There's misinformation in some of the comments.

Most importantly, I agree with sushipup - staying on Highway 1 north starting around San Luis Obispo will add a bunch of time to the trip. It is a pretty drive but maybe one to do another trip if time is limited. I echo her 5 to 46 to Paso Robles and thence 101 North as the fastest way to get to Monterey from the south. Turn off 101 toward Spreckels to drive through fields or in Salinas to get to Monterey. You can get a flavor of Big Sur by driving south from Monterey for a morning or afternoon drive, just get on Highway 1 south and continue going straight past Carmel.

LA is a big city with a lot of congestion. When coming up from San Diego, you need to plan on leaving the SD area mid morning and passing through LA around mid-day/early afternoon to avoid rush hour traffic. Use Waze or Google maps navigation for advice on what segments of what freeways to take, there are many permutations available and no one way is always best. Sometimes staying on 5 to and through downtown is better than the 405, though there's road construction east of Downtown right now. It depends on the day. I've made the drive from here to nearly the border and back a half dozen times in the past 3 months (and many dozens of times in past years) and this has been my experience.

(The intersection of 405 and 101 isn't around LAX as someone said, it's about 20 miles north of there in the San Fernando Valley)

The normal speed limit is 65, on freeways and roads of limited access. If it's 65, you can safely drive 70-72 without worry of a ticket. There are stretches of freeway outside of urban areas where the speed limit is 70, including parts of 101 between NorCal and SoCal and Interstate 5 North from (and south to) Grapevine to past where I get turn off, maybe to Stockton and then again after Sacramento. However, outside of peak hours in SoCal and seemingly especially in San Diego County, if you're going 70 in one of the middle lanes, people will be flying by you on both your left and your right. On interstate 5 through the San Joaquin Valley, the speed limit (as I said) is 70 and 80+ is normal in the left hand lane.

Trip Adviser is a good resource for what to do and where to stay. Have a good trip, whenever it is.

We have all day to drive, is that not going to be enough time?

If you are proposing driving the 1 or PCH the whole way, then no, a whole day will not do it. From Long Beach through Santa Monica, it's basically a surface street with heavy traffic. Taking the 5 to 46 will make it a lot quicker; it's very fast with a lot of big trucks, and the Grapevine area between LA and Bakersfield is subject to freezing/snow. I am also not a fan of the drive from the 5 to Paso Robles on the 46; miles of nothing, James Dean death site. The coastal route, 5 to 405 to 101, is not as fast but more scenic. Expect major congestion from Orange County through Thousand Oaks, though.

From LaJolla to Monterey would be a long drive even if you don't go highway One. Also depends on the day of the week. If you can get a very early start on the weekend, you'll usually get north of LA pretty easily. Weekday? Time a mid-morning departure and pray that traffic isn't awful.

Thanks for everyone's advice. Time before the last time I drove in that area was when my son was a toddler, it was a nightmare then and his father refused to drive out of the area after driving in to go to Disneyland. I'm not looking forward to it, at least around LA. Next time, my kids were older and I drove around Bakersfield after taking them to Sequoia National Park. I tried to stay away from the cities before heading East and home. I'm thinking of letting my daughter drive the first leg of the trip. We will be there right in the middle of the week.

Just 1 caution to add. If you're going to come up 5, check the weather over the Grapevine. You don't want to get caught in snow / ice. We just came home from Palm Springs a couple days ago. We drove through LA and up 101. I averaged 70-75 the whole way. And no, I wasn't the fastest car on the road. You'll have plenty of time to come up 101, but not detouring to 1.

Golfergrrl, what is the Grapevine? I just realized Monterey and Big Sur are only an hour away from each other so we will just go on a day trip after my son graduates.

Nevermind, just watched a youtube video of it. lol.

It's the nickname given to the part of 5 that transverses the Tejon Pass. It reaches an elevation of 1999 ft. It was actually closed today due to crashes caused by bad weather.Grapevine

I agree with golfergrrl. Plus highway 5 is too boring and 101 offers more options.

This is our rainy season. The PCH itself is brutal in the northern portion just below Big Sur during the winter season. But the area between Pismo Beach (just 11 miles south of San Luis Obispo) and right off 101 and Cambria is beautiful and an easy drive. From Cambria you can cut back across to 101 for the rest of the trip up. It would be easier to drive back down to Big Sur from Monterey for a short day trip then to drive all the way up to it.

