This summer a couple of friends and I are taking a roadtrip to California, any advice?

Question

We are travelling from Edmonton, AB, Canada to Anaheim, California. We are planning about a week's travelling time for each way , there and back , plus we are spending 10 days in the L.A area . Anyone have any good deals from previous trips they want to share or good stops along the way?

Answer 1

Wow there is a lot to see along the way. What a fun drive. First of all if you all are going to Disney you are going to love it. Okay done with that here are some other sites you might be interested in along the way:

If you can I would recommend cutting over to the coast. Seattle Washington is a really great town and there are tons of things to see and do there. This is a very young city and they have tons of museums, clubs, shops ect. I really like going here.
http://www.visitseattle.org/visitors/

I might also check out Portland OR. Oregon is just a beautiful state and Portland has so much to offer. Take a boat excursion, walk around downtown. See some of the great museums here. Experience the nightlife. Portland has it all and is really a unique city.
http://www.travelportland.com/

I highly recommend driving the Pacific Coast Highway through parts of California and Oregon. The coast line here is just amazing and the drive is AWESOME! You find so much to do on the PCH. Be sure to take highway 1 not 101. The coast takes you from the high cliffs of Oregon to the rocky shores of north California. You get to travel through beautiful forest and experience the Redwoods. Florence OR is a small town near the California border. The world’s largest sea cave is located here and they have a group of sea lions and a pod of Orcas that live here. This place is soo cool to see. Florence also has some of the best spots to view whales. AMAZING site to see!

Also on the PCH there is Santa Cruz. I love Santa Cruz, small beach town with a big boardwalk. The boardwalk is one of the few left in the US. They have some really awesome rides here. Located on the beach, ride some rides and go for a swim.
http://www.santacruz.org/index.shtml

I highly recommend a stop in San Simeon to see Hearst Castle. This place is just amazing! It is so big that they offer like 5 different tours. The design of the house and grounds will take your breath away. I have been here several times, each time I was a different age and each time this place was just awesome!!!
http://www.hearstcastle.org/

San Francisco is another AWESOME city. Be sure to check out China Town some of the best shopping around. They of course also have some great food here. Check out Fisherman’s Wharf, and be sure to see the Sea Lions on the pier. You can take a boat cruise of the bay they have all kinds in all price ranges. Go to Golden Gate Park, the Aquarium here is wonderful and the views are amazing up on the cliffs. Ride a cable car, the main station is right by Fisherman’s wharf, take a loop around the city, you get to see tons of stuff. The best thing to do in San Fran is to find a centrally located hotel and park the car, try to walk everywhere that you can or take a cab. Parking can be very hard to find here, and it gets expensive real quick! Take a walk on the Golden Gate Bridge; yep they do get to let you walk across it. Check out Treasure Island, this little place is now home to a very small navel station but it once was used for the World’s Fair. The museum here is wonderful, I really learned a lot and the views from there are amazing! Go see Alcatraz, the tour is wonderful and the boat ride getting there can also be a lot of fun. If you like art go to the museum of Modern Art, wonderful! Check out Nobb Hill, go see Lombarde Street, only in San Fran will you find a street like this. Check out the visitor’s website for more, you can also request a free travel packet and purchase discount tickets to many of the attractions:
http://www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/


Monterey Bay is just beautiful. They have one of the top aquariums in the US here. They also have a rich variety of wildlife and depending on when you come the whales are there. Take a whale watching cruise, or do my favorite thing and go Kayaking in the bay. Pebble Beach is near by and the 17 mile drive is a must.
http://montereyinfo.org/

If you can go to San Jose and see the Winchester Mystery House. This place is just plain crazy! I have never seen anything like this. It was home to the Winchester family, yep the ones that make the riffle. Well Sarah Winchester thought she was being chased by ghost. Because of this she built a house and well you just have to see it to believe it!
http://www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/


If you all like outdoor type of adventures I would check out any of the parks located in the Redwood National Forest. Hiking here is always an adventure and California wildlife is just cool. Be sure you know about bears and mountain lions because yes they can be found here. Still just a wonderful place to spend time with nature:
http://www.nps.gov/redw/
http://www.redwood.national-park.com/

Huntington Beach is also a very cool town and the surfing hall of fame is located here. Classic beach town with awesome waves, cool places to eat and hang out. Great way to experience the CA lifestyle, also known as surf city USA.
http://www.surfcityusa.com/

No trip to CA would be complete without a stop at the famous Venice Beach. A very unique place this is home to the famous Muscle Beach. Yep people really do work out here. Venice is just a very unique place to go with a lot of different cultures. It really is a one of a kind place in America.
http://www.venicebeach.com/

There is a ton of stuff to do in the LA area, be sure to go up to Hollywood there is a lot of stuff to see there! Way too much for me to list but, here are some websites that have all the information you will need:
http://www.latourist.com/index.php?page=hollywood-links
http://www.greaterlosangeles.com/
http://www.visitwesthollywood.com/
http://www.losangeles.com/
Since you are going to be in LA a pretty long time you might want to check out the GO Card. It offers discount admissions into attractions. Very helpful and saves cash, check this site out for more:
http://www.golosangelescard.com/losangeles-attractions.html

For any of US city you plan on traveling to contact their visitor’s center and request your FREE travel packet. It includes information on attractions, places to stay and eat. It also has COUPONS which save a ton of money and maps of the area. Again this service is free and very helpful. I do this for each trip that I plan.

There is one more thing that I think is a must when you go to California. You must have an IN-N-OUT BURGER!!!!!! THE BEST AROUND. Yes this is a fast food place, but it is like no fast food you have had. Everything is fresh and made to order. Still families owned and always clean. They have a very limited menu and are open late. This is a California institution and you just have to try it. Get the Double Double very good!

Here are some other travel sites that I like to use; they list some of the more unusual places:
http://www.roadfood.com/
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/
http://www.us-101.com/
http://www.gbcnet.com/ushighways/US101/index.html

I hope this helps you have a great trip! There is so much to see and do you are just going to love it!!!!

Answer 2

Take Highway 5 down but, if you have time, go back up along the coast. There are some great places to see like Pismo Beach, Santa Cruz, Mendocino, Cannon Beach, etc.

Answer 3

I recommend seeing the Big Sur Coastline. This stretch of Highway One is considered one of the most scenic drives in the world. The mountains drop directly into the sea, whales pass by, condors fly over you. It is magnificent. For more information, visit my Big Sur, California website. www.crystalinecove.net.

Answer 4

i went to California a few years ago on holiday

i would reccomend definitely bringing sunscreen and some spare clothes and stuff

bring a lot of cash because theres always something to do in California

also bring some of your own food if your worried about the local cuisine

Answer 5

Stop a t las Veges if you can, also try to visit the grand canyon as well.

Answer 6

bring plenty of money, have the car serviced BEFORE, and have fun. bring a map. make sure EVERYONE contributes and drives.