2020 has been a wild ride, but with all of the hardships comes many blessings. Having that mindset has been EVERYTHING this year. Since flying is a riskier choice of travel, we’ve been able to dust off the good ol’ road trip to cure that travel bug we are all feeling. My husband and I are fortunate enough to live in beautiful California (certainly not a bad place to quarantine). There are so many great road trip destinations from the LA area and one of the highest on our list has been driving through Big Sur. So we packed our bags and headed North!
Big Sur
Big Sur is the rugged, mountainous, and untouched central coast of California. It starts from Carmel in the North and ends in San Simeon in the South. Me, being an East Coast girl, always thought Big Sur was a city, but it’s actually a region of California. There is not much in the way of homes and businesses and that is what makes Big Sur so special. You come here to check out the views, hike the trails and embrace nature.
Tips For the Road Trip
MAKE STOPS GOING NORTH TO SOUTH: With the vista points being on the ocean side of the drive, it’s easiest to stop off when you’re driving from North to South since the pull offs are on the same side of the road. You can absolutely stop off going South to North you just have to be more careful driving in and out.
NO SERVICE: There is no service once you get into the heart of Big Sur. Download an offline map on Google Maps and pin the top destinations that you want to check out!
BE PREPARED : The stopping points along the way are quite abrupt. There were a few places that were a must for us to stop at so I made sure to be hyper prepared that way I knew where to slow down since the pull offs are not necessarily mapped and it’s hard to make any u-turns if you miss your chance.
GO WITH THE FLOW: While you should be prepared with any destinations that you want to check out, you should also give yourself an extra hour or two for those surprise stops! Pull off to as many vista points as humanly possible. Big Sur is huge, beautiful and unpredictable. You’ll never know what you find if you miss that pull off. If you’re wondering if you should… DO IT!
PACK LUNCH & ROAD TRIP SNACKS: We decided not to make any plans to stop for lunch because honestly, there’s really not many places to stop for a bite. Packing our lunch, stopping at a beautiful vista point and eating with a view was one of the best decisions we made.
BATHROOMS: They are far and few between, but every so often in Big Sur you’ll find these little road stops that have a cafe, sometimes gas, a gift shop and bathroom. If you even think you have to go, I recommend you make the stop, because again, they are far and few between.
Below are some cute towns and breathtaking stops that we took along our way up from LA to Carmel.
Morrow Bay
Morrow Bay is a cute little town on the coast of California. It was the first stop that we made heading from LA to Carmel. We stopped in a parking lot right before Morrow Rock to eat some lunch with a view and take our pup, Olli, on a walk along the bay. We used this as a short stop along our road trip, but while in Morrow Bay there are many things to do like hikes, beaches, and water sports (like kayaking & paddle boarding).
If you don’t pack a lunch like us, their Embarcadero has a ton of restaurants to eat at with a view of the bay. Definitely stop for their well known seafood. Do not miss going to Crill’s Morro Bay for their salt water taffy – a 1/4 lb. is only $2.50!
Estero Bluffs
This is not something that you’ll see in your research on places to visit along the way up to Big Sur from LA, but this is a stop that we really cherished. We drove with our pup and since this was a dog friendly location, it was a beautiful and isolated place to let him hike, run around on the many beaches, and play in the water. Since it is not too far from Morro Bay, it gives you beautiful views of Morro Rock. There is an easy parking area to pull in and out of, so if you’re looking for a place to stretch your legs, don’t miss this stop.
Julia Pfeiffer Burns Vista Point
We decided not to head inside to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park since we road tripped with our dog, but we still wanted to enjoy all of the views of this beautiful area. One of the iconic view points shown above you can see from the Vista Point area that pops up right after signs for Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.
Bixby Creek Bridge
Anyone else a fan of Big Little Lies? This iconic bridge featured in their show bridges the gap from San Luis Obispo to Carmel. We took a stop here to check out the views of the bridge on our way up from LA to Carmel. If you’re heading south to north, keep an eye out for a stop off on the left hand side right AFTER crossing the bridge. On our way home, heading back to LA we also stopped on the south side of the bridge to check out the views from a new vantage point. I recommend trying different views for yourself too.
Below are some cute towns and breathtaking stops that we took along our way down from Carmel to LA.
McWay Falls
McWay Falls is Big Sur’s most famous gem. It is an 80ft. waterfall that flows year round. With such a beautiful landscape and view it’s an absolute must see. It’s not everyday you see a waterfall that flows from a creek and falls onto a beach. There’s 2 ways to see McWay Falls – you can go inside Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park ($10 fee) or park along the road and see it from Hwy 1 (Free!). If you go inside the park you get a bit of a closer view, I decided to take a look from the road and save the money. Trust me, the views are still amazing!
To view from the road, you’ll want to stop right around the entrance of Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. You’ll most likely see a bunch of people hovering around, you’ll know you’re in the right spot. Make sure to walk around to see the full surroundings as this part of the coast is really spectacular.
Watch Surfers at Willow Creek Beach
We stopped off at this parking area to eat our lunch with a view. To our surprise, as we got closer to the cliffside, we saw many surfers riding the waves! My husband recently started surfing so this was the perfect entertainment for our lunch overlooking Big Sur. This area is also a beach for day use. Not sure if it’s a highly marketed viewpoint, but it was one of the more magical moments along our road trip that we like to call our hidden gem (that now I’m sharing with you).
Cambria & Cayucos
If you’re looking for a place to grab lunch, stretch your legs, or do some shopping there are two cute towns along the coast as you get closer to Southern California you can stop at – Cambria & Cayucos. Cambria is a beautiful town with no chain shops and restaurants in sight. Cayucos is a beach town known for its smoked fish and Brown Butter Sea Salt cookie from the Brown Butter Cookie Company. Both towns are right off of Hwy 1 so even if you do not need to stop, it’s worth driving through to check out the vibes of these charming towns.
Elephant Seal Vista Point
I LOVE the Central Coast of California mainly because I saw every type of seal known to America – Sea Lions, Seals & Elephant Seals! This vista point is very crowded, but totally worth it. There are tons of Elephant Seals just moseying around on the beach and in the water. They may be one of the laziest mammals, but they’re entertaining to watch. We overlooked this vista point on the way up to Big Sur due to the overcrowding, but I’m glad we made the stop on the way home. This is a must see!
We spent our time in the California Central Coast staying in Carmel and visiting Monterey, Santa Cruz & Capitola.
The best part about road trips is all you need to spend is gas money! So grab your road trip buddy, scrounge up some change between couch cushions (does this even happen anymore?) and head out on your Big Sur adventure!
[…] out my Guide to Carmel by the Sea & Road Trip Guide: LA to Big Sur, if you plan on traveling the Central California […]