Opinions on itinerary please- Updated

[Marie9LPG]

We are heading to the West Coast for the first time next year. We are a family of four; our girls will be 12 & 16; travelling from Ireland. We did an East Coast road trip in 2013 so know the kids are fine with longer car journeys.
The plan so far:

Wed 24 June; fly into SFO-arrive approx 3pm & transfer to Holiday Inn Express @ Fishermans Wharf.
25 June: Dylans Tour (reserved)
26 June: Alcatraz & shopping
27 June: Collect car, drive over Golden Gate Bridge. Livermore outlets then drive to Yosemite region. Have a house booked for 2 nights.
28 June: Yosemite
29 June: Mariposa Grove then drive to Marina. Staying Sanctuary Beach resort for 2 nights.
30 June: ? 17 mile drive & Monterey
1 July: Drive down Pacific Coast Highway to Santa Barbara ( 2 nights, no hotel booked yet)
2 July: Enjoy a quiet day In Santa Barbara
3 July: Six Flags (overnight in hotel this area, not yet booked)
4 July: Santa Monica (2 nights- hotel not booked)
5 July: Quiet day in Santa Monica
6 July: Move to Hollywood- 2 nights Magic Castle Hotel.
7 July: Universal
8 July: Move to Hotel Indigo. Go to Knotts today?
9 July: Disneyland
10 July: Disneyland
11 July: Disneyland
12 July: Flight home from LAX at 9:45pm.

Any recommendations for Santa Barbara/Santa Monica hotels?
Do you think it best to stay in Six Flags area for the night or should we head straight to Santa Monica? Was thinking of an overnight hotel so we could check in & leave luggage rather than it sitting in the car all day.
Suggestions for our last day welcome, was thinking might do Disney again or is a 4th day too much?

If you've got to the end of this ramble thanks!!
Marie

Updated itinerary posted

 

[BSOGfam]

I think your plan sounds pretty ambitious, but amazing! The only advice I would give you is that you should try to book a hotel for the Fourth of July fairly early. With the holiday, you may run into some traffic issues in southernCalifornia. But you should also research activities. They could have some really fun things happening for the fourth. Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[hilarys]

A very cool plan, but I think it is pretty well planned out. a couple of points:
June 27 - are you planning to go over Golden Gate bridge and then through Marin and loop back down to Livermore outlets, that is not the most direct way to get to Livermore outlets, but it is a weekend so traffic should not be bad. The most direct way would be to take the Bay Bridge to 580. You might want to play around with Google maps and see if it would make sense to go over the GG bridge and then back across and go across the Bay Bridge. Also, i live right near the Livermore outlets and they get very busy. Whenever I go i get there first thing in the morning. Not to say that you won't be able to park or enjoy yourself if you get there later, it just gets much more difficult to find parking.
June 30: make sure you also spend time in Carmel, such a cute town
July 12. I think you should hit Disneyland again on your last day. You can have it be a relaxed day of hitting your favorites and taking things at a slower pace, exploring the details or have a pool day at the hotel.

Have a great trip.

 

[Marie9LPG]

Thanks for the replies.
Hilary, never thought about going doing a return trip over the Golden Gate bridge, seems a good idea.
Carmel looks very pretty.

Considering a few changes, may do San Diego instead of Santa Monica- will miss out Six Flags & change order of trip to Hollywood-San Diego-Anaheim. I'm a bit concerned about queue lengths at Six Flags & don't really want to spend a fortune on Flash Passes.
Marie

 

[ncc1701]

OP San Diego is a great place. The zoo is the one of the best in the world. You are close to Coronado and the Hotel Del (great beach).Sea World is also in the area(never been as we have visited the SW Orlando)
There are harbor boat tours, Old Town and Balboa Park ( area the zoo is in).
Should the Padres be in town you can checkout a baseball game. The stadium is great and in downtown

 

[hilarys]

Marie, The idea of San Diego is great. So many fun things to do or just hang out at the beach. My family spent some time at the Hotel Del Coronado this summer and it was great - could not beat the location on the beach.

Admittedly, I am not a fan of scary coasters, but I am a California native and have never been to Six Flags. I would choose San Diego over that any day.

Hilary

 

[Marie9LPG]

Updated itinerary.

