The Hubs and I have wanted to plan a west coast trip for several years, especially a drive along the scenic Pacific Coast Highway (PCH). And because our nephew had recently moved to Los Angeles, we thought it would be great to get in a visit with him as well. It was also the summer after my youngest turned 13, It is our tradition to let our kids pick a birthday trip when they turn 13 and well, he wanted to go to LA. Let the planning begin!
We decided to start in Los Angeles and then drive to San Francisco. We wanted to take our time to see the sights along the way. We weren't quite sure where we would stop, but knew we had some key things we wanted to see:
- The usual touristy spots in LA - Griffith Observatory, Walk of Fame, TCL Chinese Theatre, etc.
- The Funko store in Los Angeles (this was at the request of our youngest as part of his birthday trip)
- Disney and Universal (at the request of both kids)
- Santa Barbara
- The Danish village of Solvang, CA
- Morro Bay - to see Morrow Rock and the sea otters and seals
- Pismo Beach
- San Simeon - Hearst Castle is here, but has been closed due to Covid. We also wanted to see Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Vista Point
- San Luis Obispo (SLO)
- Big Sur - to see Bixby Bridge, McWay Waterfall, Pfieffer Big Sur State Park
- Carmel
- Monterey - to see Cannery Row and possibly the aquarium that we've heard so much about
- Santa Cruz - to check out the boardwalk, West Cliff Drive, the Surfing Museum, Steamers Lane
- Half Moon Bay - to see Mavericks and Pigeon Point Light Station
- Marin Headlands
- Golden Gate Bridge
- Muir Woods
- Alcatraz
Unfortunately, some of the spots we wanted to see were closed either due to Covid or due to forest fires. As far as we could tell, the PCH was open the entire way from LA to San Francisco, so we were thankful for that!
So how did it all go?
It.was.awesome!
Follow along for a day by day itinerary....
