LA to SF via Death Valley
 

Hello everyone,

My wife and i are planning a short california trip. We will be flying in to LA and then out of SF so will be taking a road trip from LA to SF. We wanted to go through Death Valley. We are thinking about driving towards death valley on one day and then spend the night somewhere close to DV and drive to San Francisco the next day.

My question is are there any hotels close to death valley? Looking online i can't seem to find that many options.

Thanks

There aren't a whole lot of hotels in the area around the park, regardless of direction you are coming / going, so you will need to be a bit flexible. There are a few hotels & inns inside the park to consider. Check out trip advisor:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotels-...ia-Hotels.html

I haven't stayed inside the park but did do something similar, in which I stayed outside LA for the night, woke up early, and passed through the park the next day (but stayed on the other side that night). I would recommend taking your time as the park is incredible and so is the driving. You can see a car in plain sight but take hours to pass because the distances play with your head. The verticals you see from below sea level to the tops of telescope peak and others is unlike most mountains you would naturally come across. And the turn off views are stunning. Remember to pack lots of water and snacks though as it can get dangerous, particularly in summer. I went in winter and the sun just beats you down.

Depending on your plans SF might be a stretch to reach on the same day. There are also lot's of stops to consider along the way if you need to break up the trip but that all depends on your agenda and priorities.

Thanks for the quick response.

I know the drive from DV to San Francisco is pretty long. What's the quickest way? I know one of the highways goes thru Yosemite but that might take longer. We only have 2 days in SF so only trying to keep the DV visit brief.

Thanks again for your help.

What time of year? The route via Yosemite would actually be shorter and MUCH more scenic but it is not open now, closed due to snow. The highest pass on that route is at nearly 10k feet elevation.

3rd Week of April.

This time of year (all else being equal), you'd have to do it by Tehachapi (550 miles of unhappy driving). I haven't heard about an early opening for Yosemite or Tioga. 395 North to 108 would be much more scenic, but it'd be a tough one-day drive.

Yeah, that's currently pretty much it. I wouldn't necessarily call it unhappy driving -- it is often feasible (although illegal) to attempt to set a new land speed record while driving through the Panamint Valley -- but it is a long ways. Note that there is no fuel available between Stovepipe Wells and Trona, and sometimes even Trona is unreliable, you may have to go all the way to China Lake.

Agree with the rest. You will have to backtrack quite a bit toward Mojave and catch the 58 over Tehachapi Pass to Bakersfield. From there, get onto I-5 for the run north through the SJ Valley toward the Bay Area. The alternative would be the 99 but that would be much slower. I-5 is boring but should keep you at speed the whole way.

Is the 395 to 108 also closed? We don't mind the long drive..

According to CalTrans Highway Conditions website, that route is currently closed.
P.S. CalTrans also has a mobile site.

My two cents on alternatives:
- I-5 is great is you just want speed.
- 99 is better if you want to have some reason to pull over once in a while. Valley towns aren't "wow" for the most part, but many have history and local businesses. I think of the Armenians and Basques in Fresno (and elsewhere), the Hmong in Merced...
- 101/1 would be the best for really enjoyable leisure travel. By comparison (based on Google Maps), I-5 is 527 miles and 8:05 travel time. Speeders will, of course, beat this. Taking CA-58 over to 101 is 570 miles and 9:28. I'd rather go through San Luis Obispo, near Monterey, Santa Cruz, Pismo Beach. Or go totally crazy and go all the way to Hwy 1. It's 606 miles.

While I don't necessarily disagree with the ideas above, I note that the OP is already doing a 9+ hour drive in one day. Switching to 99 would add at least an hour, more likely more, due to truck and farm traffic. 101 would be about the same, better for scenery but slower for the long drive.

OP needs to prioritize - time versus scenery and services. For time, I-5 beats everything but is dull, dull, dull. For scenery, 101 or even 65 to Visalia + 99 the rest of the way to 152 would be a nicer drive but slower. I'd only recommend straight up 99 for those seeking overnights or other services. The PCH would add hours to the trip.

I agree. I was only trying to present options...along with the related "costs" mileage, et cetera.

Thanks for all the responses.

Looking at how expensive some of the hotels in SF are, now I'm thinking maybe we can stop a couple of hours out of SF and then head into the city the following day. This way I will cut down a bit on our driving too. So with that in mind, I'm thinking about hopping over on to HWY 1 at some point.

A few options after looking at the map seem to be Monterrey, Santa Cruz Etc.

What are your opinions about those places and how long of a drive would it be on HWY 1 from there to SF on a Tuesday morning?

Thanks

Take a look at this thread: