car rental in california
 

Trying to plan my itinerary f driving the coast in California in a rented car. I've read a posting that says south to north is cheaper than north to south. Should I start in San Francisco or San Diego? Anyone have info about that theory?

I don't know the prices but I would rather drive to the north to avoid being on the cliff side of the road in some of the narrow spots.

I'd rather drive north to south so that I would be on the cliff side of Hwy 1 and be able to easily pull off at all the turn outs.

You don't say what your itinerary is or how much time you have or what part of the coast you are interested in.

As far as driving Hwy 1 along the Big Sur coast, I would choose (as J Correa) North to South. The most dramatic scenery is between Carmel and Lucia which is best appreciated when you are fresh. Of course, if you have several days to do it right and can stay in Big Sur and near San Simeon, either way would work.

I am not sure why it would be "chaeper" to do it one way or another. Gas is $2.25 per gallon either way.

If you can provide more info, it would be easier to offer suggestions.

I think the idea of cheaper south to north referred to cheaper one way rentals in that direction, but that would be news to me. I've booked a one way rental this summer from San Francisco to Sacramento and it is cheaper that the rental I'm doing with both pick up and drop off in LA. (Yes I realize neither of those are north to south or vice versa, but still it meant my northern rental was cheaper than my southern rental). And I checked on pick up in San Diego which was higher than pick up in LA. I think the prices are all a crap shoot anyway.

Yeah, I thought about that "cliff side to ocean side" fact about driving the coast. I know I'll have nightmares the night before going. As far as being detailed about the itinerary, I'm just working on that now. I'm trying to get a handle on the sites we want to see, plus the distance and time it takes to get to the next destination.That's why I was asking about the route.

Preliminary idea: Land in San Diego, spend 1 day and night. Drive to LA, spend 2 days, 2 nights (no theme parks or studio tours). Drive up coast thru Santa Monica and Santa Barbara and research place to stay. We're on a budget. Hit Pismo beach and ride ATVs on the beach (must-do). Now, bear with me, I want to see the site where James Dean died which is west of Cambria. Stay in Pismo or Cambria one night, drive up thru Big Sur (no camping) and stay night(again, research necessary). Hit Monterey and possibly Carmel (if there's time). Drive up to Napa ( I know, long drive) and then drop off car before exploring San Francisco for 2 days and head home. I've learned no car is needed in San Francisco.

So go ahead and call me crazy but this is derived from minimal research.

BTW-thanks for the heads up on the gas prices. I was going to ask about that at a later date.