Califronia Driving Holiday - Which Route?
Discussion
Hi guys,
Planning a driving holiday in California in September. Ive spent a while putting together what i think is a decent route, but i know there are probably better ways to do it. Pretty much set on the places we want to visit, just wondering if this could be done in a better order? I don't mind changing things around if it decreases driving times, but as long as we finish in Vegas!
So i was thinking;
Fly into San Francicso (3 nights) -> drive to wine country and do a vineyard tour etc (2 nights) -> then across to Yosemite national park (2 nights) -> down to L.A (4 nights), but want to try and encorporate the pacific coast highway and drive through Big Sur. This is where i am wondering if i'm doing it right, it's quite out of the way to go righ tback across to get to the pacific highway? -> Then finally onto Vegas (4 nights).
Is there any better way i can do this? Nothing is booked yet, so don't have to fly into San Fran if it's not the best option!
Planning a driving holiday in California in September. Ive spent a while putting together what i think is a decent route, but i know there are probably better ways to do it. Pretty much set on the places we want to visit, just wondering if this could be done in a better order? I don't mind changing things around if it decreases driving times, but as long as we finish in Vegas!
So i was thinking;
Fly into San Francicso (3 nights) -> drive to wine country and do a vineyard tour etc (2 nights) -> then across to Yosemite national park (2 nights) -> down to L.A (4 nights), but want to try and encorporate the pacific coast highway and drive through Big Sur. This is where i am wondering if i'm doing it right, it's quite out of the way to go righ tback across to get to the pacific highway? -> Then finally onto Vegas (4 nights).
Is there any better way i can do this? Nothing is booked yet, so don't have to fly into San Fran if it's not the best option!
Which route? 1. HTH.
It's 150 miles from the SW exit of Yosemite back to San Francisco, which is the normal jumping off point for the PCH, and around 80 miles to Manteca, which is near where you can hook up with I-5. For the hour of extra driving back to San Francisco it is definitely worth it. Maybe do San Francisco after Yosemite?
It's 150 miles from the SW exit of Yosemite back to San Francisco, which is the normal jumping off point for the PCH, and around 80 miles to Manteca, which is near where you can hook up with I-5. For the hour of extra driving back to San Francisco it is definitely worth it. Maybe do San Francisco after Yosemite?
Rollin said:
For that route, start in LA then SF, then the rest.
Or completely miss LA. Driving into/out of and in LA is a nightmare and LA isn't great.Personally I'd do SF, head down the coast to Monterey/Carmel, across to Yosemite, up to Nappa then across the top of the Sierra Nevada and down via Death Valley to Vegas, I did similar last year.
If you must see LA at some point do it on another holiday by flying in and out. Don't waste valuable road trip time in LA when you could be taking in the Pacific Coast Highway, cruising the mountain roads around Yosemite or seeing how long you can stay flat out on those very straight Nevada roads!
We did San Fran, then down to Carmel - we decided not to go to LA as wife had been already and didn't rate it - but we did drive quite a way along the PCH. Carmel was lovely - very relaxing, bit expensive but I got to see Pebble Beach which was fab. We then went on to Yosemite which was amazing and then stopped just short of Death Valley in a place called Lone Pine - highly recommend it - best breakfast in the bakery and best steak in Seasons restaurant. (plus we fell in with the locals in a bar and it all got a bit messy!!)
Next we drove through Death Valley and ended up in Vegas. An amazing trip and the drive was a piece of cake.
(If you need any info just ask!)
Next we drove through Death Valley and ended up in Vegas. An amazing trip and the drive was a piece of cake.
(If you need any info just ask!)
If your driving the PCH go North to South - you are then on the correct (right) side of the road to get the view unobscured by other traffic.
I did a similar trip on a Harleys with my wife.
I flew in to SF (2 Days) Alcatraz – book well in advance, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Sears for breakfast etc.
Out to Yosemite (2 Days) – drove straight there and straight back.
Back to SF and Wine Country (2 Days)
PCH stopping at Monterey and Carmel (2 Days)
PCH to SLO (1 Day)
PCH to Santa Barbara (1 Day)
PCH to Santa Monica Beach (3 Days) – much nicer to stay in than LA and handy for Venice Beach etc. But very easy to get in to LA by bus (straight up Wilshire Boulevard) or taxi.
