we are planning to go out to california with two kids(11/13) for 16 days. renting a car...we will fly into san diego 2 days . LA 3 days..solvang 1 day....san luis obispo 1 day(madonna inn) carmel/pacific grove 1 day..san fran 4 days...yosemite 4 days...lake tahoe ..2 days..fly home from reno..1 day

we are from florida so the pools and beaches are nothing new. we do love outdoor activities, hiking, horseback, riverrafft etc...

we have no reservations yet except madonna inn. quite a few suggestions from these posts. any ideas for us???? does the driving seem ok? mapquest says it is a total of 978 miles/18.5 hours over 16 days

You're planning well in advance, and my only quibble would be with ONE day in Solvang. One too many, frankly. Give that day to San Diego, and stop in Solvang on the way to SLO; it's a three-hour drive between LA and SLO, so an hour or so stop in Solvang will be plenty. Believe me, I know.

You've split the driving up well-- it doesn't seem too rushed. I think you'll have a great time!

Even the one hour stop in Solvang would be too much for me, well maybe for coffee or something. A short stop in Santa Barbara for lunch and a look around would be a lot more interesting. I would add that extra day to either San Diego, LA or Carmel/Pacific Grove. Otherwise your itinerary looks fine.

Solvang would be at the bottom of my list.
I always get confused when people mention number of "days" at locations, especially when much of that day will be driving. For example do you plan to spend two nights at Lake Tahoe or do you mean two days, one day mostly driving there from Yosemite, one night there, and one day going to Reno to fly home?

Upon leaving LA, I'd probably drive up to Santa Barbara for a nice walk and lunch then on to the Madonna Inn for that night. Next day I'd head over to Hearst Castle with a prebooked tour and drive right on up to Carmel in the afternoon. That way (if my calculations are right) you could spend two nights there instead of one. The rest of the trip sounds great-- again if you mean those numbers to be nights, not days.

I agree-skip the time in Solvang and go to Santa Barbara for a day or two. You will be happier.

Nothing much in Solvang but a few nice shops (more tacky ones though). I do stop in Solvang now and then - but never stay overnight and it is not a place I would steer someone coming all the way from Florida.

wow! i guess we will skip solvang! maybe just stop there for a drink. my days are numbered as days there....i think i will add my extra day to either san diego or monterey. any where else?

no, i mean my days are actually nights! those are the number of nights we will stay. ex: yosemite 4! it gets very confusing doing this trip, but fun, i might add!!!!!

I'd take a night away from Tahoe and add it to LA or San Diego, I'd skip Solvang totally, and I'd do a search here for tons of informarion about each of your stops. You'll have a great time!

From Yosemite, I hope you are planning to go over Tioga Pass and see the spectacular scenery of lakes, granite, and canyons. Mono Lake and the visitor center is quite interesting, as well as walking down to the lake (a bit mushy if you get too close). Then there's the old mining town of Bodie from times past.

Lake Tahoe has hiking, and biking. A search will help you out with those. Breakfast at the Pondorosa (Bonanza) is a bit hokey, but fun and a great view. Rafting down the Truckee River can be as long (or short) as you would like. Pack a lunch, and stop for a break along the way.

Squaw Valley cable car up the mountain is nice. It has a pool(can be cool up on top of the mountain) and a large ice skating rink. There is also a tram at South Lake Tahoe, the Heavenly Valley tram which is next to the Marriott.

Or dinner on the MS DixieII is pleasant in the evening. It goes to Emerald Bay. In other words, there is a variety of things to see and do.

The drive to Reno is about an hour to an hour and a half depending on which side of the lake you will be leaving.