Travel Guide Best Road Trips California 5

by Andrew Bender, Brett Atkinson, Amy C Balfour

Discover the freedom of the open road with Lonely Planet's California's Best Road Trips. This trusted travel companion features 33 amazing drives, from 2-day escapes to 2-week adventures. Experience the majesty of Yosemite, encounter towering redwoods in Big Sur, or soak up the sun on SoCal's beaches. Get to California, rent a car, and hit the road!





Inside Lonely Planet's California's Best Road Trips :

Itineraries for classic road trips plus other lesser-known drives with expert advice to pick the routes that suit your interests and needs
Full-color route maps - easy-to-read, detailed directions
Detours - delightful diversions to see the California's highlights along the way

Link Your Trip - cruise from one driving route to the next

Insider tips - get around like a local, avoid trouble spots and be safe on the road - local driving rules, parking, toll roads
Stretch Your Legs - the best things to do outside the car

Essential info at your fingertips - hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, prices

Honest reviews for all budgets - eating, sleeping, sightseeing, hidden gems that most guidebooks miss
Lavish color photography provides inspiration throughout

Covers San Francisco, Big Sur, Napa Valley, Yosemite National Park, Redwoods, Route 66, Death Valley, San Diego, Los Angeles, Monterey and more





The Perfect Lonely Planet's California's Best Road Trips is perfect for exploring California via the road and discovering sights that are more accessible by car.

Planning a California trip sans a car? Lonely Planet's California, our most comprehensive guide to California, is perfect for exploring both top sights and lesser-known gems.






About Lonely Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveler since 1973. Over the past four decades, we've printed over 145 million guidebooks and phrasebooks for 120 languages, and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travelers. You'll also find our content online, and in mobile apps, videos, 14 languages, armchair and lifestyle books, ebooks, and more, enabling you to explore every day.

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473 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 1, 2024

About the author

Andrew Bender is an award-winning travel and food writer known for his Seat 1A travel site on Forbes and contributions to publications including the Los Angeles Times and Lonely Planet. Writing since the late 1990s, he has authored over three dozen Lonely Planet guidebooks and won the Eureka! Travel Writing Award for his coverage of California’s deserts. With an MBA from Wharton and a Master’s in East Asian Studies, Andrew is also a cross-cultural consultant and tour leader for Japan. He speaks fluent Japanese and French, has lived in Japan, France, and the Netherlands, and now resides near Los Angeles, blending travel expertise with cultural insight.