Southwest USA & The West Coast (California, Arizona etc) - General Thread

northwest1965

JoeA81 wrote: »

We wanted to retain a little flexibility in our highway 1 drive (which we plan to spend 5-7 days doing), so if we liked a certain place we could stay an extra day perhaps and then whiz through anywhere that didnt really grab us.

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I'm first to stick my nose in:rotfl:. 5-7 days? That would be way too long for me.

JoeA81

Fair enough, but we went on a campervan holiday in NZ last year, and got absolutely sick of driving endlessly everyday.

Perhaps we are over-reacting against that experience, but we really wanted time to relax and enjoy places we like.

Can I ask, why did you enjoy Death Valley, I'd not really considered it?

Cheers,

northwest1965

Well when we were originally planning, we were just booking a night at Stovepipe Wells to get our heads down. We were naively just expecting a long boring road through Death Valley with not much to look at. We're both keen walkers and prefer places like DV/GC/Yosemite to SF and Monterey.

I am sure others will say, it's OK, but just OK.

This time, (in Sept) we are staying 2nights to walk and explore even more.:)

gracie10

Can anyone recommend places to eat in Santa Monica and Pismo beach please? Thanks

Murphy_The_Cat

Doc Bernsteins Ice Cream Parlour

jackieblack

Murphy_The_Cat wrote: »

Doc Bernsteins Ice Cream Parlour

MMMMmmmmm...........Doc Bernsteins :drool::drool::drool::drool:
We still have the periodic table of Ice Cream on our fridge!

lazyjack

gracie10 wrote: »

Can anyone recommend places to eat in Santa Monica and Pismo beach please? Thanks

Hoagie's in Pismo Beach (don't expect anything fancy): http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g32894-d824019-Reviews-Hoagies_Sandwiches_Grill-Pismo_Beach_California.html

If you like burgers, you've got to try The Counter in Santa Monica: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g33052-d348069-Reviews-The_Counter-Santa_Monica_California.html

Nice place for breakfast in Santa Monica: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g33052-d509480-Reviews-Marmalade_Cafe-Santa_Monica_California.html

Dirk_Gently_2

gracie10 wrote: »

Can anyone recommend places to eat in Santa Monica and Pismo beach please? Thanks

It's a bit out of Santa Monica - and can get a bit crowded - but for anyone travelling North on Pacific Coast Highway the Paradise Cove Beach Cafe is simply stunning. Good food in a superb setting. Don't be put off by the ludicrously expensive parking lot, that's just for people only visiting the beach. Parking is cheap/free for Beach Cafe visitors.

http://www.paradisecovemalibu.com/beach-cafe/

Dirk_Gently_2

Hi everyone - I only just stumbled onto this tread/forum - which looks like it'll be interesting and hopefully I'll be able to contribute to. I've done about ten or so self-planned California/South West road trips in the past 20 years, and know Utah particulary well, so if anyone has any Utah-specific questions please feel free to ask away.

Just currently planning a trip starting in Salt Lake City - then 4 days travelling the canyonlands of Utah, including Monument Valley, then across to Vegas, Yosemite and San Francisco.

Murphy_The_Cat

Dirk_Gently wrote: »

Hi everyone - I only just stumbled onto this tread/forum - which looks like it'll be interesting and hopefully I'll be able to contribute to. I've done about ten or so self-planned California/South West road trips in the past 20 years, and know Utah particulary well, so if anyone has any Utah-specific questions please feel free to ask away.

Just currently planning a trip starting in Salt Lake City - then 4 days travelling the canyonlands of Utah, including Monument Valley, then across to Vegas, Yosemite and San Francisco.

Snap(ish), I've got 4 days Salt Lake City, 2 days Cedar City, ! day Vegas, 1 day Death Valley, 1 day Bakersfield and 5 days San Luis Opisbo lined up for this Summer -- happy days.:beer: