Where to stay between LA and San Francisco

I%26#39;m travelling with my husband by car between LA and San Francisco in September and want to break up the trip into a few days so that we can take in the scenery en route. Can anyone recommend good stops/hotels somewhere around Cambria (we want to visit San Simeon) and then again around Monterey/Carmel? Is Cambria a nice area? I%26#39;ve also heard that Morro Bay or San Luis Obispo are great.....

Thanks!

Where to stay between LA and San Francisco

Hi JD, welcome to the forum.

I would say: Wing it! We always do. From LA many things to see. I

would drive from Santa Monica to Santa Barbara first along ca 1. Make a stop and drive from Santa Barbara to Solvang. Bit touristy but Danish Delight. Then to Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo (my wife loves this place for shopping, although, she likes all places for shopping....) then to Morro Bay. Many hotels on this route. We stayed one or more nights in both Pismo Beach, Avila Beach and Morro Bay. It depends on how long this first day takes. Morro Bay is nice. Try to get a hotel with oceanview. Maybe even drive to Cambria same day. Accomodation along the coast.

Next day: Visit to Hearst Castle in the morning and the drive to Monterey. This is a very scenic drive. Maybe stop in Big Sur, Point Lobos SR and Carmel.

Last day: Visit the Monterey aquarium, maybe the 17 miles drive(fee) first and drive to Santa Cruz for the boardwalk and maybe Mystery Spot. On to SF. We drove both the coastal route to Half Moon Bay and I280. 3 days from LA to SF is a good amount of time but it can take longer of course. I would not advice shorter though if you have the time. Local experts will give you more details L.m sure.

Tet{:o)-

Where to stay between LA and San Francisco

Yes, SLO, Cambria and Morro Bay are all quite nice. I haven%26#39;t stayed in any hotels/motels there for many years so my recommendation for the area is limited to making certain that you have your reservations for Hearst Castle at San Simeon in hand before you get there. The tours are very extensive (it takes 2 or 3 different tours, each a couple hours long) to see the entire thing. I believe you can reserve on-line nowadays.

You should definitely drive up Hwy 1 (the coast highway) from SLO to Monterrey/Carmel -- quite curvey road on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. Going north you won%26#39;t have too much trouble. (We drive on the right side here, don%26#39;t forget, so you%26#39;ll be hugging the mountain, rather than coming south where you are right on the edge of a very long way down for many miles of road.)

In the Monterrey area, my wife and I stayed in Pacific Grove, a small town in-between Carmel and Monterrey. Very pretty, very quiet and less expensive to boot. It has many nice B%26amp;Bs, and you%26#39;ll still only be 5 minutes from Cannery Row etc in Monterrey.

In Sept you can wing it but you%26#39;ll need reservations for Fri Sat . Whats your budget for hotels, bargain moderate or luxury?

Thanks for all the great responses - really helpful.

As for hotel budget, anything up to $150 per night (but if we could do it for less, that would be great).

We really like cambria. We have stayed there several times and my cousin from NYC rents a house there every summer. Anywhere on Moonstone Beach is nice..

We love Cambria. We have enjoyed stays at the Pelican Cove, the Cypress Cove (which has now merged with Pelican Suites) the Blue Whale Inn and the Fireside Inn in Cambria. All have been nice, enjoyable stays and all of these properties are right across the street from Moonstone Beach which is beautiful. We like to take a blanket down by the water and read, relax, walk in the tidepools and photograph the seals. Go to Piedras Blancas to see the elephant seals, they really cool.

Morro Bay is also very nice, we have enjoyed the Inn at Morro Bay there which is very nice. I have not been to San Luis Obispo, but my son recently stayed at the Madonna Inn there and loved the area. We hope to get over to Avila Beach soon, I want to check out the Sycamore Springs Resort and take a hot tub there even if we don%26#39;t spend the night there. The Gardens of Avila is supposed to be good for dinner.

Enjoy the coast and let me know if you have any specific questions about the area! :)