As for Monterey nobody should miss the Aquarium. If you decide to take a whale watching tour go with Monterey Bay Whale Watch Center. The red building at the very end of the wharf. Nancy Black runs an excellent tour. On weekends there are often various festivals near the main wharf.

That will be fun. I love visiting that area which is rarely. It has been so dull and dreary this year, I wish I was going with you.

Have a fun, safe trip.

If you have time you might want to drive north of Monterey and see the whole Santa Cruz area.

Things to do in Santa Cruz

Couple of tips, we go to Monterey/Carmel quite often:

1) Plan to hit the Aquarium AFTER 2p if you go weekdays. All the schoolkids pile back on to the schoolbuses and leave at 2p sharp. Don't miss the jellyfish on the second floor; the backlighting was an innovative technique pioneered by the MBAq to show the jellies off beautifully.

2) If you're going to Carmel, don't miss the beach, which is lovely; and if you're around on a Fri or Sat, make a reservation for Tor House, the marvelous stone home built by Robinson Jeffers, one of California's Poet Laureate: http://www.torhouse.org/tours/

Also, since you'll be in Monterey, don't miss the very finest French patisserie in an area full of pseudo-French bakeries - Parker-Lusseau Bakery. Their main store and bakery kitchen is at 731 Munras Ave., open only Wed-Sat. The smaller 539 Hartnell St. store is open longer hours, Mon–Sat. M. Lusseau makes true Parisian croissants:
delicate, flaky, and so buttery you can eat them plain! His pastries and cakes
are exceptional, too. We like to stop by for a quick lunch of the smoked tomato/goat cheese quiche (there's also a spinach and a Lorraine) and some properly made espresso.

Check the website before you visit; the main store is closed the month of January for some interior work, although the branch location reopens Jan. 15th after a 2 week winter break: http://www.parkerlusseau.com/

If you want to have a splurge night out, you can't do better than Montrio/Monterey. Reservations a necessity; it's extremely popular with locals. Chef Tony Baker is classically trained and a brilliant California cuisine chef - and don't miss his desserts, which are sensational. We prefer it to Passionfish/Pacific Grove et. al., although we love lunch at Lucia @Bernardus Resort, Carmel Valley.

I also vote for getting out of the LA Basin in the most efficient manner Wayz can manage, then cutting over through Paso Robles/Cambria to hit Hwy 1 (assuming weather cooperates and no road closures).

Should you need a break from driving, exactly halfway between Cambria and Carmel is the New Camaldoli Hermitage in Big Sur. It's about 10 min up in the hills above Hwy 1 - stunning views, with a small bookstore/gift shop and clean bathroom free for use. Note the hours: New Camaldoli Hermitage - visitors

Have a great time! Wonderful area, one of our favs.

if u happen to eat dinner in Monterey, try Monterey's Fish House. it was absolutely delicious... a little ways off the touristy traps on the wharf.

locals go there. that's what i always look for when traveling "where do the locals go".

Is that the place on Del Monte, near the NPGS? Tried it once, and it is good. It just wasn't on my radar.

yes, that's the one! we went in 2014 and we loved it!!!

oops, sorry OP, just re-read your original post, and yes, you will be in Monterey for 4 days :-}

just and FYI if u do go, it looks uninviting on the outside, but inside its really nice... those blinds don't do anything for the appearance!

Just be aware that, in my experience, mapping apps will underestimate the travel time over a given distance. I think that they can't account for heavy traffic, slower speed limits in sections, and so forth.

I drove to Richmond VA for the World cycling championships in 2015 and my app told me it would take about 7 hours -- it took nearly 10, mostly because posted speed limits were lower than expected..

I used to drive from Encinitas to Agoura Hills (Interstate 5 to 405 to 101) in about 3 hours in the evening or on a weekend. Six hours to San Luis Obispo. That was 25 years ago.

I would suggest you could go up the coast road from La Jolla to Leucadia, then hop onto the 5 at La Costa Avenue ( it doesn't go through Camp Pendleton anyway) and take it to the 405 then to 101. I don't think that the Orange County coast is compelling enough to drive through get back off the 5, although if I had time to stop, I might for San Juan Capistrano and Laguna Beach.

raee, I spent nearly a month in San Diego over several driving trips between Thanksgiving and now. I came back most recently last week. I disagree with your suggestion about the coast road north from La Jolla, also about the 405 through LA. For the first, even at the height of traffic northbound (which would be mostly missed if leaving 9-10 am), the coast road has lower speed limits, stop signs, and traffic lights. From La Jolla to Leucadia would be a heck of a slog. The freeway would almost always be better.

