Californian road trip must sees?

[georgeclooneyfan]

We are in the process of booking a road trip in July of this year (left it a bit a late maybe for the availability of some things!) from San Franciso down the coast on the PCH stopping off on way not too sure where as yet (carmel,Monterey?) then across to Las Vegas. We will be doing the usual touristy things like Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Alcatraz, Hollywood sign etc. Just wondering if anyone else has done a similar trip and if there are tips, ideas of must see things. We are a family of four,with two teenagers, daughter almost 16 and son almost 14. I was trying to think of things you maybe wouldnt get to do in UK, go to one of the big ball games, rodeo ?? Any suggestions would be very helpful. Thanks in advance.

Hi again! I have been looking at all your suggestions thanks again. There are alot of lovely places to see that's for sure. We are hoping to go for 2 and a half to 3 weeks. Thanks for sharing your itenary 3nationsfamily it does sound similar to what kind of things we are thinking of too. Although never thought of segways or the whale/dolphin watch, good ideas. I looked up the reviews for the Madonn Inn and it does sound good, lots of different rooms to choose from though. I will be paying a trip to the outlet malls too, will end up being the highlight of my daughters trip, hopefully not but you know what teenagers are like. Liking the sound of spending a birthday at the Grand Canyon, that wil be one to remember, hope your daughter enjoys it.I am getting excited myself now, hearing about all the great places to visit.thanks everyone .

Bodie ghost town here

Another vote for Mono Lake

Also, look out for random signposts of the roads - don't just stick to the highways. We came across the most fantastic dinosaur footprint exhibit that you actually walk in, simply by following a small sign.

Def do Monterey as you can do a guided kayak trip and get really close to sea otters, sea lions and seals. You can also go whale watching.

For a random stop Simi Valley outside Santa Barbara has the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Incredible views and you can go on board the Air Force One used by Nixon, Carter and Reagan, and Bush Snr and see a replica of the Oval Office.

Not far south of Big Sur there is a restaurant with incredible views called Nepenthe. It was originally a romantic cabin built for Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth, great place for lunch with a view on the coastal highway.

also worth a visit is Solvang, near Santa Barbara.

how long have you got? Some great suggestions on here but don't underestimate distances. And the effect of jet lag. Starting in SF is great for that because you neither need nor want a car until you leave the city.

those are some big, big drives.

look on the nps.gov website and go to the sites for the parks you plan to visit. This will give you lots of info about road closures, current attractions and so on. An annual pass may pay off.

you are aware that the Hollywood sign is fenced off? The movie bit of LA is a great day but that is all it needs.

your kids need to keep moving on casino floors but there are allegedly kid-friendly things to do in Vegas. Be aware of sleaze and safety in Vegas (and everywhere of course).

The world's largest thermometer It's in Baker, which is on the I-15 between LA and Vegas. There's an In and Out Burger before it in Barstow which is yummy

We did a similar trip 3 years ago.
In SF we enjoyed the Farmers' market at the Ferry Building- go hungry! I like the Armistead Maupin Tales books and first read them as a teenager so your 16 year old might like to try. We did a Tales walking tour, I printed it off the Internet. It was great and DH enjoyed it too despite not being a Tales fan (he has seen the tv series though.)
Alcatraz is a must. We enjoyed a wander around Golden Gate park, Haight Ashbury and the Castro. Local colour.
We drove via the outlet malls to Carmel- I enjoyed a good shop too.
Monterey aquarium is brilliant.
I second Hearst Castle- a must see, plus the elephant seals.

Do book Alcatraz well in advance or you won't get on a trip - this nearly happened to us as I was not so bothered about going, but it turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip. I also second cycling across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito and getting the boat back - that was recommended here on Mumsnet before we went and it was my favourite day of the whole holiday. We went in July and it was freezing in San Franscisco and also quite foggy on some days (though not on our cycling day!) in fact be prepared for it to be foggy along the PCH - we stayed in Monterey, but I'd definitely give that a miss, maybe it was because it wasn't glorious sunshine when we were there. I loved Santa Barbara and wished we'd had an extra night there instead. I also loved Yosemite much more than I thought I would - jawdroppingly beautiful. We stayed two nights, but I wish we'd stayed three. We stayed with friends in the Hollywood Hills in LA, but if I was booking hotels I'd definitely stay in Santa Monica instead. Loved Universal Studios too - not a theme parks person at all usually, but went for the kids and had a great day out. We also did an overnight trip from LA to Joshua Tree national park which was incredible - combined it with a day in Palm Speings and went up Mt St Jacinto in a revolving cable car. So jealous of your trip - it was definitely a holiday of a lifetime for us two years ago.

Some really good info here : travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/road-trips/california-pacific-coast-road-trip/
We didn't stop at all but made sure we didn't miss out. Nepenthe was fab, such gorgeous views.

Yy to Santa Monica

Try to do Alcatraz at dusk, book tickets direct: www.alcatrazcruises.com

yy to death valley. We drove from vegas to death valley and spent 2 nights at furnace Creek (15 yrs ago, not sure what it's like now). just blue sky and white and red Rock as far as the eye can see.......

It was 124 degrees and I loved it.

YY to santa Monica again.

We stayed a night in Cambria to break up drive from LA to San Fan. It is one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen.

Santa Cruz amusements?

In San Fran - "bike the bridge" - cycle over to Sausalito then take the bikes on the ferry back to San Fran.

Eeeuuugh, I'm so jealous.....room in your case for one more? I only wee

Carmel was my favourite part of the trip, absolutely beautiful

Definitely detour to see the sea elephants. We didn't know about them, drove that route by accident, and nearly crashed the car in shock when we saw them! Also Santa Barbara is charming.

