California - Suggestions/Feedback on CA Trip in Aug

Just wondering what people thing of my CA trip... Suggestions and comments are appreciated.

Day 1 (Monday) - Fly into San Fran Arrive at 9:00PM
Drive to Napa Valley Best Western.


Day 2 (Tuesday) - Napa Valley

Tour of Napa Valley
Dinner at Russian River Brewing Co.

Day 3 (Wednesday) - Drive from Napa to San Fran
Hotel: Stay at Inn at Union Square

Golden Gate Bridge and park
Ghirardelli Square and Fishermans wharf (take street car to ferry building)
Cable cars & lombard st.
Dinner at FINO

Day 4 (Thursday) - Drive from San Fran to Santa Brabara
(Need hotel recommendation, on beach would be great)
Carmel
Big Sur - Point Sur State Historic Park & Lighthouse
Hearst Mansion - 750 Hearst Castle Road, San Simeon
Historic Monterey
Lunch at Firestone Walker at 620 McMurry Road i
Dinner at Bouchon - 9 W. Victoria St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Day 5 (Friday) - Leave Santa Barbara - Drive through Hollywood/LA and La jolla on way to San Diego

Along the way go to:
Venice Beach Boardwalk
Pine Avenue in Long Beach
Walk of stars

Day 6 (Saturday) - San Diego
Stay at downtown Grand Hyatt
San Diego Zoo
Balboa park
(any dinner recommendations?) Stone Brewing Co?
national comedy theater

Day 7 (Sunday) - Leave from San Diego

Um, on days 4 and 5 are you planning on stopping at any of those places or are you going to be content just driving by them? I mean are you planning on touring Hearst Castle at all, walking around Monterey at all? You are going to backtrack quite a bit if you go from Big Sur to Hearst Mansion then to Monterey then to Buellton for lunch. Same question for Hollywood, Venice Beach, and Long Beach. What else do you want to see in Balboa Park? The Zoo alone can be an entire day.

Your itinerary is awfully ambitious IMHO.

If you are looking for a hotel near the beach in Santa Barbara, most people will recommend the Fess Parker's Doubletree Resort. It's a beautiful property. If you are feeling like spending a little more, there's the Four Seasons The Biltmore down the road in Montecito. Other properties include the Hotel Mar Monte (near Doubletree) and Bacara resort up in Goleta on Sandpiper golf course.

As for the busyness of the itinerary, it all sounds doable. Some days look busier than others, but if you don't dilly daddle on some of the visits, it looks doable, and more importantly, fun!

If you are only planning on doing wine region touring and tasting for one full day, my strongest possible recommendation is to spend it in Sonoma county rather than the Napa Valley - in the Russian River and Alexander Valley areas. Napa has become an overpriced version of Disneyland relative to most of Sonoma, with costly tasting fees and canned tourist experiences being the norm at the overwhelming majority of wineries. Surprisingly, Sonoma has mostly not suffered from this same affliction. In terms of the wines and wineries themselves, Sonoma is of similar quality to Napa, but the wines made there are more diverse, reflecting a broader range of grape varietals and microclimates than are found in Napa. Unless you are specifically looking to learn about Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet-blends, which dominate Napa, Sonoma is absolutely the better choice for most tourists.

I also STRONGLY recommend doing the wine touring on a weekday, rather than a weekend, as the wineries are far more crowded on weekends in both the Napa and Sonoma regions and you will get much more personal attention from the wineries' hospitality staffs on a weekday.

Agree with SWCPHX - days 4 and 5 have no time to enjoy any of the places you are going through. Also agree about Fess Parker's Doubletree in Santa Barbara, but given the other hotels you mention, I think it will be higher priced than you want to pay.

Overall, way too much in too little time.

Wow- I am already tired and you haven't even left yet.

Re: San Diego-

You don't say who you are traveling with or ages- would really help to suggest a place to eat and type of food.

San Diego is more than Balboa Park and the Zoo, but it is a great start :).

The Zoo can be an all day deal with food too. (Albert's is a good restaurant in the zoo.) There is a great restaurant in Balboa Park called the Prado. Bertrands at Mr. A's is fabulous and near downtown (but spendy too).

Day of week? Can make a difference as to where to recommend to eat as well. As does budget.

If you want to be near the water and are willing to drive, the restaurant at the Shores Hotel in La Jolla is smack on the beach, offers 3 hours of free underground parking and the food is very well priced. Best value for on the water dining in town.

There are a gazillion restaurants downtown and many of them are really good. Searsucker is very hip (reservations a must). I really like the Top of the Market at the Fish Market. Downstairs is good too, but upstairs is fine dining (with prices to match).

Give me more info and I can help further.

I would certainly agree that days 4 and 5 as planned will involve an awful lot of driving, and not much time for stopping to see the sights. And certainly, the Day 5 drive is highly dependent upon time of day and day of the week as to the traffic, which could be moderate, or horrific.

