Here's my planned itinerary for a family of 4 (includes parents, a 21-year old and an 18-yeard old) Trip is in July:

7/19 -- Fly into San Fran
7/19-7/21 -- Sightsee in San Fran
7/21-7/23 -- Stay in Monterey
7/23 p.m. -- Stay in Cambria at FogCatcher Inn
7/24 -- tour Hearst Castle; go to Santa Barbara
7/24 p.m. -- stay in Santa Barbara
7/25 -- Drive back to San Fran
7/25 - 7/26 -- Stay in San Fran
7/27 -- Leave from San Fran

Does this seem do-able at a reasonable pace? Not interested in rushing from place to place if I can help it. Thanks!

Your time in Santa Barbara seems short for the driving you'll be doing.

Since you are coming back to SF anyway, spend 1 night at the beginning there so that you have the option of spending another night in Santa Barbara. Are you going back on the coastal route or up I-5?
Make a list of what you want to see in SF before you leave on 7/20.

You aren't spending much time in each spot. Just depends on what you are doing at each place. Monterey, for example-Monterey Aquarium, Point Lobos, Shopping in Carmel, Driving Pebble Beach, maybe some kayaking or whale watching. Be hard to do all that in a day and that's just scratching the surface.

Is there a particular reason to return to San Francisco? Why not adjust the itinerary, save the day you'd lose driving back, fly home from L.A.

I would cut out SB and add that day to the Cambria/Pismo/San Luis Obispo area.

I don't see any problem with the drive to Santa Barbara, but there is a lot in the San Francisco vicinity and between San Francisco and Santa Barbara that could be included in your itinerary, but isn't.

HTTY

>>7/19-7/21 -- Sightsee in San Fran
7/21-7/23 -- Stay in Monterey
7/23 p.m. -- Stay in Cambria at FogCatcher Inn
7/24 -- tour Hearst Castle; go to Santa Barbara
7/24 p.m. -- stay in Santa Barbara Santa Barbara > SF in two days is a LOT.

I'd just stick to SF, Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur, and Cambria/San Simeon/Pismo Beach.

So it sounds like we should cut back and spend more time in fewer locations. What would be a better spot for an 18 year old boy and 21 year old girl - Santa Barbara or San simeon?

There is nothing to do in San Simeon except go to the Hearst Castle.

Your children might like San Luis Obispo--it's a college town with the kinds of stuff college kids like (even in July).

You all might like Pismo Beach because it has an abundance of hotel rooms with ocean views and some of the hotels have big swimming pools.

Santa Barbara and Montecito are nice, but I'm not sure of their appeal for young people.

HTTY

Pismo Beach/ San Luis Obispo seems a good combo. Lots to do (get sand dollars on the beach) and not as much driving.

With that age, they would like SLO and Pismo. Pismo also has the sand dunes for atv or hummer rentals. So much fun! Downtown SLO is fun, has cute shops and restaurants.

If you stop at Morro Bay on your way into San Luis Obispo you can kayak in the lagoon by Morro Rock. Or better still, the kids can kayak and the parents can sit and have a drink

Excellent advice! Thanks to all who responded. I really appreciate it.