The LA time is mostly for Disneyland (we'll be staying onsite) which I've done once before but the family haven't. We won't do much else there apart from maybe a day for Hollywood and some shopping (DD has a few shops she's found online that she wants to hunt out).
I've already worked out that we need to make an overnight stop during the drive up, so I'm currently thinking of leaving Disneyland in the morning, driving up past the Hollywood sign (just so we can say we've seen it) and then take the 101 and up the coastal road. Want to stop somewhere half-way (any suggestions? Sea view if possible, but we only need beds for the night) then set off the next morning to complete the drive and get to SF mid/late afternoon to check into a hotel (again, suggestions?) and do some evening sight-seeing and shopping (depending on time). Then have one full day in SF before flying to Orlando the following morning.
The flights are booked (arrive LA at 6pm on Weds 13 Aug, depart SF at 10am on Thurs 21 Aug) but in between is more flexible. I had thought of driving up on the Monday and Tuesday. We would like to see the wonderful scenery on the drive up, but keeping break stops mostly to the 30mins/1 hour sightseeing variety rather than half-day visits to anywhere specific.
Personally I might have trimmed a couple more days off Orlando, but the others won't hear of it (and we're meeting my DW's sister there too, she and her BF are flying direct to Orlando and not doing the west coast at all).
Andre
What's your budget for accommodation?
If you are stopping "half-way", San Simeon comes to mind. There isn't much to choose from there; but it is further along than Pismo Beach, which is the other location that people tend to stop at. I haven't stayed at San Simeon in a number of years as we tend to stop at Solvang and then hit Monterey for the second night; so I don't have any recommendations for accommodation.
Pismo Beach is quite nice. It has one of those quintessential California long wooden piers on the beach (no shops!); so if you haven't visited one down near Anaheim, it might be worth a little detour; if that's what your family wants to see.
One of the Elephant Seal rookery can be found at Piedras Blancas; which is just a little way up the coast from San Simeon. I'm not sure if they will be there in abundance August; November onwards is usually a better time of year to catch them. But the beach is right by PH1; so you can make a quick stop or take a look if there is a large number there.
The other that I'm aware of is near Santa Cruz at Ano Nuevo. It is a longer walk to get to the rookery from Ano Nuevo so I would recommend trying to see if they are out and about at Piedras Blancas instead.
I also second the stop at McWay Fall. It's a short walk from Julia Pfeiffer State park; closer towards Big Sur. The waterfalls drops straight on to the beach.
Depending on your budget, there are any number of reasonable hotels (some of the big chains) in the downtown SF area or over in Fisherman's Wharf.
One other thing - if you are leaving Anaheim early in the morning, you could head to Hollywood Boulevard around where Grauman's Chinese Theatre is. Head to the Hollywood and Highland Centre and you'll see the Hollywood sign from there; get to see Grauman's and a bit of the Walk of Fame. Maybe you can do this on your Hollywood day and work out whether you still want to drive past the Hollywood sign.
If you are in the area; and you may already know this....one of the two Walt Disney stars are located a couple of blocks down towards El Cerrito Place.
We did hiking at Runyon Canyon, The Grove, Hollywood boulevard, Venice Beach, Santa Monica Pier.
