California

California, in a few days

From the Golden Gate to Hollywood along Highway 1, by way of the cliffs of Big Sur and the beaches of Malibu: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

Day by day

1

San Francisco

Days 1-2

A city of some forty hills at the mouth of the bay, with cable cars, summer fog and neighbourhoods that each keep their own character.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Bay cruise and Alcatraz2h30 · from €45
  The Golden Gate Bridge from the water, and the former island prison that once held Al Capone.

✦ Free to visit

• Golden Gate Bridge, on foot or by bike
• Lombard Street and the cable cars
• Fisherman's Wharf and the sea lions of Pier 39

📲 Book things to do in San Francisco on GetYourGuide

2

Highway 1 and Big Sur

Day 3 · 🚗 Car 3h

Around 90 miles of road cut into the cliffs between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains drop straight into the Pacific.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Monterey and the 17-Mile DriveHalf day · from €12
  A toll road through Pebble Beach, past wind-bent cypresses, golf links and ocean-front houses.

✦ Free to visit

• Bixby Creek Bridge
• McWay Falls, dropping onto the beach

📲 Book things to do in Highway 1 and Big Sur on GetYourGuide

3

Los Angeles and Malibu

Days 4-5 · 🚗 Car 4h30

The capital of the film industry, spread between the beaches of Santa Monica and Malibu and the Hollywood Hills.

🎟️ Worth booking

• Studio tour and HollywoodHalf day · from €60
  The Walk of Fame, the Hollywood sign and a look behind the scenes of a working film studio.

✦ Free to visit

• Santa Monica and Venice Beach
• The Malibu beaches
• Griffith Observatory

📲 Book things to do in Los Angeles and Malibu on GetYourGuide

Worth sorting before you go

You will need a car · The stops are hundreds of miles apart and the coast road is the point of the trip. Highway 1 through Big Sur reopened in full in January 2026 after the landslides, but check Caltrans for closures before you set off.

📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly

🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta

🚗 Car hire
Compare the agencies before you land.
Compare · Booking

💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut

🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer

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Flavours & local habits

🍽️ Worth tasting

• Fish tacos: grilled or battered fish in a corn tortilla with cabbage and lime, the lunch of the southern coast.
• Sourdough and clam chowder: San Francisco's tangy bread, hollowed out and filled with creamy clam soup.
• Dungeness crab: the local crab, cracked and eaten at Fisherman's Wharf when in season, from late autumn.
• Mission burrito: the oversized, foil-wrapped burrito of San Francisco's Mission District.
• Californian wine: from Napa and Sonoma north of the bay, and from Paso Robles, inland from the southern end of Big Sur.

⚠️ Best avoided

• Tipping is not optional: 15 to 20% in restaurants is the norm.
• Prices are shown before sales tax, which is added at the till.
• Leave nothing visible in a parked car, above all in San Francisco, where break-ins are common.
• Do not underestimate the drive: San Francisco to Los Angeles by the coast takes two full days to enjoy.
• Take out travel insurance with good medical cover: treatment in the US is very expensive.

Words that help

✈️ Flight delayed by 3 hours or more, or cancelled? You may be owed up to €600. Check your flight on AirHelp.

The practical page

Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/california

Packing checklist

Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.