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Pacific Coast Highway Drive
A quintessential American road trip covering 700km of dramatic coastline, from the misty forests of the north to the sun-drenched beaches of the south.
5days
20stops
474km
Day 1: San Francisco → … → Monterey Bay Aquarium
2h 45min · 195km4 stops
San Francisco
09:00
1h 10min · 82km
Pigeon Point Lighthouse
11:30
45min · 45km
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
14:00
50min · 68km
Monterey Bay Aquarium
16:30
Day 2: 17-Mile Drive → … → McWay Falls
1h 10min · 57km4 stops
17-Mile Drive
09:30
30min · 25km
Bixby Creek Bridge
11:30
25min · 20km
Pfeiffer Big Sur
13:30
15min · 12km
McWay Falls
16:00
Day 3: Elephant Seal Vista Point → … → Pismo Beach Pier
1h 30min · 100km4 stops
Elephant Seal Vista Point
09:30
15min · 8.0km
Hearst Castle
11:00
40min · 50km
Morro Rock
14:30
35min · 42km
Pismo Beach Pier
16:30
Day 4: Solvang → … → State Street Promenade
1h · 62km4 stops
Solvang
10:00
45min · 55km
Old Mission Santa Barbara
13:00
10min · 5.0km
Stearns Wharf
15:00
5min · 2.0km
State Street Promenade
16:30
Day 5: El Matador State Beach → … → Los Angeles (LAX)
1h 40min · 60km4 stops
El Matador State Beach
10:00
25min · 22km
Malibu Pier
12:30
30min · 18km
Santa Monica Pier
14:30
45min · 20km
Los Angeles (LAX)
17:00
Heads Up
- 1. Check for road closures in Big Sur before departing
- 2. Cell service is non-existent for long stretches of Highway 1
- 3. Always drive North to South to be on the ocean side of the road
- 4. Day 2: hotel change (Monterey / Pacific Grove → Cambria) — allow 1-2h check-out + transfer
- 5. Day 3: hotel change (Cambria → San Luis Obispo) — allow 1-2h check-out + transfer
- 6. Day 4: hotel change (San Luis Obispo → Santa Barbara) — allow 1-2h check-out + transfer
- 7. Day 5: hotel change (Santa Barbara → Santa Monica) — allow 1-2h check-out + transfer
- 8. Day 5: Santa Monica Pier → Los Angeles (LAX) flight transit only 2.5h — allow ≥5h door-to-door