Possible California/Vegas Itinerary

mossy464

Hi All,

Looking for some advice on a possible itinerary for a trip to California at the end of March, taking in Vegas also. We have a rough itinerary below. We would take internal flights from San Fran to Vegas and from Vegas back to LA.

Flying in and out of LA and landing in LA at 10:15am getting a car at LAX and driving the coast to San Fran.

Drive from LAX to Santa Barbara. Stay 1 night
Drive to Monterey. Stay 1 night.
2/3 nights in San Francisco
2/3 nights in Vegas
2/3 nights in LA.

We would have 10 nights in total so would limit one of the cities to 2 nights. Does the above itinerary seem a bit cramped or ok?

Thanks

tricky D

Cut LA to the 2 nights. The general consensus is that LA just isn't that great.

mossy464

tricky D wrote: »

Cut LA to the 2 nights. The general consensus is that LA just isn't that great.

Thanks I've heard that but I have quite a lot of things I'd like to do in LA such as see a TV show taping, possibly a lakers game plus general sightseeing then in Hollywood, go up to griffith observatory etc.

Suppose we could still cut that to 2 nights.

x43r0

Second the suggestion above

Cut a night from LA and add it to San Fran or Vegas. If you add it to San Fran you could use it to head to Napa (if you're into wine) or Sausalito for a night

Also since you're planning to stay overnight in Monterey, consider staying in Pebble Beach. It's nearby and really nice. The Bench restaurant on the 18th green offers stunning views of the bay and people putting

razorblunt

I'd use the extra night in San Fran unless you use that night to book a show in Vegas.

seamus

I'd use the extra night in Vegas myself, but each to their own

I'd even be inclined to cut LA down to one night - if you arrived in the late morning and left in the evening the next day you'd have more than enough time to see everything.

jme2010

I've never understood the L.A bashing in this forum. Bunch of begrudgers.

There is a ton to do in L.A

- Venice Beach (sun sea sand etc etc)
- Santa Monica
- Malibu
- Hollywood and the hills
- Universal Studios Theme Park
- Warner Bros Studio (free audience tickets)
- The craziest driving experience of your life

I understand it's not for everybody but as I was there in my late 20's I thought it was awesome. I just don't get the hate. Fair enough if you're not mad for the reputation it has by all means cut it to 2 days but don't write it off.

Personally I didn't like SF all that much but I wouldn't bash it either.

boreder

mossy464 wrote: »

Thanks I've heard that but I have quite a lot of things I'd like to do in LA such as see a TV show taping, possibly a lakers game plus general sightseeing then in Hollywood, go up to griffith observatory etc.

Suppose we could still cut that to 2 nights.

If you want to see a basketball game, and not specifically the Lakers, then go see Golden State in Oracle Arena. You can BART to it from SF. They're a way better team, and the atmosphere in the arena is way better.

jme2010 wrote: »

I've never understood the L.A bashing in this forum. Bunch of begrudgers.

There is a ton to do in L.A

- Venice Beach (sun sea sand etc etc)
- Santa Monica
- Malibu
- Hollywood and the hills
- Universal Studios Theme Park
- Warner Bros Studio (free audience tickets)
- The craziest driving experience of your life

I understand it's not for everybody but as I was there in my late 20's I thought it was awesome. I just don't get the hate. Fair enough if you're not mad for the reputation it has by all means cut it to 2 days but don't write it off.

Personally I didn't like SF all that much but I wouldn't bash it either.

I didn't hate it, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to head back. There's a lot of annoying crap going on at most of the places you listed above. People trying to shove CDs in your hands, idiots in costumes harassing you to take pictures, people with sob stories trying to scam you into stuff, etc.

Venice beach was cool. But the rest I could take it or leave it, with the preference leaning towards leaving it.

I'm not a massive fan of SF either. I live about 40mins away and only go when family come to visit. With that said, its way less 'trashy tourist' than LA, and some good spots to see. The cycle over golden gate being my favorite.

CalRobert

Maybe consider San Luis Obispo instead of Santa Barbara. The pub crawl scene there is pretty nice. Depends on your goals and what you like. Vegas is pretty crap but it's worth seeing once. If you're a young female you might have a better time than I ever have there.

Also, as much as I love SF - I prefer Berkeley. Moe's books alone is worth the visit. But I'm biased.

CalRobert

Also, I hate LA with a fiery passion that can hardly begin to be described (lived in Santa Monica before moving to Dublin) BUT some of the cool things are:

Food in Little Ethiopia is fantastic
Hollywood Forever cemetery does cool screenings and music events
Critical Mass, or if you're lucky CicLAvia, are easily the best way to see the city

Charles Babbage

There are other things in LA, depending on your interests, from the Art Museum to the Battleship USS Iowa. Likewise things like the Reagan Library out towards Ventura.

Mountainsandh

We stayed in Cambria (Pine Lodges) on the way down from SF, it was really lovely and a bit more off the beaten track. Morro Bay is lovely too !

The Big Sur/coast road was closed after that big landslide, not sure if it's reopened ?

Third_Echelon

Mountainsandh wrote: »

We stayed in Cambria (Pine Lodges) on the way down from SF, it was really lovely and a bit more off the beaten track. Morro Bay is lovely too !

The Big Sur/coast road was closed after that big landslide, not sure if it's reopened ?

Yeah, they are still working on it. Another 6 months apparently until it's open.

In terms of itinerary, as others have said, I would cut a day off LA and spend it in SF or Vegas. I live in the SF Bay Area (Sunnyvale/Mountain View) and you would definitely get better use out of the day in SF area. The drive up highway 1 from Monterrey to SF is a must. Beautiful drive the whole way up with some nice stop off points (Pigeon Point Lighthouse - always a change to catch a glimpse of Whales - also a cool hostel at the lighthouse).

Hiring a bike in SF and biking the Golden Gate to Sausalito is a must. Cable car rides in downtown SF, Alcatraz tour is really good (need to book well in advance for peak season - at least 3 months - off peak, you would need a few weeks). These guys are the only tour to get there: https://www.alcatrazcruises.com/

In terms of Sports:

- MLS season will have just started (San Jose Earthquakes @ Avaya Stadium - I go to pretty much every home game. Good night out).

- NFL season will be over (49ers museum & stadium tour at Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara is actually quite good).

- NBA will be still going - Golden State Warriors @ Oracle Arena in Oakland.

- NHL season will still be on - San Jose Sharks @ SAP Center, San Jose (highly recommended - great atmosphere).

- MLB Baseball - will be just starting back at end of March - SF Giants @ AT&T Park in downtown SF. Oakland A's @ The Colosseum in Oakland. (Giants the better stadium and facilities, views etc).

Lots of nice neighbourhoods to explore in SF and a few hills to climb

mossy464

Thanks for all the suggestions. So now we are actually going for 12 nights, booked our flights.

We are considering whether or not to cut out the drive altogether and possibly fit in San Diego also.

Third_Echelon

mossy464 wrote: »

Thanks for all the suggestions. So now we are actually going for 12 nights, booked our flights.

We are considering whether or not to cut out the drive altogether and possibly fit in San Diego also.

San Diego is class!!!