I absolutely loved California. This Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip is one of my all-time favourite experiences. We had so much fun driving from San Francisco (where we had just spent 3 days) to Los Angeles and each place we visited on our road trip offered something unique. This was a journey crammed with activities from visiting Alcatraz to whale watching.
Whether you want a holiday packed with activities or just some great coastal places to relax then California is a great place to be. You could easily spend a week or a month here. Read on to find out more about the below places:
I was a little worried about this leg of our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip. I’d never driven in a foreign country, on the other side of the road, or in an automatic. However, this was actually one of the best parts of the holiday.
Everything went very smoothly from picking up our car at the airport to driving the Pacific Coast Highway. You can read more about how to rent a car, in addition to a range of tips by reading my post How To Rent A Car & Drive California’s Pacific Coast Highway.
The Pacific Coast Highway’s Route 1
Essentially Route 1 is one long road, where you can stop off in a number of lay-bys to take in the scenery. At one point we had exerted some self-control with stopping, otherwise, we would never have made it to Cambria.
Pigeon Point
We didn’t make too many stops on the way to Monterey with Pigeon Point being the first and only one. I was quite happy to take in the scenery whilst adjusting to the car on this stretch of road. However, Pigeon Point was a beautiful place to get a sample of what this trip had in store for us.
Day 4: Monterey
This is an ideal place to stop on your Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip. Monterey itself was a pleasantly subtle high-end town, it had a soft class to it. We got so caught up walking along the waterfront and with the otters at Fisherman’s Wharf that we forgot to eat!
The plans for a fine dining experience went out the window and we ended up with a classic American hot dog and chips! However, this did leave a little more time for a casual craft beer /cider and tacos later in the evening at Alvardo Street Brewery.
Where To Stay In Monterey
Our hotel in Monterey was called The Stevenson. For a 2 star hotel/motel I was actually impressed by the quality. The parking in the underground car park was easy enough. The room itself was clean and comfortable with tea and ground coffee making facilities. You could also help yourself to a hot drink or fruit from the reception area.
Another nice surprise was that it was about 3x the size of our room in San Francisco. Breakfast was also included in the price of £81 per night and was varied enough. I had another first experience of using a waffle iron, which I managed to work out after a few attempts!
Being used to staying in 4 – 5* accommodation In Asia for the equivalent price, I was a little apprehensive about staying in a motel. But The Stevenson really set a great standard for motels.
Day 5: Carmel-By-The-Sea
We visited the attractive little town of Carmel before setting off through Big Sur. Despite being conscious of time, we couldn’t help but explore and check out the beach. Carmel had a perfect white sand beach, located in a friendly feeling residential area.
This will definitely be on my list of places to revisit and stay. Saying this, I would happily revisit all the places during our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip.
It’s far too easy to let your imagination get the better of you when visiting Monterey and Carmel. By the time I got to the beach, I was already trying to decide in which town I would buy my $500,000+ home.
Contemplating if one day GBP increased back to the historical (2007/08) levels of two dollars to the pound, what I could afford to buy when I moved to California. If we were to repeat our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip, we would definitely spend a night or two here.
The Best Part Of The Pacific Coast Highway – Big Sur
This part of our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip included what quickly became one of my favourite places in the world; Big Sur. This stretch of coastline is just spectacular and the views are continuously magnificent the whole route. It’s an easy route to navigate and fun to drive (in a safe way!) and it can be done by simply following the Pacific Coast Highway/Route 1.
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park & McWay Falls
In this section of the trip, we also visited Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park and McWay Falls. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park is a great place for a walk and breaks up the driving on your road trip. Here, you can explore the Redwood forests and you may even spot some deer.
I’d also recommend the Big Sur Deli as a place for lunch. They offer inexpensive but sizable sandwiches which will keep you going on the drive through Big Sur. In fact, my sandwich was such a generous size I couldn’t eat it in one go!
Stop Off In San Simeon
I’d recommend one last stop before you push onto Cambria. Just outside San Simeon is Piedras Blancas State Marine Reserve, where you can watch hundreds of Sea Lions laying and playing on the beach. This is a nice stop before reaching Cambria if you also choose this as a stopping point on your Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip.