Wed 24 June; fly into SFO-arrive approx 3pm & transfer to Holiday Inn Express @ Fishermans Wharf.
25 June: Dylans Tour (reserved)
26 June: Alcatraz & shopping
27 June: Collect car, drive over Golden Gate Bridge. Livermore outlets then drive to Yosemite region. Have a house booked for 2 nights.
28 June: Yosemite
29 June: Mariposa Grove then drive to Marina. Staying Sanctuary Beach resort for 2 nights.
30 June: ? 17 mile drive & Monterey
1 July: Drive down Pacific Coast Highway to Solvang - 1 night King Frederik Inn
2 July: Move to Hollywood- 2 nights Magic Castle Hotel (Hollywood sign & walk of fame)
3 July: Universal Studios
4 July: Move to Buena Park for 1 night, do Knotts Berry farm
5 July: Drive to San Diego- 3 nights Best Western Island Palms
6 July: Zoo or Seaworld
7 July: Zoo or Seaworld
8 July: Move to Hotel Indigo Anaheim for 4 nights
9 July: Disneyland
10 July: Disneyland
11 July: Disneyland
12 July: Flight home from LAX at 9:45pm

Will probably do Disney on our last day.

Looking for places to stop for lunch on Pacific Coast Highway.
Thanks, Marie

 

[wanderlust7]

Looking for places to stop for lunch on Pacific Coast Highway.
Thanks, Marie

The logical place to stop for lunch between Monterey and Solvang would probably be Big Sur. For a splurge and experience, I highly recommend lunch at Sierra Mar at Post Ranch Inn (I believe a reservation is required to get through the gate). They have great Californian cuisine and the view is breathtaking. The bonus is you can walk around the grounds afterwards without paying $1000+/night to stay there. Nephenthe also has good views, a little more casual, though the food was less memorable to me.

A restaurant recommendation for Marina/Monterey - we really enjoyed Phil's Fish Market and Eatery in Moss Landing. Very casual, self-service type place with great seafood and cioppino.

Since you mentioned Livermore outlets, there is also one in Carlsbad on the way to San Diego, in case you want to do more shopping.

 

[SMD]

If you still want to do SM it's not that far a drive from Hollywood, so that could be a half day during that part of the trip. It could also be a potential filler on your departure day.

I don't know if it's worth backtracking to the 17 mile drive between Yosemite and Solvang. You're adding about 3 hours to what could be a 4-5 hour drive. And that's without stops. You may be better off spending more time in Yosemite.

 

[VandVsmama]

Updated itinerary.
Wed 24 June; fly into SFO-arrive approx 3pm & transfer to Holiday Inn Express @ Fishermans Wharf.
25 June: Dylans Tour (reserved)
26 June: Alcatraz & shopping
27 June: Collect car, drive over Golden Gate Bridge. Livermore outlets then drive to Yosemite region. Have a house booked for 2 nights.
28 June: Yosemite
29 June: Mariposa Grove then drive to Marina. Staying Sanctuary Beach resort for 2 nights.
30 June: ? 17 mile drive & Monterey
1 July: Drive down Pacific Coast Highway to Solvang - 1 night King Frederik Inn
2 July: Move to Hollywood- 2 nights Magic Castle Hotel (Hollywood sign & walk of fame)
3 July: Universal Studios
4 July: Move to Buena Park for 1 night, do Knotts Berry farm
5 July: Drive to San Diego- 3 nights Best Western Island Palms
6 July: Zoo or Seaworld
7 July: Zoo or Seaworld
8 July: Move to Hotel Indigo Anaheim for 4 nights
9 July: Disneyland
10 July: Disneyland
11 July: Disneyland
12 July: Flight home from LAX at 9:45pm

Will probably do Disney on our last day.

Looking for places to stop for lunch on Pacific Coast Highway.
Thanks, Marie

I grew up in northern California and am quite familiar with the area. Here are a few things to consider:

1. Which airport or car rental location are you picking up the car from in San Francisco? If it's from San Francisco Airport, getting from SFO to the Golden Gate Bridge is a bit of a pain in the neck. Since you'll be driving to Yosemite that same day, this could add on an extra 2 hours round trip to your drive (seriously) considering if you leave to get the car during rush hour traffic. And it's much more of a fun drive to Yosemite if you're doing it during daylight hours instead of at night.
2. Golden Gate Bridge - Please seriously consider going over the Golden Gate Bridge on 26 June. There's some very useful info here--> http://goldengatebridge.org/visitors/directions.php. Or you could rent bikes and bike across if you're feeling adventuresome. http://goldengatebridge.org/bikesbridge/bikes.php
   
3. From Yosemite to Marina, CA near Monterey - One thing to consider is that if you want more time in Yosemite on the front end of your trip, to skip the outlets in Livermore and INSTEAD go to the Gilroy outlets on your drive from Yosemite to Marina. Gilroy outlets website is http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=23. It takes 30-45 minutes to get from Gilroy to Marina. And you'd be going there on a Monday, so traffic shouldn't be too bad.
   
