We were given a 2 week trip as a gift. Flying into Seattle..then have 2 weeks to make our way down to LA..looking for any kind of help..how long to stay in each area, where to stay etc.. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated!

leaving for Seattle on 3/30 departing LA on 4/13...

Where to stay depends on your budget, what does the gift include for lodging.

That's a tight squeeze for covering everything that lies between Seattle and Los Angeles. You could do 3 nights Seattle and 3 nights Los Angeles and then have just 6 days in between so you'll have to research and decide if you're interested in Portland, San Francisco, The coastal communities, Big Sur, Yosemite or what? (We have no idea what your interests are....hiking, shopping, museums, beach?) After more research, return and ask more specific questions about lodging.

I was asking for a general overview..sorry to have asked w/o doing more research.

Two weeks is not a lot of time to cover this much territory. Do a bit of research and let us know what kinds of stops interest you. Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and LA could easily consume all of your time - and more.

I agree with Kathie. 2 weeks for 3 huge states is not enough time. Why not make a huge loop and fly back from Seattle?
My plan would be to drive the coast southbound and then I-5 with a detour to see Crater Lake NP on the way back north.
If you are a US resident, I'm guessing that your drop off fee in LA will be quite large.

>>I was asking for a general overview..>. . .how long to stay in each area,

I don't think it's too long given the time of year, but it will depend on how much time you want to spend in any of the major cities en route, including Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and LA.

It's a rainy time of year in the Pacific NW, so if it was me I'd limit the number of days I'd spend in this region and focus more on California.

This is the basic route I'd take - https://goo.gl/maps/bKCCHev3QX52 . It includes a half-day side trip to Multnomah Falls and the Columbia River Gorge, then out to the Oregon coast in time to see the southern 60 or 70 miles (best scenery) before the California state line. I'd visit the redwoods, using either Ferndale or Trinidad as an overnight base, then straight to the Bay Area. I'd look at 3 nights on the road between Seattle and San Francisco, four at most.

I'd then allocate three days or so for the Monterey Bay/Peninsula area, and a couple more for the coast between Point Lobos and Santa Barbara. This includes Point Lobos itself, the Big Sur coast, Hearst Castle, and marvelous Santa Barbara.

Then LA and off you go. It can be a busy but not back-breaking two weeks, with terrific diversity.

Now as an alternative plan, if your plane tickets are unchangeable, consider just spending a day or two visiting Seattle, then hop a cheap flight down to San Francisco (under $100 per person) and spend the bulk of the two weeks in California. You'll have plenty of time to see lots of great sights, and you'll probably save the cost of the plane tickets with a much lower price for a rental car, as one-way rates and fees are lower if you pick up and drop off all within the state.

In fact, you could fly from Seattle to LA for around the same price and make the trip a big loop, even including some desert time, something like this: https://goo.gl/maps/xi825jkSAg72

Just throwing out ideas.

>>if your plane tickets are unchangeable, consider just spending a day or two visiting Seattle, then hop a cheap flight down to San Francisco (under $100 per person) and spend the bulk of the two weeks in California

I also agree with flying from Seattle to either SFO or LA area airport. Consider alternate airports as well such as OAK instead of SFO, and Burbank instead of LAX.

FYI: There is an Amtrak/Metrolink station across the street from the Burbank Airport (walking distance).
It is also much easier to get out of Burbank with a rental car than from LAX. If you fly to Sacramento (SMF) you have easy access to I-5.