California trip report cont'd
Aug 23rd, 2002, 01:50 PM
#1
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California trip report cont'd
I will heed the suggestions to put the rest of my trip report on one thread.
I posted about our first couple of days in LA and Ventura, now on to Cambria. We loved the cool, sunny weather we were luck enough to experience and took a nice long walk of beautiful Moonstone Beach. There are lots of B & B-type accomodations along Moonstone Beach Drive, but we stayed at a motel-style resort called San Simeon Pines, which is at the far end of Moonstone Beach Drive,across from Leftingwell (SP?) Landing We found it to be a good choice for families. The rooms are nothing fancy, but the place is clean, comfortable, and they have crouquet, shuffleboard and free golf on the grounds. The golf course is short and not in great condition, but still fun for kids. We ate at Moonstone Beach Bar & Grill for brunch, Robin's for dinner and Linn's, I believe, for pie--enjoyed them all!
Next morning we embarked on a drive I have always wanted to do--Hwy 1 through Big Sur to Monterey. I would run out of superlatives trying to describe the scenery, and I am so glad we did it. Lunch at Nepenthe--I can only echo the opinion I read many times--you go for the view and not the view. I enjoyed the experience, but not really the food, and I'm not terribly picky. On a beautiful day, though, who can quibble with that view?
I posted about our first couple of days in LA and Ventura, now on to Cambria. We loved the cool, sunny weather we were luck enough to experience and took a nice long walk of beautiful Moonstone Beach. There are lots of B & B-type accomodations along Moonstone Beach Drive, but we stayed at a motel-style resort called San Simeon Pines, which is at the far end of Moonstone Beach Drive,across from Leftingwell (SP?) Landing We found it to be a good choice for families. The rooms are nothing fancy, but the place is clean, comfortable, and they have crouquet, shuffleboard and free golf on the grounds. The golf course is short and not in great condition, but still fun for kids. We ate at Moonstone Beach Bar & Grill for brunch, Robin's for dinner and Linn's, I believe, for pie--enjoyed them all!
Next morning we embarked on a drive I have always wanted to do--Hwy 1 through Big Sur to Monterey. I would run out of superlatives trying to describe the scenery, and I am so glad we did it. Lunch at Nepenthe--I can only echo the opinion I read many times--you go for the view and not the view. I enjoyed the experience, but not really the food, and I'm not terribly picky. On a beautiful day, though, who can quibble with that view?
Aug 23rd, 2002, 02:00 PM
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Our next stop was Monterey, where we loved our hotel: the Hotel Pacific on Pacific Street. It's a lovely, Spanish-style hotel, with flower and fountain-filled courtyards. The rooms are all junior suites. Location is convenient to Fisherman's Wharf and the recreation path. Very important if you want to stay here: request a courtyard room! The only negative posts I've seen about this hotel relate to the noise--this mainly seems to be a problem for people whose rooms overlook the street--we experienced no problems.
While in Monterey, we enjoyed walking the recreation path--especially in Pacific Grove and visiting the aquarium. My husband and son played a round of golf at Pacific Grove Municipal course--a very reasonably priced but very beautiful course. They loved it. Club rental is pricey--$40 (more than the greens fees). You can and should reserve tee time in advance, but you can't reserve clubs. Consequently, they had to take one set of ladies' clubs in order to get on. Oh well, the guy gave them a break on the rental.
While in Monterey, we enjoyed walking the recreation path--especially in Pacific Grove and visiting the aquarium. My husband and son played a round of golf at Pacific Grove Municipal course--a very reasonably priced but very beautiful course. They loved it. Club rental is pricey--$40 (more than the greens fees). You can and should reserve tee time in advance, but you can't reserve clubs. Consequently, they had to take one set of ladies' clubs in order to get on. Oh well, the guy gave them a break on the rental.
Aug 23rd, 2002, 02:03 PM
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Just one more brief thought on the central CA part of our trip: we were blessed with mild, sunny weather. We were told by many locals that this was not typical August weather. We hated to leave Monterey, but were looking forward to San Francisco. I'll post about that, and Yosemite, soon.
Aug 27th, 2002, 03:46 AM
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We didn't stop at the castle, as the family wasn't really interested in this stop. We did stop at a stop a few miles north of the castle where you can watch the elephant seals. Unfortunately, it was a little bit too late, and most of them were gone.
We enjoyed three days in San Francisco. Stayed in a family suite at the Pacific Heights Motor Inn, which is on Union Street, in the Cow Hollow neighborhood. This is a nice residential area, and convenient to bus lines. The motel is reasonably-priced and clean, the staff is very helpful and accomodating, but the place could a face-lift.
While in San Francisco, we enjoyed a night game at Pac Bell park (hoped to see Barry Bonds hit #600, but he didn't that night). Took a trip to Alcatraz--well worth the trip, especially with the rented headset audio tour, which really brought the place alive! Walked across the Golden Gate bridge, which was great, and made a stop at the Metreon, which, surprisingly, my kids didn't really get into--maybe they're getting too old.
The unusually warm, sunny weather, at times it felt uncomfortably hot, which I've never experienced in San Francisco before.
We enjoyed three days in San Francisco. Stayed in a family suite at the Pacific Heights Motor Inn, which is on Union Street, in the Cow Hollow neighborhood. This is a nice residential area, and convenient to bus lines. The motel is reasonably-priced and clean, the staff is very helpful and accomodating, but the place could a face-lift.
