California Coast!

[Alex+R 0]

Rey and I just got tickets to spend Jan 8-17 in California. We fly into San Francisco and out of San Diego. We want to drive Highway 1 and stuff but also go to San Diego because I went there once when I was little and have been desperate to go back for about 17 years. And I need a few days in LA to spend with one of my best friends. So those are our parameters. Guidebooks are nice, but who has some fun ideas for what to do on our trip?

[homesick_american 1]

Rey and I just got tickets to spend Jan 8-17 in California. We fly into San Francisco and out of San Diego. We want to drive Highway 1 and stuff but also go to San Diego because I went there once when I was little and have been desperate to go back for about 17 years. And I need a few days in LA to spend with one of my best friends. So those are our parameters. Guidebooks are nice, but who has some fun ideas for what to do on our trip?

Drive slow and absorb the jaw-dropping scenery!

While you're in San Diego, the Birch Aquarium in La Jolla is not to be missed. I went there in 1997 and had a thoroughly enjoyable day. :thumbs:

http://aquarium.ucsd.edu/Plan_a_Visit/

[no name 1]

It's called PCH(Pacific Coast Highway).

Do NOT MISS Santa Barbara!!

Monterey is pretty too.

Gonna be chilly then tho!

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Rey and I just got tickets to spend Jan 8-17 in California. We fly into San Francisco and out of San Diego. We want to drive Highway 1 and stuff but also go to San Diego because I went there once when I was little and have been desperate to go back for about 17 years. And I need a few days in LA to spend with one of my best friends. So those are our parameters. Guidebooks are nice, but who has some fun ideas for what to do on our trip?

If you're driving down from SF, you could take a trip over to San Simeon and do the Hearst Castle tour. Did that back in October - pretty Surreal place.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Don't go to Disneyland!

Norman Simon museum in Pasadena is one of my favorites if you're into art.

I haven't been inside the Getty, but that might be interesting.

LACMA (LA County Museum of Art) is huge and also a great place to visit.

...and downtown Laguna Beach is really cool.

If you and Rey drive along the PCH as you head towards San Diego, maybe we could meet you all for lunch or dinner!

[no name 1]

If you and Rey drive along the PCH as you head towards San Diego, maybe we could meet you all for lunch or dinner!

I'm only 4 miles away from PCH...

[sereia 0]

oh i can totally help you with lots of info. i'll pm ya but a few things now....

sf for SURE! at least 3 days.

carmel, big sur, monterey... AMAZINGLY gorgeous!

if you go to hearst castle (i recommend it) also go to cambria. a town near there thats really charming and has a great restaurant (or did have one ) called "robins".

if you stop in san luis obispo and want lunch go to "the apple farm". cute place and have yummy apple dumplings for dessert.

you could stay at the madonna inn on the way. each room has a quirky theme.

DEFINITELY don't miss santa barbara. at least a day there. go to my friends restaurant called "couchez". its like a club/lounge/restaurant. stay in a cute b&b and go hang out on state street.

in LA i'll pm you loads of stuff.and you have your friend there anyway........

definitely go to laguna beach for a night or at least an afternoon. cute art galleries, amazing beaches (tidepools), and nice hotels.

then san diego. don't have much to say about it other than go to the zoo! and wild animal park. two of the best in the entire world. i wouldn't spend too many days in SD.

[homesick_american 1]

then san diego. don't have much to say about it other than go to the zoo! and wild animal park. two of the best in the entire world. i wouldn't spend too many days in SD.

How could I forget the San Diego Zoo! It rocked.

I spent a thoroughly enjoyable week in San Diego; wish I could have spent more time there! I'd even consider living there if it wasn't so expensive; it's so beautiful.

[Ban Hammer 13,334]

rey, if you drop your wallet in san fran, kick it all the way to colorado before you pick it up

[homesick_american 1]

rey, if you drop your wallet in san fran, kick it all the way to colorado before you pick it up

Christ, that was awful even for you! :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

My advice would be this (I actually wrote this for a friend from Ireland):

San Francisco-Santa Cruz (about 2 hours)

Find HWY1 (or Pacific Coast Highway) and head south. If you are on the SF peninsula, this starts on the Golden Gate Bridge. Follow signs for the “49 Mile Scenic Drive” (they usually have a sea gull or a poppy on them).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/49-Mile_Scenic_Drive

There are probably a few places you will want to get out and look at the views of the Bay Area, so allow time for that.

Mostly, it is very lovely stretch of highway. There is a lovely little town called Half Moon Bay that you will drive through, perhaps you will want to stop and get on the video game bus:.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half_Moon_Bay%2C_California

Or perhaps you will want to stop at Santa Cruz, which is the California of the popular imagination. Beautiful people playing beach volleyball, surfers, etc. There is a nice pier and beachfront places to get a bite to eat, an amusement park, an arcade and seals swimming in the ocean or barking underneath the pier.

Santa Cruz-Monterey/Carmel (about one hour)

Continue on down HWY 1 until you hit Monterey. Lots of farms along the way – I imagine grapes of wrath were once harvested there but downtrodden okies. Sadly, if will be January so there won’t be much in the way of fresh produce for sale in all the roadside stands. If you don’t plan on spending the night here, you will probably want to at least spend some time here. There are beautiful beaches, a fisherman’s wharf with lots of shops and restaurants, Cannery Row (famous from Steinbeck – more restaurants and shops). It’s not on this map but Carmel (Clint was once mayor) is directly south of Monterey – it is possibly the cutest town the whole way –there is a really beautiful mission that is worth checking out and a lovely white sand beach. One thing you should absolutely do is follow the signs to the 17 Mile Drive – you will have to pay $9 to get on, but it is worth it – there are many beautiful beaches, rocks with seals and sea otters on them, big ######-off mansions, Pebble Beach golf course 9 (it gave us great pleasure to cut off some guy riding down the road in a golf cart), and the famous cypress tree.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/17_Mile_Drive

If you stay the night in Monterey, you probably want to plan to be on the 17 Mile Drive for sunset.

If you do want to stay the night, we stayed at the Best Western Beach Resort and it was very nice:

http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do#null

It’s not directly in town, so if you want to go out at night you will have to take your car. It is directly on the beach, has a restaurant with an ocean view where we had a very tasty meal and a bar with an ocean view, so you really can’t do better for the money. You can also get an ocean view room, though it costs more. (best rates we found on the best western website).

Monterey-St. Luis Obisbo through the Big Sur (about 90 miles but allow at least 3 hours)

Head south on HWY 1 from Monterey and in about 10 minutes, you will begin climbing elevation and hit the stunningly beautiful Big Sur:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sur

Even if you don’t stop once here, it will take long to get through it because of low speed limits and winding roads (with some real hairpin turns!). I hope you don’t have vertigo. But you will most likely want to make several stops. There are a few shops and restaurants along the way, though I haven’t been to them. You will also go through part of Los Padres National Forest which has a few redwoods – none of them are as big and wide as the more famous trees found in Sequoia (the ones you can drive a car through) but they are still pretty big.

After you pass through the most scenic area of the Big Sur, you come to San Simeon which is near the site of Hearst Castle

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearst_Castle

This is worth checking out, but if you are interested you will definitely need to book a tour in advance and you will need a half day to do it, so you would want to spend the night nearby instead of Monterey (and that would probably mean less time exploring Monterey/Carmel).Or you could just add another day into your itinerary

From there, I would drive as fast as I could to Santa Barbara and allow for some time there.

In LA, my recomendations would be the Huntingdon Library in Pasadena and the Getty Center. Also, I love the La Brea Tarpits.

[sereia 0]

My advice would be this (I actually wrote this for a friend from Ireland):.

In LA, my recomendations would be the Huntingdon Library in Pasadena and the Getty Center.

definitely those two. LOVE the huntington library. its just a small gallery and different gorgeous gardens. awesome.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

If you and Rey drive along the PCH as you head towards San Diego, maybe we could meet you all for lunch or dinner!

I'm only 4 miles away from PCH...

What's for dinner?

[Alex+R 0]

Oo oo Southern California meet-up, anyone?

Thank you guys for the awesome advice so far. Keep it comin' cuz I'm printin' it out...n'.

[StarProg 0]

I'm only 4 miles away from PCH...

Gotcha beat there, I'm only about 3 miles from PCH... double

Seems like others have covered the PCH pretty well, so nothing to add, except hope its not too rainy this winter. PCH has a tendency to wash out in very wet years.

Oh yeah, in spite of Steven's comment, I would say to yes visit Disneyland, can't even imagine skipping the Magic Kingdom.