I am finally getting the plans for our Ca. Coastal trip finalized. For all of you who are so knowledgeable about Ca., could you give your imput about the stops and the days we have alotted in each place?

Day 1 Fly from Jax. to Sacramento and drive to Santa Rosa
Day 2 Tour a couple of wineries and then drive to SF
Day 3 SF
Day 4 SF
Day 5 drive to Carmel
Day 6 Big Sur to SLO (or should we stop in Cambia or Pismo Beach for the night?)
Day 7 SLO to Santa Barbara
Day 8 SB
Day 9 SB
Day 10 drive to Reagan Library and then to LA
Day 11 LA Tour
Day 12 Fly out

Is there somewhere along the way that we should stay a day longer or shorten a day somewhere? We have been to the Monterey area before and won't be doing anything there this time. The trip is for relaxing and driving the coast but we would like to hike some, maybe ride horses somewhere etc. It just seems like my plan doesn't have us in one place for long but with a trip like this, I don't know how you would do that. Thanks to all who have helped me so far. I have been reading the boards for months. Any help would be appreciated.

Hmm.. Day 2 looks grueling to me. If you are flying into Sac, I would be more entusiastic about choosing an area in Sonoma County that you would like to tour wineries in and basing out of that area. With your choices Napa (or the town of Sonoma)seems more logical, but I am sure you have your reasons for the Sonoma location. Sounds like a great trip!

I highly recommend visiting Hearst Castle near San Luis Obispo. We stayed in the Apple Farm Inn and it was really very cozy.. Have Fun..

You think I could spell right! I need input not imput. LOL Thanks for the advice. I just want to make sure we are not trying to rush or miss anything.

Too much on Day 2 unless you plan to drive into S.F. late in the evening, after rush hour, etc. Make sure you have detailed driving directions for getting to your S.F. hotel.

You should definitely see San Simeon. Pismo or Cambria would be much more fun to stay at than SLO. By the time you get there, you are only about 1.5 hours from SB. Can you remove a day from SB and stay in the Cambria area? You have a lot of time in SB, it's not a very big place. When you do head for SB, take the Hwy. 154 San Marcos pass cutoff, it's very scenic. Solvang is up there, if that interests you, plus several wineries.

That is a good suggestion. If one day in SB is enough and Pismo and surrounding area needs another day, I can do that. That is why I need input. It is hard to decide how many days in each place when you have never been. Thanks again.

If this were my trip, I'd stop in Santa Barbara and fly home from there. Your short time in LA seem like a lot of ugly freeway time to me, and not enough time to really see things. I'de add a day in the wine country, add a day in SF, add a day in Carmel, stay in San Simeon (hearst Castle), and subtract a day in Santa Barbara. However, I'm sure you already have your plane tickets.

On day 5, if this is a weekday and you go on 101 or 280, it may take 3-4 hours to get to Carmel from SF because of the rush-our traffic. Normal time is 2 1/4 hrs. Consider instead going Hwy 1 all the way - it will take a little longer than the 3-4 hours, but much more scenic and less frustrating.

Arriving in Carmel mid day, and then next night in SLO is not nearly enough time to see what most people find to be the most scenic section of the Calif Coast, and probably our "cutest" village. I'm a Northern California guy so I'm biased, but I would find Carmel & the Big Sur coast much more interesting than SLO, Santa Barbara, and the coast in that region.

Stu Dudley
San Mateo (San Francisco), Ca

Stu,

I don't have the tickets for the return trip yet. I have read a lot of your post and they have been very helpful. I have been to Carmel but only for the day. We stayed at a B&B in Pacific Grove and didn't have a lot of time. I will try and see about the flight home. I just thought that LA would be fun to see by tour bus and see Beverly Hills etc. Thanks for the help and let me know if you think of anything else.

I'm going to agree with Stu. One day is way too short a time to spend in the greater LA area-- save it for another trip. Santa Barbara will be a fine stopping point.

I've vacationed to all the places you've mentioned and live near the Reagan Library. Our most recent trip was SF,wine country, over to the coast for Mendicino and Fort Bragg. My friend says Muir Woods is near SF but I didn't visit there - and regret it. You could spend all week in SF and still find things to do. SLO and SB don't compare to the points north imo.

camcraw-

How far is SB from the Reagan Library and then from Library to LA near the airport? I can mapquest but would like to know from someone that lives near there. Thanks.

If you are lucky enough to miss traffic from SB to the Library, it can be as short as 1hr.15m. Also, it can take just about the same from Library to airport, but that rarely happens because of traffic. Plan much more time as route to airport can be grueling.

Starting to narrow down hotels and days for our vacation with all of the fodorites help and had a question about LA. I need a hotel that is pretty convenient to LAX. I have looked on tripadvisor and I just can't decide. I think that we will do a tour of LA and maybe the WB tour. This is at the end of our vacation, so we won't have much time in LA. Many have said to skip it altogether but I feel like I would be missing the experience. Thanks to all who have helped me figure out how many days in each place. It has been a great help.