Overnight Stay In Cambria
Cambria is a small friendly town and also a good place to stop for petrol on your Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip. There is a very convenient Chevron petrol station in the town. This was one of 2 places we filled up on our road trip and the other wasn’t until we headed for the airport in Los Angeles.
Our AirB&B on this occasion was a ‘Peaceful, Private Garden Studio’. For £92 for the night, it was spot on perfect in terms of location and comfort. If I did this trip again I’d stay here for 2 nights minimum. After a day of travelling, we arrived reasonably late and found a pretty affordable Chinese restaurant called Dragon Bistro.
Morning At Hearst Castle
The next day we had pre-booked some tickets to see Hearst Castle and I would say this is a must-see for any Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip. You can read more about the details of our visit here: Hearst Castle In California: A Jewel Of The Pacific Coast Highway
Formally named by its original owner William Hearst as ‘La Cuesta Encantada’, which translates to the Enchanted Hill. It was originally purchased in 1865 by William Hearst’s father and the estate eventually grew to 1,012 km2, with a ‘Castle’ of forty-two bedrooms, sixty-one bathrooms and nineteen sitting rooms at its heart. Extravagant features such as Neptune’s pool are just some of its luxuries available to see.
In the 1920s and ’30s, it became the go-to place for celebrities to dine, relax and play games. They also came to see the many collections of art and history that Hearst purchased from all over the world, but mainly Europe. Famous guests included Winston Churchill and Charlie Chaplin.
Overnight Stay In Morro Bay
Morro Bay was more of the typical seaside town we are used to in the UK, a small fisherman’s town, with lots of little shops selling souvenirs. Morro Bay had more of an air of minimalism and community. This was summed up by local grocery shops and a street market selling local goods.
Our motel, the Harbour House Inn (£94 per night), was situated on the corner of a busy main road. This prompted me to air my concern to reception about noise from traffic. He proceeded to almost laugh away my concern, indicating that everything would stop by 7pm. He was right.
Whale Watching In Morro Bay
Before setting off for Santa Barbara, we booked a whale watching excursion with Sub Sea Tours. If you have read my earlier travel post on Boston, you’ll know that whale watching has been one of my favourite experiences of all time.
This time being on the west coast of the US, I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to do it again. I was split between doing this activity in Morro Bay or Santa Barbara. However, Sub Sea Tours were half the price at $94.40 for two, so I opted for Morro Bay.
The tour guide was experienced, passionate and knowledgeable about all the species in Morro Bay; sea otters, sea birds, dolphins, whales etc. The boat was only a small vessel which allowed for an intimate viewing of a humpback whale and it’s the calf.
In an ecological way, we tracked the two whales for 2-3 hours. It was both relaxing and exciting at the same time. I could have quite easily done this all day as whales are such fascinating creatures. We were also lucky enough to see dolphins, sea lions and otters too. The sea otters would lay on their backs and open clams with a rock before eating and swimming off.
Morro Bay also has a funny little Shell Shop. This is basically a shop/part museum that only sells shells and was a great place to buy some gifts for family and friends.
Places to Eat In Morro Bay
If you’re looking for a bite to eat after arriving at this motel or one nearby, I’d point you in the direction of Taco De Mexico. In my mind, this is a truly authentic Mexican dining experience (having not yet been to Mexico). Cheap as chips but delightfully tasty so I’m surprised this only gets a 4 on TripAdvisor. I won’t mislead you, it’s a pretty low-budget dining experience with paper plates and cups but the food is fantastic. The tacos I had here were much better than the upmarket House of Ju Ju by the Bay.
Day 7: Santa Barbara
The drive to Santa Barbara took about an hour and a half. Our Airbnb, a ‘Private, Cozy, Detached Studio’ was situated a little outside of Santa Barbara (£83.52 per night). The Airbnb was easy to find and just a 5-minute drive from the Boathouse at Hendry’s Beach which is a fairly up-market restaurant right on the beach. We had a pretty spectacular meal here, including seafood chowder, the largest fillet mignon I’ve ever seen and never-ending seafood pasta.
I was delighted when the waiter offered to box up the remaining 1/3 of the dish away with me. It was so full of fish, scallops, prawns, etc that I would never have finished it in one sitting. It was so full of fish, scallops, prawns, etc that I would never have finished it in one sitting.
