The Pacific Coast Highway is America’s dream drive – over 1,500 miles of breathtaking seascapes from Seattle in the north to Los Angeles in the south. Yet for a route often touted as a highway to heaven, it’s surprisingly quiet. Not until you hit southern California will you meet much traffic, and then only in urban areas. Small harbour towns with amazing places to eat dot the route, as do mile upon mile of pristine, untouched beaches. Mists roll in then disappear as quickly as they came. Pelicans and other seabirds wheel overhead. Sealions and elephant seals bask on rocky shorelines. And migrating grey whales can often be spotted in the brilliant blue Pacific.
The route starts in Seattle and winds its way south past Ocean Shores and Newport, through the giant redwoods of northern California to the City by the Bay, sensational San Francisco. South of San Fran, an uncontested highlight is the astonishing stretch of coast from Monterey to San Simeon, a serpentine ribbon of highway winding 500 to 1,000 feet above the roaring Pacific through the seascapes of Big Sur. From there it’s on to the ‘American Riviera’, stylish Santa Barbara, before setting your sights on the Hollywood hills and the glamour of LA. If you’ve always dreamt of that ultimate west coast ride, then this is the tour for you.
