Santa Cruz highlight
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
California's oldest surviving amusement park, opened in 1907, featuring 35 attractions including the historic Giant Dipper roller coaster and free admission to the grounds.
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk opened its doors in 1907 as California's oldest surviving amusement park, the product of entrepreneur Fred Swanton's vision. Swanton formed the Santa Cruz Beach, Cottage, and Tent City Corporation in 1903, and the Neptune Casino opened in 1904 with an arcade, grill, dining room and theater—the foundational structure of the iconic destination. The Boardwalk itself was established in 1907, anchored by attractions that remain today including the Giant Dipper roller coaster, a historic Looff Carousel with its original 342-pipe organ from 1894, and now 35 total rides and attractions across the beachfront.
The Boardwalk operates year-round with no admission fee to the grounds, making it accessible to residents and visitors throughout the seasons. From thrill rides to family attractions, the venue draws locals and tourists who turn to it for celebrations, family traditions and entertainment. The location sits at the intersection of beach recreation, boardwalk commerce and the broader Santa Cruz coastal culture that shapes the city's identity.
For families in Santa Cruz, the Boardwalk becomes part of the rhythm of living here—a place for a child's first roller coaster, a summer evening with friends, a tradition passed down across generations. Planning for those traditions means thinking about the people who make them possible and what they would need if one income was gone. A term life policy matches that thinking with practical protection: enough coverage to maintain a household's stability through the years a family depends on one or both incomes, reviewed and adjusted as circumstances change.