

We Took in the Sights and Sounds of La Jolla on Our First Evening of the Tour!

A Beautiful La Jolla Sunset

A Beautiful La Jolla Sunset

Our First Campus Visit of the Tour Was to the University of California, San Diego

Our First Campus Visit of the Tour Was to the University of California, San Diego

Our First Group Shot of the Trip!

Our First Group Shot of the Trip!

UC San Diego's Library is Named in Honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel - Theodore Was Better Known as Dr. Seuss!

UC San Diego's Library is Named in Honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel - Theodore Was Better Known as Dr. Seuss!

Day Two Continued with a Tour of UC Irvine's Campus

Day Two Continued with a Tour of UC Irvine's Campus

We Made Sure to Grab a Group Photo at UC Irvine!

We Made Sure to Grab a Group Photo at UC Irvine!

Mesa Court is One of UC Irvine's Dorms

Mesa Court is One of UC Irvine's Dorms

We Made Sure to Stop by Downtown Disney for Some Fun!

We Made Sure to Stop by Downtown Disney for Some Fun!

We Couldn't Miss the Famous In-N-Out Burger!

We Couldn't Miss the Famous In-N-Out Burger!

We Started Day Three Off with a Tour of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona!

We Started Day Three Off with a Tour of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona!

Cal Poly Pomona's Campus Features Beautiful Architecture!

Cal Poly Pomona's Campus Features Beautiful Architecture!

We Continued Day Three with a Visit to the California Institute of Technology

We Continued Day Three with a Visit to the California Institute of Technology

Cal Tech's Campus was in Full Bloom When We Visited

Cal Tech's Campus was in Full Bloom When We Visited

One of the Many Amazing California Mountian Views - This One is from Cal Tech

One of the Many Amazing California Mountian Views - This One is from Cal Tech

Cal Tech Has Some Lovely Spaces Around Its Campus

Cal Tech Has Some Lovely Spaces Around Its Campus

We Ended Day Three by Exploring Old Town Pasadena!

We Ended Day Three by Exploring Old Town Pasadena!

Day Four Kicked Off with a Tour of the University of Southern California

Day Four Kicked Off with a Tour of the University of Southern California

USC's McCarthy Honors College

USC's McCarthy Honors College

We Were Able to Peek Into Some of USC's Classrooms!

We Were Able to Peek Into Some of USC's Classrooms!

We Continued Day Four at the University of California, Los Angeles

We Continued Day Four at the University of California, Los Angeles

We Took in the Sights of UCLA's Beautiful Architecture

We Took in the Sights of UCLA's Beautiful Architecture

UCLA's Powell Library Primarily Serves its Undergraduates!

UCLA's Powell Library Primarily Serves its Undergraduates!

We Had a Ball at the Santa Monica Pier and Cash Float Dinner!

We Had a Ball at the Santa Monica Pier and Cash Float Dinner!

Beautiful Santa Monica Beach

Beautiful Santa Monica Beach

We Started Day Five with a Tour of UC Santa Barbra

We Started Day Five with a Tour of UC Santa Barbra

We Made Sure to Get a Group Shot at UC Santa Barbra's Campus!

We Made Sure to Get a Group Shot at UC Santa Barbra's Campus!

This is UCSB's Brand New Interactive Learning Pavilion!

This is UCSB's Brand New Interactive Learning Pavilion!

We Took in the Beauty of Santa Barbra Beach!

We Took in the Beauty of Santa Barbra Beach!

Headed Up the Coast to Our Next Stop!

Headed Up the Coast to Our Next Stop!

Day Five Continued with a Visit to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo!

Day Five Continued with a Visit to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo!

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo's Campus has a Beautiful Landscape!

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo's Campus has a Beautiful Landscape!

We Grabbed a Small Group Photo at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo before Day Five Was Over!

We Grabbed a Small Group Photo at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo before Day Five Was Over!

Day Six Began with a Tour of UC Berkeley!

Day Six Began with a Tour of UC Berkeley!

UC Berkeley has some Gorgeous Architecture Featuring Their Mascot, the California Golden Bears

UC Berkeley has some Gorgeous Architecture Featuring Their Mascot, the California Golden Bears

Our Members Say Hello from the Gates of Berkeley!

Our Members Say Hello from the Gates of Berkeley!

