Hi all --
DH and I (and my parents) are vacationing in CA in July. We are going to LA 1st, then driving from LA to SF and then doing Lake Tahoe and Yosemite after SF.
I know there are a lot of posts about where to stop along Hwy 1 . . . but we really need to make the trip in 1 day. We were only going to stop somewhere in the Carmel/Monterey area for a few hours on the way.
How long will it take us to drive Hwy 1 all the way?
I'm reading that not all of it is particularly scenic . . . would it make more sense to travel only certain parts on Hwy 1 and then move inland to a faster road? For ex., would Hwy 101 be any better for part of the trip?
I know many of you have posted on the great places to stop along the way but we just don't have the time with the rest of our itinerary that's been booked, and I need to know if we can truly make the Hwy 1 trip in a (comfortable) day. Sorry about the long question, and thanks!

Take 101 out of LA through Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo. (early lunch stop in either SLO or Morro or continue to Cambria). Head west on Hwy 1 to Morro Bay and up to Monterey (late afternoon stop). After Monterey, continue on 1 to Santa Cruz and take Hwy 17 to 280 to head to SF. It will be a LONG day, but do-able. Hwy 1 is closed just above Santa Cruz (land slide) and will not open until Fall at the earliest. If you leave LA before traffic (6am) you should be in SLO by 10-10:30am.

Well, I've driven it alone in one day, BUT it's really not recommended. It's makes for a very long day.

With four people and two sitting in the back seat - really and truly not recommended at all.

From LA, you have to take 101 for a portion of the way anyhow, so there is not a "either 101 or Highway 1" choice. Starting from San Luis Obispo on northbound you can start taking the coastal route, Highway 1. This portion is not very long, slightly over 100 miles, but it is very curvy and windy and, in July, you will likely have to go very slowly because of all the campers and other traffic, probably budget around 35-40 miles an hour during this stretch. You also need to budget in some stops, as this is one of the most spectacular coastlines in the world and the whole reason to travel along the coast. If you don't want to stop, then don't go along Highway 1!

Just past Carmel, you can rejoin 101 and head all the way to SF.

I'd say you should budget roughly four hours for each segment: LA to San Luis Obispo, SLO to Carmel, Carmel to SF. That's 12 hours. I'd guess that with pit stops, food stops, view stops this could easily be a 14-16 hour day.

Of course this estimate depends on where you start out in LA and you want to end up in SF. It is also dependent on whether you are going to meet with peak hour traffic.

If you don't want to go along the coast and to use Highway 101 exclusively, I'd guesstimate that to be at least a 9 hour trip, straight through. Even though 101 is faster and mostly four lane, it is still pretty curvy in parts.

The fastest route between LA and SF is Interstate 5, roughly a 7 hour drive straight through. You see virtually nothing scenic on this route.

Thank you both so far! We do certainly want to budget in some scenic overlook stops (in addition to the longer Carmel/Monterey stop) -- we want to enjoy the whole reason for taking the "longer" route! We're not sure yet whether we're going to leave right from LA, or try to get 1-2 hours N on Day 1 and start bright 'n' early on Day 2 for the rest of the way . . . Oh, and we definitely did want to avoid I-5, even though it's fastest. Thanks!

That is just an impossible drive. Sure one could do it if their life depended on it. Otherwise why even bother. You would not have time to stop, to eat anything but maybe a fast food burger, to have more than a 10 min rest stop, or time to travel into any of the parks/towns along the way.

Then later you want to drive 4.5 to 6 hours up to Tahoe, and then from Tahoe to Yosemite.

Those poor folks stuck in the back seat may never speak to you again.

Well, I'll be one of the 2 people stuck in the backseat, so hopefully I'll be able to deal. This is our plan:
Arrive
3 nights in LA (can't change this part)
1 night "on the road" 1-2 hours N of LA
[Insert all day drive on Hwy 1 here]
2 nights in SF
2 nights in Lake Tahoe
2 nights in Yosemite
1 night in LA (arriving late) before we
Leave

I realize it's a bit of a whirlwind, but we really did think we'd have time for some scenic overlook stops, and a short exploring stop in Monterey, not caring how late we arrived into San Francisco that night.
Maybe not?

I would skip Lake Tahoe and instead enjoy my coastal drive over 2 days. It would be a brutally long rushed day to do it in one if you hope to stop and enjoy the view at all.

What will you do you do if there are any accidents or road work or you get stuck behind a pokey RV? Will you feel free to pull off for a while or will you all sweat, curse and yell at each other, knowing you are getting even farther behind the schedule?

Starting 1 - 2 hours north of LA will only help a little bit.

Then you are really only giving yoursleves 1 day in SF. The "2 nights" is deceiving since the 1st night you won't be arriving until very (probably VERY) late.

What days of the week are these drives. SF to Tahoe on a July Friday for instance can easily take 6 or 7 or more hours - w/ no stops.

Entering Yosemite in July can mean waiting in the car and hour just to enter the park. And if you aren't there EARLY in the a.m. the wait can be longer and parking a problem.

So you have more than just a "whirlwind" planned here. More like a Tornado.

I LOVE Tahoe - in fact I'm driving up there tomorrow for a few days R&R. But in your situation I would drop it from your itinerary. Do you already have your rooms at Yosemite? If not, it is too late now unless you luck out and get a cancellation. If you do have accomodations in Yosemite, then this makes more sense:

Leave LA in the afternoon and stay the night somewhere near Santa Barbara. Spend the next night in Carmel/Monterey/Pacific Grove. Then 3 nights in SF, and finally the 2 nights in Yosemite.

