We are from Australia and will be travelling to the US in Jan/Feb '12. We are driving from LA to San Francisco and plan to spend 3 nights on the coast. Thinking of 1 night near Hearst Castle (San Luis Obispo?) and 2 nights around the Monterey area. Does anyone have any suggestions? What will the weather be like that time of year?

Chilly weather2travel.com not freezing cold frontal rain.

carmelcalifornia.com south of Monterey tonnes better to stay

Big Sur area treebonesresort.com very neat Big Sur stay

Better than Cambria or Morro Bay your other options

around Hearst castle... there are budget hotels that

are ok not great right at the Castle also.

Happy Planning... carrentals.com SFO Fox usually

cheapest rentals for me on that route.

Your itinerary sounds like a good one. Hotel recommendations depend on your price range.

I would stay in Morro Bay or Cambria rather than San Luis Obispo. It would give you the opportunity to do two tours of Hearst, if you so choose, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Don't miss the elephant seals:

http://www.elephantseal.org/index.htm

If it works out better for your schedule, you can take a ranger (or docent, don't remember)-led tour at Ano Nuevo, but you do need a reservation:

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=523

Cambria is the place to stay when visiting the "Hearst Castle."

On the Monterey Peninsula, we much prefer the charm of Carmel to the honky tonk of Monterey.

Our other favorite place to stay between LA and SF is Pismo Beach because it has many rooms with ocean views and we like having dinner at Ventana Grill.

HTTY

Monterey itself is much larger and more classic touristy than Carmel (quaint, storybook architecture, beach) and Pacific Grove (more laid back, nice bayside path, good restaurants (all three have good restaurants).

I've never been to Pismo Beach, but I like Cambria, too -- good "poke around" town, nice views from all the motels across from the beach.

No one has really addressed your weather question. Winter in Northern and Central CA means rain, sometimes for days at a time causing landslides on Hwy 1. Winter also means days when it is sunny and clear and absolutely beautiful. One can never tell or accurately predict when either will occur or for how long. If you are lucky you will hit a sunny spell and wonder what all the talk of rain is about. But you should be prepared for the fact it might be grey and wet, or worse that landslides have blocked Hwy 1.

You can check this website for road conditions, just input the number of the highway (for the coast road that would be 1). The site also has a tollfree number you can call if you will not have Internet access.

http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roads.cgi

Sorry forgot to paste the link in my first post.

Año Nuevo is nice in that the elephant seals are more "in nature" than the ones near San Simeon, but it is much more restrictive. The last time I went there, we were not allowed to be close to the animals, to the point that field glasses were needed. That is not the case in San Simeon because the height difference provides the separation between humans and animals.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57624512998387

I don't know that I have ever heard Monterey described as honkey tonk - LOL! Makes it sound like a bunch of drunk cowboys running around.

I enjoy Monterey and Pacific Grove a lot. Carmel is just too-too for me though. It is ok, but the quaintness factor is a bit much. A lot of people obviously really love it though. Just depends on what you are looking for.

For the Pismo Beach vs Cambria question - I love both towns for different reasons. Pismo Beach is more of a classic CA beach town. Cambria is smaller and more artsy.

In Monterey I would recommend staying in Casa Munras or Hotel Abrego. The rooms are great and the prices are lower than those on Cannery Row. If you are looking to stay on Cannery Row (close to the aquarium) than the InterContinental the Clement Monterey, Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa and Spindrift Inn are great options.
http://www.seemonterey.com/monterey-california

Pacific Grove and Carmel-by-the-Sea are both very close to Monterey and have smaller more unique inn's and B&B's. In Pacific Grove look into Martine Inn, Green Gables and Centrella Inn. In Carmel-by-the-Sea: Pine Inn, Hofsas House and Tradewinds Carmel.
http://www.seemonterey.com/pacific-grove-california
http://www.seemonterey.com/carmel-by-the-sea-california

We stayed at the Casa Munras during our last trip to Monterey and liked it a lot. If I were to stay there again, I would request a room on the second floor though - it is a motor lodge (a nice motor lodge) so the rooms open directly to the outside and parking is right in front of the rooms. This is very convinient, but it also means some noise from people coming and going. Upstairs the noise shouldn't be a problem. This hotel is great for exploring downtown Monterey and the wharf area. You can walk to Canery Row too, but it is a significant walk.

For a hotel closer to the water, we like the Portola Hotel - it is very close to the wharf and some rooms have ocean views. We have gotten pretty nice rates there in the off-season. You do have to pay for parking, but the cost isn't particularly high.

HTTY,
I was really confused by Monterey being a Honky Tonk Too. What exactly did you mean by that? It just seems more touristy than Carmel. Probably because the style of shops and the aquarium. But, they are so close together, it really doesn't matter which place you stay, IMOP.