milford88

Later this month, we are scheduled to fly into Oakland, spend a couple of nights in SF, then a couple in Yosemite, then one in San Simeon, then three in Monterey, and a final night in Oakland (near the airport). My understanding is that Route 1 is, and very likely still will be, closed between San Simeon and Monterey/Carmel. Could someone confirm that? ... and if that is correct, we are wondering if it will be worth it to drive around from San Simeon (where we'd tour the Hearst Castle) to Monterey, or should we skip San Simeon? If we do skip it, would it be practical to visit Kings Canyon and/or Sequoia with that extra day? Any advice would be appreciated.

SAB

Right now 1 is still closed south of Big Sur, so you cannot drive from San Simeon to Monterey on 1. Check this website for updates: http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/ --enter 1 as the highway and check Central California conditions.

I can offer no advice on whether to skip San Simeon or not. I have not been back since I first moved to CA almost 40 years ago and have never had a desire to return.

tomfuller

Are you planning on renting a car right away? What do you want to see in SF? Personally, I would cut one night from SF and one night from Monterey/Carmel. Add the extra time to Yosemite and maybe Kings Canyon/Sequoia. The Hearst Castle requires advance reservations with a limited number of visitors per day.
Check to see if you can find lodging in Yosemite. It may well be booked already.
Be sure to see the aquarium in Monterey.

milford88

Thanks very much.

At this point, we do have a rental right away, but I guess that could be changed. I guess we want to do the classic tourist things in SF (Golden Gate Bridge, Lombard Street, ride a cable car, etc.). We already have lodging in Yosemite for the 2 nights, but I suspect it would be booked if we tried to add a night. It couldn't hurt to check though. I think we may want to consider seeing Kings Canyon/Sequoia, and the Monterey Aquarium is definitely on our list.

tomfuller

Good that you have the 2 nights in Yosemite booked. Stay the night after in Oakhurst then head to Sequoia.
You can save a day's rental by using public transport into SF.
You may find that renting the car in the city is cheaper than renting at an airport.

janisj

Sorry, but Sequoia/Kings Canyon makes almost no sense. The drive from Yosemite to Sequoia to Monterey totals more than 10 hours w/o stops. You'd be doing that over the space of 2 days so you'd have very little time in Sequoia. And staying the night in Oakhurst doesn't help at all since you'd have the same hellacious drive but one less day to do it in . . .

You can still get from San Simeon to Monterey -- you just have to cut over to 101 at Cambria/Paso Robles.

Where are you staying in SF? If one of the downtown hotels you'll likely pay $45+ to park. But if it is one of the motor inns -- parking is often free.

Now - as for your last night - you'll still have your car right? If so I would NOT stay anywhere near OAK. It is not a safe area. You can stay in Jack London Sq, or Emeryville, but not along the Hegenberger corridor (that is where OAK is)

SOCALOC

Unless you're a castle fanatic or have never seen one- I'd pass on Hearst castle. For the most part, it's used as a convenient rest area destination before/after you make the LONG haul up/down Highway 1. I'd definitely use the 2 days somewhere else since you can't do the 'authentic' Highway 1 drive during your visit.

sf7307

I loved Hearst Castle, but I too would skip it on this particular trip. Stay "north" of the where Hwy 1 is closed. Add a night to Yosemite if you can, or add time to San Francisco and use it to make a day trip somewhere (Muir Woods? Sonoma? Healdsburg? You can see plenty of redwoods near Monterey or SF!)

(and ditto what janisj said about the Hegenberger corridor near Oakland Airport -- it's really not nice).

janisj

I wasn't necessarily recommending San Simeon -- just explaining how to get from there to Monterey. If you want to visit Hearst Castle -- it is totally doable. In fact the drive up 101 is faster than up hwy 1.

If it was me, I might ditch San Simeon and add that 'spare' day to Monterey/Carmel. You can drive south from Carmel into the Big Sur area - the road is open part way, just not all the way through. After driving over from Yosemite you'd really have 3.5 days for the area. You can explore the coast, lunch at Nepenthe (as much for the views as for the food), visit the Mission, Monterey's Fisherman's Wharf, the Aquarium, have lunch at Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing (of Diners, Drive-ins & Dive fame), shop in Carmel, fine dining in Pacific Grove/Carmel, just loads of stuff to fill 3+ days

milford88

Thank you all very much for the helpful information. With respect to the Oakland hotel, we're actually in Alameda. Do the same cautions still apply?

janisj

No - most of Alameda is totally fine. Which hotel?

milford88

Sorry...I should have mentioned that. It is the Airport Hampton Inn. -Thanks.

janisj

The Hampton Inn is technically in Alameda. It isn't on the island though, and is just off the end of the airport. But it is away from the 'nasty' Oakland side. I haven't been over on that side of Alameda in years but I assume it is fine.

Maybe one of the others from the area knows for sure.