Pasadena to San Francisco in 5 days
 

For our 20th anniversary in mid July, I am planning a trip from Pasadena (to visit some old haunts when we used to live there) north to San Francisco. There is so much good information in these forums. Now I am wondering if I am planning too much. We are flying into LAX on Day 1 and out of San Francisco on Day 7, so there are 5 days in between for travel up the coast.

Some of the Must See's that I've picked up on this site are:

Day 1: Arrive LAX early, drive to Pasadena (overnight)
Day 2: Visit Pasadena; leave by noon and drive to Pismo Beach; overnight in Cambria (Blue Whale Inn)
Day 3: Continue driving with possible hikes at Limekiln (2 hrs.), Julie Pfeiffer Burns (1 hour), meal at Nepenthe or in Big Sur, possibly hike Pfeiffer Big Sur.
Overnight in Carmel (Carmel Valley Lodge?)
Day 4: Walk around downtown Carmel and beach; head out mid day to hike Point Lobos (1-2 hours); drive to Half Moon Bay overnight
Day 5: Head into San Francisco for the day (this is my first time to SFO but my husband's 3rd)
Day 6: Visit Mount Tamalpais, Muir Woods, picnic at Pt. Reyes
Day 7: Fly out of San Francisco

Is this crazy? Have I packed too many things in? Given the time frame, what should I omit or add? We want it to be enjoyable and scenic but not hectic. Any help would be appreciated.

"TTT"


<i>tick tick tick</i>

Personally, I think you are trying to get too much in to a week. I would rather slow down a bit and not have to sleep [read that as check in, and check out] in a different place each night.

That said:

Seven Gables Inn in Pacific Grove is a wonderful place to stay.

L'escargot Restaurant in Carmel.

Cetrella Bistro 845 Main St in Half Moon Bay for a great dinner.

Muir Woods FIRST thing in the morning.

Deb

I would skip day 6 and skip Half Moon Bay and add more time in San Francisco unless you do not like cities. Would also consider adding a stop in Santa Barbara and maybe Hearst Castle. Could possibly help more if you can tell us your budget for lodgings and food and more specific likes and dislikes.

Thank you already for your help! We like a moderately active vacation with things to do, strolling in and out of shops, or reasonable hiking. We like B&amp;B's or nice hotels, but I am trying to keep the lodging under $200 a night. We have a reasonable budget but not extravagant. The destination is a surprise for my DH (we alternate surprising each other for our anniversary), but it was his idea to visit different B&amp;B's along the way, wherever we were going. The pace sounds a little hectic, though...any suggestions to slow it down or where to stay for more than one night? Thank you!

The pace isn't hectic at all for me, but to each his own.

After all we can drive between SF and LA in 6/7 hours!

You might want to overnight in Pfeiffer Big Sur itself in one of its rustic cabins rather than driving up to Carmel, since you will be doing a lot of hiking that day. In fact, if you are staying in Cambria, I'd suggest that you do Hearst Castle (excellent suggestion from mjs) very first thing the next morning, then head up the coast and hike Limekiln, Julia Pfeiffer Burns and even Pfeiffer Big Sur. If there is one to cut out, it'll be Limkiln.

Again, agree with the suggestion to skip Half Moon Bay and overnight in SF. Lots of things to do in SF at night.

If I were you, I'd do this drive in reverse. You'll be on the ocean side where the views are much better and you don't have to cross traffic to get to the turnouts when you want to stop.

Happy anniversary! Have a great trip! Sounds wonderful! :)

That is great advice! Thank you! I will do the trip in reverse and add another day in San Francisco. Any more help is greatly appreciated...

Tam I agree that an extra day in SF is better than your Day 6. I just went through that area last week and would have rather avoided Point Reyes. I used StuDudley's San Francisco driving tour and I loved it. All high spots and no crappy tourist traps!

If you're from a city with decent service to BURBANK airport, it's much easier in and out of Pasadena than is LAX. In fact, even if it were $40 more per ticket and a connection somewhere, I think I would choose Burbank to fly home from, especially if you're in Pasadena on your last night and have an early morning outbound!

I was just looking at flying out of Burbank and wondered if that would be better...thank you! Does anyone have good hotel and restaurant suggestions for 1 night in Pasadena?

I also have to ask how much FOG would be a concern for the places I've chosen.

just one <i>slight</i> counter opinion.

I'm a northern Californian and love driving either north (cliff side) or south (ocean side) on hwy 1. But many of my &quot;flat lander&quot; friends find driving south just toooo scary. On the ocean side - the driver really can't let his/her gaze wander because of that sheer drop off. &quot;ooh, ooh - look at that -- NOOO, Don't!!&quot; :)

The views heading north are just about as good - but the driving is a lot less hairy.

Point Lobos is south of Carmel a bit, so I'd stop and visit on your way up from Big Sur.

I'd also stay IN Carmel itself, not in Carmel Valley, which is 6 miles or so inland. There are numerous small inns right in downtown Carmel that are very charming.