There are 6 of us driving from Santa Barbara 14th Sept up Highway 1 .We want to stay in Monterey that night and then drive to San Francisco for 2 days.
We have never been to California before and want to see as much s we can in this short time.
Can anyone suggest where to stop and see on the way and places to stay in Monteray and SanFrancisco that are not too expensive ?
Should we return our rental car when we ger to San Francisco or keep it until we go to the aiirport on Friday 117th Sept ?

First, you do NOT want a car in San Francisco and you don't need one.Public transport is excellent and your daily parking fee for a car could be as much as $40. As far as the drive up highway 1 the view is the main thing but if you have time you might take in a tour of Hearst Castle.

La Purisima mission is worth a visit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission...oncepci%C3%B3n ). It is not in an urban area as some of the better known missions (Santa Barabara, San Diego, Carmel) so that it gives a better idea of its role in a rural setting.

Hearst Castle should be seen.

The elephant seals north of San Simeon. The Monterey aquarium. A great deal of what is to be seen is free, as it is the various views of the coast as you drive along it.

You do not need to have a car to drive to the airport. You can take BART from downtown directly to the airport.

Sights along the way to SF: Hearst Castle, the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Stop for lunch/a drink at Nepenthe in Big Sur. Consider staying in a B & B overlooking Monterey Bay in Pacific Grove (next to Monterey) or Carmel rather than Monterey itself.

Point Lobos State Preserve.

agree with taking rte 1 all the way up the coast--Ive done it many times and thereare some fantastic views.Id stop off at Half Moon bay as way,and take a walk on the beach--if your lucky the flowers will be blooming,Stay on Rte 1 all the way up to san Francico, maybe head to the SF Zoo--its old but really neat.Id only keep a car to drive over to Muir Woods, just over the bridge---its a fantastic sight to see all the Redwoods--take a walking path.Id eat at Sausilito and one of the great resaurants on the water there.
As to driving in SF,it is tricky with all the changes in raod directions,and hills, but there is a very well laid out Tourist route with many signs that will take you across all the city sights.Ive done it with visitors many times, and its pretty straighforward.Weve stayed in Cow Hollow INN that included parking in the rooom rate--the room we usually get is really an apt, with 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room.Out the back window you can see the Golden gate bridge, as well as from the roof.Many good restaurants within walking distance of the hotel

You really don't have enough time to see much of ANYTHING along route 1 if you want to see and do anything in Monterey/Carmel. So I would say get an early start, dress casually so that you can walk at Point Lobos...and get up to Carmel for lunch. That will leave you dinner in Monterey and a stroll. Wednesday you're off to San Francisco and you don't want to hit the 4pm Silicon Valley traffic so you'll probably leave Monterey after breakfast and another short-but-sweet look/see. That leaves you just Wednesday night and all day Thursday for San Francisco.
You won't need the car for just one full day of sightseeing in San Francisco since you won't have time to get up to Muir Woods or Sausalito or Napa....but if you find a hotel with free parking (rare, but check Columbus Motor Inn which might already be sold out) it would be the easiest way to get to the airport on Friday (what time is your flight?)
In a nutshell what I'm saying is that there is a lot to see between Santa Barbara and San Francisco but you really don't have any time to see it so just choose wisely and get moving.

I agree with the recommendations to see the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Point Lobos State Reserve. Also I would suggest a walk along the rocky coastline in Pacific Grove and a visit to Carmel-by-the-Sea village.

If you are driving from Santa Barbara to Monterey in one day, with stops, then get an early start. The part between Hearst Castle and Monterey will be the slowest. It is the Big Sur Coast. Very curvy roads over drammatic cliffs. Well wort seeing and put the best driver in the crew behind the wheel.
If you have one more day, you could add a night in San Luis Obispos or Morro Bay or Moonstone Beach to make the trip more workable. The Cnetral Coast is a great part of California that a lot of folks don't know about.
The route by la Purisima is a nice way to get through the first part of the Coast north of Santa barbara.
If you have time, do stop at La Purisima for an hour or so and walk around. Mission life was a major & tragic part of California history. So seeing some of it gives you the context. That whole area for your trip has many missions, and La Purisima does give you a good feel for how remote the missions were.
In the San Luis Obispo(SLO)/Morro Bay/Cambria area there are lots of nice beaches for walking on. Good food can be found. If you go through SLO on a Thursday night you will find a downtown farmers market with great barbecue. It's the main social event each week.
Just an hour or so north of this area is Hearst Castle up on the hill (with reserved tours) and the Elephant Seals next to the road down on the beach (with docents). IF you think you want to tour Hearst castle, go on line or on phone and reserve the spots. We did the tour that had the kitchen and a few amazing small bedrooms. I was struck by the medieval art collection. It really is an architectural wonder (go Julia Morgan!) and tours give you a feel for that part of California history (the movies, newspapers, power, etc.).
From there, north, the road gets curvy. Keep an eye out for really big vulture like birds (the Calif. Condors). It is a lovely and remote coastline. Julia Pfeiffer Burns Park is a small park with an amazing view of a coastal waterfall. A good place to stretch your legs.

We stayed in Pacific Grove near Asilomar state park. Walking along the trail by the coastal bluffs is great. At low tide you can get down to the tide pools. You can easily spend most of the day at the aquarium. You can buy tickets ahead on line. It can get crowded so begin your day there as soon as it opens. There is an old Spanish Presidio in Monterey, if you are interested in history.

North of Monterey about 30 minutes, if you are driving at lunch or dinner time, there there are two tall smoke stacks near the town & harbor of Moss Landing. If you drive west of HW 1 and over the bridge you'll find Phils Fish Schack that has great local fish, sour dough and artichokes. Huge menu, good prices, quick enough counter service. Nice casual atmosphere.
From there you can keep driving up the coast, past Santa Cruz. If you reach Santa Cruz or Capitola around lunch or dinner, you can find lots of good food there. Marry Anne's on the main drag in Santa Cruz has wonderful ice cream. (ask for it in town to get the location).

North of Santa Cruz the coast gets remote again. Place people like to stop are half Moon Bay for food. The road gets curvy again, until you get to pacifica. The Linda Mar neighborhood of pacifica includes a nice beach. SF is just over the hill from there.
Have fun and give yourself enough time.

didnt realize the 2 day limit.In that case,since you will have seen ALOT of the coast, id cut inland and not take 1 along the coast.Maybe stop at San Juan Baptista, but go ahead and boogey up the highway to SF.Montery to SF is about 2-21/2 hours w/o hitting the Silcon Valley traffic.To me if i have to decide between the aquarium of Muir Woods/Sauslito im going for the Redwoods.Carmel 7 mile drive is pretty neat too

PS heres a link to CowHollow Suites--the 2 bedroom sleeps 4 for 285 including parking---we took buses as needed.Great breakfast place across the street--Mels diner http://www.cowhollowsuites.com/