Laguna Beach to Santa Monica
Highway 1 begins unceremoniously, emerging from a tangle of freeway ramps in Orange County’s Dana Point. There’s a glimpse of ocean, but it isn’t until Laguna Beach that Highway 1 becomes Pacific Coast Highway in more than name. In the O.C., the luxe life is everywhere—pastel villas, yachts, and the requisite Ferrari dealer—while Huntington Beach delivers the simpler pleasures of 10 miles of beachfront. Then the road veers from the ocean, even going underground beneath the runways at LAX. All of which makes it that much sweeter when Highway 1 escapes the darkness of the McClure Tunnel to bask in the Santa Monica sun.
Miles: 60 | Number of boats in Newport Harbor: 9,000 | Surf shops in Huntington Beach: 13 | Lights on Santa Monica Pier’s Pacific Wheel: 160,000
Most Beautiful Stretch of Sand, Laguna Beach
Perfect Fish Sandwiches, Newport Beach
A Soulful Surfing Superstore, Huntington Beach
Far out Footprints, Huntington Beach
Legends of the Surf, Huntington Beach
A Peerless Pier, Manhattan Beach
A Stay at the Shore, Santa Monica
Malibu to Lompoc
Secluded Sands, Malibu
Island Idyll, Ventura
Seaside Seafood, Santa Barbara
Match Made in Heaven, Santa Barbara County
The Hills Are Alive, Santa Barbara County
Miracle Burgers, Jalama Beach
The New Wine Country, Lompoc
Cayucos to Point Lobos
Smokin' Good Fish, Cayucos
The Magic Castle, San Simeon
Unfortunately, Hearst Castle is closed during the summer of 2020 due to COVID-19, with no firm reopening date set. Please check the castle's web site before you go to see if it has reopened.
Of course you want to see Hearst Castle—no trip up Highway 1 would be complete without a tour of William Randolph’s fabled hilltop estate. If you’ve visited before, we suggest getting a more intimate glimpse of the press baron on the Upstairs Suites Tour. Afterward, head down the hill to San Simeon, the tiny port that gave the castle its official name. Sebastian’s Store serves superior burgers (made from Hearst Ranch beef); across the street, San Simeon Pier and W.R. Hearst Memorial State Beach are both fine places to soak up a little sun with your views of the Pacific. Castle: From $25; hearstcastle.org. Sebastian’s Store: $; 442 SLO San Simeon Rd.; (805) 927-3307.A Bend in the Redwoods, Big Sur
Solitary Strolling, Big Sur
Dining with a View, Big Sur
Secret Bargain, Big Sur
Greatest Hike, Point Lobos
Postcard-Perfect Scenery, Point Lobos
Pebble Beach to Half Moon Bay
After the untamed drama of Big Sur, Highway 1 makes a calmer approach to the sweep of Monterey Bay. The pleasures here are civilized: Pebble Beach’s fairways, Carmel’s galleries, and Pacific Grove’s narrow streets of tiny Victorian cottages. But along the Santa Cruz waterfront, the refined gives way to the endless summer pursuits of roller-coaster rides at the beachfront boardwalk and surfing the perfect waves at Steamer Lane. It can get big at Steamer but nothing like at Half Moon Bay, 50 miles north, where the Mavericks Invitational doesn’t even take place unless the wave faces reach 20 feet or more. So much for civilized pleasures.
Miles: 96 | Number of U.S. Opens held at Pebble Beach: 5 | Year people first surfed at Santa Cruz: 1885 | Top speed of Giant Dipper roller coaster: 46 mph
Lunch on the Links, Pebble Beach
Perfect Beach Day, Monterey Bay
Thrill Rides, Santa Cruz
Picnic Pairings, Santa Cruz
Tasty Souvenirs, Davenport
Top Taps, Pescadero
Scenic Sentinel, Pescadero
Guided by Nature, San Mateo County
Hidden Gem, San Mateo County
Hidden Beaches, Half Moon Bay
Roadside Stunner, Half Moon Bay
San Francisco to Jenner
A Perfect Point of View, San Francisco
Lost in the Labyrinth, San Francisco
Fort Baker, Sausalito
Divine Descent, Point Reyes
Heaven on the Half-Shell, Inverness
Placid Path, Tomales Bay
Architectural Icon, Bodega Bay
A Private Pocket of the Coast, Jenner
Fortuitous Curves, Sonoma Coast
Sea Ranch to Rockport
The northernmost stretch of Highway 1 is moody. One hour it’s fog-wrapped and brooding. An hour later, a gentle sun gives highway, forest, and ocean a brilliant sparkle. The road skirts coastal towns that hug cliff tops (Elk) and pose tidily on bluffs (Mendocino). Rivers—the Navarro, the Little, the Big—curve beneath bridges as they meet the sea. This remains a working coast. Fort Bragg’s still a fishing port, and you may share the road with a logging truck. Above Rockport, Highway 1 bends inland toward its terminus at U.S. 101 at Leggett. Before that, linger among the redwoods that line its final miles: They’re stunning, unforgettable, like Highway 1.
Miles: 90 | Most recent value of year’s catch from Fort Bragg: $6.8 million | Number of B&Bs in Mendocino Village: 46 | Steps up Point Arena Lighthouse: 145