Family road trip from San Francisco- itinerary help please.

[BoogleMcGroogle]

We would like to spend about 12 nights on a California road trip next Easter (2022, but 2023 if not possible). DC will be 10 and 13. We love nature, walking and history ( and I’m desperate to visit SF). Happy to fly out from a different city. Any ideas for a fun, not too arduous itinerary welcomed

Someone up thread mentioned Pismo Beach, its a nice resort but what makes it special are the sand dunes. We did a dune tour in a Humvee which was brilliant.
Other highlights of that stop down the coast from SF were Monterrey Aquarium and the elephant seals on the beach. If you want to go to Hearst's Castle make sure you book ahead, in the end we decided the tours were too expensive but the museum is interesting.
In Sab Francisco we didn't have a car (we had an RV for the rest of our trip, which I wouldn't recommend). We bought City Passes which included entry to a range of attractions and travel on buses and the cable cars.
In San Francisco we liked the Cable Car Museum and the Wells Fargo Museum (both free) and the Exploratorium.

We bought City Passes and sometimes used uber . The museums are free one-day a month i think, we went to the De Young art gallery. Dd and i went to the Walt Disney family museum which was really interesting but not so much for children.

We did 10 days - 3 days in San Francisco - Alcatraz , angel island , tram museum and the bridge :) we then traveled down to Monterey Bay (2 days stayed over - watched dolphins from the beach) we then did 3 days in Yosemite - I wish we stayed longer most amazing place ever!! Then drive back to SF and stayed one last night.

We had the most amazing time (with a 14 & 8 yr old) would go back again for a longer time to explore. SF we still didn’t see everything!

It’s a good idea to fly in and spend a couple of days sightseeing in the city before picking up a car - it gives you a chance to get over the flight and adjust to the new time zone before driving in a strange place (usually on a different side of the road).

This is our dream when oldest is about 12 and youngest 9 son in about 5 years! We'd love to go to the US for a road trip and I'd especially like to see the east coast.
Have you seen the roadtrippers app/website OP? It's my guilty pleasure.

Sorry i meant west coast before.
I'd also like to do a southern states road trip, an east coast one, a Mississippi one...........

We did Alcatraz on the first morning on the first boat. You’ll be up at the crack of dawn anyway and it’s the quietest time on the island. You need to book online well in advance.

We did the Behind the Scenes tour which is the 4.30 boat as it is on people on that tour. We got taken to places that you are normally allowed to see and the ranger we had was brilliant. Her father was a journalist and often took her there when it was a prison to play with the children of the prison officers that lived there.
You get to do the normal tour as well. Its definitely worth the extra money

*not normally allowed to see

Probably too much driving but start in SF, spend a few days and then drive down the coast as far as Morro Bay, spend the night and then drive inland to Kings Canyon and Sequoia NP to see the massive trees. Then you can add on a few days in Yosemite. If the passes over the mountains were open then I'd have recommended Death Valley but they were closed due to fires when we went and it was a loooooong drive all the way round the bottom and back up the other side!

We did a lot of driving and included Death Valley, Vegas, Zion NP, Bryce NP, monument Valley, Grand Canyon, Palm Springs and LA in 24 days. But at almost 3000 miles I would not do that with kids!

We did nearly 4,000 miles with our kids, but over 3 weeks and to be honest, they're pretty good in the car, just listening to music and chatting so it was no bother but I think that does depend on the kids!

Firstly OP I would think about what your and your DH really want to see while you're there and what you think your DC will love. If you really don't know, then I recommend doing some research - buy a guide book (LP's California is pretty good) and check out websites, blogs, etc for inspiration.

California is HUGE and you could easily spend four weeks there so with 12 days you aren't going to have time to do everything, therefore you're going to have to prioritise. Based on your wish to visit SF and your love of nature I'd recommend a circular trip from San Francisco that looks something like this:

3 nights San Francisco
3 nights Lake Tahoe
3 nights Yosemite NP
3 nights in/around the Monterey area that will allow you to explore a bit of Highway 1
Back to SF to fly home

I honestly wouldn't try to do Las Vegas, Grand Canyon or Death Valley on this trip unless you're the type of family that is happy to have one night here and one night there. It is possible to do that kind of trip (I did it with my family when I was a teenager), but it's exhausting and you leave everywhere wishing you'd had more time. One other tip - bear in mind that you will probably he HORRIBLY jet lagged the first day or two, so plan things early in the day and have easy afternoons by the pool or wandering around nearby sites.

Alternate trip (based on the fact that you're going at Easter and Tahoe and Yosemite will be COLD and possibly the roads around Yosemite might be shut because of snow)

3 nights SF
2 nights Monterey
1 night Santa Barbara
3 nights LA (for Disney/Universal/etc)
3 nights San Diego

I would also say that if you start in San Francisco you can get over jetlag safely, as it is somewhere that you neither need nor want a car. Forget Las Vegas with kids, and as you are also outdoor walking types it doesnt hold much for you - it is about the only place I've been where one night was quite enough as I neither shop nor gamble. Grand canyon is too far for this timeframe.

Note the pass closures for Yosemite at Easter and be prepared to change itinerary. South down the coast is fabulous with lots of lesser known places mentioned up thread. Check status of the road - it is currently part closed due to collapse.

Rough guides are usually good, more focused on nature than lonely planet which tend to be all about getting drunk cheap.

I would agree that Las Vegas is not worth the long drive. We’ve been a couple of times and would only go back because it’s a convenient airport for other more interesting places. Obviously other people like it but it’s not for us.

Check status of the road - it is currently part closed due to collapse.

Definitely do this.

We ended up having to take a 3 hour detour involving terrifying roads with a sheer drop one side, eventually ending up driving through a military base.

Not recommended.

There were forest fires when we went, Big Sur was closed

Fewer fires at Easter. When we have been to California, we actually like to get to know a place a little bit before moving on. We never see it purely as a road trip. It is lovely to enjoy the beach at Carmel for a couple of days. There are Missions to visit. Wildlife to see. History to soak up. People to spot! Having to get up to move on all the time is a pain. There might be great restaurants to visit and little shops that are wonderful. I am a fan of book shops. Slowing down your trip is enjoyable. I never have raced around and driven for thousands of miles. I do not see holidays as tick box exercise. They are time to relax and discover new places by spending a bit of time and even talking to people!