Travelling LA to San Francisco along the Coast Road instead of San Francisco to LA

[mickey68]

As the title says will we regret travelling north instead of south? Original plan was to fly to SFO and home from LA but due to crazy high prices for our dates in San Francisco due to a convention we are looking at doing it in reverse. Any experiences of travelling north and did you wish you had done it the other way round? I appreciate the car won't be on the coast side but as a nervous passenger this may be a benefit! We intend to stop off at regular intervals for photos and to admire the views. Thank you! 😁

[disney babe]

there are some areas where the road splints so you wont be on the coast going north but other than that should be ok if price is better, we did SF to LA and it was amazing & did make it easier for coming off, photos when moving etc but either will be good

[mickey68]

Thank you we could push the holiday back a few days but prefer to keep our original dates unless driving north will significantly reduce the experience. One advantage is that by the time we reach the road closure it should have reopened as we will be 2 weeks later than originally planned.

[jdouds]

Hi we drove north and no real difference , great views both ways and infect visual overload

[jocat]

We travelled North from LA to San Francisco last year and wondered the same while we were planning our trip. However the vastly increased cost of flights the other way round meant that we stuck with our planned route.

There are so many pull ins to the various viewing spots, I honestly didn’t regret it. Due to the PCH closure, we did do some of it the other way round - from Monterey we travelled south as far as we could, before turning round and returning, and we also did the same at the southern end of the closure.

I’d stick with your plans to avoid the convention prices in San Francisco.

[TinkerBabe]

I agree that there’s no need to change your direction but one thing to note is that when we did it SF to La, the weather got warmer each day! You will just need to be aware that your weather may get cooler as you go north, but it doesn’t matter you are still getting the same sunshine overall!

[mickey68]

Originally Posted by jocat

We travelled North from LA to San Francisco last year and wondered the same while we were planning our trip. However the vastly increased cost of flights the other way round meant that we stuck with our planned route.

There are so many pull ins to the various viewing spots, I honestly didn’t regret it. Due to the PCH closure, we did do some of it the other way round - from Monterey we travelled south as far as we could, before turning round and returning, and we also did the same at the southern end of the closure.

I’d stick with your plans to avoid the convention prices in San Francisco.

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Thank you - I have read your trip report which was really helpful and sounded like a fantastic trip! Was it difficult having to pull out across both lanes of traffic after each stop? No idea how busy the road is!

[400ixl]

I wouldn't pay more to do it the other way around. South is definitely better but not worth an inconvenience in dates or cost.

[mickey68]

Originally Posted by TinkerBabe

I agree that there’s no need to change your direction but one thing to note is that when we did it SF to La, the weather got warmer each day! You will just need to be aware that your weather may get cooler as you go north, but it doesn’t matter you are still getting the same sunshine overall!

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We did think about this and liked the idea of a few days in San Diego at the end but we will have the warmth at the start and we can get used to the cooler temps before travelling home! As you say still the same sunshine overall!

[mickey68]

Originally Posted by jdouds

Hi we drove north and no real difference , great views both ways and infect visual overload

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That's good to hear thank you!