From there we then went to San Diego, Palm Springs, Lake Havasu and into Vegas – but you could do a straight drive from LA to LV with little problem depending on time.
Top Tips:
Don’t stay in LA; stay out at the beach and use buses or taxis to get around.
Go North – South on the PCH and take your time.
PCH south of LA to San Diego is very urban, don’t expect great views, but Huntingdon Beach and Newport are worth a visit.
I did a similar trip on a Harleys with my wife.
I flew in to SF (2 Days) Alcatraz – book well in advance, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Sears for breakfast etc.
Out to Yosemite (2 Days) – drove straight there and straight back.
Back to SF and Wine Country (2 Days)
PCH stopping at Monterey and Carmel (2 Days)
PCH to SLO (1 Day)
PCH to Santa Barbara (1 Day)
PCH to Santa Monica Beach (3 Days) – much nicer to stay in than LA and handy for Venice Beach etc. But very easy to get in to LA by bus (straight up Wilshire Boulevard) or taxi.
From there we then went to San Diego, Palm Springs, Lake Havasu and into Vegas – but you could do a straight drive from LA to LV with little problem depending on time.
Top Tips:
Don’t stay in LA; stay out at the beach and use buses or taxis to get around.
Go North – South on the PCH and take your time.
PCH south of LA to San Diego is very urban, don’t expect great views, but Huntingdon Beach and Newport are worth a visit.
nick s said:
good advice guys! I see the sense in starting in LA then going up the coast, then across then down, seems like a lot less uneccesary driving!
We are def includign LA though. I've been twice. but the GF hasn't and wants to see it!
Any other places recommended for stopping on the way?
Honestly, if you get the route right, none of the driving is unnecessary since the roads are so awesome. We are def includign LA though. I've been twice. but the GF hasn't and wants to see it!
Any other places recommended for stopping on the way?
Any excuse to post some pics! I’ve done several fly drives in CA now and for me my favourite holiday destination in the world just so varied and also done it when it’s been the time of year to include some skiing too.
I’d echo comments about not staying in LA proper and certainly not drive yourself around. We’ve used the public transport and tours to see what we wanted to see then retreated to the coast. LA proper isn’t nice for a holiday destination to stay there but places like Santa Monica are. The photos below were in September and October and there was something of a heat wave then.
For me you can keep Las Vegas, or I’d fly there to start or end your holiday. Flights are cheap and frequent to LA and SF and easily get a connection back to the UK via New York Etc.
To stay for a few days Sonoma is really nice as an alternative to Napa. We went on an escorted wine tour and it was a great day out. Any suggestions on hotels etc etc give me a shout.
I’d echo comments about not staying in LA proper and certainly not drive yourself around. We’ve used the public transport and tours to see what we wanted to see then retreated to the coast. LA proper isn’t nice for a holiday destination to stay there but places like Santa Monica are. The photos below were in September and October and there was something of a heat wave then.
For me you can keep Las Vegas, or I’d fly there to start or end your holiday. Flights are cheap and frequent to LA and SF and easily get a connection back to the UK via New York Etc.
To stay for a few days Sonoma is really nice as an alternative to Napa. We went on an escorted wine tour and it was a great day out. Any suggestions on hotels etc etc give me a shout.
a311 said:
You could do a 'lap' of Calfornia I've done something similar to what you suggest above but the distances are much greater so you'll need flights or longer than 2 weeks. I've done self drive around CA several times at differnt times of the year for a relatively small area the diversity of what you can see is unreal.
Some pics:
San Francisco
Sonoma Valley
South Lake Tahoe
Entering Yosemite
El Capitan- Yosemite Valley
Death Valley
Devils Golf Course- Death Valley
Santa Monica
Highway 1 near Big Sur
Elephant Seals outside Cambria
Whale watching at Monterey
The big red chariot, 3 weeks and 2800 miles=awesome.
Some pics:
San Francisco
Sonoma Valley
South Lake Tahoe
Entering Yosemite
El Capitan- Yosemite Valley
Death Valley
Devils Golf Course- Death Valley
Santa Monica
Highway 1 near Big Sur
Elephant Seals outside Cambria
Whale watching at Monterey
The big red chariot, 3 weeks and 2800 miles=awesome.
Big E 118 said:
Personally I'd do SF, head down the coast to Monterey/Carmel, across to Yosemite, up to Nappa then across the top of the Sierra Nevada and down via Death Valley to Vegas, I did similar last year.