Wow! What an insanely busy itinerary.

IMHO you would be better off to skip Napa, do San Francisco on your first full day and leave for Monterey a day earlier. That would allow you to add a day to the trip south on the Coast Highway, stopping for the night near Big Sur, San Simeon or Cambria. If you want to do a wine tasting tour, do it in San Luis Obispo County or even Santa Barbara County along the way. In that way, you might actually have time to see some of the sites you mention rather than just driving by at 60 mph.

I'll be with my wife only. My 2 year old will be with the in-laws. We also just found out that my wife is pregnant so we may be skipping Napa since she's the wine fan and I'm the beer lover. Hot sure that I can cancel the Best Western in Napa though...

I understand that my itinerary is awful ambitious. I don't plan to get to everything on the list, we planned on doing more of a fly by our pants trip deciding which we want to do depending on available time.

I have updated the itinerary with days of the week.

Can you not just call the Best Western and tell them you'd like to cxl your reservation? This trip is still over a month and a half away.

If you skip Napa just stay in San Francisco on your arrival day and do what you were originally planning on doing on Day 3.

Day 4 (as originally planned) - Skip Hearst Castle, that will save you about 2 hours right there.

Day 5 (as originally planned) - You will be contending with some of the worst possible LA traffic, I'd skip Hollywood and stick to the coastal sights like Venice Beach and Pine Ave. in Long Beach. Detour through the South Bay cities like Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach instead on the way to Long Beach.

If you skip Napa and have an extra day, I would find a hotel in the Santa Monica area and have an extra day to explore LA.

Just driving to Hearst Castle is close to a 2 hour detour - I would assume that anyone making that drive would actually want to see the inside of the place.

And yes, you couldn't pick a worse time to drive through L.A. than Friday afternoon.

If your wife's pregnancy leads you to skip the Napa/Sonoma winery tours and tastings, might I suggest that you take far less time and just drive through some vineyard areas in the Santa Maria-Santa Ynez area instead - It's at least as scenic as Napa and Sonoma. My recommendation is to get off of the 101 just south of Santa Maria and take Orcutt road to Foxen Canyon Road south toward Los Olivos, IMHO, Foxen Canyon is one of the most scenic wine country drives in California, then continue on the 154 past Lake Cachuma down into Santa Barbara. If you want to stop at a few wineries along this route, Foxen, Zaca Mesa, and Fess Parker are good choices among many. And if you don't actually stop for winetasting, this scenic detour will cost you well under an hour relative to just staying on the 101 all the way to Santa Barbara. Of course, you'll miss Pea Soup Andersen's in Buellton (which is, IMHO, a good thing).

If your wife's pregnancy leads you to skip the Napa/Sonoma winery tours and tastings, might I suggest that you take far less time and just drive through some vineyard areas in the Santa Maria-Santa Ynez area instead - It's at least as scenic as Napa and Sonoma. My recommendation is to get off of the 101 just south of Santa Maria and take Orcutt road to Foxen Canyon Road south toward Los Olivos, IMHO, Foxen Canyon is one of the most scenic wine country drives in California, then continue on the 154 past Lake Cachuma down into Santa Barbara. If you want to stop at a few wineries along this route, Foxen, Zaca Mesa, and Fess Parker are good choices among many. And if you don't actually stop for winetasting, this scenic detour will cost you well under an hour relative to just staying on the 101 all the way to Santa Barbara. Of course, you'll miss Pea Soup Andersen's in Buellton (which is, IMHO, a good thing).

I'll second this idea. If you really wanted to do Anderson's (us locals hate that place, btw ;) ), you could get off the 101 in Buellton instead of Santa Maria, and take a ride on Santa Rosa Rd to Lompoc, and take Hwy 1 to connect back to 101 on your way to Santa Barbara.

Taking 154 to Santa Barbara (on the San Marcos Pass) will offer great views of Santa Barbara (towards the end of the ride), but the 101 is directly on, and offers excellent views of the coast. (also keep in mind that 154 is a mountain pass, and is inherently more dangerous than other roads. If you don't like heights, take the coast).

I'm not sure why you guys are assuming the OP will even be using 101. For this type of trip, I'd really recommend the coast route on Highway 1. It is FAR more scenic, has more things to see and do and the closed portion at Big Sur is now open. The most spectacular stretch of highway in California versus really ugly, dull and boring?

I'm not sure why you guys are assuming the OP will even be using 101. For this type of trip, I'd really recommend the coast route on Highway 1. It is FAR more scenic, has more things to see and do and the closed portion at Big Sur is now open. The most spectacular stretch of highway in California versus really ugly, dull and boring?

Because 101 and Hwy 1 are the same road for the parts of the trip we have been referring to as 101.

I understand that 1 and 101 are the same in the southern part of the route. I did see a reference to Hearst Castle being a 2 hour detour which is simply not true if they are coming down 1. You drive right by. Now the tour, of course, involves a couple of hours but I would hardly consider that a "detour." :p

Perhaps I was reading too much into one comment.

