OT California Bound

Wife and I are doing the West trip along the coast...(unfortunately not in the P car) driving from Seattle to San Diego. We are booked in a number of B&B's along the way. Any favorite places to see, stay or dine at would be great to learn of... please PM if you wish... Nacelle

You might like Hearst Castle in San Simeon. That stretch of PCH just north of there is amazing too (no matter what car you're driving). Watch for the Sea Otters along the way. Have fun.

TKS JakeMate...on the to do list for sure!

Try the Stanford Inn, in Mendocino. Beautiful rooms with real log burning fireplaces and french doors overlooking the ocean. Greta walks along the cliff.

Oh yeah......and the Benbow Inn right on 101 in Northern Californ ia. Its on the Nationla Register.

Start out with dinner at the Fogcutter restaurant in Kirkland. Cannon Beach is another stop. I'd spend a week in Napa valley wine country. Come back with the Porsche next summer and drive the route from Yakima via Goldendale/mt adams down to the Columbia. Then backtrack a bit and take the run over the coastal range form Longview to Cannon Beach. St. Helens is a sight to see at any time. Elk are usually within sight.

PCH 1 lots of great roads... take it the whole way down (Or as much as you can) It is worth the extra hours on the road! What a great drive! I have done it in the Pcar a few times so much fun! I know you will get lot's of recommendations... Here is mine, since it is local to me... Fine dining, Business casual - to coat and tie Ti Amo Ristorante Laguna Beach CA $18-30+ plate + Wine/drinks, Rich Italian/French Cuisine your Wife will love it very Romantic atmosphere Ocean views & the Garden room is great too. The place is ALWAYS packed reservation is recommended but not necessary. Seriously take my advice you will be a Hero! There are lots of great restaurants in Laguna Beach but this is my favorite. You can also hit the Art Galleries while you are in the Village. There is so much to do in this area if you want more advice let me know. I also grew up in San Diego so I know that area as well. Have fun I love road trips! Here is there info: http://yp.yahoo.com/py/ypMap.py?Pyt=...r:regT:1:fbT:0

Thank you everyone for your input and insights... we are staying in the Napa region for three nights and San Diego area (La Jolla) for three nights as well. Stopping along the way in Eureka, maybe Mendocino, will look at the Stanford Inn, Carmel and Santa Barbara. We are still trying to figure out a bit about Oregon, have circled Cannon Beach. Thanks again!

For eats Pinot and Brick in Napa are great... too! You will want to Hit the Sterling Vineyard in your tour of Napa this is our favorite Winery you take a tram ride up the mountain to their winery and taste test on their HUGE terrace overlooking the entire Valley. You have to hit Sterling! We always grab some Picnic stuff at Dean and Deluca and then head up to Sterling and drink and snack... they are very generous with their taste testing... you can sit out on the deck for as long as you want... After you drink in the general area, I recommend you sign up and become a member $40/mo 2 bottles of wine. It give you privileges to use their Club member room and Deck, on this side you get to taste test their more expensive and exclusive wines and reserves. It is well worth the $40 even if you cancel after your first month.... I enjoy the membership! You get all this for I think $6/per

If you are staying over night in Carmel, try to have dinner at Casanova. Fantastic food and amazing wine list. Mendocino is a more laid back, hippy-ish, artsy version of Carmel. Carmel is all about the $$$$. I think Stanford Inn is the nicest b&b in Mendo. However, if you're not a vegetarian, don't eat dinner there. Go into town. There are at least three five star restaurants there. Haven't been to SB in a long time so can't recommend, but can say you will love it.

While in San diego, check out Point Loma for a view and The Gas Lamp District for night life.

Thanks Erik and Cydog! This all helps...