Other than the visit to Nappa that is exactly what I'm doing in June.SF down to Monterey/Carmel, across to Yosemite, Lone Pine, Death Valley, Vegas.
BertB said:
Other than the visit to Nappa that is exactly what I'm doing in June.
SF down to Monterey/Carmel, across to Yosemite, Lone Pine, Death Valley, Vegas.
We stayed at the Dow Villa Motel in Lone Pine - right in the middle of 'town' but really clean, comfortable and quiet. Other places seemed to be a way out of town.SF down to Monterey/Carmel, across to Yosemite, Lone Pine, Death Valley, Vegas.
Lone pine - bakery does these monsters.
As for places to see:
Monterey is car mecca for the West Coast. There's plenty of events there/Carmel/Laguna Seca which you can always tie in with your trip. I was in Monterey at the time of a hot rod festival, some absolutely stunning machinery on show.
Yosemite, fabulous place. Try and drive up to Mariposa Grove to have a look at the giant Redwood Forest (also quite a fun road from the valley!).
SF, pre book Alcatraz before you leave the UK.
If possible I'd highly recommend flying out to the Grand Canyon (South Rim) from Vegas.
It depends on how you like to travel, when I went we just booked our first 2 nights hotels in SF then last 3 in Vegas (and Yosemite), apart from that we just took our time, stopped where we wanted and just found local motels to where we were. It just gave us extra flexibility. All the motels have free wifi so just plan your next days travel as is comes.
Hope you enjoy it!
Monterey is car mecca for the West Coast. There's plenty of events there/Carmel/Laguna Seca which you can always tie in with your trip. I was in Monterey at the time of a hot rod festival, some absolutely stunning machinery on show.
Yosemite, fabulous place. Try and drive up to Mariposa Grove to have a look at the giant Redwood Forest (also quite a fun road from the valley!).
SF, pre book Alcatraz before you leave the UK.
If possible I'd highly recommend flying out to the Grand Canyon (South Rim) from Vegas.
It depends on how you like to travel, when I went we just booked our first 2 nights hotels in SF then last 3 in Vegas (and Yosemite), apart from that we just took our time, stopped where we wanted and just found local motels to where we were. It just gave us extra flexibility. All the motels have free wifi so just plan your next days travel as is comes.
Hope you enjoy it!
Big E 118 said:
Rollin said:
For that route, start in LA then SF, then the rest.
Or completely miss LA. Driving into/out of and in LA is a nightmare and LA isn't great.I went there once, don't care if I never do again.
We did a route once
SF -> Yosemite -> Grand Canyon -> Zion -> Las Vegas -> Monterey -> SF.
Was pretty good, but we didn't do much of R1 south of Monterey.
M.
I'd probably start in Vegas (fly in, but would't stay, as it's horrible!), then fly out of LA (again, horrible place!).
- Las Vegas
- Death Valley
- Mammoth Lakes
- Yosemite
- Napa
- SF
- Carmel
- Santa Barbara
- Los Angeles
There are slight extensions you can do on this:
- Las Vegas: Grand Canyon, Valley of Fire, Zion
- Mammoth Lakes: Mono Lake (on the way from Mammoth Lakes to Yosemite)
Is the trip for 2 weeks?
I have loads of photos from a trip i did last year on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthoulb/collections...
What are you main interests? and what do you want to get from the trip?
- Las Vegas
- Death Valley
- Mammoth Lakes
- Yosemite
- Napa
- SF
- Carmel
- Santa Barbara
- Los Angeles
There are slight extensions you can do on this:
- Las Vegas: Grand Canyon, Valley of Fire, Zion
- Mammoth Lakes: Mono Lake (on the way from Mammoth Lakes to Yosemite)
Is the trip for 2 weeks?
I have loads of photos from a trip i did last year on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthoulb/collections...
What are you main interests? and what do you want to get from the trip?
davepoth said:
Honestly, if you get the route right, none of the driving is unnecessary since the roads are so awesome.
just avoid at all costs going north/south in the middle, The I5 and 99 south of sacramento are some of the most boring roads in the world, unless your into farming and endless raisin/grape trees, corn etc. the trick to CA is to stay around the edges (PCH and Sierra's) as much as possible and get across the middle bit as quickly as possible. of course if you want to munch north south miles quickly then the aforementioned roads can be a boon, just make sure you have coffee on-board!Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff