California's San Francisco Bay Area is the diverse metropolitan region that surrounds the San Francisco Bay in Northern California. It encompasses the cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland and has a great deal to offer any visitors any time of year. The Bay Area offers a diverse array of activities to suit everyone's needs. This region, which is acclaimed worldwide for its natural beauty, has a unique character with a very rich history, fascinating wildlife, excellent shopping and dining opportunities, numerous recreational activities, and a wealth of educational and entertaining attractions and activities.

For those who enjoy visiting the conference environs as part of the trip, Berkeley has much to offer. Its summers are mild, with little or no rain and moderate temperatures. The City of Berkeley and the University are centrally located in the San Francisco Bay Area, with easy transit connections to two major airports - San Francisco (SFO) and Oakland (OAK). Participants who wish to avail themselves of the many social, cultural, and recreational opportunities in the area can walk or take a bus or taxi to fine restaurants, theatres, museums, and clubs in Berkeley, or can take a 40 min. BART trip to downtown San Francisco, where they will find many more opportunities for dining, recreation, and cultural events. Walking trails in the Berkeley hills connect directly to campus, where there also are exercise facilities available.

Visitors also may wish to plan to spend a day or more just before or just after the conference touring California. Within one hour by auto or tour bus, visitors can reach the wine country of Napa and Sonoma Counties, and the redwoods of Muir Woods. Within three to four hours, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Kings Canyon/Sequoia Park, Monterey and Carmel can be reached. Los Angeles and San Diego are short flights away; discount fares of under $100 each way are usually available.

State of CA Bay Area Visitors' Guide:
http://gocalif.ca.gov/region.php?key=bay_area

SFgate.com Bay Area Visitors' Guide:
www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide

City of Oakland Website:
www.oaklandnet.com/visiting.html

Oakland Convention and Visitors' Bureau:
www.oaklandcvb.com

San Francisco Chamber of Commerce:
www.sfchamber.dpway.com/

City of Berkeley:
www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/

Berkeley Convention and Visitors' Bureau:
http://www.berkeleycvb.com

Marin County Visitors Bureau:
www.visitmarin.org/

Napa Valley Convention and Visitors' Bureau:
www.napavalley.org

Sonoma County Official Website:
www.sonoma-county.org

Sonoma County Wine Country Information:
www.sonoma.com