Mendocino and other Northern/Central CA ideas

We’ll be in Graeagle during July and will want to make our way over to Mendocino. I’d rather break up that trip with an overnight stop somewhere in between. We’re into quirky Airbnbs, farm stays, glamping, etc., something budget friendly (sub-$200/night), and anything involving animals is a plus. We’ll be with our 6-year old son, so we’re not interested in wine tasting.

Also, has anyone done glamping at Mendocino Grove? This looks great for our needs. All the websites for Mendocino with kids include the skunk train, Glass Beach, Bryan Preserve, Catch-a-Canoe, Pennyroyal Farm, etc. This all looks fantastic but looking for anything else we might be missing.

And then after Mendocino, we’ll be making our way back to LA and I wouldn’t mind breaking that trip into 2 or 3 days. Any central coast or valley fun ideas? The kid is absolutely obsessed with animals, so we’d like to incorporate as much of that as possible.

Albion River Inn may be a little more than you want to spend, but, more importantly, there’s a llama farm right across hwy 1. We saw llamas out in the field each day we were there, and I think you may be able to visit.

Thanks! I’ll check it out.

The Andiron in little river (next to mendo) might be a good fit for you. They have goats too, I think.

Wow, first post here and I recognize at least two of these names from a decade+ ago on other boards. So cool to see some of the same folks here.

I’m just posting to say “second” on the Albion River Inn. That place is special in every way.

Also, we did the skunk train a few months back and its the shorter version (post landslide closure) but it was still a total blast. They have the outdoor car where you can stand out in the nature and they even have a guitar player doing singalongs. Was surprisingly fun!