Thank you for great info This is exactly what I was looking for. A few years ago I started saving (unbeknownst to my husband) for his 50th birthday this summer. Hello, my name is Sonia and I am from Puerto Rico. If you do decide to spend an overnight in the area, I recommend stopping in the town of Mendocino first for late lunch, walking around the Mendocino Headlands, then continue driving south to spend the night at the beautiful Little River Inn for dinner at the Whale Watch Bar. You can even stretch it out by spending a few extra days exploring some of the cities along the route if you want to. Gavin Newsom and . Dont be in a hurry and be cautious so you can enjoy everything. Great name btw . Can you recommend where to spend time and in which cities to plan to spend the night? Pacific Coast Highway Directions: Follow California Highway 1 south. It's renowned as one of the most scenic road trips in America, and of course there are dozens of fun places to stop and check out along the way. Related posts: Stop 1: San Francisco. Any ideas? Portland? NEW CONSTRUCTION. Thats it! So heading east eventually to round out the trip. This is my idea of an itinerary but I need to cut out one of these days or consolidate one since I really only have 8 days. Any suggestions. We are only going to be there once though and want to make the most of it. If not, spend your day exploring the Seattle waterfront to see all of the city from above. Im not sure there are many good airports to leave a rental car in the region youre suggesting you may end up driving into L.A. to do so and to fly home. Thank you, and your blog is fantastic! Drive Time: About 3.5 Hours. Let me know how it goes! Pacific Coast, region, western North America, possessing two unifying geologic and geographic propertiesthe Pacific Ocean, which constitutes a natural western border, and the coastal mountain ranges that form the eastern border of the region. This If you go as big as a Suburban or Tahoe, youll be way to big and clunky to enjoy the road! It'll take you about three hours to reach Big Sur from San Francisco, and by then you'll be ready to stretch your legs. I cant even imagine how incredible it must have been to experience all this in person. In Northern California, the best weather of the year happens between September and October. From Ventura. The Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip While many travelers begin in Los Angeles and head north, driving the Pacific Coast Highway from north to south keeps you in the lane closest to the ocean. Astoria, like Aberdeen in Washington, is a great destination for lovers of pop culture. Pacific Highway Route information Existed 1913-1926 [a] Major junctions South end San Diego, CA North end Vancouver, BC Location Country United States States California, Oregon, Washington, (also Vancouver in British Columbia) Highway system Auto trails Pacific Highway is the name of several north-south highways in the Pacific Coast region of the Western United States, either by . One of the most famous sea stacks on the U.S. Pacific Coast, Haystack Rock is picture perfect while you stretch your legs. Thanks for your comment, Patty! BEST PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY STOPS Sun, sand, and surf. If your PCH road trip includes the Olympic Peninsula, follow U.S. 101 west and then north along the eastern side of the Olympic Peninsula toward Port Angeles. The ideia is to have a West Coast Beer Route drive. Hi there, I am desperate to do the road trip next year however, I am not keen on driving over bridges (I am fine on coastal roads/cliff edges), so are there any places that i definitely need to avoid or that you cant get through/past without crossing a bridge? Pigeon Point can be a fun rest stop along the Pacific Coast Highway or a quirky one-night stop depending on your itinerary. I have suggestions on dates earlier in the article to help you figure out how long to do the trip and where to stop. However I actively lament that I was on the wrong side of the road in the present tense (as in, if you ask me today, I still lament it); I didnt really realize I was on the wrong side until after my trip was over and its not like you can change your route once you start! Im planning on doing the PCH from Seattle to SF next Sept. (We did SF to SD in 2019). Depending on whether you drive a Washington to California road trip or just drive portions in California, you can start/end your road trip at the various cities in this guide. Thanks for your comment, Erin! Right, Mel? Im definitely going to try to do it sometime! How long is the Pacific Coast Highway? Valerie, First off, congratulations on your recent wedding! Located just off the iconic Pacific Coast Highway, this campsite is sandwiched between a gorgeous beach and a redwood forest. Gov. Port Angeles is the place for that one-night stop. Especially watching the sun set over Morro Rock in the distance! Id like to include Olympic NP, Mt. Doing this trip starting this weekend! Have a great drive! Mike, great to hear from you and thanks for reading! I havent been to some of those national parks, but they sound amazing! Would there be a place where the rental could be left in those regions? They all offer budget rentals, run regular deals and specials, and have one-way rental options. 2. Pacific Coast Highway Directions: Continue south on CA-1, the Pacific Coast Highway. We stayed in Seattle and drove south to Olympia, to pick up the beginning of the 101. How can we apply this info in the reverse, Catherine, its pretty easy just plan it out by reading my article from the bottom to the top! Youll get access to five major attractions at a discounted price, so you can experience more of what Seattle has to offer for less. If you want to spend part of one day during your Pacific Coast Highway road trip beachcombing or hiking, Big Sur is the place to do it. For accommodation, try a small hotel like the. We might consider staying a total of 12-15 days. If you need to stretch your legs on your day of driving between Los Angeles and San Diego, Huntington Beach is a great spot to stop. In the Santa Barbara area of the article you mentioned that you had an article about Santa Barbara and what to do, I am not able to locate this article. We stay in San Diego on Pacific/Mission Beach a lot so no need to travel this far south for us. We want to make the best out of drive there. Thank you