Day Six Continued Our Tour of Stanford University

Day Six Continued Our Tour of Stanford University

The Stanford Memorial Church has a Fascinating History - It's Over 120 Years Old!

The Stanford Memorial Church has a Fascinating History - It's Over 120 Years Old!

Palm Trees Can Be Found On All the Campuses We Toured this Week!

Palm Trees Can Be Found On All the Campuses We Toured this Week!

Stanford has Some Outstanding Architechture!

Stanford has Some Outstanding Architechture!

The Old Union Building Houses Student Lounges, an Eating Area, and the Dean of Student Life!

The Old Union Building Houses Student Lounges, an Eating Area, and the Dean of Student Life!

Stanford was Our Last Stop of the Tour!

Stanford was Our Last Stop of the Tour!

Tour Itinerary

DAY ONE - Sunday, June 25

ARRIVAL DAY

Met NSHSS and EU Tours Staff at San Diego International Airport

Hotel check-in in San Diego

Dinner & Sight Seeing in San Diego
We enjoyed dinner at La Jolla Cove Pizza, site seeing in Old Town San Diego, and the La Jolla coast.

 

DAY TWO - Monday, June 26

SAN DIEGO & ORANGE COUNTY

Breakfast at hotel
We enjoyed breakfast before venturing out to see Orange County and sunny San Diego.

Morning Tour: University of California, San Diego (UCSD)

We started our morning at San Diego's top public university at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD)

Lunch
We got a quick a lunch at UC Irvine's Dining Hall before we started our tour.

Afternoon Tour: University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine)

We spent the afternoon exploring UC Irvine

Dinner & Hotel Check-in
We enjoyed dinner and evening fun at Downtown Disney!


DAY THREE - Tuesday, June 27

LOS ANGELES & THE INLAND EMPIRE

Breakfast at hotel
We enjoyed breakfast at the hotel before heading out for a day of SoCal College Touring.

Morning Tour: Cal Poly Pomona

In the morning, we took a tour of one of the top public universities in the west, Cal Poly Pomona

Lunch
We enjoyed lunch at the Caltech Dining Hall before heading out for our afternoon tour.

Afternoon Tour: Cal Tech

We hopped back on the bus and headed out to visit the world-renowned science and engineering institute Caltech

Dinner & Hotel Check-in
We took advantage of the dinning in Old Town Pasadena and enjoyed some evening site seeing before heading back to the hotel for a good night's rest.

 

DAY FOUR - Wednesday, June 28

LOS ANGELES

Breakfast at hotel
We had a quick breakfast before heading out to visit USC and UCLA

Morning Tour: University of Southern California (USC)

In the morning, we took a group tour of a top private university, University of Southern California (USC)

Lunch
We enjoyed lunch before heading to iconic Westwood.

Afternoon Tour: University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

We spent the afternoon on the beautiful campuses of University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

Dinner & Hotel Check-in
We had so much fun getting dinner at the Santa Monica Cash Float Dinner and shopping on 3rd street promenade and Santa Monica Pier before driving up the coast towards Santa Barbara!

 

DAY FIVE - Thursday, June 29

CALIFORNIA COAST

Breakfast at hotel
We enjoyed a hearty breakfast as we prepared to visit the following stunning seaside campuses.

Morning Tour: University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)

We began our day with a tour of University of California, Santa Barbara located halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Lunch
We enjoyed a beautiful seaside lunch before heading up the coast.

Afternoon Tour: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (SLO)

We took an afternoon tour of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (SLO).

Dinner & Hotel Check-in
We took in the beautiful seascape before heading to the heart of Silicon Valley for dinner and a good night's rest.

 

DAY SIX - Friday, June 30

BAY AREA

Breakfast at hotel
We had breakfast before venturing out to see California’s iconic Bay Area and two of the nation's top universities.

Morning Tour: University of California, Berkeley (CAL)

We began our day with a tour of one of the nation’s top Universities, UC Berkeley, aka Cal

Lunch
We had an afternoon walk before getting lunch in Downtown Berkeley 

Afternoon Tour: Stanford University

In the afternoon, we had our final tour of the prestigious Stanford University

Depart for home from San Francisco International Airport

We said farewell to our new friends and headed home after an exciting and fun filled trip.

Questions?

Email tours@nshss.org