Your current plan is just a road trip w/ a little "there" in between

I agree with Janis and Easy. I would spend more time and enjoy the coast. And cut out Lake Tahoe for this trip. There's always other trips.

I'll add to the pile-on.

This is extremely impractical-- almost ludicrous. You're completely shortchanging San Francisco, your drive up the coast will be a Death March in the best of situations (and if there's an accident, all bets are off as to when you'll get into SF). And let's not forget the six hours minimum drive Yosemite to LA that last day.

I guarantee-- people in that car are going to go from "loving family" to "trading gun shots at dawn" by the end of the trip. Tahoe has to go from your itinerary. Plain and simple.

For a first nite stop, get to San Luis Obispo, all on 101. It is actually scenic from Ventura to SLO. This is 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours from LA, depending upon where you start and traffic. SLO is the gateway to taking rte.1 up the Big Sur Highway to Carmel. This will take about 3-4 hours, so you can check out the Carmel-Pacific Grove-Monterey area the rest of the day, then head for SF on 101 (or stay in Carmel, which is one of the most quaint, picturesque towns you will ever see). I agree with other posters-drop the Tahoe part-Yosemite will give you plenty of the mountain/lake scenery.

I'll disagree. It is possible and not entirely unpleasant, to drive from LA to SF via Rte 1 in one day. It would take about 10 hours. It would be an great improvement to get the 2 hour (or more) head start by driving beyond Santa Barbara the prior day. At a minimum, get to somewhere like Buellton or Santa Maria.

The Camp Curry tent cabins will do in a pinch in Yosemite. You can probably still get them mid week (I think the weekend ones are probably all gone). Just think group camp with dirty showers. But I do think it is better to stay in Yosemite Valley if you have a short trip. It will take 6 hours to get back Yosemite to LA via Wawona and Rte 99. It is not a horrible experience. I just did it. Be sure to allow for a morning visit to Mariposa Grove on the way out. It might even be worthwhile to stay night two in Wawona before leaving out via Rte 41 to LA. You'll be an hour closer.

Hi- I've done this. It took 13 hours. (well, in reverse- left SF at ~ 7:00am and got into LA around 8pm.)

Lynne

p.s., It was spectacular and I'll never forget it, but the roads up near Carmel, etc., really ARE winding and can make you dizzy. I wouldn't recommend it because it can honestly be unsafe, especially if those winding roads are at the end of a very long day. Plus, the sun will be near setting and you won't be able to enjoy the scenery as much.

p.p.s., i was alone, so i went straight through without hardly any long stops, and it still took 13 hours. and no, i'm not a grandma.

Wow -- what a mix of reviews! I guess we surely didn't think it would be easy (thanks to those of you who agree it is, at least, possible!).
Maybe I'm trying to justify my position too much here, but we've got a couple reasons for the itinerary.

- we have to begin in LA, and stay there Mon. through a Thurs. afternoon. (Thurs. night after rush hour, we plan to head up the coast hopefully further than SB, but not as far as SLO.)
-- my DH has to catch an early flight out of SF on Sun. and he wanted to see a little bit of SF on Sat. (since we'll be arriving late on Fri. night after our marathon).
-- we would then be driving to Tahoe on Sunday afternoon.
-- while 3 of us are interested in the LA/SF week, my wonderful father is not, so week 2 is esp. for him, and I don't want to disappoint him (it would be Tahoe (Sun. night to Tues. morning) & Yosemite (Tues. night to Thurs. afternoon)).

I realize we're trying to have our cake and eat it too, but it's our first trip out to CA and maybe this way, if we ever get to come back, we'll be able to pick our favorite places out of those 4 . . .
You all are certainly giving us a lot to think about!

Hi Scarly-
If you want some ideas for places to stay between SB and SLO on your Thursday evening, let me know (and your price range). I know places in Solvang/ Buellton, Santa Maria, Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach.

We would love some ideas! In fact, we were just trying to figure out where to stop . . . Our price range is ideally around $100 (ha-ha, right?) We're hoping for Holiday/Hampton Inn type. We've been seeing some things in the $130 range which we can also do.
Buelleton/Solvang would be great (Do you think Solvang is too far off of 101?) We're also looking at Santa Maria.
(We're probably going to be leaving from the Burbank area after 8 pm, so we're hoping to get 2-3 hrs of driving in.) Thanks so much!

I think you should be able to find something in Santa Maria around that price. I think there is a Holiday Inn. If all fails, there's a Motel 6 in Buellton and another in Santa Maria.

I can't help with any rec's because we usually stay in Lompoc, which is a bit far off the hwy for your situation. Some friend stayed once at the Santa Maria Inn and the review was just "nothing special, okay."

In Santa Maria, I like the Best Western Big America. Nice big clean rooms with an expanded continental breakfast (cereals, bagels, fruit, juices, etc).
It's well rated on AAA, maybe a little higher than some of the motels there.
In Solvang, I like Svengaards Danish lodge. In Buellton, Pea Soup Andersen's Best Western.

Oh, Arroyo Grande has Premier Inns, which is a small step up from Motel6. In Pismo Beach, Sea Venture and Sandcastle Inn are nice, but pricier. I think there's a Holiday Inn Express in Arroyo Grande or Pismo, though I've never stayed there.