I am going to a wedding in Santa Barbara in October. I can take up to 2 weeks vacation, and am trying to decide if I should do a tour of California (wine country, Monterrey, Yosemite) or head to Hawaii (multiple islands, luxury hotels). If California, we'd prefer B&Bs.

If you could choose, which would you do? (note that we've been to Hawaii a few times before but have never toured CA).

If you could do any kind of trip in CA for 2 weeks, what places would you include? Consider for the sake of discussion that money is no object (but let's keep it realistic!).

thanks
~fiasco

California!!!
Napa Valley and Monterey/Carmel or Mendocino. Maybe one or two nights at the Prescott hotel in San Francisco too.

Since your disclaimer about having already been to Hawaii, I would say California. Should you decide to spend some of that time in Monterey/Carmel/Big Sur (which I think you should ).. read some of the recent threads that have been just posted about those areas.
I'll repeat the must do's in those areas.
1. Big Sur coastline drive (go as far as your heart desires and stay there if you like somewhere or drive back to Monterey/Carmel.
2. Point Lobos reserve (it's on your way to Big Sur on Highway 1. Can't miss it)
3. 17 mile drive (gives a great overview of the area in a short amount of time) Get a little guide book.
4. Monterey Bay Aquarium. (see the web site) www.montereybayaquarium.com)
watch your spelling. It's not like the Monterrey of Mexico.. for when you do online searches. And look for the hotel/aquarium packages.


I would add Yosemite and SF to the mix.

There's lots of really good advice already about Yosemite, just recently posted.

I definitely say California...if you are not opposed to driving a lot, you could go to Palm Springs, back to the coast and then north to Napa, stopping along the way. We did 10 days and it was the best trip we ever took. If you like b&b type places then I highly, highly, highly recommend the Cottage Grove Inn in Calistoga...they have individual cottages with fireplaces, jacuzzi tubs, wine & cheese in the afternoon, etc. All of the cottages are decorated with a different "theme" (nautical, fly fishing, tuscany, etc.) and you can pick which one you want to stay in.

Well, we're SF Bay Area folk and some of our favorite wineries are in Sonoma County and Paso Robles. (Napa is a bit too overcrowded & expensive these days.) Don't miss these wonderful areas if you're driving through. October is also a perfect month for wine tasting as it closely follows the harvest. I guess your next best move is to visit Fodors' California site to plan a tour & ask about B&Bs. Have fun!

Since you haven't done California, I would choose that. We flew into SF, stayed a couple of nights. Onto Napa Valley, spent three nights in Lake Tahoe, on passed Mono Lake, Bodie the Ghost town, onto Yosemite through the east gate, three nights in that area visiting the floor of Yosemite, Mariposa grove. We drove through Fresno and spent the night in Cambria. I could have used an additional night in Cambria. We drove up the coast, visited San Simeon's Hearst Castle, Big Sur, spent the night in Monterey and few out of SF. 1600 miles later we had a great trip and a great time.

It's nothing compared to Hawaii, but since you've already been there a couple of times, there are great sites in Southern California too. I'm in LA area, but there are very nice beach resorts and lots to do in San Diego, if you're looking for an island without going to Hawaii, there's quaint Catalina Island for a nice day trip. You can spend the night on the Queen Mary in LB. There's tons of options in both Southern & Northern California, though I guess SB is closer to Northern CA.

If you do the California option and do the drive up or down the coast as many have suggested, you MUST stay a night or two at the Post Ranch Inn in Bug Sur. It is expensive, but it would be a special treat and that view from their basking pool would be an unforgettable memory of your trip to our fabulous state. Have a great trip!

oops! I meant to type Big, not Bug Sur. Ha!

And there I had started planning a visit to BUG Sur!

There shouldn't be too many bugs in Bug Sur in October.

You could spend the whole two weeks just in the Santa Barbara area. It has remote beaches, fabulous wineries, great hotels, restaurants, golf, etc. It also has the Channel Islands just offshore if you are looking for adventure.

If you do go up to Big Sur, bear in mind that The Post Ranch Inn was just voted the best hotel in North America by Conde' Nast readers and it's very hard to to get reservations at busy times of the year like October. It is a fabulous retreat, however, and well worth the splurge if you can afford it.

Just across the street is the also fabulous Ventana Inn which is a little less exorbitant in price but also a wonderful place to get away from it all. The Post Ranch and Ventana are among the best places we have ever stayed and we have found nothing to match them in Hawaii.

You could easily spend two weeks just going from Santa Barbara to Monterey and back, taking Hwy 1 one way and 101 the other. There's lots to see and do along those routes.

Or, you could venture over to the Sierra Nevada, the SF Bay Area or up into Northern California and see the Redwoods, Shasta, Lassen, Lava Beds, etc. California is a huge state and there is something for everyone.

I'd take two weeks at luxury resorts in Hawaii any day over two weeks in Cali!

Hawaii isn't a "been there done that" type of experience, so returning isn't a problem. You go for the sun, the relaxation, the experiences.

I'd hit up the Four Seasons Wailea and the one near Kona. A week each and I'd be literally in paradise. California is amazing, but Hawaii trumps all in my book! Especially if money is no object.