We are driving from San Francisco to LA while in America later this year and were wondering if its best to travel the whole Hwy One or only some of it. Does anyone have any suggestions? Also, does it take about 9-10 hours going that way?

If you want to travel Hiway One in one day, you'll have to skip some of it parts. Drive US Hiway 101 to San Luis Obispo, then Hiway One up the coast (this is its best part) to Monterey, then freeway again into San Francisco.

Kylie: Do a search on this forum under "California coast" -- I posted a long trip report on my drive from LA to Monterrey on Highway One. Have a great time -- it's gorgeous! And don't miss La Super-Rica Taqueria in Santa Barbara.

Paul, going on your advice here, do you think we would be ok to do the trip in one day. We have a 9pm flight to catch out of LA that night, so if we left by 7 or 8am would we be ok?

Given the uncertainty of Los Angeles traffic, it would be a risk to do this. *IF* you left at 7am, made no major stops (i.e, skip Monterey Aquarium, Seventeen Mile Drive, Santa Cruz, and Hearst Castle), you'd probably be able to get there even if you hit some major traffic. I would MUCH more strongly suggest you depart a day earlier, see the sites I mention above (note that Hearst Castle tours must be reserved several days in advance), and arrive in L.A. several hours ahead of time.

First, there is absolutely NO way that you can drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles in 9-10 hours withou bypassing Hwy 1 altogether. It will take you that long just on 101 and that assumes no traffic problems.

I would definitely make it a 2 day trip or skip Hwy 1. In any event I would NOT drive on Hwy 1 from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. There is not enough to see to justify the extra time.

If you are able to take 2 days then I would suggest the following. Take 280 from San Francsico to Mountain View ( Metro San Jose area ). This is a pretty scenic trip. From 280 take 85 south to 17. Take 17 to Santa Cruz and then Hwy 1 south to Monterey etc. Stay on Hwy 1 through the Big Sur to San Luis Obispo. San Luis Obispo is a good stopping point. Then take 101 south to just north of Los Angeles where you will take 405 south to LAX. I heartily recommend the 17 mile scenic drive to Pebble Beach. It will take you about an hour or so assuming no stops other than to take some pictures. The exit from the Scenic drive is just off Hwy 1 between Monterey and Carmel and is very well marked.

You do not mention what time of the year you are talking about. If it is very late in the year then weather will come into play. October is the best month of the Year for traveling on the California coast. Less fog and the days are warm.

I just wanted to say thanks so much for your advice. But know I am concerned because we've booked our trip and we will be there in October. On the day we leave San Francisco to drive back to LA we have a domestic flight leaving LA at 9.20pm that night. We want to drive back on some of Hwy One (the part from Monterey to San Luis) even though we wouldn't have time to stop and see the sights and then the rest of the trip on 101 I guess. Do you really think that this would not be possible if we left SF early, cause it would be a hassle to change our itinerary.

Kylie: It definitely takes way longer than 9-10 hours to drive Hwy. 1 from San Francisco to LA and there is NO WAY I would do this if you're trying to make a flight in LA. Traffic is too unpredictable. Hwy 1 is 2 lanes and if traffic is backed up (which we found it was in a few places, due to the very slow driving necessary to navigate curving oads, construction, rock slides, and just too many tourists on a 2-lane road with no opportunities for passing slow-moving vehicles like campers, etc.), there is a very good chance you would miss your flight. Plus, for most of the 90-mile Big Sur coastline there is no place to turn off of Hwy. 1 if there is a backup for some reason. Even if you left at the crack of dawn I don't think there is any way you could make a 9 pm flight if you take Hwy 1. It is unfortunate, but if I were you I would strongly recommend leaving the day before and getting at LEAST as far south as Cambria (which is still a good 5 hours away from LA, but that's not allowing for any stops -- with stops it took us 7.5 hours) or Morro Bay (less scenic than Cambria but gets you closer to LA). And remember, you need to get to the airport an hour early and allow for MAJOR traffic backups in LA before you get to the airport.

Hi Lisa. Thanks for your advice. However, now I am really concerned.We are booked in to stay at San Fran on the Friday night and then we are supposed to drive back to LA on the Saturday to catch that flight at 9.20pm. Do you think we should take the main hwy 101 and skip HWy 1 or try and change our trip so we can drive out of SF to somewhere down the coast on Friday night. How far away from SF are those places you mentioned? Thanks again for your help. It's great to have so many friendly people offering me advice.

Hi Lisa. Thanks for your advice. However, now I am really concerned.We are booked in to stay at San Fran on the Friday night and then we are supposed to drive back to LA on the Saturday to catch that flight at 9.20pm. Do you think we should take the main hwy 101 and skip HWy 1 or try and change our trip so we can drive out of SF to somewhere down the coast on Friday night. How far away from SF are those places you mentioned? Thanks again for your help. It's great to have so many friendly people offering me advice.

