Pacific Coast Highway: Drive Times and Distances
Drive times and distances on the Pacific Coast Highway or the quickest routes from Seattle to San Francisco to Los Angeles to San Diego.
Here are the rough drive times and distances
between the main cities along the Pacific Coast Highway. We cover the quickest
routes from Seattle to San Francisco, San Francisco to Los Angeles, and Los
Angeles to San Diego, given in miles and with the approximate driving time it
takes.
Our Pick of the California Guides
We also give the drive time and distance if going along the
coast the whole way, which can be very different. They're also optimum times,
and take no account of any stops you might want to make, even rest stops, nor
any traffic conditions. They assume you are driving at or just under the speed
limit the whole way. If your personal driving speed is different from that, you
need to take this into account too.
Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco
Seattle to San
Francisco
Quickest Route
About 800 miles, almost 13 hours without a break
Pacific Coast Highway Route
(Including the Olympic Peninsula)
About 1100 miles, roughly 25 hours of driving
San Francisco to Los Angeles
Quickest Route
About 380 miles, or 6 hours of driving
Pacific Coast Highway Route
About 460 miles, or 9 hours without a break
Combining the two
Note that if you set off from either end along the Pacific
Coast Highway then there's no easy place to cut across to the freeway and make
up time. What you gain in time you'll lose in getting to the freeway to begin
with, as it doesn't run close to the coast.
Highway 101
Although the Pacific Coast Highway and Highway 101 are mostly one and the same, there's a stretch of this route roughly between Salinas and San Luis Obispo when 101 goes inland. Going that way is about 126 miles, or about 2 hours of driving.
Our Pick of the LA Guides
Taking the coast route is about 150 miles and will take about 3 hours, as it's a slower route. That's what we've assumed you'll do in the above estimate of 460 miles. So if you really need to, you could shave an hour off your driving time by skipping this bit of the coast.
The Beach in San Diego
Los Angeles to San Diego
Note that this drive more than any of the others is affected by traffic,
so the exact time taken depends on day of the week, time of day... and luck! The
figures below are optimum times, if things run smoothly.
Quickest Route
From Downtown Los Angeles to San Diego is about 120 miles,
or 2 hours on a good day. If you want to stick to the coast, then Santa Monica
to San Diego is roughly 135 miles, or maybe 2 hours 15 minutes.
Pacific Coast Highway Route
If you really stick to the coast and beaches the whole way,
that's going to turn into about 150 miles and take you about four hours, as
driving is a lot slower as you pass through every town on the way.
Our Pick of San Diego Guides
Other driving pages
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's advice on driving the Pacific Coast Highway in two days, including the best places to stay, and the best things to do and see.
Driving the Pacific Coast Highway is made easier with Road Trip USA by Jamie Jensen, a good handbook for the west coast drive.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's guide to Oregon coast charging stations for electric vehicles, from Brookings in the south to Astoria in the north.
Historic Route 66 winds from Chicago to LA, going through Los Angeles, meeting the Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica, California, at the Santa Monica Pier.
Pacific Coast Highway stops include big city vacation destinations like Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, and smaller places like Monterey.
Road maps of the Pacific Coast Highway or PCH are essential for anyone planning to drive the trip, and detailed routes are available for free.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel reviews the Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip Guide book covering the drive from Vancouver to San Diego.
California coast charging stations are so numerous that the Pacific Coast Highway is one of the best US road trips to drive in an electric vehicle or EV.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's advice on driving the Pacific Coast Highway in five days, including the best places to stay over, and the best things to do and see.
Epic Drives of the World from Lonely Planet describes 50 of the world's most exciting road trips, including, of course, the Pacific Coast Highway.
Here are links to the different ways you can go along the Pacific Coast Highway, one of the most popular drives in the world but you can also cycle it.
Pacific Coast Highway travel offers advice on driving from LA to Hearst Castle, including distance, journey time, and route.
Pacific Coast Highway driving tips for this great American road trip include finding cheap gas, watching the speed limits, and allowing plenty of travel time.
Driving from San Francisco to San Diego has two main options, the fast way on I-5 or the scenic route along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's guide to Washington coast charging stations for electric vehicles along Highway 101 from Oregon and around the Olympic Peninsula.
Lonely Planet's Coastal California guidebook is the ideal travel guide for driving or cycling the Pacific Coast Highway from the Oregon border to Mexico.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel takes the 17-Mile Drive from Carmel to Pacific Grove and Monterey, stopping to see the Lone Cypress and beautiful coastline views.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's advice on driving the Pacific Coast Highway in four days, including the best places to stay, and the best things to do and see.
The best time to drive the Pacific Coast Highway is when you have the most time to spare, but late spring and fall is when you'll get the best weather.
The Pacific Coast Highway in California book shows in historic photos the building of the Pacific Coast Highway from its earliest beginnings in 1911.
Pacific Coast Highway Travel's advice on driving the Pacific Coast Highway in three days, including the best places to stay, and the best things to do and see.
Review of the Pacific Coast Highway Road Trips book from Lonely Planet, which includes a California Driving Guide, by the Pacific Coast Highway Travel website.
When to Drive the Pacific Coast Highway depends on whether you want to drive in Oregon and Washington as well as California, and on the weather.
Here are the basic facts if you plan to drive the Pacific Coast Highway, including which is the best direction and when is the best time to go driving.
If visiting California and planning to drive the Pacific Coast Highway it's important to know California driving laws in case they differ from your own state.
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