9 Tips to Make Your California Pacific Coast Highway 1 Road Trip More Enjoyable!

One of the best road trips you can take in the USA is driving down the Pacific Coast Highway (or California’s Highway 1) that hugs the west coast shoreline and includes stunning scenic vista points, beaches, wildlife and other attractions (including a castle!).

But, for this article, rather than give you the standard list of what to see, where to stop, stay and eat, I’m going to give you specific tips on doing the actual PCH road trip – in other words, tips to make your drive down (or up) the 1 more enjoyable. Let’s get started.

When is the best time to drive the Pacific Coast Highway?

I’ve driven the Pacific Coast Highway in spring, summer and fall. Hands down, the best experience was in the fall – mid October, specifically. The worst time was summer. I can’t speak with experience to winter, but I do know that California tends to have more rainy days in winter, and it’s also when the Pacific Coast Highway is more apt to landslides, resulting in roads being shut down for weeks (or months!), so that may put a damper on your experience.

So why was summer the worst? Three things – crowds, weather, and lodging prices. The crowds were unbearable – and I say this as someone who lived in India and has a high tolerance for crowds. Everywhere we went – from the scenic overlooks, to trying to enter a state park, to finding parking in Monterray, it was a challenge to find parking. The weather was a bit disappointing too – see, there’s this West Coast weather pattern called “May Gray” and “June Gloom” (and it also applies in July and August too), where grey, overcast days are common. Due to the temperature inversions during this time of year, the marine layer moves in during the early evening hours and often doesn’t burn off until the next day in the afternoon.

This means that even if the weather forecast says it’ll be sunny and 65 degrees, don’t expect to see the sun until 2pm.

Wait. 65 degrees? In July? Yes. It is chilly on the coast in the summer months!

As for fall, you’ll have better chances for more summer-like weather. It’s warmer, sunnier, and the crowds have dissipated. We never had to fight for a parking spot and the hotel prices were cheaper.

Don’t feel bad if you’re not driving a convertible

Speeding down the California coastline in a sporty convertible with the top down and the wind blowing through your hair sounds like the picture-perfect (albeit cliched!) Pacific Coast Highway trip.

But the reality of this doesn’t live up to the image. Because it’s often cold on the coast. I’ve always worn sweatshirts when traveling in this area.

That said, everyone on this highway seems to be driving a rented red or silver Mustang convertible. And most of those people were driving with the top UP because it’s cold. Every time I drive this highway, I’ve had just as much fun in a rented SUV than I would’ve had in a convertible. None of our stuff flew out of the car, we stayed warm, and we could still get a comb through our hair at the end of the day

Bathrooms are few and far between

Public restrooms are hard to find – especially in the Big Sur area. Gas stations, restaurants, and other venues with public restrooms are few and far between and when you do see one, it will be packed full of cars.

Don’t be scared of driving this road!

So there’s some twists and turns…big deal. You’ll hear and read things about how this highway has cliff-hugging curves and about how you’ll feel like you and your car are going to tumble off into the abyss.

Never once did I feel like I was going to plunge the car off into the nether. Yes, there are a lot of curves on this road, and yeah, you’ll feel like you’re playing Mario Kart, but there are guardrails everywhere and it’s NOT THAT BAD. Maybe I am totally desensitized to the winding roads of the PCH because of all the mountain driving I’ve done in the past. It’s all relative, I guess.
That said — I wouldn’t drive this at night. It’s pitch black and there will be fog. Now that’s scary.

Crowd-wise, weekdays aren’t necessarily any better:

I’ve done this trip on weekdays and weekend and when it comes to crowds, traveling during the week doesn’t mean you’re going to beat the crowds. Even at the roadside pull outs, many times, we’d have to wait for a spot to open up because there were so many people. We also had to forget about our plans to visit Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park because of the huge line of cars waiting to get in. The good thing about traveling on a weekday is that you’ll get the weekday rate at a hotel, which will save you money. So there’s that.

Big Sur is where it’s at

The Bixby Bridge and the pretty blue water= quintessential Pacific Coast Highway scenery
Big Sur is the section of the highway you don’t want to miss. The Pacific Coast Highway is a very long highway, stretching from San Diego all the way up to SF, but when people talk about the Pacific Coast Highway, you probably think of that cool-looking bridge and the turquoise waters

That’s Big Sur and it’s just a small part of the highway. The entire highway is not filled with scenery like this. To be blunt, I would’ve been perfectly happy to drive to Big Sur, see it, and then turn around and go back to San Francisco. The best scenery is in Big Sur, so if your time is limited, make sure you see this.

Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip Tips: The cyclists will annoy you

The bikers on the PCH are serious cyclists. They’re not the ones renting from Blazing Saddles.
There are a LOT of cyclists. Most are going North -> South so if that’s what you’re driving (like us), prepare to share the road.

Summer gloom can wreck your mood…and your pictures.

You’re in for a lot of fog. Sunny California isn’t always so sunny along the coast in the summer months. We lucked out in that we started off with foggy mornings, with the sun coming out for a few hours in the afternoon. Foggy, cloudy, gray days can totally change the experience of your PCH trip, especially when you see everyone’s pics of topaz blue waters and sunny skies, and you get nasty, dreary skies that dampen the mood.

Also, it’s cold!  Think highs of 65 degrees in August. Oh wait, are you still bitching about not getting a convertible? ENOUGH ALREADY. Most people were driving with the top ON cuz it’s too goddamn cold and windy on the coast!

Open up your pocketbook if you want a one-way rental car

Even if you rent the car from Costco, one-way rentals are usually not cheap. Rental car companies totally take advantage of people wanting to drive this highway, so if your plan is to fly into SFO, rent a car, and return it to LAX or San Diego, you will pay. Consider mapping out your travel plans so that you return the car to the same place you rented it — this will likely add another day to your itinerary because you’re going to have to drive back to where you came from (You can take the I-5 instead, which is much faster). Outweigh the costs vs time, etc.

There you have it! Just some tips to hopefully make your trip down the California coast more enjoyable!

Any tips to share? Let me know in the comments!