Pacific Coast Highway

About 2 to 3 hours for the 71.2 miles under normal conditions, longer with stops at overlooks and towns along the way.

Check before you go. As of September 6, 2026, Caltrans's road conditions feed showed Highway 1 closed from the San Luis Obispo/Monterey county line north to Kirk Creek Campground due to wildfire activity, while a separate northern stretch near Big Sur had just reopened after fire crews made progress. This corridor has a long history of landslide and fire closures, so status changes often.

The longest stretch without gas runs about 70 miles, so fill up in Monterey or Carmel before heading south, or in Cambria or San Simeon before heading north.

The road is narrow and cut into cliff faces with close to 70 miles of continuous curves — not hairpin-tight, but there's little shoulder in places and blind corners are common, so it rewards a steady pace over speed.

Carmel-by-the-Sea anchors the north end, Bixby Bridge sits in the middle stretch near Nepenthe and McWay Falls at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, and Hearst Castle sits near San Simeon at the south end.

Daylight hours, given the blind curves and cliff edges, and check current closure status first since this corridor is prone to wildfire and landslide closures.