Route 1 – Big Sur Coast Highway

Amazing. A must drive!!!
This is one of the most beautiful highways to drive. It travels along a cliff for miles with amazing views of the ocean and the mountains. They have plenty of parking spots to enjoy the views.
There are a couple of cute restaurants along the drive as well.
Be careful a night, but there are lots of turn offs available throughout.

Highway 1 Big Sur Central Coastal drive is a perfect getaway that one could do with their family/​friends on a pleasant sunny day. It’s every Californian’s dream leisure drive and of course, so is every tourist’s must-do’s when they hit the west coast if they’ve good extra time to drive past this beautiful and most scenic natural wonder!!!
Big Sur is approximately 150 miles south of San Francisco and 300 miles north of Los Angeles, having countless breathtaking views along the way, stretches about 90 miles along the Pacific Ocean. Woahhh! It was so good to drive along the Pacific Ocean!!! Totally worth it! Just 3 words, DON’T MISS IT!!!
We (the hubby & me) stopped every few miles at various vista points to catch a glimpse of this most admired beauty of the world. The view of every turnout was stunning too!
HIGHLIGHTS of the DRIVE,
~ Bixby Creek Bridge & Bixby Creek Bridge Beach — Pull over on the north end of the bridge to catch mind-​blowing view of both the bridge and the cute beach (down the bridge). There’s a pull-​out parking area, which’l be tightly packed most times, but worth a wait to catch the view. I guess the beach is a private property and it’s not easy to get there unless via boat. This is the most famous photographed point and the most admired ones along the highway.
~ River Inn Big Sur, Restaurant & Hotel Service — I recommend people to stop by at this spot for refreshments like hot drinks/​light snack/​meals. Liked their inside setting, very quaint place with impressive antique furnitures and old photographs. There’s a small bar area inside. Outdoor seating of the restaurant is the most talked about feature where the creek runs in the middle. Quite relaxing. However, we are yet to try their hotel service.
~ McWay Falls — Located 12 miles south of Big Sur village, in the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. The uniqueness of this waterfall is that it falls 80 feet straight onto the beach. I liked the beach and the background nature of the spot and not the waterfall part. Honestly, I felt the waterfall rants and raves are quite an exaggeration. It was indeed a spectacular view, but the waterfall is a mere hype. There’s a small tunnel along the walking trail towards the waterfall view. At the time of sunset, the point where the tunnel ends got us many silhouette shots surprisingly. So, don’t forget to wait and capture as many silhouettes as you can.
~ Pfeiffer Beach — This is people’s most favorite spot to capture the dazzling Sunsets. It’s a day use area and no overnight camping. To find the exact starting point to the beach is a little trickier one. You need to find the turnout that takes you to the beach on the Sycamore Canyon Road. The beach has a long stretch of sand, cliffs and a large arch-​shaped rock with a square hole in the middle. This arch-​shaped rock is another famous photographed spot. We both completely enjoyed the beach and the sunset sight behind the arch-​shaped rock.
Fun tip,
Guess what? you can spot picturesque visuals of this ‘Scenic Highway One’ in the 1947 classic movie, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir! When you compare Big Sur shots from the movie with Big Sur’s latest photographs, you’l realize how it’s charm still magically remains the same till date.
Definitely, worth coming back just to enjoy it’s tranquillity!

This stretch of Highway 1 along the Big Sur coastline is as amazing as everyone else says it is. This really is one of those bucket list things that you have to do if you either live in or are visiting California.
It took us about 3 hours or so to drive between Seaside and San Simeon and it was a great drive past breathtaking views of the ocean, across Bixby Bridge, past awesome parks, and right next to the elephant seals that hang out near San Simeon.
Some tips for the drive:
1. Make sure you gas up beforehand because gas will be very expensive off of Highway 1
2. Bring food/​sandwiches for the road since you will be in the car for a few hours
3. Check-​in with other passengers if anyone gets motion sickness since Highway 1 is very curvy. People who get motion sickness should either drive or sit shotgun, people who don’t get motion sickness should sit in the back seat
This was my first time doing this stretch of Highway 1 and it was so wonderful that I would love to do it again. It looks like there are so many fun recreational opportunities in the parks along this stretch of coastline if you want to do more than just the drive.

This was one of our best trips. Words cannot describe how beautiful it is. Do not rush through, take 2 – 3 days minimum to really enjoy yourself and make frequent stops along the way. I heard that there are people who take the whole week just for Big Sur.
We did our drive from San Diego to San Fran in two days. We would have loved to spend more time but we were on a tight schedule. There are many visa points, state parks, and attractions to stop at. I didn’t know you could go camping at certain locations along Big Sur. I’ll keep that in mind for future.

Big Sur is absolutely everything it’s cracked up to be. I have to admit I was a little skeptical given everybody’s rants and raves, but it truly is magical and romantic.
Take your time on this drive. Get out at as many vistas as you can. My favorite right now is Hurricane Point, just south of Bixby Bridge. But seriously, stop often, look at all the beaches, coves, bridges, and occasional wildlife. If you’ve made it out to Big Sur but don’t take the time to soak it in, you’re doing yourself a disservice.
There are some hiking trails to various beaches that start off the shoulder of the highway. The ways to explore are limitless.
There’s a reason Jack Kerouac and many, many others have found this place enchanting. It’s right up there with (and possibly even more beautiful than) Yosemite.

After going to Nor Cal at least once a year for most of my entire life, I decided it was time for me to make the trip going to Nor Cal via the scenic 101/​PCH 1 route this past week. I left from LA around 6:30 AM and did a pit stop at SLO for gas/​lunch before continuing to PCH 1.
The drive itself going north is «safer» than going south since you are on the inside and not driving right along the cliffs. It wasn’t that bad, I just took the tricky curves slowly and not rush things since I was enjoying the view, too.
Some pit stops you should definitely take:
Elephant Seal Vista Point — there are so many elephant seals and they are either sleeping or playing in the water. If you’re lucky, you might even see a whale from a distance.
McWay Falls — untouched by humans, you can view McWay Falls from far away. It is a beautiful sight and it will allow you some time to stretch your legs from your car ride.
Pfeiffer Beach — $ 10 entry/​car but it is a secluded beach that offers a huge rock to climb, purple sand, and two keyholes in the rock created by the crashing waves.
Bixby Creek Bridge — one of the most famous landmark of this scenic route, it was my last leg of the trip before I got back inland and continued my trip away from the coast.
17 Mile Drive in Carmel/​Pebble Beach/​Monterey — I already did this route on a separate trip so I skipped it this time around but if you haven’t been, this is another great addition. More beautiful view of the coast and iconic spots that you must check out (Lone Cypress, Pebble Beach, and Bird Rock).
I did this trip on a Wednesday in July so it was less crowded than a weekend trip. There are signs everywhere and gas stations, restaurants, etc every 50 miles or so. Try to avoid the traffic at the merge of the PCH 1 freeway with all the other traffic near Monterey during rush hour (4 – 6 PM). I got stuck in that and it was not fun.

Driving up the Pacific Coast Highway is such a classic California must do. I finally got the chance to do that since my friend and I wanted to visit Big Sur. There are plenty of turnouts for you to view the coast. We stopped by Morro Bay State Park to see Morro Rock, saw the elephant seals, Big Sur, Carmel and finally ending at Monterey. We also stopped by the Danish town, Slovang. The coastal vews are absolutely breathtaking and stunning. They are doing some construction on the 1 at the northern portion of Big Sur so be aware of traffic. I will definitely do this drive again and explore more things to do. Look up places along the coast, plan your trip and drive off into the sunset on as you coast along 1 :)