Going on a road trip: what to visit in LA/California in general?

[Germanauto]

Downtown SF is fun. Be sure to try Tony's Pizza in the North Beach district, some of the best pizza I've ever had. Wait is routinely 2-3 hrs but you can order take out.

Union Square has excellent shopping and lots of foot traffic.

Definitely visit the Golden Gate Bridge, it's a must.

Skip Fisherman's Wharf. Trashy, smelly, ugly, nothing to see there unless you plan on doing a boat ride.

[Germanauto]

San Diego isn't the most exciting city (compared to LA for example) but you can definitely enjoy yourself for 2-3 days there. Unlike LA, SD is very clean and extraordinarily beautiful. It provides the true Southern California experience. I recommend driving HWY 1 between SD and LA as there are a few Orange County beach towns which are absolutely spectacular (Laguna Beach, Dana Point, etc.).

Vegas gets boring after 3 days, and with your GF not being 21 it severely hinders the fun you can have there.

[jgoens]

Originally Posted by Germanauto

Downtown SF is fun. Be sure to try Tony's Pizza in the North Beach district, some of the best pizza I've ever had. Wait is routinely 2-3 hrs but you can order take out.

Union Square has excellent shopping and lots of foot traffic.

Definitely visit the Golden Gate Bridge, it's a must.

Skip Fisherman's Wharf. Trashy, smelly, ugly, nothing to see there unless you plan on doing a boat ride.

Agree on Union square area, but I think for a first timer and tourist the wharf is a must. Take the cable car from Union square to the wharf and walk all the way to Pier 39. There are great pictures to be taken along the wharf with stunning views of the bay. It is a tourist hot spot, hence more litter around but it has cool attractions like the wax museum.

Oftentimes, when people from other countries come we take them to the Wharf and have lunch at the Rainforest cafe.

And speaking of boatrides...taking a ferry out to Alcatraz is interesting but you have to plan that one way out ahead.

Originally Posted by Germanauto

I recommend driving HWY 1 between SD and LA as there are a few Orange County beach towns which are absolutely spectacular (Laguna Beach, Dana Point, etc.).

Vegas gets boring after 3 days, and with your GF not being 21 it severely hinders the fun you can have there.

Agreed.

[someguywithanm3]

Try to visit the Getty Villa and Getty Center, if you can.

You may enjoy breakfast at the Griddle in LA. Be warned, those pancakes can feed a family.

[GoRomeo]

Originally Posted by are0lies

Find pictures of the places people are telling you about so you can determine for yourself if they are worth it to you. As for TJ; nothing is worth the return trip of at least 3 - 4 hours of the return to cross the border. Don't forget the GPS.

nah during the week is about 30 min tops..

[GoRomeo]

Originally Posted by Ktmdude

I don't think my girlfriend wil be happy with the last one! Is it easy to cross the US/Mexican border though? Also, it's probably not allowed with a rental car is it?

haha regarding your GF probably not. rental, Just park at the border. You dont need to take rental if you go near the border. You can use taxi. But probably the best way and safest to go is with someone who knows the area well. But is one if a lifetime experience. Mexico is a great place to visit if you can. Lots of fun stuff and great beaches as you may already know..

[E92 M Sport]

I visited CA last fall, stayed in LA 2 days before my cruise. LA and surrounding has mad traffic. It took me about 1.5 hours to go 10 miles, from my hotel to Rodeo Drive, Sunset Blvd, etc. it was nuts, worse than Jersey traffic. But cool stuff outside of LA:

Any of the canyon roads off Route 1 north of Santa Monica, by Malibu. Maybe half hour north of LA. Cool eateries on the oceanfront also. As others have said, foggy by the ocean, but awesome once you get up in the mountains. I also stumbled onto Simi Valley, and checked out the President Reagan library. Awesome views plus you can go on an older Air Force One.

San Fran: check out Alcatraz. Spent an overnight there on the cruise stop. Coit tower also awesome views in San Fran.

Arizona: Grand Canyon for sure! Sedona was nice too.

Hope this helps. Good luck and safe travels.

[pz619]

Originally Posted by Ktmdude

I don't think my girlfriend wil be happy with the last one! Is it easy to cross the US/Mexican border though? Also, it's probably not allowed with a rental car is it?

+1 on the TJ taco.

You might be able to take your rental across the border, but if just visiting TJ for the day, just take a car service (uber or taxi). Walking across the border is fast. I have a Global Entry card but even then, I don't see people waiting more than 5 minutes without the card if you walk across.

[Hawkeye]

I guess I would go against most of the suggestions on here. I would immediately head north to Utah - there are a lot of amazing national parks that you can easily spend a few weeks exploring! California has always been pretty 'meh' to me. Great weather... but overall lackluster otherwise. Good wine tours in wine country also I guess.