california vacation - need advice

hi, i am wanting to plan a california vacation for me and my family (we%26#39;re from kansas). We want to go sometime in early to mid august. has anyone gone to california and traveled up (or down) the coast from San Diego to San Fransisco? would this be a good idea? we are planning to fly into either sd or sf and fly back home through the other one. would we be better off just focusing on one area or traveling the whole coast to see the beautiful sights? please give me advice.

Thanks,

a dad in kansas

california vacation - need advice

Traveling the coast is very doable and makes for a nice trip, but you didn%26#39;t say how much time you%26#39;ll have. If you have a week, then I%26#39;d concentrate on one area (say, San Diego and L.A.; if you two weeks, then the coast trip would work.

california vacation - need advice

Also, you say family, how old are the kids?

Just scour all the travel boards for ideas. This is one of the most-discussed trips anywhere on the west coast, people do it all the time. Room rates in San Diego or anywhere along the beaches are sky highest in July and August, however.

It is my opinion that to travel the coast (Pacific Coast Highway 1) from San Diego to San Francisco is way too much for one trip.

I would choose a section and explore it. San Luis Obispo to Carmel, for instance. That is most of a day%26#39;s trip in itself. The speed limit is not the same as on Hwy 101. Many places you will be unable to pass slower moving vehicles

You can always explore another section on a subsequent trip. But the entire stretch in any one length of time - too much!

I assume that topspin is planning a week or so for this trip, like most folks.

my kids are 15 and 10, and yes, we were thinking about a week or so on the length. thanks for the help!

One week is fine if you don%26#39;t plan to spend several days at the amusement parks (i.e. Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios, Sea World, etc.). If you plan to go to the amusement parks I would concentrate on the San Diego/Los Angeles area including the ocean areas.

Let%26#39;s assume you have 1 week and you plan to skip the theme parks.

1) Fly into San Diego and spend 2 nights. For lodging, its good to let the site know your budget range as the ocean areas are the nice but the most expensive; you can stay in the hotel circle area and get some very reasonable rates. If you want a central spot and budget is not a major concern, a large hotel such as the Marriott Marina has a good location; good swimming pool; and easy access to lots of things (including going to baseball game if the team is in town and you plan to see it.).

In San Diego, the 3 places to go are: San Diego Zoo, Seaworld, and Old Town for a Mexican dinner. The ocean areas are quite pretty in particular Coronado, etc.

2) After 2 nights in San Diego, drive north to Huntington Beach. (If you plan to see San Diego Wild Animal park its good to see this very early in the day on your trip up to Huntington Beach.) It can get warm/hot ....heat similar to Kansas, but less humid. Huntington Beach is a good place to enjoy the ocean with your family. Best Western Huntington Beach or Hilton Huntington Beach are two excellent beach places to stay. If budget is a concern, lodging by Buena Park is reasonable.

I%26#39;d get there mid afternoon, and enjoy a beach picnic and the beach that evening. Stay for one night.

3) The next day get up and have lunch at Downtown Disney. Even if you don%26#39;t go to the theme parks,. enjoying Downtown Disney is fun to walk thorugh (parking is free if just there for a couple of hours.)

Rainforest Cafe or one of the other restaurants would be fun.

4) Then drive to Santa Monica and park there and stroll through Third Street Promenade and also the Pier Area.

After Santa Monica, drive Highway 1/101 to Santa Barbara.

have dinner in the downtown area or beach area. Stay overnight in Santa Barbara area.

6) Depart the next day and drive to Pismo Beach....a nice fishing pier to walk out on and enjoy the sites; also a good place to have lunch. The sand dune type ocean state park is also fun to see.

THen drive to Morro Beach and see the Rock. I would recommend staying in Morro Bay or Cambria for the night.

http://www.morrobay.org/cm/Home.html

7) The next day book a fairly early tour (Tour 1) and see Hearst Castle if you%26#39;d like. Its in San Simeon. THen see the elephant seals north of San Simeon. Then (hopefully its a clear and beautiful day and not foggy) drive north to Pfeiffer State Park.

This is in the big sur area. Stay overnight at the lodge for the evening. (Reserve in advance...there is also some other lodging in the area.

8) Next day drive from Pfeifer State Park to Carmel. Stop at Pt. Lobos and see that park; then drive to Monterey and go to the aquarium there. Its worth your $$ to go to this aquarium.

Afterwards drive north to Santa Cruz and get a place to stay for the evening. If get there early enough explore Santa Cruz boardwalk int he evening (free admission; fun place for the family.)

http://www.beachboardwalk.com/

9) If you did not see the boardwalk that evening, then stop by in the morning and then continue up Highway 1 to San Francisco.

Spend the rest of the time in San Francisco till you depart home.

2 to 3 nights.

For a summary:

2 nights San Diego

1 night Huntington Beach

1 night Santa Barbara

1 night Pismo Beach

1 night Pfeiffer State Park/Big Sur area

1 night Santa Cruz

1 to 2 nights San Francisco

Total Nights: 8 or 9 nights.

Book everything (i.e. lodging in advance) as August is very very popular. Ask as you book if questions - its best to book Jan/February for August as then you won%26#39;t spend tons of time trying to find a place.

The above pace is ';very reasonable'; driving pace...giving you lots of time each day to enjoy each area.

Enjoy planing yoru trip.

wow, thanks a ton mini. very helpful.

topspin, while Mini%26#39;s plan is well-thought-out and thorough, I would still advise you to limit this visit to southern California. There is so much to do in San Diego and the L.A. area--you might want to venture as far north as Santa Barbara. Of course, you know what your family likes--if you want to go, go , go and do a lot of driving vs. having more down time to hang out on the beach, etc.

Thanks.

To give you an idea of the drive time from San Diego to San Francisco...

we just did it in November and December (except for the Big Sur Highway 1 stretch);

It takes about 2-3 hours from San Diego to Huntington Beach.

The difference here is ';traffic';. Avoid the work hours.

The time from Huntington Beach to Santa Monica can be as short as an hour or as long as 2+. Try to drive this stretch between 10 and 3 or after 7 (unless its a week-end than earlier in the day the better.).

The time from Santa Monica to Santa Barbara about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

It depends on traffic (its a pretty stretch if you take highway 1 as it goes through Malibu so it might take a tad longer.

Stretch from Santa Barbara to Morro Bay is about 3 to 4 hours.

Stretch from Morro Bay to Big Sur is the ';hardest'; for anyone not used to the area to estimate. Its a curvy difficult at times to drive road with spectacular scenery. As such, give yourself 3 to 4 hours on this stretch. Highly recommend doing it during the DAY.

Stretch from Big Sur (Pfeiffer to Santa Cruz) is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Since you%26#39;ll be stopping here and there (i.e. Pt. Lobos, Monterey, etc. make a day of it. You%26#39;ll find it an easy beautiful drive....).

Santa Cruz to San Francisco about 1 1/2 to 2 hours dependent on traffic and where you stop along the way.

As such, its quite doable. Again, concentrate on a smaller area if into going to the theme parks. If into the natural beauty of California, you%26#39;ll find the coastal route fantastic. Enjoy planning.

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