Route 101

[kevino]

Hi there ihave been lucky enough to win a competiton for a holiday in america driving from La to san fransisco ,not driven in the us before heard its hectic and no little about the route is it good bad interesting or any advice on dos and donts thanx

[Mark Sedenquist]

Hi there ihave been lucky enough to win a competiton for a holiday in america driving from La to san fransisco ,not driven in the us before heard its hectic and no little about the route is it good bad interesting or any advice on dos and donts thanx

Welcome to the Forum! What competition is this? Are you sure you are to drive US-101?

Mark

[travel_monkeys]

I live on 101 between LA and SF and would be happy to give you some tips. But I share the editor's curiousity about what kind of competition this was and if you have freedom about what route to take?

[kevino]

Welcome to the Forum! What competition is this? Are you sure you are to drive US-101?

Mark

HI THERE MARK,im a hotel and conferencing manager over here in a place called lincoln, this year e&j gallo the wine people held a competiton for wine sales increase over the festive period ,i manage to win it with a 214% increase year on year with sales on offer was the road trip from LA to San Francisco stopping at various places along the way ,eg santa barbara ,monterey ect ,basically i pick up the car from LA airport and have two weeks to travel the road they call route 101

[Mark Sedenquist]

the road trip from LA to San Francisco stopping at various places along the way ,eg santa barbara ,monterey ect ,basically i pick up the car from LA airport and have two weeks to travel the road they call route 101

Does this include lodging or do you have any restrictions on where you will go? Sounds like a great promotion. When will you be on the road?

Mark

[kevino]

Came as a surprise but eh life always does ,they have booked a number of hotels along the way sheraton inLA for a couple of nights, then onto santa barbara 3 nights, then onto monterey 3 nights, then 3 nights S/F, then onto sonoma ,thats the only restriction they have put on it the hotels.
my wife and i will be travelling in june towards the end of it they have yet to confirm full dates becuase of my work ,but last week in june first in august im going for
kevin

[Mark Sedenquist]

sheraton inLA for a couple of nights, then onto santa barbara 3 nights, then onto monterey 3 nights, then 3 nights S/F, then onto sonoma

Kevin, I would certainly take some of that time to follow CA-Route 1 along the coast -- the Big Sur will have periods of fog that time of year -- but it is still very beautiful. No doubt you will know about the wine producing areas found along US-101, but there are more and more. There are two books that you might wish to pick up as you plan this adventure. Both are excellent and I use then whenever I travel these routes. The first one covers Route 1 and the second is full of insider tips about the Sonoma and Napa wine country. Be sure to look at the links at the bottom of any page of this forum you look at, it will have related threads -- (in this case, the software does not seem to well targeted yet for your query...)

Happy Planning!

Mark

[travel_monkeys]

I agree with the editor. Travel Highway 1 between San Luis Obispo and Monterey. I don't think there's any coastline in the world more impressive. The good part really starts about San Simeon and heads north. Big Sur is along the way.
San Luis Obispo County also has some nice spots (I'm biased as I currently live there, but really it's very nice). Morro Rock in Morro Bay is an extinct volcano basically sitting on the beach. Morro Bay is a great place to stop for lunch. If you like out of the way cultural idiosyncracies try going for some food and drink at the Pozo Saloon. Take 101 to the Santa Margarita exit, follow signs for highway 58 and take a right onto Pozo Road. The Saloon is about 30 minutes from the 101 and it's really a nice country atmosphere, and they sometimes have live music on weekends in summer.
Downtown San Luis Obispo is also worth a trip. The town center area is very pedestrian, with shops, tree-lined streets, a 400 year-old Spanish mission, and lots of outdoor cafes. Mission Creek is a little stream through the center of town and there's a nice park all along the banks. San Luis Obispo (I think) is the most romantic town in California if that's what you're looking for.
Happy trails!

[kevino]

Hi there thanx for the advice onthe books,i managed to get them from america amazon, both going to prove to be invaluable i think ,wow those shipping costs from america ouch lol , anyway im sure it is going to be one hell of a road trip and im going to enjoy every single minute ,once i get use to being on the other side of the road when driving lol
thankyou once again, ill make sure i post while over there so u know if i got lost or home lol

Thankyou travel monkey some really interesting places to see u posted ,much appreciated ,those along with the books,should i hope make our road trip one to remember for a long long time

[Mark Sedenquist]

once i get use to being on the other side of the road when driving lol

As an international visitor you also might enjoy reading a Brit's take on American roadtrips (and you should be able to find the book locally) and also find our international visitor page helpful.

Mark