An Itinerary for Visiting California

This Series An Itinerary for Visiting California

This was supposed to be a list of Top 10 Places to Visit in California but someone recently asked me for a suggested itinerary when visiting California.

It’s a Big State

For simplicity I will divide California into four main areas — Southern California, San Francisco, Northern California, and the Sierra Nevada Mountains. If planning a trip to California, consider flying into a major airport like LAX, SAN or SFO. Most attractions are within a 3-hour drive. For the Sierra Nevadas in the east, San Francisco or Reno/Lake Tahoe have the closest international airports.

Southern California

From about San Luis Obispo and Morro bay down through Santa Barbara and the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area and down to San Diego is all Southern California. The eastern portion of is dominated by the Mojave Desert, with points of interest including Joshua Tree National Park and the Salton Sea.

Mulholland Highway

Los Angeles

If one were to fly into LAX, most of Southern California is accessible within a driving radius of 3 hours. Within the city are numerous world-famous tourist destinations. Besides visiting Hollywood, all the beach cities, parks like Disneyland in Anaheim and Magic Mountain in Valencia, be sure to visit Griffith Park Observatory to see the cityscape spread out below. At night it’s a sparkling panorama. A drive along Mulholland Drive starting in Hollywood Hills offers spectacular views of both LA and the San Fernando Valley. From Santa Monica take the Pacific Coast Highway heading east towards Malibu, or south towards Palos Verdes. To escape from L.A. take the Angeles Crest Highway into the mountains, or take the 210 east to the 18 north and ride the Rim of the World Highway to Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear. A lengthy vacation could be spent just exploring the sprawl of Los Angeles.

San Diego

Just a couple hours south from L.A. is lovely San Diego. Compared to its noisy northern neighbor the pace is more mellow, the freeways are less congested, and everything is closer together. Within a few miles of downtown San Diego are Balboa Park and the world-famous San Diego Zoo, Sea World, the Gaslamp District, Hillcrest, the fabulous malls of Mission Valley, Coronado, Point Loma, Mission Bay, Pacific Beach, and Harbor Island with its excellent view of the city. A brief drive north is La Jolla, Torrey Pines State Park and the Del Mar Racetrack. To escape the city head east to Cuyamaca State Park or north to the area around the old western town of Julian. If I’ve missed anything please forgive me.

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Big Sur River

Big Sur Coast

San Francisco Area

San Francisco is usually considered part of Northern California, but for a visitor it’s better to fly into San Francisco and explore from there, then travel to Northern California as a separate excursion since they are very different experiences.

Sea Lion near Monterey

Wine Grapes

Within a 3-hour radius is Golden Gate Park and Bridge, Silicon Valley, and wine growing regions like Napa and Sonoma. Head south to Santa Cruz, the Salinas Valley, Monterey, Carmel and Big Sur, or go east and you’re in the heart of the great agricultural region known as the Central Valley.

Yosemite Falls

The Sierra Nevada Mountains

Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks all live within these mountains. They are all at least a couple hours from each other along curvy mountain roads. Most tourists tend to drive the 4 hours from San Francisco to Yosemite National Park and spend a couple days exploring the natural beauty. Just over the mountains from Yosemite is otherworldly Mono Lake, and a few hours north is Lake Tahoe.

Redwood Tree

Northern California

While Southern California is predominantly desert and chaparral, Northern California is a mostly lush green region with its center at around Redding. Many beautiful National Forests abound, including Redwood, Trinity, Shasta, Lassen, Klamath and Modoc. All are within a 3-hour radius of Redding. Head north along the 5 freeway to pass directly through Shasta Lake, the cone of Mt. Shasta, and on up to Oregon. Head west from Redding along highway 299 through the cool river valleys of Trinity National Forest. Head east along the same highway into the high desert around Modoc. Both the Sierra Nevadas and Northern California should appeal to hikers and campers. Unfortunately, the closest international airport is Sacramento.

The Pacific Coast Highway

At 840 miles, California has the longest coastline of any of the 48 contiguous states. From San Diego to Crescent City it’s at least an 18-hour drive, but the coastal beauty of rocky cliffs and broad beaches along the way is well worth it. In addition to flying into an area and exploring within a driving radius, taking the Pacific Coast Highway is an excellent way to really see California, and points of interest along the way.

What’s the Itinerary?

Well, that depends on what you’d like to experience and how much time you have. Pick an area and decide on a half-dozen adventures. California will probably be around for a long time until it falls into the Pacific, so if you didn’t see it all now you can always come back!

Tags Mountains, Valleys, Country, Cities, Motorcycling, Lakes, Beaches, Parks