While in San Francisco, we enjoyed a night game at Pac Bell park (hoped to see Barry Bonds hit #600, but he didn't that night). Took a trip to Alcatraz--well worth the trip, especially with the rented headset audio tour, which really brought the place alive! Walked across the Golden Gate bridge, which was great, and made a stop at the Metreon, which, surprisingly, my kids didn't really get into--maybe they're getting too old.
The unusually warm, sunny weather, at times it felt uncomfortably hot, which I've never experienced in San Francisco before.
Aug 27th, 2002, 04:02 AM
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After enjoying 3 days in San Francisco, it was on to an all too brief couple of days in Yosemite. I've always wanted to visit this park, and did not disappoint. I'm so happy that we stayed at the Yosemite Lodge. Our room was good-sized with a small balcony and we found it quite comfortable. The location is great, as tours leave from here. I highly recommend, if at all possible, that visitors to Yosemite stay in Yosemite valley. It really cuts down on the driving: they have a very efficient shuttle service which stops throughout the valley. It's so nice not to have to go out of the park at the end of the day--you can stay and enjoy the evening programs they have.
While at Yosemite we also enjoyed a twilight tram tour of the valley, brunch at the gorgeous, historic Ahwanee hotel, and the hike up to the Vernal falls. At the end of summer, this was about the only trail with water. On our way out of the park, we stopped in Wawona and took a shuttle to the Mariposa grove to view the giant sequoias.
After an overnight stop in Visalia (just to break up the drive) we headed to Anaheim for a couple of days at Disneyland. Lovely weather, fun time. I knew there's mixed opinions on California Adventure, but we liked it--I think our two teens liked it better than Disneyland, in part because of the smaller crowds. We stayed at the Best Western Park Place. It's not fancy, but it is clean and very conveniently located right at the pedestrian crosswalk on Harbor Blvd--we easily walked to the parks.
We very much enjoyed our 2 weeks in California, and have lots of ideas of things to do when we return! Thanks again for all of the help we received from this board.
While at Yosemite we also enjoyed a twilight tram tour of the valley, brunch at the gorgeous, historic Ahwanee hotel, and the hike up to the Vernal falls. At the end of summer, this was about the only trail with water. On our way out of the park, we stopped in Wawona and took a shuttle to the Mariposa grove to view the giant sequoias.
After an overnight stop in Visalia (just to break up the drive) we headed to Anaheim for a couple of days at Disneyland. Lovely weather, fun time. I knew there's mixed opinions on California Adventure, but we liked it--I think our two teens liked it better than Disneyland, in part because of the smaller crowds. We stayed at the Best Western Park Place. It's not fancy, but it is clean and very conveniently located right at the pedestrian crosswalk on Harbor Blvd--we easily walked to the parks.
We very much enjoyed our 2 weeks in California, and have lots of ideas of things to do when we return! Thanks again for all of the help we received from this board.
Sep 1st, 2002, 08:00 AM
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Mary, Would you please take a few moments to answer a few of my questions about Yosemite Lodge. I'll be leaving in a few days and am staying at the Lodge. We will be a party of three and it would be uncomfortable for any of us to sleep in the same bed with another in our party. I'm considering taking an Areo bed for a third person. Is there room for this? Also, is there a table and chair set up for breakfast and lunches (I'm bringing a cooler or two)? Should I bring along a cardtable and chairs? Would it fit on the balcony? Does the room have a full bath, tub and shower? I can't find a description or room size on any websites. Would you be able to provide me with some details? Thank you so much. Glad to hear that you had a wonderful time in our state. One can tell you heeded many a suggestion from this board.
Sep 1st, 2002, 06:20 PM
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Josh - you might have better luck if you post your questions in a new thread. Many people will not see your questions at the bottom of this long thread- especially since it covers a lot of places besides Yosemite Lodge. Many people who read this forum have stayed at the lodge but you need to attract them with a title saying something such as "Need info about Yosemite Lodge rooms- leaving in a few days"
Sep 2nd, 2002, 04:15 AM
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Actually, while I don't give a genuine e-mail address, my name really is Mary and not Margie. Margie was an entirely different poster--I remember reading her posts.
Josh--I'll try to answer your questions about Yosemite Lodge. From what I recall, you could probably squeeze an air bed in there, especially if you don't have too many suitcases taking up space, as we did. I don't recall a table and chairs in the room. There was a desk, with one chair, and a small wooden table with two wooden chairs on the balcony. I don't think the balcony would be large to accomodate a card table. The bathroom had a shower and toilet--no tub. Outside the bathroom was an alcove with closet space and sink and generous counter area.
We did have a deluxe room. I'm not sure how much those differ from other rooms. I think Yosemite Lodge is an excellent and convenient choice. You're right: we did have a great trip and appreciated the help we received from the many helpful posters on this board. Have a great time!
Josh--I'll try to answer your questions about Yosemite Lodge. From what I recall, you could probably squeeze an air bed in there, especially if you don't have too many suitcases taking up space, as we did. I don't recall a table and chairs in the room. There was a desk, with one chair, and a small wooden table with two wooden chairs on the balcony. I don't think the balcony would be large to accomodate a card table. The bathroom had a shower and toilet--no tub. Outside the bathroom was an alcove with closet space and sink and generous counter area.
We did have a deluxe room. I'm not sure how much those differ from other rooms. I think Yosemite Lodge is an excellent and convenient choice. You're right: we did have a great trip and appreciated the help we received from the many helpful posters on this board. Have a great time!
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