The Next Morning In Santa Barbara (Day 8)
The next morning we drove into the center of Santa Barbara, this is another place that I need to go back to as one morning was not enough time to explore. Santa Barbara was a jump to a more Mexican influence, especially in terms of architecture. We walked along Sterns Wharf and along State Street before stopping for a tasty, easy lunch at Natural Cafe.
Ventura Pier & Malibu
Following our lunch at Natural Cafe, we set off for the last place we would stay in California and one of my favourite places; Santa Monica. With two very brief stops in Ventura and Malibu along the way. These were nice enough stopping points but wouldn’t recommend you spend any longer than 20 minutes at these unless you fancy a beach day.
3 Nights In Santa Monica
Santa Monica is yet another fantastic place to visit on a Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip, however, it is not an easy place to describe. It’s a city with a beach town feel and the beach stretches for miles (3.5 to be exact). It’s relaxed but has an energetic atmosphere.. it’s smart but there are lots of hipster cafes and relaxed restaurants are never too far.
Santa Monica Pier
We spent our first afternoon and evening strolling along the beach and taking a walk to Santa Monica Pier. On the pier, there was a particularly vibrant atmosphere and we had a ride on the ferris wheel for what seemed like a long time. The ferris wheel gives you a great aerial view of the beach.
Sunset In Santa Monica
After taking in the rest of the pier we strolled back along the beach watching the sunset. This stretch of beach is a great location for any Instagram enthusiasts, with people on electric scooters and roller skates gliding along and people working out in open air gyms.
We walked from Santa Monica to Venice Beach. In the space of a road crossing the atmosphere switches from upmarket to more of a Brixton, London vibe infused with the Caribbean, if you can picture that.
Evening Meal & Drinks In Santa Monica
The first evening we ate at the Santa Monica Food Truck Lot which is a street food truck market that takes place every Tuesday. This was very conveniently across the road from our motel. Apparently, there are a number of food truck markets, which you can find on this link here.
Happy Hour At The Victorian In Santa Monica
Lobster rolls and tacos are just two examples of what you can choose from. Once you’ve picked up your food, you can either eat on the grass or like us make your way over to The Victorian, where you can sit outside in the quaint garden and enjoy a glass of wine or a cocktail.
The added bonus is that they have half happy hour 5-8pm. Street food in a luxury Victorian hotel, makes for an interesting mix of dining experiences.
Accommodation In Santa Monica
I’d say the one let down of stay in Santa Monica was the quality of the room at Sea Shore Motel. This motel could be really great if it just refreshed the rooms, added some nice finishes and replaced the air conditioning with something less noisy. This being said the motel was in a perfect location, parking was easy and it was only £100per night so I can’t complain too much!
Breakfast Spots In Santa Monica
There were also a couple of great breakfast places including Earth Caffe and Amelia’s, which was right next door. If you visit Earth Cafe, I’d recommend the Urth Bread Pudding Breakfast, which will keep you fuelled up for the day. One extra thing to mention is that apparently, Urth Caffe is a good place to spot celebrities, although we didn’t see any ourselves.
Final Thoughts On Our Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip
I imagine I’ve said this already but I loved California. From its epic scenery to its understated food. Wildlife was in abundance and there was so much to do in every place we visited. This is a place I will visit again for sure.
For those wary of a long road trip and the idea of endless planning. This Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip did not need either. It’s easy to plot a very simple route, with easy stopping points along the way. The only problem is deciding which of these great places to stay in.
The Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip On A Budget
The one caveat is that your money does not go far in terms of accommodation. However, if like us you just need a bed for the night in most places this is not a problem.
There is also no need to splash out on expensive cabins in Big Sur. It’s very feasible to stop either side as we did and not have to rush the experience. You can take your time, breath in the scenery and enjoy everything this place has to offer.
Your Thought & Comments
I hope this post has inspired you to plan your Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip adventure. Maybe it has helped with the planning or maybe you have visited already. Either way please feel free to comment below, so we can compare notes! If you want to read more on California, read about our Day In LA.
- Accommodation: 7/10
- Food: 8/10
- Environment: 10/10
- Local People: 9/10
- Value for Money: 8/10
- Weather: 10/10
Trackbacks/Pingbacks