And if you make it to LA, there's a cafe on the right hand side (non beach side) of the Miami beach main road, where the Hoff goes for breakfast on Sundays if he's in town. He was in the next booth to us

Sorry if repeating others, but here are the highlights from a trip we did a couple of years ago, working from SF down the coast:

San Francisco - Ferry Building for great food, Exploratorium, ride a cable car

Santa Cruz - beach boardwalk, Henry Cowell redwoods and the Roaring Camp Railroad, crazy Bigfoot museum, visit the amazing university campus, Seymour Marine Discovery Center, Natural Bridges beach, walk West Cliff drive and watch the surfers at Pleasure Point, tiny surfing museum in lighthouse

Monterey - Monterey Bay Aquarium and whale watching trip

Big Sur - Pfeiffer Beach

Elephant seals at piedras blancas

We didn't do Hearst Castle this time as our kids are younger (were then 8 and 5) and it was too much to pack in, and I have been before.

Cayucos - tiny CA beach town, we stopped overnight here, sweet little beach town and highlight was cookies from the Brown Butter Cookie Co.

Santa Barbara

LA - Griffith Park observatory, Santa Monica, the Getty Center, Grove shopping mall and farmer's market, La Brea tarpits, Space Shuttle Endeavour. Stayed at a great hotel called The Farmer's daughter which is walking distance to a lot of things so cuts down on the misery of driving in LA (takes HOURS to get just a short distance!) As you have teens you should definitely do Universal Studios in Hollywood, I remember being blown away by it when I was about 16. Our kids were too small when we went.

Disneyland!!

San Diego - we didn't do any of the touristy stuff like Sea World but just liked hanging out in the bay and visiting La Jolla (harbor seals) and Coronado where the Some Like it Hot hotel is.

We did it all in 2 1/2 weeks which was busy but doable. Best holiday EVER - we still all talk about it 2 years later and are desperate to do it all again!

Some great ideas on here! We are flying to Vegas next month with Dd17 and Ds15 so similar ages to the OP. We are then flying to SF before driving down to LA stopping off in Carmel, St Luis Opispo and Santa Barbara, finishing in San Diego to recover!
Have already booked Alcatraz, Universal and Warner Bros tour and will be looking to book a Grand Canyon trip tonight.
Also planning to go to a baseball game, cycle across the Golden Gate see Rydell High and eat and shop til we drop! Can't wait!

We've just booked this trip too - starting with a few days in San Diego and then LA to take in Hollywood and Universal Studios. A couple of days to go up the coast taking in Big Sur and Monterey and then up to Santa Cruz and SF with a trip to Alcatraz. Then heading up to Lassen Volcanic Park (my favourite place from a previous trip) and then meandering down the mountains taking in Reno (car museum), Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia. Then across to Death Valley and a couple of days in Vegas - think we will do the scenic flight over the Grand Canyon otherwise it will be a 10 hour round trip in the wrong direction to get to the South Rim. Then a couple of days in Palm Springs (water park looks good fun) and then back to SD. We have 3.5 weeks, and have booked hotels either direct with the chains or through hotels.com, all with free cancellation (and using up a few of the free nights we have collected with them).

If you end up coming to San Diego we have a drive-in movie theatre which my teens enjoy going to. Pick up some cheap beach chairs at Walmart or Target before you go.

Also take a kayak or SUP or jet ski tour of the local coast or take a surfing lesson.

Scotinoz, many of our family road trips go past Baker and we have a tradition where we get out and race around the thermometer no matter what time of day or night it usually is. I normally win and my son usually claims I cheated because he was asleep.

Last time we were in SF we parked the car in Larkspur and took the ferry to SF. It was mental, 45 mph, take a waterproof jacket so you can go outside. We had great views of the GG bridge from a distance in the fog and got cool pictures of our first view of the city. Later my son ran across the GG bridge but you can rent bikes to cycle across and there are bike racks on the ferry (they went fast, try and get to the ferry early and get in line).

Lake Tahoe is beautiful

I came to say this - if you can go to vegas via Tahoe then it's well worth it. We just spent two weeks there

Vegas will be roasting. We were going to go but didn't fancy 40 degrees.

We're off in 3 weeks! DC 8 and 5, DH and I have been once before so not all new, but still a massive adventure taking DC long haul for the first time.

Great tips here - we are getting an RV for a week and have a few places booked (Monterey area, Big Sur and Pismo) but need another 2 nights somewhere between Pismo and Anaheim which is where we drop off RV and start Disney/OC leg of the trip.

Any ideas from past trips on a nice spot south of the Central Coast?

(Sorry to hijack, was going to start a thread but since you're all here...!)

There is a disgusting bubblegum alley in SLO that my kids loved at that age. If you can stomach it go chew some gum and add it to the wall.

If anyone goes out to the Grand Canyon and has extra time check out Sedona. If it is the hottest part of summer grab some socks, swim wear and go to slide rock park. One of the funnest parts of one of our road trips and my teens have been clamouring to go back there.

Nice spots south of Pismo, my recommendation would be Santa Barbara area e.g. SB, Solvang or further south at a beach town. If DCs like beach and swimming you want to be south of Point Concepcion. Waters are more sheltered and warmer. Waters north of it e.g. SLO area it is chilly!

We do not normally book hotels in advance unless it is a holiday weekend or a big football game or something, we decide that afternoon and check on kayak to see what is free. You might like to have a few days free so you aren't tied in anywhere and can stay somewhere longer if you like it. Alternatively book somewhere like a Hilton brand hotel so you can cancel if you change your mind.