Driving from Vancouver BC to DL and need suggestions.

[BCmomma]

We are driving down to Anaheim from Vancouver, leaving August 17th. We're taking two days, staying around Medford OR on the first night and the Sacramento area on the 2nd night before getting to Anaheim on Aug 19th. We are there until the 23rd. We were going to take 2 days again to drive home, stopping again in Sacramento and then Salem OR.

But now I'm thinking of tacking on one extra day on the way home but we can't agree on the route. I wanted to do beachy but Santa Barbara and area are expensive. I found some good deals for San Luis Obispo and area through hotwire, would it be worth it to say, drive from Anaheim to there, stopping at a beach in Malibu on the way up so the kids could go to the beach? So if we do stay in San Luis Obispo where should we stay after that, could we cut in to Sacramento or could we go further north? We are travelling with two small children so are trying to limit our drives to no longer than about 8-9hrs a day.

I should note this is NOT our first road trip to California, DH and I have done many road trips throughout California but we just thought after 3 full days at DL and DCA the kids would enjoy a laid back day of beach time before the long drive home.

Sorry if this was a bit rambly!

 

[sasywtch]

I don't see where anyone answered you.

Sacramento, if you arrive on a weekend, I would suggest staying at one of the hotels on Del Paso Rd off I-5 There is a Holiday Inn Express, Staybridges, Hampton Inn. They are next to a slew of fast food places. In and Out Burger, Taco Bell, Panda Express, KFC/A&W, Strawhat Pizza. They also have a Safeway across the street where you can stock up on anything for an ice chest.
If leaving Sacramento on a weekday, I would think about the Holiday Inn Express in Elk Grove. It's just a few more miles but it's past downtown traffic on a workday morning.

If you have a few hours in Sacramento and looking for something to do, there is Old Sacramento which is downtown. It has a train museum and just interesting to walk around and look at the shops and atmosphere.

I don't think it's a bad idea to head over toward the beach, spend the night in San Luis Obispo or Pismo Beach and then take one of the freeways over to I-5. Continuing to head north on 1 or 101 will be a long drive.

 

[BCmomma]

Thank you so much for all the suggestions

 

[woody73]

. . . I found some good deals for San Luis Obispo and area through hotwire, would it be worth it to say, drive from Anaheim to there, stopping at a beach in Malibu on the way up so the kids could go to the beach?

We live in L.A. After a recent stay in Lake Tahoe, we stayed in San Luis Obispo on our drive home.

We were pleasantly surprised with SLO -- visiting the mission, galleries, shops and restaurants. We wished we had planned more time in SLO.

Woody

 

[larina]

We visit the Pismo Beach area every other month or so (my grandma lives in Arroyo Grande) and there is always something new to do. San Luis Obispo is a great town, with lots to do. Either would be a good stopping place on a trip.