oooh your brave coming down here in august lol i dont barely walk out of my house in august let alone take a trip lol...san fran and beach area in San Diego will be ok but someone posted something about it being cold in yosemite...lets not forget people shes coming in august...I wouldnt suggest staying in those tents brie...if ur truly city people ur going to be miserable...you can go stay in fresno or merced or somewhere and then drive to yosemite for the day..i also wouldnt recommend staying at Union Square..its not that great of an area to stay in plus they charge you like $20 a night to park there...we went up a few weeks ago and stayed in Pacifica at the Best Western lighthouse ....got a room for $100 overlooking the ocean...gorgeous and free parking lol...

Regarding Yosemite: In my opionion, staying inside any national park makes a huge difference on how you experience the park. The camp-like atmosphere adds to the fun, and it's only two nights in this case. The buses that run through the park make it incredibly easy to get around, too.

brie:

Thanks for checking back in. I hope the packing list helps.

Our family camps twice a year in California for a total of two full weeks. My dad and others camp in Yosomite and the nights are cold as are the early mornings.

Even if you are a "warm-blooded" person your kids need to be afforded this post of experience and caution about "camp" mornings and evening being cold no matter what month it is in Yosomite.

Just wanting to make sure you and your family are not swayed into catching a cold.

My Travel Best,
Oaktown Camper/Traveler

Jayne1973, I agree, the fun of Curry Village more than makes up for the spartan surroundings.
To Gap., you may want to think about staying at the Wawonna Hotel. It's just inside Yosemite but not in the Valley. They seem to have a lot of golf packages which makes me think that a golf coarse is nearby.

Again, thanks!! Lynnarro, August is the only time all four of us can manage the two weeks; I know it's not the best time to visit. (Any August-specific tips?)

And viamar (or anyone else): Sea side lodge is about 2 mi north of Moonstone Beach, but I can't find any place on moonstone that has a pool and doesn't require 2 nights over a Sat. So far I've ruled out Best Western Cavalier Oceanfront, Best Western Fireside Inn on Moonstone Beach, Cambria Pines Lodge, Cyprus Cove Inn, Fog Catcher Inn, Pelican Suites, Sea Otter Inn. Blue Dolphin and Sand Pebbles will take us for one night but would mean either sharing a room w/the kids or paying $350-$400, and I don't think either one has a pool. So does anyone know about Sea Side? (Motel 6 is nearby, available, and a few $ cheaper; San Simeon lodge also right there and a bit more $....)

I have now booked hotels for each night, but still am worried esp. about Cambria and San Diego. Again: pool, 3 beds (which is prob 2 rooms), not too much $. Surely all the wise folks out here can help?

Thanks!!

You could try the San Simeon Pines Seaside Resort in Cambria.It is on Moonstone drive ; it has a pool and direct access to the beach. I've never stayed there but have booked it for August.
www.sspines.com
In Santa Barbara I have booked the BW Pepper Tree Inn ( good reviews from Tripadvisor). It has 2 pools.

Check

tripadvisor.com

Plenty of user reviews on that site.

Oops, sorry, wrong thread!

How did that happen???

Brie, your thread has been extremely helpful!!!! I am starting to plan a very similar trip to SF and LA driving through Carmel/Monterey/Big Sur etc in June (not much time left I know!). I am also looking for 2 rooms/suite with 3 beds in the same price range.

I have already booked flights and the Best Western Americania in SF (which has free parking and is relatively central, I realize the area is not great). So on my to do list is:

1. Book a hotel in LA (I like the sound of the Magic Castle but it's a bit more expensive($239+tax) than I would like).

2. Book a hotel in Carmel (1 night - probably saturday or sunday)

3. Book a hotel in Big Sur or Cambria (1 night - probably sunday or monday)

I have started to look into the places recommended on this thread. Given the amount of research you have already done, it would be really really helpful if you could let me know the top 3 or 4 places you considered in each town/city (and if you have the website adresses that would be fantastic).

Any help would be greatly Appreciated!!!!

Hi, ACKC! Glad the thread is helping you and it's fun to see it revived. I'll tell you what I booked (I think we have the hotels set, though I can still change many of them if someone has a brilliant suggestion). I'll also look forward to hearing activity and restaurant suggestions and hopefully your trip report when you're back!

Our itinerary is still as posted, but a few of the hotels have changed:

