LA - San Francisco in September

My boyfriend of 6 months and I are planning an L.A.-to-San Francisco road trip for 1-2 weeks in mid-September. We plan to fly to L.A. from Philadelphia, drive over about 10 days to San Francisco and then fly home from S.F. I've started researching possible stops along the way, but I'm looking for advice and/or suggestions from experienced road trippers. This will be our first "real" vacation together. I'm a bit more adventurous than he is but we both agree that we want to have a pre-set, day-by-day itinerary (with room here and there for off-the-beaten-track activities). I love to camp so, if we could camp a couple of nights while on the road, that would be great. Otherwise, we're looking to stay in hotels, B&B's or inns that are nicer than the average roadside motel. Also, we're both fans of hiking, so if you have any great trail tips, please let me know. A little romance here and there wouldn't hurt either. Thanks!

H.N.

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Originally Posted by HealthNut

We plan to fly to L.A. from Philadelphia, drive over about 10 days to San Francisco and then fly home from S.F.

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So, this would put the average daily mileage at about 40. That seems bizarre to type out - but then again this gives you ample opportunity to explore the country between these two cities.

Have you considered wandering into Yosemite or Sequoia National Parks? These are definitely not on the direct route, but given the amount of time you have, I think they are well within reach.

I know you said you are planning to go from LA to SF one way, but have you thought about this as a round trip? It might work better for you.

What you could do then is take an inland route North, going through Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite, and then go back south along the Coast.

At the very least, you'd save money on both the airfare and the rental car, and with 10 days, you'd have plenty of time.

Thanks everyone for your advice! We've decided on September 8-17th and will switch up our route a little by driving from S.F. to L.A. instead (spending the first 2 nights in S.F.) and making Yosemite our first overnight stop along the way. Our other O/N stops will be in Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara and we'll finish off the vacation with 3 days in L.A. I've been to all of the places where we are staying overnight but we are looking forward to making lots of stops in between. Are there any particular landmarks/places we should make time to stop and enjoy en route? Thanks again!