Because you are trying to make a flight, I suggest you skip both hwy 1 and 101 and take I5. It will take you at least 6 hours to make it to LAX on I5, and you do not know what problems you may encounter. If you get to LA early, say 2-3pm, then spend a little time looking around the area, but do not compromise making your flight on time.

Hi Kylie. This is a tough decision. Are you going to spend any other time in San Francisco, or only Friday night? If you aren't planning on spending any time in SF except for Friday night, then I would say to stay there Friday night (San Francisco is so great, you really owe it to yourself to spend at least one night there) and then get up REALLY early the next morning and take 101. Maybe I am overly cautious but I would leave no later than 8 am if I were you. I am told that it takes 9-10 hrs. to drive from SF to LA on 101, but again, you need to allow extra time for traffic, potential car trouble, stops, etc.
But if you already have another day or two in SF then I would definitely recommend leaving SF on Friday and driving down Hwy. 1 instead because it is so scenic and not to be missed if you can help it, and staying overnight in Cambria Friday night. That way you can get up Saturday morning and have a nice leisurely day driving down to LA and not have to rush so much. That is what I would do if I were you.
It's very hard to say how far it is from SF to Cambria because we made so many stops, which is really the way to do it because it is not an easy, stress-free drive. The scenery is gorgeous but you really have to watch the road carefully in Big Sur. All of it depends on how the traffic is moving, how fast you drive (in many places we could not go more than about 35 miles per hour), and how much you stop. I would guess it's a little over 2 hours from SF to the Monterey Peninsula if you take the quick way (?) (there's a great aquarium in Monterey which I would recommend, but it does take at least 2 hours to really see everything -- if you do go, make sure you see the jellyfish exhibit). Then it's only about 15 minutes to Carmel as long as you don't do the 17-mile drive. It's about an hour from Carmel to the heart of Big Sur (Nepenthe restaurant, etc.). Then it's about 2 hours to Ragged Point. Then it's about another hour to Cambria. Moonstone Beach in Cambria is a good place to see wildlife. Altogether I'd say you may be able to get from SF to Cambria on Hwy. 1 in about 7 hours if you only make very brief stops for gas and food and don't really stop to see any of the sights like the Monterey Aquarium or Hearst Castle (which is amazing and really merits a stop). But it would be better to stop and see some of the sights, which would add about 4-5 extra hours on to that day. If you do that and stay in Cambria, then you can get up the next day and make it to LA in only about 5 hours, but you should allow more time if you want to stop in Morro Bay to see Morro Rock, and/or stop in Santa Barbara which has a very pretty mission and some great restaurants.

Kylie - We live on the Monterey Peninsula. Rarely can we drive to S.F. in under 2 hours. The drive to LAX from Monterey (using Highway 101) takes at least 7 hours, assuming no traffic delay or other problems. Both these estimates are non-stop, except for gas and restroom needs. The drive along Hwy 1 will add a minimum of 3.5 hours to this estimate.

If you cannot change your itinerary, I suggest you plan on the trip along Hwy 101. Enjoy the Central California Coast, adn stop in Santa Barbara if you are making good time.

The preferable route would be to leave a day early, and not only drive through the area but take a bit of time to actually enjoy it!

Hwy 1...101...or 5? Split the difference and take 101. You'll be frustrated driving down 1. You'll want to stop but you really can't considering your schedule. 5 is straight and boring. You'll probably have wished you had just taken a plane. 101 is a good compromise. Parts of it are quite beautiful and you'll make good time. If you have time near the end of your trip, when you get past Oxnard take the Las Posas Rd. turnoff. It will take you through some farmland and out to Hwy 1 going south into Los Angeles. It's quite rugged for a while then straightens out as you approach Malibu. A nice way to approach Los Angeles. You'll also end up in Santa Monica which is only about 20-30 minutes from LAX. Good luck!

I just wanted to thank everyone for their advice. When we booked our trip I had read in a travel guide that the trip on HWY 1 was only 9-10 hours so we thought we could do it in a day.Unfortunately you can't believe everything you read. I only wish I'd found this site sooner. Anyway I think we may have to skip Hwy 1 and take 101 or 5 because our trip is booked and paid for. (Lisa, we are staying in SF for 2 nights and on the day before we leave we are doing a day tour so we may be pretty tired to drive then). I'm going to have a chat to our travel agent but it may be too difficult to change our itinerary much cause we've jammed packed our holiday to see as many cities as possible. If we miss out on hwy 1 I guess that'll be an excuse to have to go back some day!!! Thanks guys!!!

I am sorry to hear that you may have to miss the Hwy 1 trip. I-5 is definitely the fastest way to go but it is a very BORING drive. Take 101 if you can't manage the Hwy 1 trip. However be aware that it will take 9-10 hours on 101 assuming normal traffic and no stops other than to grab a quick bite. Traffic should not be too bad on a Saturday but you should count on a few slow spots.