Ride the trolley cars in San Francisco. Walk along Fisherman's Warf. Go to the website for the TV show "Diners Drive-ins and Dives". There are several places they have shown on their program. When my wife and I go on vacation I always look for restaurants they highlight and we have never been disappointed.
Don't bother going swimming north of southern California unless you have wet suits. The water is just too cold. The water is in a current coming down from Alaska.
Be sure to fill up with gas before heading down PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). Gas can be twice as much along the more remote areas. The views along PCH are right out of National Geographic. Hearst Castle is a good place to visit if you have any interest in history and how the "other half" lived (the very very rich).
In southern California, the place to visit is Disneyland, of course. Its the man-trap built by a mouse. If you really love rollercoasters, Magic Mountain is THE place to go. If you don't LOVE rollercoasters, don't bother. There is the Getty Museum. Palm Springs is about 100 miles (east on I-10) from Disneyland, but July is a bad time to visit because the temperature can reach 110+ during the day. I parked my suburban on the street with a thermometer on the seat. The upper limit of the thermometer was 150 degrees and it exceeded that in a closed up truck parked in the sun.
I hope you have a wonderful time. Good luck to you and yours.