Spend the night in Pismo Beach or Paso Robles. Take a detour into Solvang and continue to the tiny town of Los Olivos. Have lunch, spend the afternoon and stay overnight in Santa Barbara. If you have three days: You can make an even more leisurely journey.Grab some picnic supplies or road snacks and make the drive to San Francisco on the second day. Spend the night in Pismo Beach for a fun, California beach town experience or stop in Paso Robles, which is known for its local wine and food. If you can take two days: Stop for lunch in Santa Barbara.Bob's Well Bread at 550 Bell Street in the town of Los Alamos is a great place to get a quick meal or something for the road. Plan on either getting a quick meal or taking along a picnic or snacks to eat while you drive. It's actually shorter than following the coast. When you get to the two ways to get from Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo, take the inland route. Allow about 9 hours for a couple of stops to stretch your legs, eat, and take care of other primary needs. Your GPS may say the trip takes 7 hours, but that's with no stops, a superhuman feat that you probably don't want to attempt. It takes a little longer than I-5, but it's more interesting and less hectic. If you only have one day: It's easy enough to make this drive in a day if you don't dawdle.In the summer, you will have more than 14 hours of daylight, but in December, it's only about 9.5 hours.
#HOW LONG WILL I TAKE TO DRIVE 10 MILES GOING 55MPH ZIP#
If you're going on a road trip, you probably want to see the sights, not zip past them in the dark.
When you're planning, think about how much daylight you'll have. You could spend a week on the trip if you make every stop and follow every interesting side road, but you can do it in much less time. The total distance from Los Angeles to San Francisco on 101 is about 420 miles. You can see the ocean, but you also get a look at some fascinating inland areas and drive through a variety of landscapes. In fact, 101 is a good alternative to the busy interstate - and it takes less time than the coastal route. If Goldilocks were talking about California Highway 101, she might start like this, looking at Interstate Highway 5: "This one is too busy, and it's s-o-o boring." Looking at the coastal route on Highway One, she might continue: "This one is too long and - oh my! I might get carsick." She would end by saying: "Highway 101 is just right."