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We left the steep hills and cable cars of San Francisco (well, after driving down the curvy part of Lombard Street, just for fun) and headed south. Our destination was Carmel-by-the-Sea (or just Carmel, to some), which is just a few hours away. However, we had a few stops to make in between. Here’s our itinerary from San Francisco to Carmel!
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
Our first stop, after a drive of about 1 hour, 45 minutes, was Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. It’s literally only about 7 miles outside of Santa Cruz.
For a nominal vehicle entrance fee ($10), you can walk an easy 0.8-mile flat loop trail through a lovely old-growth redwood forest. Redwood forests are amazing, as we had experienced before in Canada. We enjoyed breathing the fresh, forest air, and it was a nice respite before heading into Santa Cruz for lunch.
Lunch in Santa Cruz
Yelp has become our friend when we’re looking for good eats in a new location. We found a lovely European-inspired lunch at Cafe Delmarette in downtown Santa Cruz.
Besides a delicious quinoa salad and grilled sandwiches, I tried their specialty iced drink, called the Iced Otter Latte. It involves espresso, chocolate, cardamom, honey, cinnamon, and milk. Two words…more, please???
We also saw Darth Vader walking down the street after lunch, so there’s that!
Interestingly, on this trip, we noticed several businesses that are closed on Tuesdays (Cafe Delmarette included). I’d never seen that before. Mondays, yes. Tuesdays, new to me. We got caught by it once along the way, but thankfully, it didn’t affect any other plans.
Mission Santa Cruz
As the focus of our road trip was California history, we visited Mission Santa Cruz after lunch. All the missions are similar in some ways and unique in others. Mission Santa Cruz is smaller than others we visited on this trip but quite lovely.
Choices, Choices
At this point, we had to make a big decision. Go to the famous Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, or not go to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
Due to timing and finances, we actually bypassed the boardwalk. Because we were visiting so many places on this trip (9 hotels in 2 weeks!), and because we like to stick to our semi-budget travel plans, we skipped the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk…this time.
However, we did take a walk out to the Walton Lighthouse, which is on the east end of Seabright State Beach in Santz Cruz. There’s a great path right out to the lighthouse, with ocean spray surprises along the way. Beach access to Seabright State Beach is along the path as well.
Where to Stay in Carmel-by-the-Sea: Hofsas House
It was finally time for the final stretch of our drive from San Francisco to Carmel. From Santz Cruz, the drive to Carmel is approximately one hour around Monterey Bay on California Highway 1.
After a full day, it was great that one of the first things we saw when driving into Carmel was our lodging, Hofsas House.
Hofsas House hosted our stay in Carmel and also provided discounted meals at 5th Avenue Deli (Carmel) and Abalonetti (Monterey). All opinions are my own.
As mentioned before, we were searching for California history on this trip…and not just in missions and redwood forests…but lodging too.
The history of Hofsas House dates back to the 1940s. It began as several cottages and grew to the boutique inn that it is today. Hofsas House is still family owned and operated, by the founders’ granddaughter, Carrie Theis.
Local artist Maxine Albro was commissioned in the late 1950s to paint the welcome mural (seen above), the headboard featured in Room 47, and three pictures in the lobby. The Bavarian-themed property is really quite lovely and fun to behold in person, and the decor in each of the 38 spacious rooms is said to be one-of-a-kind.
As semi-budget travelers, it is important to note that the following are staples at Hofsas House:
- Breakfast included
- Parking included
- WiFi included
- NO resort fee
Upon entering our 2-bedroom, 2-bath family suite (Room 28), we were met by a spacious room with a king bed (aka Mom & Dad’s room). The view out the window was of beautiful lush foliage in every shade of green.
(To check out Room 40, which is a 2-bedroom, 2-bath deluxe suite, click here.)
This sitting area completed the room, along with a unique piece of furniture on the far left.
Check out all the counter space in the adjoining bathroom! Seriously, there can never be enough counter space in hotel bathrooms. (We stayed at a couple hotels on this trip that had zero counter space in the bathroom.) This was fabulous!
From the front door, if you make a right turn, you’ll go through a doorway that leads to this room with two queen beds (aka our children’s room).
The other part of their room included this kitchenette and dining area. Their full bathroom was almost identical to the master bath (including all that counter space!).
By the time we got settled, it was dinner time. After dinner, our kids had something else on their agenda…swimming in the Hofsas House heated pool!
After an evening swim, it was night-night time. The 2-bedroom, 2-bath accommodation at Hofsas House was perfect for getting the kids to bed, closing the door, and having a separate space for the parents to relax a little. And the separate bathrooms are perfect for minimizing sound and light distractions after the kids are asleep.
Family accommodations like this are rare, especially in Carmel, so we were glad to have Hofsas House as a home base for our time exploring the Monterey Peninsula.
Where to Eat Dinner
Both Carmel and Monterey have endless dining options that cover all kinds of cuisine. Here are a couple for you to try.
5th Avenue Deli in Carmel
We took a short walk from Hofsas House to 5th Avenue Deli and got a picnic feast. Rather than venture out for a true picnic, however, we decided to utilize the dining area in our room.
Abalonetti in Monterey
One of the many restaurants in Monterey’s Fisherman’s Wharf is Abalonetti. We enjoyed a dinner of clam chowder, fish & chips, and this, our favorite dish of the meal…Parmesan-crusted rockfish, garlic mashed potatoes, sautéed spinach, and pico de gallo. Um, I’m getting hungry!
After dinner, it was back to Hofsas House for another sleep, until our California road trip adventure continued.
Have you taken a road trip from San Francisco to Carmel? Please share in the comments below!
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