25 years ago, nav functions with real time traffic updates affecting routing weren't available. If you always went the same way, the likelihood is that many of those trips might have been better using different routes.

405 vs the 5 through LA? depends on the day and the time of day, as I said before. One of my trips back, my very reliable GPS with reliable real time traffic info recommended it. By when it was too late to change, there was an accident in Hawthorne that delayed me by about 45 minutes. Staying on the 5 through Anaheim, etc., would have been that much faster but I was just a few minutes too soon past that decision point to know. The other turn-offs to alternate routes had passed by the time I got stuck.

Navigation software? Yes, I think all have bad data of various kinds. Funny enough, all the nav app and hardware companies buy such data (from companies like Here, formerly Navteq) and there are only a few sellers of this so if one has a specific problem, others will too. Another issue is that for a long trip, some only update travel time for traffic problems that are relevantly nearby. If you're making a 300 mile drive, it doesn't help much to know as you leave home that there's an accident at mile 280 of your trip causing a delay. It's likely to be gone when you get near. Unless that's something a route change made early on would affect. I always double check with a glace at Google Map traffic info a few times through my trips.

Driving through LA in the evening is a good alternative instead of midday. Be sure not to leave SD too early and get clear of the metro area to the North or to the West.

My car's NAV doesn't show traffic, so I use Google Maps. It tells you the fastest route. You can add extra stops. It shows all traffic and incidents. If there's a delay ahead of you, it will offer a re-route in real time. You can also use the "search this area" feature to find gas, restaurants, hotels, etc. The only thing is doesn't show is "cop ahead". LOL

A growing list of late model cars have compatibility with Android Auto and Apple Car Play. These apps use your smartphone as the brains to display and produce GPS functionality (Google Maps) on your car's screen. I've encountered many rental cars I can use this capability with. Using the app that corresponds to the phone you have (with the phone's USB cord) makes the functionality easier to use and displays on a larger screen. I expressly took a pass on a more expensive model of the latest car I bought (needed to have built in GPS) when I learned the model was compatible with an Android phone. It works very well, much better than the built in GPS on my wife's Toyota.

Cars with Android Auto

I use Google maps too and it usually tells me about traffic issues. Someone told me to try another app, I did just out of curiosity and totally didn't steer me away from a completely blocked off interstate area due to construction. I went back to Google maps.

If you have time while traveling up 101 I live in Nipomo, about 12 miles south of Pismo. We could have lunch there. My daughter lives and works there.

Hearst Castle is worth the time but may take several hours.

Hwy 1 is a beautiful but slow drive and with all the rain we are getting it may be closed due to mudslides.

If you can't stop for lunch, wave as you go by.

I am Carol in California .

I'm only just now looking, I but I was right when I figured my fellow Montereyan sushi would answer correctly. Yes! spot on.

No clue about driving but I have visited friends that lived in San Jose a couple of times and we went to the Monterrey Aquarium (loved it) and went on whale watching trips - highly recommend!

Hi! Popping in from Southern California. Let me share these two photos from my car in early December with perfect weather on a Tuesday. Pay attention to the drive time:distance. North Orange County to Santa Monica and back.

Carol, sure if my daughter wakes up early enough to get there by lunchtime. Would love to meet you after all these year!

Would love it.

My number is 805 929

Carol, sent you a FB message.

Unless it's a Saturday or Sunday, and/or you leave La Jolla VERY early in the morning, or drive through and past LA the night before, I think it's quite unlikely you'll be to Nipomo by "lunch time"

I may do that Elmer, thanks.

To make you feel better, once you get past LA on the way north, you can expect smooth sailing. Yeah, there can always be something unexpected to slow you, but just breathe a sigh of relief and put Southern Cal in your rear view mirror. The rest is a nice drive.

Any updates? The weather's been lousy, and may affect plans. Let us know.

