Northern California Vacation

If you are headed down to LA, definitely stop/stay in Cambria and Morro Bay. October and early November are actually really beautiful at that time of year; the summer gloom is gone and sometimes the central coast has some nice warm heat spells. We used to live in Morro Bay and miss it tremendously. Oh, and Montana de Oro State Park is a must-see in Los Osos (right next to Morro Bay). Breathtaking!

I am from SF and I still come down almost twice a year because of family. If you are flying in to SFO I would suggest staying in the Union Square area. There are lots of great restaurants, shopping and just sightseeing there. Then, if you are going to Napa, which is less than an hour from SF, just rent a car and drive there. There are tour bus that leaves from the Union Square area, if you are trying to drinking a lot, but if not, driving is better. When you get on the wine track, so many wineries every corner. Back in SF, go to the Marina section and you will love it. Some shopping and great restaurants too. Of course, go to Northbeach for some italian cuisine and right next to it is Chinatown for some souvenirs. Then go in SOMA in Embarcadero for sightseeing and on Thursday/Saturday they have Farmers Market. SOO Much to write, but you can always ask your concierge too for other spot. Have fun!

My BFF and I did the opposite trip--flew to LA, then drove to SF to see/stay with my stepsister there. Check out The Cliff House for drinks, Fisherman's Wharf, the Musee Mechanique (http://www.museemechanique.org/contact.html), If you want to tour Alcatraz, buy tickets WAAAAY in advance, otherwise you can do a SF bay tour (windy, bundle up!)....Solvang is a cool stop. Definitely do Napa (buy wine/cheese/etc. and picnic on the lawn) it's really beautiful to see. Google Calistoga--they have awesome spas where you can stay the night....
Carmel is beautiful as well.
Cannery Row & the aquarium....in Monterey.
We were there in late summer and I had to borrow a down jacket from my stepsister in SF for night. I was REALLY glad I had at least O. long sleeved jersey and some jeans...so pack a few to layer for Northern CA...especially in the evening. Have fun!
Oh--after driving the PCH O. way--we decided to fly back to LA--it's beautiful, but we found O. way MORE than enough of the PCH experience!

Hearst Castle in Big Sur was fun for us! The Monterey Bay Aquarium was also impressive. (We didn't even have kids at the time.)

I'm a SF Bay Area, CA native who just moved to TX 3 years ago. I would add Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory if you go to the Pier 39 area. Fabulous ice cream shop! I second Carmel over Monterey - personally I think Carmel is prettier. If you do stop on the Central Coast (Morro Bay, etc) I would recommend Splash Cafe in Pismo Beach for their clam chowder bowls (if you didn't get enough in SF). And remember, the beach in Northern CA and even the Central Coast is pretty cold. If you're imagining a warm water experience, save the ocean swimming for further South. Enjoy your trip!

Our favorite place was the Point Lobos State Reserve. It is near Carmel and it is beautiful there. Go to tripadvisor.com and do a search on this park and read the reviews. Have a great trip!

Napa is great, not kid friendly. Lots of museums, shopping, aquariums, Golden Gate Park, restaurants in downtown area. The drive down the coast to Monterey is awesome. If it's amusement parks that you are looking for, Marine World in Vallejo, Great America in San Jose, Santa Cruz Boardwalk in Santa Cruz- Monterey has an aquarium and great shopping

I lived 5 hours north of San Francisco for a few years - and there is so much to do - I don't even have specific ideas! There is a great children's museum just (immediately) north of the golden gate bridge on an old military base. Also the botanical gardens at golden gate park are beautiful and fisherman's wharf is just down the road.
November can be damp and wet. It's sort of the "winter months" there - and all the wetness brings for beautiful G. during Jan/feb....
Sweatshirts and fleece is great - sweaters are bad.
Don't be deterred by the rain - west coasters call it "liquid sunshine" ;-)

