Directions

Santa Cruz is located at the top of the Monterey Bay on the Central California coast, approximately 60 miles south of San Francisco.

To reach the UCSC campus

Via Highway 17 south from San Jose/San Francisco Bay Area -

Cross the mountains on Highway 17 and proceed to Santa Cruz.
Take the "Highway 1 North, Half Moon Bay" exit off of Highway 17.
Follow the signs for Highway 1/Half Moon Bay onto Mission St. (Highway 1 North).
Turn right on Bay Street and follow it onto the UC Santa Cruz campus, where it becomes Coolidge Drive.
(Note to reach Highway 17 from 101, take 101 south to Route 85 south to Highway 17 south.)

Via Highway 1 from the south -

Follow the signs to Highway 1 North/Half Moon Bay. This will put you on Mission St. (Highway 1 North).
Turn right on Bay Street and follow it onto the UC Santa Cruz campus, where it becomes Coolidge Drive.

Via Highway 1 from the north:

Highway 1 becomes Mission St. as you enter Santa Cruz.
Turn left on Bay Street and follow it onto the UC Santa Cruz campus, where it becomes Coolidge Drive.

Via the Santa Cruz Metro Service:

Bus lines coming into Santa Cruz will deposit you at the Greyhound station. Walk next door to the Santa Cruz Metro Station and look for any University bus.
Once on campus, get off at the Campus Facilities stop and follow the directions below.

Just past the campus's main entrance at the corner of Bay and High Streets you'll see a pullout at an information kiosk where you can purchase a temporary guest parking permit (no permit needed after 5 pm or on weekends).
After purchasing your permit, continue up the hill and turn right at the Carriage House/Ranch View Road stoplight into the Carriage House/Campus Facilities parking lot (the first right you can make past the kiosk). The Farm is a 5-minute walk across the street from the parking lot.
Walk across Coolidge and follow the signs that say Center for Agroecology/Farm Pedestrians.
Walk 1/5 mile up the gravel road that parallels the paved bike path to a short set of stairs and a wooden entrance gate. PLEASE BE CAREFUL NOT TO WALK ON THE PAVED BIKE PATH! BIKES COME DOWN THE HILL RAPIDLY!

Once you enter campus and obtain a parking permit continue uphill on Coolidge Dr. (Note: You will not need a permit after 5 pm or on weekends to park in the Stevenson College lot.)
Go past the Hagar Dr. turn and continue on Coolidge; after it makes a sweeping left turn, look for the Stevenson/Cowell Road on your left. Turn left into the Stevenson College parking lot.
The Garden is located directly across the street from this lot. Look for the stone steps that lead up from Coolidge Drive to the Garden's entrance.