kamalp

hey,
my husband and i are flying to san diego on the 8th and flying back from san francisco. we want to rent a car from sd and drive up to sf but were wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what the best route is to see a lot (what the hot spots are). we were thinking of spending a couple of days in sd, stopping in monterey or napa, carmel, spend a day in santa barbara? not sure how we should do this, but if anyone has any advice or suggestions...even a good route...or things we shouldnt miss...please help! thanks!

kamalp

ooops, and flying out on the 17th...so we would be there a total of 9 days.

J_Correa

With 9 days you can see quite a bit. I would spend 3 days in SD, 3 days in SF and spend the days in between making my way up the coast.

The best route by far would be right up the coast.

As for where you should stop and how much time you should spend in each place, it really depends on what your interests are and what you are interested in doing. Popular places along the route are Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, Morro Bay/Cambria/San Simeon, Big Sur, Monterey/Pacific Grove/Carmel, Santa Cruz.

You mentioned "hot spots" so are you looking to party? For that I would recommend the larger cities - SD, LA, SF. The places in between are more known for natural beauty than partying.

JCMontgomery

I would suggest taking route 1 up the coast. I would recommend 2 days in San Diego, 1 day in Santa Barbara, 1 day in Cambria for a visit to Hearst Castle, 2 days in Monterey/Carmel, 1 day in San Jose and 2 days in SF.

Some of the must sees along the way, in addition to the aforementioned Hearst Castle is Big Sur, Monterey Bay Aqaurium, 17 Mile Drive, Point Lobos, and Big Basin just outside of San Jose. There's plenty to do in the major cities San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Jose. If you could give some ideas about what you would like to see/do (museums, theater, parks, shopping, etc.)

kamalp

thanks so much already! what i mean by "hotspots" are def the natural beauty you were talking about. things that california is made of that we shouldnt miss like the diego zoo or the moma...good restaurants...places to visit in each city/town not really "partying".
thanks!
k

S_F_E

It's always hard to answer this question because there are so many great places - San Diego, LA, and San Francisco are the must-sees in the city department I think. Driving up the coast will show you beautiful scenery. You will pass through Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Carmel/Monterey - all nice places too - each with their own "feel". It depends on how you want to pace your trip - moving on to something new every day or two, or staying put in one place for a few days.

For natural beauty I think some of the views of the San Francisco Bay from the Marin headlands can't be beat (in the non-wilderness category at least). The Marin headlands are at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge - if it's a sunny day, walk (or bicycle) across the bridge, the view the entire walk is spectacular, and then take the trail up the hill to your left at the north end of the bridge - it isn't far to some great viewing spots and you can go for as short or as long a walk as you want. I live in Sonoma County and often stop there when time permits when I go down to the city - I've always had very nice conversations there too with visitors from all over the world - beautiful views seem to bring out the best in people (well sometimes anyway).

JCMontgomery

kamalp,

Okay, thanks for clarifying. Some things to see along the way:

San Diego: Zoo, Gaslamp District, Coronado Island, La Jolla

http://www.sandiego.org/

Los Angeles: Getty Center(nice museum and beautiful views), Santa Monica Pier,
Hollywood Walk of Fame, Farmers Market

http://www.lacvb.com/

Central Coast: Hearst Castle (make reservations), Big Sur, Point Lobos, Monterey/Carmel. In the Monterey Bay Area Pacific Grove is a great place to stay as it's less crowded than Monterey or Carmel and the rates are more reasonable.

http://hearst-castle.org/

http://monterey.com/

San Jose/Silicon Valley: Big Basin Redwoods, Tech Museum, Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, Winchester Mystery House, Japanese Gardens

http://sanjose.org/index.cfm

http://bigbasin.org/

SF: Sausalito, Napa Valley, GG Park, Palace of Legion of Honor

http://www.sausalito.org/

http://www.napavalley.com/

Have a nice trip.

JCMontgomery

Oh, in terms of the best route, for the best coastal scenery I would take Highway 1 up to Santa Cruz then 17 over the Santa Cruz Mountains and 280 into SF. Highway 1 north of Santa Cruz is not nearly as scenic as south of there.

anneofingleside

Last year, we did a road trip from L.A. to the Bay Area. Definitely stop at Carmel/Monterey before heading straight on to San Francisco. (We also stopped at Santa Barbara and Solvang, but I don't know how much time you have. Solvang can be done in two hours--maybe as a lunch stop? But if you are short on time, you can probably skip it.) Never been to Hearst Castle, but heard it's beautiful. Stick to the coast for natural beauty since that's what you're looking for. I wouldn't go inland until I get to SF.

J_Correa

For natural beauty - Big Sur cannot be beat. If you have the time, you might consider staying the night there.