I would definitely squeeze Napa in. Beautiful there and there is a great place called Castello di Amorosa that is a great place for pictures and make sure you sign up for the tour (you can purchase tickets online)! I love the Alcatraz tour in SF because the history is great, but like someone said earlier, get tickets in advance! Golden Gate Park and Fisherman's Wharf are wonderful. Don't forget to visit Lombard Street (quirky fun!) On the way to Monterey stop in Santa Cruz and go to Natural Bridges State Park where there is a short trail to see the migrating Monarch butterflies. Amazing thing and perfect time of the year to see it and it's a good pit-stop for the drive! I prefer Carmel over Monterey since it is so beautiful and worth stopping by and looking in all the shops and art galleries. It is very pricey if you are planning on staying there though! So much to see and do. Dress warm and enjoy the beauty, it's worth it! And happy pre-anniversary!

I would agree with barbette on things to do in SF... I would also recommend Pier 39 to get the chowder bowls... I really miss those. If you have the time to get to Napa for some wine tasting defiantly go. Lombard street is pretty cool.. you have to go over the golden gate bridge! I always enjoyed going to Muir Beach.... you get the beach and you get some beautiful hiking in if you go up the hill. If you want to see some great landscape travel up hwy 1. Bodega Bay has some great restaurants.

The monterey bay aquarium is pretty cool too, canary row has shops etc. I really wouldn't stop in Santa Cruz unless you really want to see those butterflies. I lived there for 2 years and in my opinion not really worth visiting, the boardwalk is disgusting and you have to check the fecal count before you get in the water. Carmel is beautiful. November in Northern Cal is probably going to be cold and possibly wet.

It might be a bit rainy in San Francisco itself but the weather might be better in Napa. Great places to stop en route to LA include Carmel, Big Sur, Santa Barbara. If you love the ocean, there are spectacular views along the way.

We did a similar trip a few years ago. Driving the PCH is beautiful. I would recommend Muir Woods, a National Park north of San Francisco. It is filled with giant redwoods...really beautiful. Be sure and stop in Carmel, which is south of Monterey. It is a charming little town with tons of cute shops and restaurants. Monterey has a great aquarium.

If you have time, a short visit to the Lompoc area can be well worth it. They have many flower fields in bloom in this area and at one time there was a Space Shuttle Launch site just outside of town. It is really pretty. I lived there when we were stationed at Vandenberg AFB. The Central Coast has a great winery - Gainey Winery -- they have wonderful white and red wines to sample and purchase on site. It is between Solvang and Santa Barbara. The fog can be heavy during this time of the year along the PCH - so just be prepared for some foggy days. Fog comes in around 10 o'clock and leaves out around 3 pm. This is a really beautiful area.

M. I am a Travel Agent grandmother from Flower Mound and I will be happy to help you plan your Anniversary vacation. If you are going from SFO to LA I would skip Napa. That is in my opinion a little ambitious for a week. Napa and SFO are a week themselves.
I would stay in SFO for 3 days and then go to Monterrey,Carmel,San Simeon and then LA.
It will cost a little more flight wise to fly from different airports but less hectic than driving back to SFO. It will cost a little more to drop off the car in LA. You won't need a car untill you leave SFO. Parking is way to expensive.
I will be happy to help you plan and book this vacation.
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N. Cox

My husband & I did a similiar trip for our 5th anniversary....it was our best trip EVER! We stayed in Union Square in SF. Lots of great shopping, right next to China Town & a great trolley ride to the Warf. I would recommend Carmel over staying in Monterey. They are right near each other, but Carmel is so much nicer. We visited the aquarium/Cannery Row in Monterey, did the 17 mile drive (well worth the $) and stayed in Carmel for 2 nights. It's so much prettier than Monterey and so quaint. I could spend a whole vacation there. We finished our trip in Napa. While the wine country part of our trip was our least favorite, it was nice. I would rather have stayed in St. Helena, or another one of the small towns near Napa...they were just more our style. We went at the end of October and it was very cool (perfect sweater weather). Have a great trip!!