Help us decide on Thanksgiving weekend West Coast destination
 

Hi,

My husband and I have decided to skip the family activites this Thanksgiving a spend a few nigts on the West Coast. We enjoy visiting places with natural beauty, doing some hiking, kayaking, etc.

Here are our ideas...was wondering if anyone could give insight into these places -- which itinerary is more do-able, what the weather will be like, traffic over Thanksgiving, etc.


Option One One:
Nov. 27: Early morning arrival in Seattle. Explore city during day; Thanksgiving dinner somewhere; Overnight Seattle.

Nov 28 - 29: Pick up car in a.m.; drive to Olympic Park; Overnight for 2 nights.

Nov 30: Drive back to Seattle for red-eye flight.

Second Option:
Nov 27: Early morning arrival in San Francisco; see sights; Thanksgiving dinner and overnight SF.

Nov 28 - 29: Pick up car in a.m.; drive to Carmel/Monterey area. Overnight for 2 nights.

Nov 30 - Drive back to SF for red-eye flight.

Third option:
San Diego for 3 nights. Go to zoo, sea world, Coronado/Pt. Loma, La Jolla/Torrey Pines.

Thanks for any info!

Let me add a fourth west coast option for you: Vancouver, British Columbia. Traveling on Thanksgiving is a good way to get a decent fare, although your Sunday return with a U.S. origin s still likely to leave you fighting the crowds in the airports then and for lower fares as you plan your trip over the coming weeks.

You may be able to eliminate that by leaving the U.S. for Canada, where Thanksgiving is celebrated Oct. 13.
Another advantage is that while you will certainly be able find places to have Thanksgiving dinner, many other things could be a little dead in a U.S. city on the holiday -- and then you will follow up with the traditional "biggest shopping day of the year" on Friday. By going across the border, you can remove that whole set of dynamics.

True, the weather will not be like San Diego. But for people into natural beauty, hiking, kayaking, etc., Vancouver is at least worth putting on your radar screen as a possibility to consider.

Hi Flyboy,

Yes I had originally considered Canada. Some destinations too cold -- Toronto and Montreal...would love to go to Halifax, but the flights don't really work out time-wise. We would definitely consider Vancouver, however, right now the flights are about $200pp more than the flights to these U.S. cities.

Thanks for your recommendation...will we keep B.C. in mind if nothing else seems to work out!

Cheers,

I hate to send people away from the Pacific NW, but quite frankly the weather during Thanksgiving week is ususally so miserable that I have to say go with your California options.

The odds are just too great that any outdoors activities will be so soggy, or even (yes, it's been known) too snowy, to offer much enjoyment. Certainly kayaking would be really hazardous - rivers will be so high that only the most experienced should attempt. Plus, days will be so short that you'll spend a lot of time indoors anyway.

That's most winters, of course. There are exceptions, but why chance it?

Totally with Gardyloo on this. Skip Pacific NW for Thanksgiving. Odds are the weather will be grey, the air moist with low clouds and low visibility.

I'd vote for San Diego since you would be more likely to have nice weather for outdoor activities there that time of year.

Legit points on the weather. November is one of the wettest months in Vancouver with an average of around six inches of rainfall. Temperatures would likely fall into the low 40s to high 40s F for daytime highs. (It's colder than that where I live, so I don't mind, but rain is rain.) It's a better pick for Labor Day, I guess!

November is quite rainy and cold in Northern California and the Pacific Northwest. I would go witht he third option of San Diego at that time of year.

Since you have a few nights and SF is a consideration, why not also include Point Reyes National Seashore. It can be raining in November and will be somewhat cold but you can also get some rather stellar days.There are a multitude of trails of varying degrees of difficulty. You can kayak in Tomales Bay and perhaps have Thanksgiving dinner at Manka's Inverness lodge. (Check out their website as a possible place to stay as well). Point Reyes is an easy 1 1/2 hour drive north of SF. You can maximize your time in the beautiful wilds of northern california. Since you will have an early morning arrival in SF you can easily make it to Manka's by noon.

Coming from the 'rainy, cool' Pacific NW I would say go south - go warm - go sunshine! But do come back to the Pacific NW in Sept or early Oct to beat the crowds and yet great weather.

BTW, it doesn't ALWAYS rain here.... last year at Thanksgiving at the coast it was shorts weather on the beach! (I admit it was an unusual year though!)