Santa Cruz is a nice town - you can go to the Boardwalk, check out the wharf, see some surfers. The downtown area is an experience - lots of hippies and strange folks wandering around.

If you are interested in redwood forests, the Santa Cruz mountains are great.

I would probably stick to the coast all the way up to SF as well rather than cutting over the SJ. I like the coastline north of Santa Cruz - there are some great strolling beaches up there. The towns of Pescadero and Half Moon Bay are nice places.

kendu

Is Big Basin a lot of winding roads and heights while driving? I have been told that Muir was? I rather not drive it if that be the case.
Thanks
Ken

J_Correa

Hwy 9 to Big Basin: Winding roads, yes. Heights, no. The road is a 2 lane highway through the woods. There are tons of trees everywhere. If you come up from the Santa Cruz side, you will be following the San Lorenzo river for a lot of the way and pass several small towns. If you come up from the San Jose side, you will pass through Saratoga and then go up the mountain. There are a few hairpin turns, but no shear drop offs or anything like that.

jason888

If you are going to Big Sur anyway, there is no need to wind your way to Big Basin.

Redwoods stretch from south Oregon to about mid Big Sur and God blessed the coastal areas with the same wonderful trees as inland.

Try Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, etc. They are all no more than 50-60 miles south of Carmel on Highway 1, the Pacific Coast Highway.

For views, have lunch at Nepenthe. Or just take any one of the turn outs. No lunch served at the turnouts, unfortunately, but the views are spectacular. Try to stay on the road as your eyes drink in the magnificent coast.

Have a great trip and welcome to California!

RSebastian

I agree with the others that Big Sur is an amazing place to see. We took so many pictures along route 1. Another area I recommend is Point Lobos.

I also second the others advice to skip Route 1 past Santa Cruz. After seeing Big Sur and Point Lobos, we weren't nearly as impressed with that stretch of Route 1. If you were not doing Big Sur, then I would recommend it. We especially liked the drive through the Santa Cruz Mountain on 17 and the rolling hills along 280. Actually, 280 and 17 are state scenic freeways. After Monterey we decided to go to Roaring Camp in Felton which is in Henry Cowell Redwoods park. We took the roaring camp steam train tour among the redwood forests which was very nice. Big Basin is also very nice to see as well. Despite what the previous poster said, Big Sur is NOT a substitute for Big Basin or Henry Cowell Redwood Park for that matter. From the redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains it was off to San Jose and San Francisco. If you have time, on the way to SF off of the 280 I'd also suggest taking a tour of the Filoli Estate. Do make reservations, though.

http://filoli.org/

kamalp

thanks for all of your help, i think we have more of a plan...but let me know what you guys think of this:

3 days in san diego
1 day in santa barbara
2 days in monterey/carmel
2 days in san fran
day trip to napa

hows that? does anyonne recommend cutting out santa barbara and staying in monterey an extra day?

does any one have def "do not miss" spots in any of these places?
thanks,
k

esg

Did similar trip recently. Started in SF and went south to San Diego. THis is a bit of a cantrarian view but this is what we did. Had 9 nights to spend. Virtually ever post I read on this forum recommended taking the pacific coast highway/ monterey/ carmel/ big sur. We travelled with our 4 kids (ages 9-15). Our priority was the big cities. We spent 3 nights in SF, then took hwy 5 to LA. Took 5 1/2 hrs with 2 stops. Though we missed the california coast, the thought of checking in and out of hotels each day or two did not appeal to me. I live in New jersey near the shore and have vacationed to Cape Cod frequently so the coast was no big deal for me. I actually loved the scenery down hwy 5. The kids and I never see mountains and the landscape was beautiful to me but in a different way than the coast. We were happy to stay 3 nights each in SF, LA and san diego. Will do the coast on a return trip

Earnst

Last year we took 10 days to drive from SF/Napa to the San Diego area. One thing I would recommend is to pick up highway 1 in Santa Cruz from Hoghway 17 instead of taking highway 1 all the way from SF to Monterey. By far the most scenic part of Highway 1 starts in the Monterey area and goes south from there to Big Sur. Thay way you can maximize your time along the central coast. I would also recommend at least 2 days in each
of the major cities including SF, San Jose, Los Angeles, and San Diego. One of the highlights while we visited the San Jose area was visiting the Big Basin coastal redwoods. In LA you won't want to miss the Getty Center.

Have an excellent trip.

anneofingleside

kamalp,
The schedule you just listed sounds good. You picked the right cities to visit. If you have more time, one other city I'd pick is the L.A. area. If you wanted to drop Santa Barbara for an extra day somewhere else, I suggest making San Francisco three days instead of two.