Palo Alto is a good base of operations for visiting both the Silicon Valley and San Francisco, as it is halfway between that city and San Jose. Trips to San Francisco on Caltrain leave frequently and stop just south of downtown. The ride lasts about an hour, and Caltrain's rush-hour Baby Bullets travel the distance even faster. Check out Caltrain schedules (http://www.caltrain.org/t...), and make sure to buy a ticket before boarding.
To the west, the beautiful Coastal Range provides excellent biking, hiking, and other outdoor sports. Taking Page Mill Road due west will get you, eventually, to Highway 1 on the beautiful peninsula coast although Highways 84 and 92 are preferable, especially the latter. And Santa Cruz is accessible from Highway 17, Skyline Boulevard Highway 35 to Highway 9, or beautiful Highway 1.
If you're touring universities, the University of California, Berkeley is just across the bay. Take US-101 north through San Francisco and across the Bay Bridge to I-580 north, exiting University Avenue. Or by public transport, take the Stanford Marguerite shuttle to CalTrain and ride the Caltrain to Millbrae. At Millbrae, switch to BART and ride to Downtown Berkeley. See 511.org (http://www.511.org/ for more).
