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
- 2 Highway 1 and Big Sur Day 3
- 3 Los Angeles and Malibu Days 4-5
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
Day by day
San Francisco
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.
- Bay cruise and Alcatraz2h30 · from €45The Golden Gate Bridge from the water, and the former island prison that once held Al Capone.
- Golden Gate Bridge, on foot or by bike
- Lombard Street and the cable cars
- Fisherman's Wharf and the sea lions of Pier 39
Highway 1 and Big Sur
Around 90 miles of road cut into the cliffs between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains drop straight into the Pacific.
- Monterey and the 17-Mile DriveHalf day · from €12A toll road through Pebble Beach, past wind-bent cypresses, golf links and ocean-front houses.
- Bixby Creek Bridge
- McWay Falls, dropping onto the beach
Los Angeles and Malibu
The capital of the film industry, spread between the beaches of Santa Monica and Malibu and the Hollywood Hills.
- Studio tour and HollywoodHalf day · from €60The Walk of Fame, the Hollywood sign and a look behind the scenes of a working film studio.
- Santa Monica and Venice Beach
- The Malibu beaches
- Griffith Observatory
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.
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Compare the agencies before you land.
Compare · Booking
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
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
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.