7/31-8/2 Yosemite in the lodge (thanks for encouragement to keep looking!!!) Note only 1 room/2 beds, so I may be sleeping with daughter instead of hubby.
8/2-8/6 Villa Florence Union Sq SF off Priceline (2 rooms @ $65 plus $$ pkg). Looked @ others, but found little under $200/night for 2br/3beds. I would go with priceline if you can handle it.*
8/6-8/7 Big Sur Lodge in Pfeiffer St Pk 2 rm/3 bed pool ~$195? found nothing else close for 3 beds pricewise, but didn't investigate Monterey peninsula.
8/7-8/8 Sea Coast Lodge San Simeon (2 rm/3 bed suite free pkg bfast pool for $195). Wanted Moonstone Beach or further south, but most places require 2 nights for an Aug Sat. (Several Best Westerns and Inns. Blue Iguana in Ojai? Sea Otter in Moonstone?)
8/8-8/10 Magic Castle in LA AAA rate from web for 1BR (2 beds+rollaway) bfast pool <$200 w/pkg, bfast, pool. Priceline probably has good LA deals, but I don't understand the city yet. Also see 8/14.
8/10-8/14 Torrey Pines Hilton in La Jolla through priceline <$60/rm night. Suites hotels were very $$.
8/14-8/15 back to LA at Seaside Inn Manhattan Beach "Executive Suite" (pool, pkg) 2br/3beds $195. Also looked at Channel Road Inn's "children's room" (2br/3bed), but they didn't have my dates; Best Western Marina Pacific AAA rates ~$200).

*I am now an official priceline junkie and have decided that I love the thrill, but research IS essential. There are sites that help. Also, I booked 2 rooms each; SF hotel has said they'll be able to give 2 beds for one of the rooms; haven't contacted SD yet.

Enjoy!

Just to stir up the pot a bit--Although Residence Inn Mission Vally and Torrey Pines Hilton are good choices, I'd try to get lodging where you can walk to attractions. Humphrey's or Shelter Pointe on Shelter Island, Dana Inn Mission Bay, or Embassy Suites San Diego Bay may have something within your price range. The problem I have with most hotels is you have to drive to everything. There are better options. San Diego has so much to see and do, and you shouldn't have to hop in the car all day to get around.

I agree, La Mesan, but the reality is that with 2 rooms/3 beds as a constraint, nothing other than priceline was giving reasonably priced options. I'd rather be closer -- the places you mention all sound great -- but I am *thrilled* to be in the Torry Pines Hilton at the price I got.

Brie,

I just got back from my trip and thought I would let you know how it went.

Spent 3 1/2 days in SF and stayed at the Best Western Americania, which was nice and good value for money. We booked a 1 bedroom suite (which had a total of 3 queen beds). Parking was free. Would recommend this hotel.

Tips:
1. Try the cheese cake at the Cheesecake Factory at Macy's on Union Sq.
2. Book your Alcatraz ferry tickets before you go, as this sells out in advance. We went on the evening tour which has a lot more activities than the day tour.
3. Take a warm jacket as it gets pretty cold in the evening.

We then drove down from SF to LA along Highway 1 (Pacfic Coast Highway) staying at the Sea Otter Inn in Cambria overnight. The route we took was as follows:

From SF, Hwy 101 to Hwy 156 to Hwy 1 to Monterey (this takes about about 2.5 hours). We then did the 17 mile drive to Carmel (we did it fairly quickly and it still took 2 hours). We didn't have the time but I would definitely recommend spending a night in Monterey / Carmel, both looked fanatastic.

From Carmel, it's about a 4 hour drive to Cambria (including plenty of stops to take in the fantastic views along Hwy 1 - stopping is very easy on Hwy 1, there are a lot of lay bys.) There is not much at Big Sur (besides the state parks and the fantastic views) so you might want to reconsider staying there for a night.

We drove past the seaside lodge, it's 5 minutes from Moonstone Beach Drive and very close to Hearst Castle. Before you get to Cambria, there is a marked Vista Point that you should definitely stop at, where you can see the Seals.

As I mentioned earlier, we stayed at the Sea Otter Inn in a 1 bed room suite with 1 king bed and 2 queen sofa beds. Moonstone Beach Drive is basically just a street full of hotels opposite the beach. The Sea Otter Inn was really nice and I would definitely recommend it!

We then drove from Cambria to LA, this took about 5 hours.

In LA, I spread my bets and split my stay in two. Staying at both the Valadon hotel and the Magic Castle hotel. The Valadon is really nice but the most number of beds you can get in a suite is 2, so it may require some sharing. Although parking is fairly expensive at $16.50 a night. The Magic Castle was a bit disappointing given the reviews and the price. We got a two bed room suite (2 Kings and a Sofa Bed). There was no air conditioning in the bed rooms (just fans) and the room was fairly expensive ($239). Parking is also chraged now at $8 per night. Although breakfast was nice and the staff were really friendly. Generally, I found the place quite noisey in the mornings as I am a light sleeper and not an early bird.

In LA, we checked out Hollywood (not much to do), Universal Studios ( I would buy the front of line pass it's about $40 extra per person but it beats the long lines. Look out for $10 off coupons, we picked some up outside Mann's chinese theatre on Hollywood Bl), Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Griffith Park, Beverly Hills, Rodeo Dr etc. Definitely, try to catch the filming of a show. You can pick up tickets outside Mann's Chinese Theatre or in Universal Studios. Note: a 22 minute show takes about 4 to 5 hours to film!!!

Hope all of this helps. If you have any questions please let me know.

Thanks, ACKC! I'm glad you had a good trip and appreciate hearing back on what worked out and how....

And thanks to everyone else for all the wonderful tips! I am really excited even though we're not leaving for a few more weeks....if anyone has more suggestions of things to do or see, by all means bring them on!