Pacific Grove for 5 or 6 nights
 

My adult daughter and I are flying into SF, then drive to Pacific Grove. We plan to rent a cottage, enjoy scenery, walks, food, ocean atmosphere. We fly in Wed May 3 have 5 nights, leaving Mon May 8 around noon. Worried after reading about SF traffic that we should be in SF near airport for Sunday night. Suggestions? Pacific Grove looks like our style, suggestions for anywhere else? Perhaps nearer?
Is it 2.5 hrs to Pac Grove accurate? If we need to stay in SF on Sunday night, what location do you suggest? We also love farmer's mkts, haven't seen the redwoods, but do not want all our days to be driving in the car, so our little town and cottage choice to spend time in a "home base"..

>>leaving Mon May 8 around noon. Worried after reading about SF traffic that we should be in SF near airport for Sunday night.<<

Good idea. We just won the prize for the 4th worst commute traffic of any city in the US. Monday "return to work day" is horrible. Return late Sunday & crash near the airport. Once on 101 coming from the Monterey area, take 280 north to 380 east, and then to the airport. This route is a LOT more scenic than 101 all the way. Budget 2 1/4 hrs for the trip on Sunday afternoon/evening.

Stu Dudley

There are two scenic drives between San Francisco and Pacific Grove: Highway 1, which offers great ocean views, and CA 17.

You will pass Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park if you drive CA 17.

HTtY

Stu Dudley: Thanks for the route suggestion getting back to SF airport.(Do you suggest that same route from SF to Pacific Grove mid morning on Wed? HTty: Love hearing about your scenic drive suggestions.

So, Do you have other coastal cities on your radar...they could be North of SF as well. My millennial daughter first suggested wine country. The beauty of the coast right at Pacific Grove attracts us...as well as a 2 block walk.We are open to hearing your favorite ideas as we have NOT booked our vacation rental yet! We love hearing about places under the radar a bit.......

KateW

>>Do you suggest that same route from SF to Pacific Grove mid morning on Wed<<

Yes - even more so because there will be less traffic on 280 and it is a wider freeway than 101.

>>We love hearing about places under the radar a bit<<

There is very little under the radar in the Bay Area.

Here is some info:
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...mendations.cfm

Stu Dudley

If you want to stay the last night closer to SFO, but not in SF itself, consider Half Moon Bay.

If PG attracts you, then go for it. There are plenty of wineries in the area - all of which are not nearly as on the beaten path as "wine country" ie Napa and Sonoma which are known by everyone everywhere :)

If you want some really off the beaten path wineries, check out the Morgan Hill wine trail.

Be sure to spend a couple of hours at Point Lobos State Park, which is just a short drive south from Pacific Grove. I suggest that you check out Andril's Cottages in Pacific Grove - great place to stay and lovely trails leading to the incredible coastline.

Passion Fish and the Fishwife are both favorite dining options for us.

Search my user name for my recent trip report on San Fran/Monterey. We stayed in Pacific Grove at the most lovely cottage. I Looooved PG. I would highly recommend it. We spent 3 days on activities in/around there and that didn't even include a wine tour ;-).

I would take Highway 1 from SF to PG. It is more scenic north of Santa Cruz than south of it, so taking CA 17 eliminates the best part of CA 1.

I would NIX staying in Half Moon Bay, the traffic going and coming from there is TERRIBLE - bumper to bumper sometimes. Enjoy as much time as you can in Monterey area and leave late Sunday afternoon for drive to airport hotel. There are plenty in Millbrae and around the airport. The drive from Monterey up highway 1 is beautiful. Unfortunately Highway 1 going south to Big Sur is closed due to damaged bridge so you will have to catch that scenic drive on another trip. 17 mile drive in Monterey is a lovely , drive too.

Their flight is at noon on a Monday, which means that if they chose to stay in HMB the night before the flight, they could leave after the commute, no problem.

I am still so in love with Fodor's forum! Your replies are so specific and make my planning suit what I am after.

I am wondering about Milbrae (if we stay there can we eat casual dinner and breakfast..suggestions on hotel and eating?). If we could stay one night ... Half Moon Bay on Sunday? Where should we stay? I think I am getting confused now in trying to make it getting to airport be simple! :)

Again, so appreciative to talk with you know the answers!
We went to Palm Springs a few years back and the Fodor's tips about where to get a vacation rental were so helpful!
Sorry but figuring this out from the midwest...You Guys ROck!

