![]() ![]() Stopping is for losers – or so says my husband Don. Plus, by moving kids directly from bed to the car when they’re half asleep, they are fuzzyheaded for a good hour or two before they realize they should be complaining.Ģ. We pack the car the night before, prep coffee and snacks, and get on the road as early as we can. The early departure gives you a head start on other travelers, helps you avoid rush hour traffic, and lets you see sunrise in the San Joaquin Valley – the prettiest time of day apart from sunset. We have pulled onto Interstate 5 from 580 at 7am and hit stopped traffic on the Saturday before Christmas. On prime holiday weekends, go an hour earlier. We leave at 6am for SF to LA trips and 5am for LA to SF trips. You must follow two simple rules to avoid an 8-10 hour trip. If you have more than two people traveling, driving will always be hundreds of dollars less expensive than flying – especially with today’s low gasoline prices.īut don’t think you can just waltz out to your car with your kids and your bags and get up or down the state in 6-7 hours. We drive SF-LA door-to-door in 6 to 7 hours, depending on where we start and end in each metro area, which makes the few hours saved by flying amazingly costly. When you factor in the time it takes to get to the airport, clear security, check-in, fly, and take ground transportation to your destination – which typically necessitates renting a car – you’re talking, best case, a 4-5 hour “flight time.” But the 400ish-mile-distance between the two cities means it takes almost as much time to fly as it does to drive. If you’re dreading a road trip down (or up) the state, don’t worry: There are several things you can do to make the trip fast and easy.įirst, you have to accept the fact that the fastest way to get between SF and LA is to drive “The 5.” Complainers say the famous Central Valley artery is unattractive and takes forever. Fog and cold just make it more magical, in my opinion.Īfter you are done at the coast you could head inland a bit and hit up the Sonoma/ Napa valley for some great food and wine before you head back home.Having lived the first half of my life in Los Angeles and the second half in San Francisco, I have driven back and forth between the two cities about a thousand times – often on my own and often with kids in the back seat. Oysters a a big thing here, and you could do mountain biking, horseback riding, or kayaking on the bay. The hiking in this area is absolutely endless. Or a place in Inverness, bodega bay, or point Reyes. You could rent a beach house at stinson or bolinas. If you want to do hiking maybe you would consider coming to Inverness/point Reyes national seashore. October is wonderful but I’m afraid that November is just too iffy in my opinion. I was just in Tahoe a week ago and it was amazing. Snow shoeing could be an option but you really are in a transition period and you never really know if there will be snow. Lake Tahoe may be magical but hiking may be challenging. My hunch is that will keep the crowds away as the ticket sales will be reservation only and some resorts may only allow access to pass holders. The ski resorts will be reducing capacity this year due to Covid. (How do you drive around when it is snowing?). There are still chances of storm/rain, but at least won't hamper your going around. Or even north of San Francisco such as Bodega Bay, Mendocino, etc. I would suggest, if you make this trip, to go to coastal towns. What are you going to do during the day? Staying in your motel/hotel rooms for 6 days? Indoor activities (museums or other likes) will be not available (and be frank you don't want to do those anyway). Most restaurants may be forced to close indoor dining. That may translate to more shut downs and restrictions in coming weeks. You think things are bad now, with the USA total cases jumped >80000 in one single day today. The big issue is still with the rapid rising of Covid cases into the winter. For 8 days? How do you send the rest of the time? You may have a few trails to choose from, likely around the lake shore somewhere. Any trail at higher elevation may not be assessible. It is a bit too early to ski (which you don't do anyway), but it is a bit too cold for hiking. There will be ice on the roads/local streets, slush. After first snow, things get a little bit "messy". Sometimes snow comes early, sometimes late. No snow yet, but it is just a matter of time. It is below freezing overnight this week. The weather is getting cold now, and will only be colder in a month. Sorry I think it is not a good timing for visiting/staying at Lake Tahoe this Thanksgiving. ![]()
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