Itinerary · 10 days · 42 places
10 Days in California
From the hills of San Francisco via Monterey and Carmel to the cliffs of Big Sur, on to Hearst Castle and Santa Barbara and finally to the piers of Santa Monica — ten days on Highway 1 in one direction, in a way that can genuinely be driven.
Open in the appThere you can adjust the plan to your dates, your pace and your interests.
Photo: José Oliveira · Pexels
The route on the map
The plan, day by day
Day 1Arrival in San Francisco
Arrival in San Francisco
Hotel check-in
Your base is around Union Square, from where Chinatown, Downtown and the cable-car lines are all within walking distance.
Chinatown and Grant Avenue
Through the Dragon Gate and up Grant Avenue, past tea shops, bakeries and Ross Alley with its fortune-cookie factory.
Day 2Golden Gate & the bay
Golden Gate Bridge Vista Point
From the southern viewpoint, walk a little way out onto the bridge, with views over the entrance to the bay.
Palace of Fine Arts
The 1915 rotunda with its colonnades is reflected in the lagoon, a quiet park in the middle of the Marina District.
Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39
At Pier 39 the sea lions lounge on the floating docks, with views beyond to Alcatraz and the bay's shipyard backdrop.
Powell–Hyde cable car
From the turntable at Aquatic Park over the steep hills to Downtown — standing on the running board holding the pole, as the locals do.
Lombard Street
The eight hairpin bends between hydrangea beds, photographed from below and climbed on foot via the steps alongside.
Evening: view from Twin Peaks
From the double hill above the city, at night the entire street grid lies spread out as a web of lights all the way to the Bay Bridge.
Day 3Alcatraz & the Mission District
Alcatraz Island
By ferry from Pier 33 to the prison island; the audio tour through the cellhouse is narrated by former inmates and guards.
Ferry Building Marketplace
A waterfront market hall with an oyster bar, cheese stalls and coffee roasters, with the Embarcadero promenade in front.
Clarion Alley and the Mission District
A narrow alley full of political murals, surrounded by the taquerías and bookshops of 24th Street.
Mission Dolores Park
A grassy slope with views over the rooftops to the Downtown skyline, the whole neighbourhood's meeting place in the afternoon.
Evening: Valencia Street
The Mission's strip of bars and restaurants between 16th and 21st Street, open all evening and busy.
Day 4On to Monterey Bay
Onward to Monterey
Hotel check-in
Cannery Row
The old row of sardine canneries from Steinbeck's novel, now shops and boardwalks with views over the bay.
Monterey Bay Aquarium
The two-storey kelp forest and tanks with sea otters and jellyfish, fed with water straight from the bay.
Old Fisherman's Wharf
A wooden pier with fish stalls and excursion boats; beneath the planks, sea lions snore.
Evening: Lovers Point Park in Pacific Grove
A rocky cove with cypresses where the sun sets over the Pacific, after which the coastal path is lit up.
Day 517-Mile Drive & Carmel
17-Mile Drive and the Lone Cypress
A toll road through the pine forests of Pebble Beach, stopping at the cypress standing alone on its rock.
Carmel Beach
A white sandy beach at the foot of Ocean Avenue, lined with wind-bent cypresses, where dogs run free.
Ocean Avenue in Carmel-by-the-Sea
A village centre without house numbers or street lamps, with hidden courtyards, galleries and Hugh Comstock's fairy-tale cottages.
Carmel Mission Basilica
A mission church of 1797 (mission founded 1771) with a sandstone façade, a bell tower and a courtyard full of bougainvillea.
Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
A coastal trail over granite cliffs to the Cypress Grove, with harbour seals and otters lying in the kelp in the coves below.
Evening: Scenic Road Walkway in Carmel
The boardwalk above the bay is lit in the evening and looks out to the lights of Pebble Beach.
Day 6To Big Sur — bridges and beaches
Onward to Big Sur
Hotel check-in
Bixby Creek Bridge
The single-arch concrete bridge of 1932 spans the gorge 80 metres up; the viewpoint is at the northern end.
Andrew Molera State Park
A trail along the Big Sur River to its mouth, where driftwood and a pebble beach meet the Pacific.
Pfeiffer Beach
A beach reached via a narrow side road, with purple sand and the Keyhole Arch rock formation.
Henry Miller Memorial Library
A bookshop and cultural courtyard beneath the redwoods, dedicated to the writer who lived here for eighteen years.
Evening: Big Sur Taphouse
A wooden terrace with Californian craft beers, one of the few places in Big Sur with any life in the evening.
Day 7Redwoods & McWay Falls
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
The Valley View Trail leads through a redwood grove and up an oak-covered slope to a view over the whole Big Sur valley.
Coast Gallery Big Sur
A gallery in two old water tanks right above the cliffs, with watercolours by Henry Miller and local crafts.
Partington Cove Trail
A steep path through a hand-hewn tunnel down to a narrow cove with turquoise water.
McWay Falls
The waterfall plunges 24 metres straight onto the sand of an inaccessible cove; you see it from the Overlook Trail.
Evening: starry sky at the Big Sur Lodge
With no street lighting, the sky above the clearing is so clear that the Milky Way stands out to the naked eye.
Day 8Elephant seals & Hearst Castle
Onward to Cambria
Hotel check-in
Elephant Seal Vista Point, Piedras Blancas
From the boardwalk you see hundreds of elephant seals on the beach, with pups and fighting bulls in winter.
Hearst Castle
The hilltop residence of newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, with the classical-style Neptune Pool and 165 rooms.
Moonstone Beach Boardwalk
A kilometre of wooden boardwalk above the surf at Cambria; below lie the milky agates that give the beach its name.
Evening: Cambria's East Village
The old village centre with pine-wood houses, wine bars and second-hand bookshops, warmly lit in the evening.
Day 9Santa Barbara, the white city
Onward to Santa Barbara
Hotel check-in
Old Mission Santa Barbara
The Queen of the Missions, from 1786, with its twin-towered façade, a rose garden in front and the old cemetery behind.
Santa Barbara County Courthouse
A courthouse in Spanish Colonial style; from the El Mirador clock tower the view sweeps over the red-tiled roofs to the sea.
Stearns Wharf
California's oldest wooden pier reaches far out into the channel, with a view back to the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Evening: State Street and the Funk Zone
Between the station and the beach, winery tasting rooms, breweries and open courtyards line up one after another.
Day 10Arriving at the Los Angeles coast
Onward to Los Angeles
Hotel check-in
Santa Monica Pier
The end of Route 66 above the water, with the solar-powered Ferris wheel and a view down the bay.
Venice Beach Boardwalk
A promenade with Muscle Beach, a skatepark and street performers, and behind it the canals of the old Venice of America.
Departure from Los Angeles
Make it your trip
Viatro AI opens this plan in the app — with map, travel times and opening hours. You change the days, pace and places yourself.