And don't forget Travigne restaurant, I think it's in Napa, one of those California guys should know. Superb food and wine list of course in an old church....the altar is the bar.....kind of sacreligious but cool

How about you Oregon members or anyone with experience in Oregon? Anyone travel and stay on the coast... or should we skip the state??? By the way thanks again cooper996...I will PM you with condo rental questions for Whistler later. Nacelle

It's in St Helena and my personal favorite. The same outfit owns Mustards (in Napa-town, I believe), which is somewhat less casual elegant (did I just say that?) Napa is the county that have a bunch of towns and Napa town is one of them. The Sonoma Valley (wine country) is also nice and closer to Mendicino, Downtown Sonoma is very nice. The time of year of your trip is not when the area is most bountiful. That's too bad, but you can plan for the next time. The spring is beautiful and so is the crush (a month ago). BTW, it's Brix not Brick - Unless I've been mispronouncing Grand Prix all these yrs ;-) CA is a long state, with some of the most beautiful coast on the world. The Pacific Coast Hwy north of Big Sur is not to be missed. Traffic should be lite this time of year. Good luck.

torags...you're right I had spell it like I say it... being funny.

Although this is completely off topic.... don't stay at this b&b in Chicago... I almost died there!!! (literally!) bed and breakfast fire Anyhow... the biggest loss was my '99 BMW M Roadster.. which was sitting in the garage of the B&B... I was heartbroken at the time... But... my new (to me) '99 C4 fixed that !!!! Very happy to have re-joined the P-car camp after having come back from the dark side of BMW !!!! trev

I live in Mendocino, so I can give you a couple of alternate suggestions for lodging here and a some dining suggestions as well. If you want to stay some where which feels a little more personal than Stanford Inn (which feels to me like just another hotel), there are three B&Bs in Mendocino which are great. They have the advantages of feeling more personal and allowing you to walk around town, go to a good restaurant or for a walk on the beach without using your car. The B&Bs I would recommend are: Packard House - Great rooms and the best breakfast of any B&B here in town. [phone removed] Whitegate Inn - This place has the most authentic Victorian furnishings of any of the B&Bs around here. I don't know what their breakfasts are like. [phone removed] Allegria Inn - This place has individual cabins each of which has a fire place or wood stove. They also have a hot tub with a view of the waves hitting the rocks on the other side of Big River. [phone removed] For lunch I would recommend the Moose Cafe on Kasten Street. For dinner I would recommend Cafe Beaujolais (here in town). If you want to drive somewhere instead of walking to dinner, I would recommend Stevenswood which is 2 miles south of Mendocino. Let me know if you need any other help when staying here, Tim P. S.: You're going to wish you were driving your Porsche when you drive the coast. The first two hours I drive in any direction from here are curvy two lane roads. It is the reason I bought an M3 and the reason I am now buying a 996.

Thank you very much tstanding! Great information...I'm sure my wife will get sick of me saying over and over that I wish we were in my Pcar...nevertheless...we are very excited about the PC drive. We have heard so much over the years about how beautiful it is ...that the timing was right to go now. What do you have on order??

Time to close the thread. We are leaving in the morning. Thanks to everyone who answered the call! If you are ever planning a trip or find that you are going to be in Toronto area...or Ontario for that matter, you know where to ask... TKS Nacelle

Actually, I am due in San Francisco on 11/22 - taking my mother & girlfriend - going to Gary Danko. Any suggestions for hotels in SF? Another restaurant (2 more nites). On the tail end my GF wants to stay at the Clift (she likes boutique hotels over chains) Then Napa for a four days - anyone have an in at French Laundry? On the waiting list. Also eating at Auberge Du Soleil. Where else to eat?? What wineries to visit? Where to stay? Auberge is a bit expensive. Hotel Healdsburg seems too far from Napa. How is Lavender B&B?? Is the wine train worth trying? I love food & wine. So far have toured Australian wine regions & Burgundy, but never Napa. All help appreciated.

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one of the most romantic places (nice rooms and view too) is tickle pink in carmel: Tickle Pink one of the best bargains right on a cliff next to the ocean (pretty decent restaurant too) at big sur is ragged point inn: ragged point inn

Ben, Are those places close to Napa? Anything else in Carmel, and is Clint still the mayor?

nope, they're on your way down from Napa. we were so sold on tickle pink that we never looked at another place (you won't be disappointed). it's a nice place to stop for the night on your way down. then, the ragged point is a good place to stay after leaving carmel. btw, not sure if eastwood is still running the town or not.

While in the wine country don't miss the Meeker tasting room in Geyserville. And when you get to San Diego, try Prime 10 in Solana Beach. Easily the best steakhouse in the county.