so very much. I drove one and I hardly ever got to enjoy it!.why were you hardly ever able to enjoy driving a convertible???? To help you plan your road trip, here are two possible road trip itineraries you could take. Pacific Coast Highway Map, Direction & Start/End Points. Its a small detail, but totally uncalifornian to say the PCH. Im trying to connect with the guide I found on pinterest. Planning a mother/son trip after my son graduates HS next year. Along the way we plan to stop at the Benbow Inn near Garberville, CA and in Newport. I do you can sign up using the email forms in this post to receive a short version! Is it worth waiting to do this trip in summer? As we will be married 40 years! To answer your questions: 1. Sounds like youve got a great plan drive safe! $23.99 $ 23. Now let me break down a few itineraries to choose from, based on how much time you have to do your Pacific Coast Highway road trip. WOW! Is Yellowstone worth the long detour? Unfortunately, I dont have suggestions for Santa Barbara as I havent been there in nearly a decade. Wonderful trip sharing you made. Youd need to drive about 7-10 hours out of the way depending on the bridge, and miss major stretches of the road . Thanks, CJ! Any additional thoughts? Moon Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip: California, Oregon & Washington (Travel Guide) by Ian Anderson | Dec 20, 2022. Im also a not-so-secret space nerd and speak fluent emoji! Lot of driving in 10 days, but I am excited. Any recommendations will be appreciated! I dont plan to change any of my travel plans based on the Coronavirus unless there are required quarantines. Great questions, Julie. Before you hit the road, youve gotta figure out your car situation! Do you have a version that is just typed up not with pictures? We are from FL and east coast and know very little about west coast, so this is great!! The coast near Crescent City is dotted with the gigantic rock formations out at sea that characterize most of the northern and central California coastline. The best way to enjoy southern California is by diving straight into the beachside culture. I would love to take this vacation but not fall short on money. Great content here, thank you! Would be every much appriciate if you can provide tips and recomendattions where to stop, what to see/do and eat the drive on high 1 from San Diego to Santa Monica. I love Portland and San Diego. We will probably book Airbnb if cost effective. Im assuiming youve read the whole post, as I do cover a 7-day suggested itinerary, and cover overnight stops along the Oregon coast. Do you recommend any of your overnights for golf fireworks for 4th of July? Hello, Thanks for sharing your trips and valuable tips. These seem to be the hardest parts to figure out for this type of trip! Thanks for reading though , Thanks so much for an in depth post. Although I live in San Francisco, Ive yet to visit several of these places on this list. I would love to receive the PDF version of this, please. Just give yourself more time and end n LA. I appreciate all the information! We are planning to do Northboundfrom Ventura to Wine country but only have 5 days returning on the 5th day. I recently discovered Mendocino on a weekend trip and fell in love with the small town. Just wondering about restrictions? Amy, take a look at the Santa Maria Valley I stopped in Lompoc on a trip recently and they have some fun and interesting wineries there. Santa Barbara was the biggest surprise I had on my PCH road trip in 2014. Southern California. Thanks for your comment, Shelly! I am going to drive PCH 1 this summer and was going to drive from North to South but my son has driven it and suggested going South to North. My husband and I are both 62 in pretty good shape and planning to do this trip from Portland to San Diego in late September 2019 over 2 weeks. Theres a link to that at the end of the post. Thanks so much from a couple of Canucks! We are planning to stay overnight at the Madonna Inn. As soon as you hit the section of the Pacific Coast Highway connecting. Ime hoping the trip will run about $10k. Question, if we were to add a stop, possible one night stay at Crater Lake, where would you suggest doing this from without missing much, (or any?) My husband are I are planning 20 days to do the PCH(starting in Seattle and ending in San Diego) We are using your the ultimate pacific coast road trip itinerary as a guide. The journey down Highway 1 is the iconic California road trip, and this coastal route is a great choice whether you're in Northern California, the central coast, or in SoCal. The best time of year to do this will be in the summer (June/July/August), probably sooner in the year rather than later. I was a truck driver for 29 years and could not drive that road. FREE delivery Sat, Jan 7 on $25 of items shipped by Amazon. If I wanted to follow your trip but stop off a day at Yosemite what might the drive look like? I have looked up the different uses of the word and grammatically correct samples, and I believe you needed to use it in past-tense. Best Quotes about the West Coast There are many quotes that sing praises and are written as an ode to the beauty of the West Coast. PCH bucket list road trip done! Bixby Bridge in Big Sur Choosing the top Pacific Coast Highway attractions isn't easy, as there are so many we love! Thinking of Seattle to San Diego on US 1 in late September or early October, is the weather still good for a 10 day driving trip? With colorful historic seaside homes and great hiking trails and other outdoor activities, Mendocino is good for at least an overnight stop dont be surprised if you want to spend even longer here once you arrive! My wife doesnt particularly like high bridges or steep drops (one reason we are driving north), so any advice on where we might avoid such things is appreciated. My question is: how to best use our time? Kim, December should be a pretty good time, but plan for classic marine layer weather (chilly and cloudy this is whats normal on the Pacific coast!). Very glad to help, and I hope you have a great trip! We booked a flight to San Jose to explore the citys economic hub and cultural traditions. Hi Valerie- What is the best time of year for this 10 day trip? Have a great trip!! Do you happen to know or can you suggest a source with info about the road conditoin in the light of recent terrible weather in California.