I am just strongly suggesting the OP stay on 1 all the way from San Fran until it joins up with 101 at San Luis Obispo. That would give the maximum scenic value and take him through the real Central Coast via Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur, San Simeon, Cambria, Cayucos and Morro Bay. An overnight at one of these in place of a cancelled night in Napa would pay huge dividends. The inland route via Salinas, King City, Paso Robles and Atascadero just sucks unless you simply must make the best time.

The inland route via Salinas, King City, Paso Robles and Atascadero just sucks unless you simply must make the best time.

Having grown up in Paso, I'll take issue with that statement. It's FAR inferior to Highway 1, but it hardly sucks. The rolling hills of North County SLO and Cuesta Grade are very scenic indeed.

Now I-5--THAT "just sucks." Hint: drive down I-5 with your windows closed and the air conditioner on recirculate. You'll thank me when you pass the dairy farms. :p

(I-5 does get nice as you climb up the Grapevine, though.)

... Now I-5--THAT "just sucks." Hint: drive down I-5 with your windows closed and the air conditioner on recirculate. You'll thank me when you pass the dairy farms. ...
Actually, those are "beef" cattle ranches but good advice just the same. :D

Your other point is taken as well. 1 > 101 > I-5.

To the OP -

As a California resident since 1960 and having driven up and down the coast more times than I can count, you have been given some EXCELLENT advice by all who have posted- Flyertalk is GREAT!

All of the alternatives sound so much more realistic and doable than the original itinerary and would make for a better trip.

Re: San Diego restaurants - it appears you are more interested in beer than in food quality.....personally I think Stone is highly overrated and has a good publicity machine. Plus it is a LONG drive from downtown.

Closer to downtown and more "romantic" is Coronado and the Corornado Brewing company. Also award winning and you could tour the Dell beforehand, walk the boardwalk (now a concrete walk) in front of the beach at the Dell (possibly of the of the nicest in San Diego).

Still think the Shores has better food and they have an excellent selection of micro brews on tap.

I booked a non cancel-able room in Napa for two nights...doh! Looks like we're stuck...

I booked a non cancel-able room in Napa for two nights...doh! Looks like we're stuck...

The worst that they can do is tell you no. Call, beg, plead, lie, do whatever but if you're really re-thinking the stay in Napa, do your best to get out of a supposedly non cancelable reservation.

The worst that they can do is tell you no. Call, beg, plead, lie, do whatever but if you're really re-thinking the stay in Napa, do your best to get out of a supposedly non cancelable reservation.

It was booked through Kayak...does that make a difference if they can refund it?

If you can't get out of the Napa reservation - it isn't such a bad thing.

I love the Napa side and go at least once a year. There are plenty of things to do non-winery/drinking related. Joe's Downtown actually brews some pretty nice beers too and their food is good too. Check to see what's on at the Napa Opera House (just the name, no Opera :) ) It is a wonderful venue and they book great acts at reasonable prices.

In Calistoga, the two of you could do a mud bath (I really like Indian Springs)
you also get mineral pool access to one of the nicest pools anywhere. It could just be an afternoon or morning of pure bliss/relaxation and a great start to the trip.

You could do some great picnics with food from Dean and Deluca, The Sunshine Market, Whole Foods (in Napa), The Oakville Grocery, V Sattui. There are wineries that have complementary picnic grounds (google search will bring them up). Joseph Phelps has perhaps the best picnic tables but they are hard to come by. We usually can score one mid-week if we commit to buying a bottle or three of wine.

Better tastings are had with reservations and are much better values. The best bang for the buck is Duckhorn's Estate tasting for $45. Ample pours of expensive wine in a private room with glasses for each type of wine allowing you to compare and contrast without pouring out. Way better than a $15 "taste" where you have to wash out the glass between "sips". Another great taste is Vino Con Queso at Artessa (wine and cheese parings) also a beautiful winery in the Caneros.

If you like art, the Hess Winery is beautiful and Quixote Winery is a living work of art by Hundertwasser (last thing he did before he died).

A very different tour is one by reservation at Schramsberg. Their caves were dug by the Chinese immigrants after they completed work on the intercontinental railroad. Unlike any other experience in the Napa Valley.

Lots of good food too. Mustards not only has a great wine list but also has worthy beers.

I prefer to drive the Silverado side of Napa. Not only faster, but more scenic and you can use the cutoffs to get to the other side to visit wineries in St. Helena, Yountville, etc..

It was booked through Kayak...does that make a difference if they can refund it?

I've never tried personally, but nothing ventured nothing gained, right?

I've never tried personally, but nothing ventured nothing gained, right?

Well, Kayak never books anything directly themselves, do they? They always forward you onto another party's site to complete the actual booking.

Or have they changed things recently?