Traffic is not bad in L.A. on Saturday morning or Sunday morning, as a rule, but it is always a good idea to avoid rush hours. Even the weekdays are not that bad if you avoid rush hours. Also, Google maps will guide you through the fastest way - there are generally many alternative routes possible, although the Sepulveda pass on the 405 can be difficult to avoid. The Getty Museum in the Sepulveda pass would be worth visiting, if you had the time. I often take Hwy 1 through Malibu instead of Hwy 101 when going north - not because it is necessarily faster, but it is very scenic and has a calming effect on me. Not recommended in the rain, however.

Sushipup, we leave later in the week. Will let you know how it goes. My daughter was diagnosed 2 days ago with the flu so we are both on Tamiflu. Hopefully I won't get it. She is already feeling better so it must work. I had the flu 2 years ago and I was out of it for about 6 days.

Stay well, and safe travels. Hope the weather is good for you, too.

Bring warm clothes and tire chains if you plan to cross mountains. The grapevine was closed today due to snow. Lots of high winds and overturned big rigs.

There is little smooth sailing any where in the state due to the recent weather. add time (a lot) to wherever you plan to go. Definitely not a good time to drive the coast.

It's been wet all week and today was sunny but really cold in the greater Bay Area north of Monterey.

The Santa Cruz Mountains also got snow and the hills surrounding San Francisco Bay area got a more than usual dusting.

This is a picture of the snow pack in the mountains behind Newport Beach in Southern California (Orange County) a friend shared today.

But the snow rarely lasts too long on the ground (except in the mountains) unless the weather takes a freaky turn. We've driven over the Grapevine the day after it was closed to snow, and it was clear by then.

I haven't owned chains since I lived in Northern NV. I only used them once, on my way home from work in Reno, had to drive through mountains home. I don't know why Kentuckians don't use chains, even in the hills...no one uses them. I've driven to work and back in blizzard like conditions and four or five inches of snow and ice on the ground. Oh, well....we are driving my son's Prius, which got whipped around by the wind earlier today. Hope the rain and wind aren't too bad on our way up to Monterey. Looks like dry and cold until we hit Arizona. Then it's going to be fairly nice. Rain on the days we will be heading up to Monterey. Hopefully it won't be too bad. We were around 70 degrees here yesterday and now it is freezing cold again. Had to take the trash down to the road and nearly froze my butt off!

Hope your trip is wonderful! Smooth sailing and warm sun! Stay safe!

Stay on the coast route when driving north (Hwy 101) and you most certainly won't have need for chains. More likely suntan location will be useful. A mid to late week rain storm is possible so manage the timing with that in mind. Enjoy yourself.

Not to dampen anyone's enthusiasm for the north bound journey on the 405/west bound 101, but there are stretches of those freeways that rank in the top 10 in the country for traffic congestion during rush hour.

Timing is everything. A stop at the Getty Museum in the Sepulveda Pass -- through which the 405 passes -- can help to put you on the road at the right time. You might consider driving west on Sunset to PCH/Route 1 to avoid the infernal 405/101 interchange. PCH joins up with the 101 just past Oxnard. The drive is pretty and easier on the nerves.

Check for news of PCH closings if there is anything resembling the slightest of rainfall.

Edited to add: Also check for conditions on the Grapevine/Tejon Pass if you decide on the 5. There have been closings due to snow during the most recent storms.

On 405 now driving through LA. Traffic isn't too bad. Just passed an accident but barely delayed us. It is raining lightly right now. Should make a late lunch with Carol as long as we have no issues!

Safe travels!

Hwy 1 is closed North of Ragged Point, which is just North of Hearst Castle.

Hwy 166 where it merges with Hwy 101 is also closed.

She shouldn't even be planning for either of those roads, if she stays on 101 (as long as 101 is open) above Santa Barbara. But I hear the weather is lousy.

I enjoyed meeting Kathleen and her daughter,Lauren today while having lunch at Rancho Nipomo.

Lots of wind and it looks like they will experience rain as they drive North on the 101.

So nice to meet them after all these years.

NIce! Kath didn't mention a meet up, unless I missed it.

How many KT peeps have you met now Carol?

We made it here around 7 pm. It was great to meet Carol! She was really sweet and brought us gifts: cute, cloth shopping bags. It rained pretty much the entire way up the coast. I drove the last few hours so we were going quite a bit slower than when my daughter was driving earlier. No one drove the speed limit or even near it!