We were thinking of flying to Ca. and driving the coast and I was wondering what do you all think is the best. Flying into San Francisco and going up, or flying in and driving down (we did do that about 8 yrs ago but only to Carmel) or would you drive into La. and go down to San Diego? I love San Francisco but I don't know how long it would take to drive all the way down to San Diego from there. We really just want to get in a car and drive and explore. Thanks for your input.

My vote is cast for flying into LAX and driving to San Diego. You can't beat that drive and since you've already been to SFO, why do that again? You didn't say when your trip will be, but the LAX- San Diego trip would be more enjoyable for beach lovers and the weather would be nicer, not so cold & foggy like up north.

SF south to LA gets you Monterey (and the wonderful Acquarium), Carmel, Big Sur, Santa Barbara, Hearst Castle.

SF north to ? gets you Mendocino if you want to take the detour, redwoods, gorgeous woods and scenery, and if you want to drive as far north as Portland, for example, the Oregon coast is beautiful. Depending on when you're going, Ashland and the Shakespeare Festival, too.

LA south to San Diego -- not so interesting.

Apologies to any geographical area I have slighted. These are just the most obvious high points that occur to me.

I fully understand why you want to visit San Francisco again--I've been there four times in the past six months. You don't say how much time you have, but my vote would be for driving down the coast on Route 1 at least as far as Santa Monica. Great places to stay along the way are Cambria, Pismo Beach, and Ventura. We found good places to stay and eat using Frommer's suggestions and the AAA guidebooks.

The coast between Los Angeles and San Diego is much more built up and, therefore, in my opinion, not as exciting a drive.

Other options are a drive through the Santa Monica Hills or a couple days in Las Vegas and/or Palm Springs.

Have fun.

We've done the "north from San Francisco on Highway One" drive -- taking every road that kept us close to the coastline. Took a week, went north to Eureka, cut inland to make the drive back south and wished we'd gone back down the coast again. Lots of little out-of-the-way towns, and that spectacularly rugged north coast, too.

It depends on what you want to see. The coast line between L.A. & San Diego are flatter with more sandy beaches. Up north near SF it's more rocky coasts with cliffs that drop off into the ocean with shorter sandy beaches in some areas.

If it were me, I'd choose SF south to L.A.

You might want to check out some pictures for yourself. Here is a link. Click on a section and you can then see pictures of that section:

http://www.parks.ca.gov/parkindex/default.asp?tab=2

Utahtea

I would fly into LAX and drive NORTH to SF - you'd see the best of both - laid back southern CA beaches and mid-coast drama (Big Sur etc.). Driving north on hwy 1 lets even the driver relax a tiny bit and enjoy the views. Driving south from SF places you on the outside (cliff) lane and it can be a very white knuckle experience if you are not used to the drive/road.

Then if you get to SF and still have time you can venture a bit farther up the coast through Marin and Sonoma counties.

Since you have already seen SF I would fly into San Jose and drive down the coast to San Diego. The caost from LA to San Diego is quite nice, especially considering the fact that the weather is more ideal than in the SF area if you plan on going during the summer months. I have driven south on Highway 1 and it's not bad at all. Of course if you prefer driving northbound on highway 1 then start in San Diego and end in San Jose.

http://www.pelicannetwork.net/big.sur.coast.htm

I have done the drive from SF both north (to Oregon) and south of SF (to LA). I have to say the norther route is much more dramatic in terms of coastline scenery and much less crowded. The towns just accross the bridge from SF like Sausilito are so wonderful, and then there are the Redwoods, and it just keeps getting better. I could live in Sea Ranch. Depending on how much time you have, you could drive up the coast and go to the San Juan islands in Washington state, which are really gorgeous and there so much to do and see. You should be able to do an open jaw ticket into SF and out of Seattle. You could drop the car in Seattle and take a ferry or plane to the San Juan Islands (as you don't really need a car there.)

Cicerone, I have done the Seattle-SF trip by car many times and I agree with you. It's a great and underappreciated trip. There are many ways to vary the route as well, each providing different scenery and points of interest.

Portland is a charming city, with excellent restaurants, shopping, and sightseeing. Oregon has something like 13 national forest in the state, so driving through it is exceptionally scenic. I think peoople have heard so much about Big Sur, Carmel, Santa Barbara that they choose the southern route, but I actually think the northern route has more to offer.

And the San Juans -- a little bit of heaven.

With the exception of the 10 minutes driving through Camp Pendleton, it's beyond me why people would think LA-SD is a nice coastal trip. South of Malibu, the coast is very ho-hum until you get south of Rosarito in Baja California. Go North from SF and follow Gardyloo's itinerary on the other thread you started.

These past couple of weeks I've had occasion to make two drives; one from SF to LA, taking the coast route from Monterey to San Luis Obispo, the second along the north coast.

My impression was that the North Coast was FAR more dramatic, less trafficed and had more interesting places to stop and dawdle. If you do this drive, be sure to take some of the inland side trips. Highway 128 is spectacular with a drive through the redwood forest (Narvarro River Forest) and a tour if the Anderson Valley wine country. LOTS of wineries, uncrowded and fun and informative to taste. You will be tasting with the wine makers themselves, unline the Napa Valley where tasting room employees, who often know very little about the wines, will be pouring.

Fabulous places to eat, much cheaper and less crowded, and absolutely incredible views!

Thanks Grasshopper, I just posted, and we are taking the drive north! Please fill me in on more details. Pj