crispywheat2

Next week, I have a 10 day trip planned with my wife and 2 year old daughter. We are doing the drive from Los Angeles to Half Moon Bay. We are planning on spending 3 nights in Santa Monica, 3 in Cambria (to visit some Paso Robles wineries, 1 in Carmel and 3 in Half Moon Bay.

Other than the obvious (Santa Monica Pier, Monterey Aquarium) does anybody have any suggestions for activities/places that a 2 year old would enjoy??

Does anybody know if the elephant seals at Piedras Blancas are there at this time of year (mid-sept?)

Lastly, any recommendations for the drive? Would like to take some of the scenic route up Route 1, but balancing against spending too much time in the car with a 2 year old, who really won't appreciate the scenery as much!

Thanks for any and all suggestions.

clarkgriswold

Most 2 year olds will enjoy whatever the adults are enjoying, so plan the trip around what YOU like and you'll probably have the best time.

There are many years ahead when you'll need to plan around the wishes of the children, no need to start now!

(That said, I think 3 nights in quiet Cambria would be a bit dull for a child unless she is really into wine!)

J_Correa

I was thinking that more time spent in Carmel would be better than Cambria - maybe 2 nights in Cambria and 2 Carmel.

For elephant seals, they breed in the spring, so there probably aren't too many of them around in September. There should be plenty of sea otters around to look at though.

As for route, take Hwy 101 up to San Luis Obispo and then head up Hwy 1. From there, with the exception of a couple roads over the mountains, you are committed to 1 until you reach Monterey.

crispywheat2

Thanks for the responses. I understand that 3 nights in Cambria may seem like alot, but we probably will not get there until later the first evening. So will have only 2 full days and we want to visit some of the wineries and Hearst Castle.

Anybody else have suggestions??!

Thanks again.

laurenzo

In Santa Barbara, there is a fantastic park off Garden St your two year old would love. It is on your way to Camria and would make a nice stop. As I said, get off Garden St. and head north. I believed it is called Kid's World and it is maybe a half mile up Garden on your left. You can't miss it. There is a huge play structure and nice toddler area. Across the street is Alice Keck Park, which has lots of turtles in a pond. My kids have always enjoyed these parks.
In Cambria there are some tidepools you could check out.
Which wineries will you be visiting?

crispywheat2

Laurenzo,

Thanks! I planning on stopping in Santa Barbara so I wll definitely check out the parks!

I don't know much about the Paso Robles wineries. I visit Napa/Sonoma often, but this is my first trip to Paso Robles. Any suggestions are welcome!

laurenzo

Hi crispy. I just came back from a weekend in Paso and have a few wineries to recommend. This time we did the 46E wineries (off the 101) and went to Martin & Weyrich, Robert Hall, and Tobin James. MW costs 4 dollars but the fee is waived if you buy wine. It is the first winery you come to on the 46E. Robert Hall is fairly new, under 1 yr. old and really nice. I believe it was 5 dollars to taste there. We did a free cavern tour and they have a neat operation there. It is the largest cavern on the central coast. We really liked their wines and ended up joining their wine club. Tobin James is free for tasting and is sort of western themed w/ loud music playing and lots of young people (I'm sure because it is free to taste). We met Tobin himself, what a nice guy!! They had a great sparkling wine I liked. Log onto pasowine.com to see all the wineries. You will have to decide if you want to go to the wine trail on the 46W or E because you really couldn't do both in a day. You can read about the wineries on the website and decide if you want to go to smaller or larger ones. Some others I've been to on the west side are Opolo, Villicana, and Tablas Creek. Other popular ones on the east side are Meridian, EOS, and Eberle.

Have a great time!!

crispywheat2

Laurenzo,

Thanks! I appreciate the summary. I will definitely be checking out Robert Hall and Tobin James! I am sure that I will have a great time. Thanks again.

moneygirl

Paso Robles has a twon center with a good sized park... should be a nice place to kill an hour or so!

In Monterey... don't miss Dennis the Menance Park! It been there forever and is quite charming with a steam engine car. a pond, and paddle boats.

Armani_Rugpilot

We made trip on summer for Santa Barbara and more. Make some note here and only one person replying so we stop.

Not for idea the 5 and 6 hours on hgihway with 2yearold now. ONce having a 2yearold in our car with the Dr.,Phd. in a word always "no". Mabye our kid worse or better but always can saying word "no - no -no - no" for every times reply. You seen the film Dr.No. ?? That was my son on 2 yearsold. Dr.No. we name him on that year only Haha. Not for the repeat advise for you any anyone reading this notes. Hard living I am sure.

AR