Stretching nearly 700 stunning miles along California's coast, the legendary Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) is an American classic road trip. As two experienced PCH travelers, we're going to outline everything you need to know about following this epic West Coast route. Get ready for our tips, sample itinerary, and top stops for road tripping down PCH.
Our first nugget of PCH road trip advice - take your time! While you could technically drive the full highway from north to south in a single day, you'd be doing a huge disservice to yourself and this awe-inspiring landscape. We recommend allowing 7-10 days minimum to unwind and truly savor it.
We also suggest heading north to south to follow the roads most beautiful orientation, although it honestly doesn’t matter. Your starting point could be coastal cities like Seattle or Portland. Or join the PCH partway down after checking out San Francisco, which allows about a week for the stretch between there and LA.
As for stops, be prepared to want to pull over constantly! Though you don’t have time to see everything, here are the ultimate Pacific Coast Highway pit stops:
- Point Reyes & Bixby Bridge (North CA Coast)
- Big Sur's Pfeiffer Beach & McWay Falls hike
- Hearst Castle's opulent mansion (Central Coast)
- Santa Barbara's idyllic beaches & urban wine country
- Channel Islands National Park for island hopping
- Malibu's Getty Villa museum & celebrity homes (South Coast)
- Huntington Beach's world famous surf breaks
With so much natural beauty, don't forget to also pause and nourish yourself! Make sure to sample SoCal's exceptional farm-to-table cuisine, wines, craft brews, and iconic fast food like burger joints and taco trucks when road tripping down the PCH.
Take the detours you stumble across, breathe in that crisp ocean air at every vista point, play your favorite road trip soundtrack, and embrace the magic of America’s dreamiest drive down the Pacific Coast Highway. You may never want this iconic West Coast adventure to end! Just don’t forget extra storage for all those photos you’ll be taking.
Easy navigation, well-organized
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