4. Marina to Solvang via PCH - Just to warn you, this road is not for the faint of heart. There are spots where there's just enough room for 2 cars, with steep drop-offs. So anyone in your group who's afraid of heights might want to be forewarned. Google Maps says driving time is a tad over 4 hours, but you should allow 6 hours for this because you will want to stop a few times for pictures & stuff. Morrow Bay is an interesting place. Pismo Beach has places that allow you to send dune buggies so you can ride over the sand dunes. The surf is usually very flat at Pismo Beach.
5. San Diego - Seaport Village is a really fun shopping area near the water/bay. Old Town San Diego is also really cool...lots of unique boutique-y shops that sell items that are unique. There are some good restaurants in Old Town, too.
6. 8 July & relocating to Anaheim - If you are on the road between 10am-3pm, getting to Anaheim by about 3pm, then you shouldn't hit any rush hour traffic at all. Your route will have carpool lanes (they're labelled "HOV" lanes). HOV = High Occupancy Vehicle. HOV lanes are also FastTrak lanes...where single commuters can pay a toll to go in the HOV lane. Since you'll have multiple people in your car, you can go in the HOV lane without any cost and you won't get a traffic ticket either.

 

[Marie9LPG]

Thanks VandVsmama, starting to get excited now.

We are collecting the car in San Francisco, O'farrell Street hopefully about 7am.

Why do you recommend doing the Golden Gate Bridge on 26 June?

Thanks, Marie

 

[bcla]

Thanks VandVsmama, starting to get excited now.

We are collecting the car in San Francisco, O'farrell Street hopefully about 7am.

Why do you recommend doing the Golden Gate Bridge on 26 June?

Thanks, Marie

Don't know about June 26. July 26 is the San Francisco Marathon.

http://goldengate.org/news/bridge/Construction-Alerts.php

 

[bcla]

So you're picking up around Union Square? It will take time to get to the Golden Gate Bridge since there's no freeway. At least in the directions you're going, there are no tolls on the Golden Gate and Richmond-San Rafael Bridges. Just don't go back to San Francisco or you might be in for a surprise when your rental car agency bills you for the toll, fine, and their own "processing fee". Personally I think the all-electronic tolling is a racket.

It should be fine on a weekend, and even on weekdays those are the reverse commute directions. Even so, there can be the odd traffic jam on weekends.

 

[ncc1701]

For 17 mile drive there is always Carmel by the Sea or Pebble Beach for lunch. The golf course at Peeble Beach has several restaurants. We ate breakfast at one located with the shops. It was also open for lunch.

 

[VandVsmama]

Well, I learned something new. Had no idea that SF got rid of its toll booths. Your only option is to pay the toll online. What a pain in the neck!

More info is available here --> http://goldengate.org/tolls/tollpaymentchoices.php

Driving from SF-->Golden Gate bridge-->Richmond/San Rafael bridge-->Yosemite is a very round-about course.

re: 6/26 - my only reason for suggesting that day is so you'd have more time at the outlet mall and getting to Yosemite. Plus, you'll be in SF for a couple of days prior to 6/27 anyway. And if you're shopping/exploring at Fisherman's Wharf or similar places nearby, find a way to go across the Golden Gate Bridge so you don't have to hassle w/the toll.

You could always go to the bridge on 6/25. Which Dylans Tour are you doing?

 

[bcla]

Well, I learned something new. Had no idea that SF got rid of its toll booths. Your only option is to pay the toll online. What a pain in the neck!

More info is available here --> http://goldengate.org/tolls/tollpaymentchoices.php

Driving from SF-->Golden Gate bridge-->Richmond/San Rafael bridge-->Yosemite is a very round-about course.

Sure. However, it might actually take less time than backtracking to San Francisco and across the Bay Bridge. Also, that spectacular Conzelman Road drive can be a 20 minute side trip.

I've got FasTrak myself, but I understand that it's a pain to pay bridge toll on the Golden Gate Bridge if you're without a transponder. I've used all electronic toll collection in the Seattle area when I borrowed my brother in law's car. Their system does include some sort of electronic transponder, but there's no "fine" per se for not having one, although the rates are much lower for having one.

As for electronic tolling on the GGB, any of the FasTrak systems will work, even the ones that are issued in Southern California.

 

[VandVsmama]

Ok good point. But in this case, the OP is not from the US and is visiting from overseas and won't have a Fast Trak transponder.

 

[bcla]

Ok good point. But in this case, the OP is not from the US and is visiting from overseas and won't have a Fast Trak transponder.

However, it's possible to get one through the rental agency. Even so, the fees are crazy, and I'm not even sure how they handle it with a one-way rental.

 

[Marie9LPG]

Sorry for not replying sooner.

You could always go to the bridge on 6/25. Which Dylans Tour are you doing?

We are doing "Dylan's Famous Tour"; the one that goes to Muir Woods in addition to different areas of San Francisco.

Marie

 

[VandVsmama]

Ok, in that case, you will get to see and take pictures at the Golden Gate bridge on the tour...because the tour stops at Fort Point. So if you don't want the hassle of dealing with paying an online bridge toll, then skip the whole driving the rental car across the Golden Gate bridge altogether.