California Gold Rush: Self-Guided Driving Tour

Discover Gold Rush history on a self-guided tour through charming towns, historic sites, and scenic landscapes in Northern California’s Sierra Nevada foothills.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Grass Valley - Journey through this historic town, a lively reminder of the Gold Rush era, where you can explore freely or visit landmarks such as the Holbrooke Hotel.
  • Northstar Mining Museum - Drive by this museum showcasing mining artifacts, providing insight into the hardrock gold mining industry. Entry is optional and not included in the…
What's Included
  • Get unlimited, lifetime use of this tour, before your booking date and after it
  • The virtual playback option, so you can listen to this tour like an audiobook from anywhere
  • Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata
  • Flexibility to explore at your own pace with a self-guided GPS tour
  • Directions to the starting point so that when you’re in the right place, the tour will start
What's Not Included
  • Smartphone (bring your own)
  • Personal expenses for attractions not included during the tour
  • Food and drinks
  • Transport (you need your own vehicle)
Additional Information

Discover the essence of the California Gold Rush with this self-guided driving tour through the picturesque Sierra Nevada foothills. Begin your journey at the Northstar Mining Museum and embark on a 50-mile loop through delightful Gold Rush towns such as Grass Valley and Nevada City. Throughout the tour, stories of early pioneers will be shared as you…

Location
Northstar Mining Museum
Allison Ranch Road
Starting point Parking Lot of Wolf Creek Trail and Northstar Mining Museum 933 Allison Ranch Rd, Grass Valley, CA
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
3.5
(2 Ratings)
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1 star
511jennyferr
Mar 3, 2025
Great, but stop and look at the map before you head to next stop. - This was a fun drive. And great stories on the way. Just wish there were more stories in the down times. Directions in the bigger towns were a problem. Because they would say to turn, right when the street came. Also little street signs, and small streets. I’m from this area. And I know these are the problems in our towns. But because I know the area I got back on track. With the map. I had to stop at times to get the voice map back on track though. So take your time, if you stop before the towns and look at the map first. You might far better getting through the town. Because you will know which streets to look for, before you happen to pass them.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Pamela
Mar 25, 2025
Well, that was a mess. - I loved the commentary. Unfortunately, following the tour was impossible. It caused so much frustration that we finally just shut it off and did our own thing. There was no time for making the turns needed. If you got off track, you would hear things that applied several steps prior. It was very difficult to get the tour to match the voice. We kept endinging up going the wrong direction. It was a mess. In all fairness, maybe this would have worked better for a tour whose attractions were spaced much further apart. We will someday find a tour like that and try it again because the idea of a narrated driving tour is very appealing to us.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $15 (Per Vehicle)
up to 15 guests
1 - Traveler
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).