>>I would NIX staying in Half Moon Bay, the traffic going and coming from there is TERRIBLE - bumper to bumper sometimes. <<

Strange!!!. That's not our experience. We've driven that route perhaps 200 times in the past 36 years (four times in the last 2 weeks) and I think we've encountered bumper-to-bumper traffic once when a truck missed a turn and veered off the road and rescue vehicles blocked going & coming. However, we usually make this trip just after or before the commute hours, and never on a sunny weekend or around Halloween when the whole Bay Area wants to get to & from Half Moon Bay.

It depends on WHEN you make the trip.

Stu Dudley

>>I am wondering about Milbrae (if we stay there can we eat casual dinner and breakfast..suggestions on hotel and eating?). If we could stay one night<<

Milbrae is very boring, & not that interesting, IMO. Burlingame Avenue in Burlingame is where you want to be. Alive & active every day. Lots of interesting shops and perhaps 30 different restaurants to choose from. Just drive there & eat at one of the restaurants that "grabs you".

Our favorites:
- Rasa - Indian. Michelin 1 star restaurant. The SF restaurant critic declared it to be the best Indian restaurant in the Bay Area.
- Rasoi. Indian. Almost as good as Rasa. We dine here or do "carry out" about 5-6 times a year.
- Delfina Pizzeria - a Bay Area favorite
- Rangoon Rubys - Very nice Burmese
- Mingalaba - Burmese - perhaps the most crowded and popular restaurant in the Burlingame Ave area.
- Blue Line Pizza. This is where we get "carry-outs", but you can dine inside too.
- Coconut Bay On Howard Ave. Very nice Thai
- Limon. New restaurant - Peruvian.
- Straits. Singapore food - noisy but popular
- Il Fornaio. Italian. Very popular, but we've had some bad dinners there.
- Copenhagen. PERFECT place for breakfasts. It's been in our neighborhood for over 35 years, and kinda of an "institution"
- Alana's - another great place for breakfasts.
- Grapvine. Another breakfast place if you want to "carbo load" (not our style).

Stu Dudley

<Limon. New restaurant - Peruvian.>

New in Burlingame - but not new (there are a couple in the city). Very inexpensive and delicious.

I think staying at an airport hotel or a Millbrae hotel and whiling away a few hours on Burlingame Avenue is a good idea. For breakfast, if you're in Millbrae, the Millbrae Pancake House is also good.

(Stu, if all those restaurants had been open when we lived in Burlingame, we might have stayed!! (just kidding))

Hwy 1 is open for 26 miles south of Carmel to Big Sur Station so you can still drive that part. Point Lobos, the west side of Garrapata and Point Sur Lighthouse which can only be visited by guided tours on certain days of the week are the only state parks currently open.

Ocean View Blvd and Sunset Dr run along the PG coastline and there's a recreational trail that runs the entire length. You may be able to catch the tail end of our harbor seal pupping season. Hopkins Beach next to the marine station is the main rookery with a smaller rookery at the end of 5th street in PG. The marine station itself is having an open house on the 6th if that's something that interests you https://hopkinsmarinestation.stanfor...ience-everyone

Another nice coastal drive or walk is along Scenic Ave in Carmel. You can start at Carmel Beach and head south to River Beach.

As far as farmer's markets, downtown Carmel has a small one on 6th Ave by Devendorf Park on Thursday. The biggest one in the area is on Friday at Monterey Peninsula College.

sf7307
We had Pizza at Haystack this past Tuesday night after a presentation of very old Noe Valley photographs shown at St Phillips Church by the SF History Assoc. We found out that there was a river on Jersey St where we lived, a rock quarry in Diamond Heights, and a Noe Theater (movies) on 24th.

Had a really forgettable dinner at Uma Casa in Church St (old Incanto/Hans Brinkman?) earlier this month. Nice dinner at Lupa on 24th (old Little Italy/DerWeinersnitzel) a week later.

Stu Dudley

I still miss the warm zabaglione at Little Italy! (OP, sorry for the asides)

<i>We found out that there was a river on Jersey St </i>

The spring when it rains heavily is still in the back of our property above Jersey St.

<i>Had a really forgettable dinner at Uma Casa in Church St</i>

Just had a good one there. But some dishes were too salty. We told the chef, and he answered that he was following restaurant standards, as if we did not know restaurants. That is disappointing, and if the next time we go the problem remains, we will write it off.