Expert: Ernest Tufft - 5/23/2008

Question
Hi

Were a couple of 25 yr old Irish Guys .Were headin to California in June but i don t know whether to fly to SanDiego & drive up the coast to san fran or just LA to san fran.We d like to meet young people all good hotspots ,but take in the culture & scenery .Give me a round trip 10/11 days does nt matter if i don t see lA

Answer
The answer to your question depends in part on how much you want to drive.  San Diego to San Francisco direct is at least an 8 hour drive, and that's taking mundane inland I-5.  If you want to spend a lot of time in these cities, then you are obligated to skip past a lot of hotspots in between.  California is 9 times the population of Ireland, and almost 5 times the square mileage, and while it may not have nine times the activities, it certainly has a lot to offer, and within a much more diverse landscape of deserts, mountains, coastline, and inland farms.

First--transportation (all the capitalized names have websites for more details, paste these into Google for specific details, prices, and maps)  I would recommend flying into San Francisco (SFO) for the roundtrip adventure, since your flight costs from Ireland will probably be cheaper than for flights to San Diego.  Also, unfortunately, the San Diego International Airport is poorly connected to public transport, meaning that you would have to take a million dollar taxi ride to the nearest San Diego Trolley station.  LAX has similar problems, although there is a shuttle system between the airport and a station on the Green Line of the Los Angeles METRO system.  San Francisco has a BART station at the airport, and so transfer into downtown is easy.  However, I don't recommend renting a car at the airport or within the city of San Francisco because of annoying taxes.  San Francisco is not recommended as a city in which to drive a rental car because of the congested streets and difficult parking.  Thus, what I recommend is taking BART into the city, and then using MUNI to get around town for several days.  San Francisco will likely be the most exciting part of your trip, so don't cut short your time here.

A day trip to Napa Valley wine country can be taken by public transport.  Take the ferry from San Francisco's main Ferry building across the bay to Vallejo (Baylink).  This is the best of the ferry boat rides, in my opinion.  Skip the touristy trip to Alcatraz, and take this insted.  Then at Vallejo take the Napa Valley Transit (known as the VINE).  Calculate your times carefully though as the frequency of ferry and bus connections are limited to about once an hour during the day.  But, at least you won't have to drink and drive.  The penalties in California for drunk driving are very severe.

In June, two guys from Ireland can't miss a trip to Yosemite.  The waterfalls are gushing, and there's plenty of international friends to meet for hikes around the extraordinary Yosemite Valley.  I recommend taking BART to the end of either the Blue (Dublin/Pleasant Station) or Yellow (Pittsburg/Bay Point Station) Lines and rent a car.  You'll want to go on-line and figure out which rental car company is within easy reach of the BART station, but you will at least get yourself past most of the hectic commuter traffic jams of the San Francisco Bay Area, and will have a relatively easy drive of between 3 and 4 hours to Yosemite.  The Blue line is slightly more direct route to Hwy 120 east to Yosemite, but then a drive from the end of the Yellow Line will provide a scenic drive through the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta region on Hwy 4.  Use Mapquest and your California maps to clarify my notes here.  Yosemite is worth at least two days, and should include not only a full day on the valley floor, but also a trip to Wawona and the outstanding Mariposa Grove of the Sequoia Gigantia trees.  Day trip hikes to the top of Half Dome or top of Yosemite Falls would likely require another day or two.

Drive the rental car from Yosemite on Hwy 140 through Merced to the Monterey Bay Area, for the drive down the coast.  Young adults generally prefer the hip surfer hang outs and bargain restaurants of Santa Cruz over the touristy and tranquil Monterey, but it's possible to see a bit of both.  Certainly a drive from Pacific Grove through Pebble Beach and Carmel are a must see section of this region.

Hwy 1 south to Morro Bay is about 2 hours minimum, but I usually spend 4 hours because of the desire to stop at view points along the wonderfully beautiful coastline.  I like Morro Bay for it's bargain motels with views of the scenic rock, but young adults will definetly want to dine in San Luis Obispo, a university town with lots of youthful action downtown.  There's about a 15 minute drive between the two towns.  Also, in this region is the south-central coast wine region, the best of which is concentrated around the town of Paso Robles.

You might like visiting the FREE (but reservations needed) Getty Villa Museum Malibu in Pacific Palisades, which is part of the drive along the coast through to LA.  You mention a desire to skip LA, but since you must drive through, a stop in Venice Beach, Naples (Long Beach), or Lagunda Beach would be totally worthwhile.

San Diego is a great town, but the Trolley doesn't go everywhere yet.  It does go to the border of Mexico and to the Gas Lamp district in downtown.  For the trip to La Jolla, you are better off driving the rental car. 3 days in San Diego is enough for this trip.

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