Four-Day Best of Southern California Itinerary

By Elizabeth Linhart Veneman, author of Moon Northern California

This four-day Southern California itinerary starts in Los Angeles, explores Santa Monica and Long Beach, and ends in sunny San Diego.

Day 1

Fly into LAX and rent a car for your Southern California road trip. Walk down the star-studded Hollywood Walk of Fame and a stop at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre, where you can find the handprints of your favorite movie stars. Or, for aesthetic stimulation, tour the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. End the day with a cocktail at Sunset Boulevard’s Rainbow Bar & Grill.

TCL Chinese Theatre. Photo © Valentin Armianu/Dreamstime.

Day 2

Grab breakfast The Griddle Café before heading to the coast for a day of culture. Jump on U.S. 101 to I-405 south to visit the world-famous Getty Center. Admire Richard Meier’s soaring architecture before gazing at the magnificent works inside. Continue south on I-405 exiting towards Santa Monica. Enjoy the amusement park rides of the Santa Monica Pier or just take a break on Santa Monica Beach. Stroll along the Venice Boardwalk to take in the bodybuilders, street performers, and alternative-culture types of Venice Beach. After a day gazing at the sea, dine on seafood at Salt Air.

For the ultimate in SoCal kitsch, you can’t miss the Santa Monica Pier. Photo © Stuart Thornton.

If You Have More Time

Kids (and kids at heart) might prefer to skip the L.A. beaches and spend a full day and night at Disneyland instead.

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Day 3

Follow I-405 south, stopping off in Long Beach for a tour on The Queen Mary, an ocean liner now home to restaurants, a hotel, and a museum. From Long Beach, head south on Highway 1 through the North County beach towns of Encinitas, Carlsbad, and Oceanside. Stop off for a surf or a swim, or soldier on to La Jolla Cove to go kayaking or snorkeling. Then satiate that appetite with lobster tacos from Puesto.

La Jolla Caves. Photo © Dollar Photo Club.

Day 4

Easygoing San Diego is a great place to end any vacation. Visit Balboa Park, where you’ll spend most of your time at the San Diego Zoo. Follow a day in the park with a meal in the Gaslamp Quarter, then end your day with a craft beer at one of San Diego’s many breweries, like the giant Stone World Bistro & Gardens Liberty Station.

Balboa Park in San Diego. Photo © F11Photo/Dreamstime.

Elizabeth Linhart Veneman

About the Author

Californian Elizabeth Linhart Veneman grew in up San Francisco and Carmel, where she was lulled to sleep by the din of the cable car line and chilled to the bone at foggy 4th of July celebrations. Since then, she has explored the natural and cultural landscape of the West traveling forgotten highways and hiking backcountry trails; working in bookstores and restaurant kitchens; baking bread under Alaska’s midnight sun; and finding home in rural farmhouses, and cramped urban apartments. At UC Santa Barbara and UC Santa Cruz, she studied American history (north and south), specifically issues surrounding identity, social movements, and the history of food. Her writing has appeared in 7×7, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Alaska Magazine, and she has written and contributed to nearly a dozen books including Moon Napa & Sonoma, Moon California, and Moon Northern California.

Elizabeth Linhart Veneman now lives in San Francisco where she spends her days taming small children, big appetites, her yen for the outdoors, and a love of the written word.

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