Yosemite and Pacific Coast Highway trip

NiCiarain

Hi, I'm heading down the west coast of the US in September and I'm wondering if anyone who's done this route can give me any tips.

After a few days in San Fran I'll be driving from San Fran to Yosemite. I'm spending two nights in Yosemite then driving to Monterey where I'll spend the night. From Monterey I'll drive down the PCH to Santa Monica, hopefully with a one night stop off along the way (San Luis Obispo maybe?)

I'm looking for some help the following:
Can anyone recommend someone to stay between Monterey and Santa Monica, preferably a nice town with cheap motels. I'm trying to keep the price of this trip as low as I can (hostels, cheap motels etc)

Can anyone recommend a car rental company? Since I'm dropping the car back to a different location its costing more than I expected. And the quotes im getting online are confusing, they don't seem to include insurance. Is it better to rent a car from the airport (in San Fran) and drop it back to another airport (LAX). Should I be expecting to pay more since im renting a car on an Irish licence rather than on an america licence? I've never rented a car before so apologies for all the questions. Im also a little nervous of this drive since i haven't driven in the US before. What is this route like to drive, is it difficult?
Thanks

iusedtoknow

The drives:

From SF to Yosemite is freeway or 2 lane a lot of the way. Once you get to Moccasin, it gets a bit windy but is nothing horrific - people take it slow getting into the mountains

From Yosemite to Monterey, it is freeway or 2 lane for most of it as well. It'll be a long drive but easy enough

From Monterey. The PCH is a grand drive - depending on when you do it , it's actually pretty quiet and 90% of the drivers on it are tourists. Personally - i'd stop in Cambria to break up the drive a bit as after that it isn't as dramatic as going over Big Sur

With all of these drives, especially as you get towards Yosemite and away from Monterey....when you see your fuel getting to 50% - fill up when you can. Fuel in yosemite is expensive.

tricky D

As well as SLO there's San Simeon and Big Sur. San Simeon is about half way and is mainly a handful of cheap motels, a shop, a few bars and restaurants. Big Sur is much more in the woods and spread out. Check the difference on Google Earth. San Simeon is right beside the Hearst Mansion which is worth a visit but book in advance and figure out your driving times accordingly. In both of those there will be plenty of travellers to meet in the evening. I stayed in San Simeon and had a great evening with a bloke I met from Swords (classic Irish small world) and two biker groups: a load of friends on their annual get together road bike trip and another bunch from Kentucky with a real deal Harley man (Ray from Kentucky, in the accent).

A few other notes on the PCH:
Don't even think about trying to do it in one day as there's so many spots for stopping off.
Drive only during the daylight hours as some parts are challenging and you don't want to miss the scenery.
Allow for at least one delay which could be around 20 minutes due to the way contraflows are done in the US.
When the speed limit says 15mph, stick to it as there's big cliffs to your west for much of the way.
Get a SatNav.

On rental, you will get hit for a drop off elsewhere charge which could be up to around $200.
Get well insured. I took out as much cover as possible so that I had zero worries about scratches and the other silly things you can get caught out on, and rental still came in at $30 a day.
Under 25 premium problem doesn't apply to you.
If anything an Irish licence means cheaper rental but not 100% sure.

There's loads of threads here and in the Travel forum which are well worth searching for reading.

Big Nasty

Santa Barbara is perfect for stopping off between Monterey and SM. Really nice and intimate.

InTheTrees

NiCiarain wrote: »

Im also a little nervous of this drive since i haven't driven in the US before. What is this route like to drive, is it difficult?

If you learned to drive in Ireland then you should find it pretty easy. Americans drive slowly and deliberately so its really not bad. Their culture is for large lumbering slow vehicles and the roads are built to accommodate them, wide and smooth.
The only thing I'd warn against is that they're awful drivers, dont rely on them using turn indicators or mirrors, etc. Dont wave them on (they wont be looking), and dont assume they'll be paying attention to what you're doing either. Lane discipline on the freeways is non existent. Dont assume logical behaviour from your fellow motorists, be defensive. And you'll be fine.

Oh and be careful of speeding. Every little town has its own police and they generate revenue from tickets so you'll come across speed traps in the most unlikely places. You can go about 5mph over the limit but no more. Freeways are "safer" from small town speed traps though but not always.

InTheTrees

NiCiarain wrote: »

Can anyone recommend someone to stay between Monterey and Santa Monica, preferably a nice town with cheap motels. I'm trying to keep the price of this trip as low as I can (hostels, cheap motels etc)

San Louis Obispo has a major university (CalTech?) so there's got to be budget accommodation available.

Santa Maria is an agricultural center so motels there may be a bit cheaper than Santa Barbara.

faceman

Im a regular visitor to California and have visited the places you've mentioned. In fact right now I'm on a flight back to Dublin having spent some time in Cambria along the PCH

Yosemite is the most beautiful place in the world. I promise you'll regret not spending more time there no matter how long you stay. If you're up for an adventure, visit the tiny town of Lee Vining for lunch/dinner/beer just outside the east entrance if Yosemite by Mono Lake.

Driving through Yosemite takes time. The road is narrow and there are lots of RVs. Bear that in mind when planning journey times.

The PCH (Route 1) Is beautiful and takes time to navigate. There are plenty of mobile phone black spots. I recommend Santa Barbara as a place to stay. Cambria is also great. It's a small town. Mozzi's Saloon is great though!

Driving in the U.S. is a doddle. However some differences to be mindful of:

* Stop signs. You MUST stop for a couple of seconds even if there is nothing coming. Whoever gets to Stop sign first has priority. This can be confusing.

* Pedestrians have right of way.

* You can turn right at red lights at most junctions unless otherwise stated.

* if an ambulance has its sirens on you must pull in and stop till it passes. Even if you're on the other side of the road going in the opposite direction.

Car rental can be a pain to research but persevere. Some websites will quote an all inclusive price.

tricky D

faceman wrote: »

Yosemite is the most beautiful place in the world. I promise you'll regret not spending more time there no matter how long you stay. If you're up for an adventure, visit the tiny town of Lee Vining for lunch/dinner/beer just outside the east entrance if Yosemite by Mono Lake.

I stayed in Lee Vinning. It's a nice little spot but be aware that from some time in September some of its establishments close for the winter season. There was only one bar open when I visited in late September and it shut at 9pm and the store at about 9.30 though the gas station at the north end will open later. The winter down turn happens in a good few towns in the area.

I enjoyed a visit to the surreal Mono Lake itself (37°56'19.88"N 119° 1'37.80"W) and about 2 miles away there's Panum Crater (37°55'38.07"N 119° 2'43.09"W) which is a 600/700 year old volcano with obsidian, if you are into that type of thing.

There's also the Grant and June Lake loop about 10 miles south of Lee Vinning which is a nice hour's spin.

faceman wrote: »

* if an ambulance has its sirens on you must pull in and stop till it passes. Even if you're on the other side of the road going in the opposite direction.

Also similar for stopping for School Buses which the locals take seriously. Make sure to read well up on the dos and don'ts for these situations.

jack presley

If you go as far as Lee Vining, it's well worth taking a drive north to a place called Bodie. It's an old mining down that was abandoned when the gold ran out and is now a ghost town. It's a national park now was the favourite place I visited when I spent a week or so in Yosemite/Lake Tahoe.

tricky D

InTheTrees wrote: »

Oh and be careful of speeding. Every little town has its own police and they generate revenue from tickets so you'll come across speed traps in the most unlikely places. You can go about 5mph over the limit but no more. Freeways are "safer" from small town speed traps though but not always.

Oblig pix...





or else this will happen

solerina

NiCiarain wrote: »

Hi, I'm heading down the west coast of the US in September and I'm wondering if anyone who's done this route can give me any tips.

After a few days in San Fran I'll be driving from San Fran to Yosemite. I'm spending two nights in Yosemite then driving to Monterey where I'll spend the night. From Monterey I'll drive down the PCH to Santa Monica, hopefully with a one night stop off along the way (San Luis Obispo maybe?)

I'm looking for some help the following:
Can anyone recommend someone to stay between Monterey and Santa Monica, preferably a nice town with cheap motels. I'm trying to keep the price of this trip as low as I can (hostels, cheap motels etc)

Can anyone recommend a car rental company? Since I'm dropping the car back to a different location its costing more than I expected. And the quotes im getting online are confusing, they don't seem to include insurance. Is it better to rent a car from the airport (in San Fran) and drop it back to another airport (LAX). Should I be expecting to pay more since im renting a car on an Irish licence rather than on an america licence? I've never rented a car before so apologies for all the questions. Im also a little nervous of this drive since i haven't driven in the US before. What is this route like to drive, is it difficult?
Thanks

This is exactly what we did last summer, we had booked with trail finders in advance for San Fran, Yosemite, Monterey, San Luis obis, Santa Barbara and la, we came back up the coast in reverse from la to San Fran and I booked online the night before, we saved a fortune doing it this way, we were told by everyone to book in advance as it was high season but in hind sight there was no need what so ever !!! As long as you get a sat hav for the car it's an easy drive, I had never driven in the states before and it was no problem at all !!!! Trail finders booked the car for us, we got it with Alamo in San Fran, just behind union square. The hotels I booked myself cost just under 100 dollars per room for 2 adults with breakfast, roadside motel type places but perfect and usually with a pool !