California Road Trips: Itineraries by Region and Season

Pick your travel month first. High Sierra passes close in winter, deserts are dangerously hot from about June to September, and Highway 1 can lose sections to winter slides.

Plan 3 to 4 hours of driving per day. If a route needs 6-hour days, add a day or cut a region.

Highway 1 covers Bixby Creek Bridge, Monterey sea otters and elephant seals near San Simeon. The Highway 1 road trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles takes five days.

Santa Barbara, the Santa Ynez Valley and Paso Robles are within about 2 hours of each other on US-101.

North of San Francisco, Highway 1 and US-101 run through Mendocino, the Avenue of the Giants and Redwood National and State Parks. The Northern California coast road trip covers it; Highway 1 north of Jenner is narrow and slow.

The Shasta-Cascade loop links Burney Falls, Mt. Shasta and Lassen Volcanic National Park. See the Northern California road trips hub.

Highway 395 through the Eastern Sierra passes the Alabama Hills, Bishop, Mammoth Lakes, June Lake and Mono Lake below 14,000-foot peaks.

Lake Tahoe works as a long weekend from the Bay Area. Highway 49 through Gold Country links Nevada City, Sutter Creek and Murphys.

• High country season: late May to October; aspens from late September
• Tioga Pass and Sonora Pass close from about November to late May or June
• Highway 395 stays open most winters; chain controls are common after storms

The Orange County to San Diego coast works year-round. Laguna Beach, Encinitas and La Jolla are within about 90 minutes of each other outside rush hour.

The Southern California desert loop through Palm Springs, Joshua Tree and Anza-Borrego is best November to April. Death Valley pairs with the Eastern Sierra in winter.

The 10-day California national parks road trip links Yosemite, Sequoia and Death Valley in one loop.

Book summer and holiday lodging early near parks and small coastal towns. In Big Sur, the Owens Valley and Death Valley, refuel below half a tank.