Expert: Ernest Tufft - 7/31/2007

Question
Ernest,

I have found your earlier postings on California road trips to be extremely helpful and informative. I would greatly appreciate some advice on a trip my fiance and I are currently planning. The only specifics/requirements are as follows:
-We will be arriving late at night on Friday August 17th,  and must fly back first thing on Sunday August 26th.
-We would like to take a road trip from SF to LA (or vice versa), depending on your advice and/or airfares.
-We are interested in seeing the Napa Valley wine country, and spending at least one night.
-We would like to spend as much time on the scenic Highway 1 as possible.
-We are more interested in seeing San Francisco than Los Angeles.
-We would like to play golf once.
-We would like to be centrally located in San Francisco, but are just as happy staying at bed & breakfasts in smaller towns.

Thanks in advance for any help,

-Adam  

Answer
Hi Adam,

Thank you for reading my previous posts.  I also have an extensive portfolio of images and tips under the user name "atufft" at virtualtourist.com, and I recommend that you browse through these and the contributions of others at this website.  You have plenty of time in these 8 days, but won't want to waste time in being confused about the basics.  My recommendation here will be an outline, not a precise itinerary, so some adjustments can be made to include activities you want.

It appears that you are better off arriving in San Francisco and then driving to LA.  You are right in assuming that a day trip from SF to the Napa Valley is not desireable.  With traffic and all, it takes about 2 hrs to get into the heart of the valley.  I would arrive in SF and spend two nights/three days WITHOUT rental car.  On the afternoon of the 3rd day, take the commuter ferry to Vallejo, and have a rental car company pick you up.   Rentals in Vallejo should be cheaper than in SF.  Find a place to stay in either Calistoga or Saint Helena, to be closer to the center of the wine and best activities.  However, if you want to play a round of golf at the classic Silverado Country Club, you may want to stay there.  In any case, the city of Napa at the south end has some important things to do, but the wine country at its best is a rural experience, and so the upscale mid-valley hamlet of St. Helena and the hot springs oriented Calistoga in the north end are more to the point.  There is a bit of a narrowing of the valley in a bottleneck of sorts between St. Helena and Calistoga, so Calistoga may be a little hotter in August, so I'd look for a tree shaded restored Victorian B&B in St. Helena as a first choice of place to stay.  Don't try to leave the valley and visit Sonoma County to see "all of the wine country", nor should you try to schedule winery visits too closely.  In the morning, visit a major producer on the valley floor (Beringer is a good choice here, if you know about wine production, skip the tour and go directly to the Founder's Room where older vintages can be tasted at reasonable prices), and then drive up Spring Mountain to visit a couple of the smaller producers.  Being careful not to arrive too late in the afternoon, Sterling's gondola ride (last ride 3:30pm?) and patio views of the valley are a great way to unwind before dinner.  St. Helena also has the best collection of fine restaurants in the valley.  These are really high end places at the level of world class, so don't spend too much in San Francisco at the expense of Napa Valley.

For the drive south, you could drive through Marin county and across the Golden Gate Bridge, but that route will make the drive south a longer one.  It's better to take Hwy 12 east to 680 south, which will bypass the worst of the Bay Area traffic and lead directly to San Jose.  From there, take Hwy 17 over the redwood studded mountains to Santa Cruz.  I'd skip SF Fisherman's Wharf in favor of the one at Santa Cruz, and the downtown is very pleasant at night in August.  Monterey Bay Aquarium and Hearst's Castle are the only two "attractions" I find truly unique along the central coast.  You could do with a couple of night's stay in the Monterey Bay area, which would also include a drive from Monterey to Carmel, along the natural coastline of Pacific Grove and Pebble Beach.  Teeing off at one of the many world class Pebble Beach courses could be a story of a lifetime for an avid golfer, but better get on-line and see what it takes to reserve a slot.  These are both expensive and busy courses.  Expect to take about 4 hrs for the Highway 1 drive between Carmel and Cambria or Morro Bay.  You'll see sea lions at Piedras Blancas, which is quite near Hearst Castle.  I think Morro Bay offers the best economical places to stay, and there's an easy walk along the beach with lots of birds around the rock.  If you want to see Hearst Castle, call from the Morro Bay motel and then back track 30 minutes.  Advanced reservations are highly recommended, and don't try to do more than two tours.  Hearst Castle and area will take another day.  There are some great things to see south of Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo, but if you want to see LA, by this time you'll probably want to head south pretty directly.  One way to cut out time is to pass over to Paso Robles, and get over to Lost Hills on I-5.  I-5 is in the central valley and is a faster entrance to LA.  Among the LA attractions, I put the Getty Museum at the top, but hanging around the Natural History museum is also great.  And, of course, there are the beach cities of Venice, Malibu, etc.  Have more questions?  For LA, use the virtuatourist.com forum for LA, but for everything above, don't hesitate to e-mail back.

Alan