In late January, my husband and I packed up our Ford Lightning and headed south on an impromptu road trip with two goals: travel as much of the coast as possible, and make it to Palm Desert in time to watch the Seahawks win the Super Bowl. (Mission accomplished on both counts.)
After sharing a few highlights in a recent client mailer, several of you asked for the full itinerary — so here it is. Whether you’re planning your own Pacific Coast drive or just enjoy a good road trip story, I hope this is helpful.
A note: we intentionally avoided I-5 as much as possible, opting for Highway 1 along the coast. It adds time but the scenery is incomparable.
Day 1: Seattle to Astoria, Oregon
We stayed at Bowline, a boutique property from Adrift Hospitality. I love this place — the rooms are comfortable, the restaurant and bar are wonderful, and they have EV charging. The rooms come with a white noise machine, which proved very useful given the non-stop barking sea lions. It’s delightful chaos.
Dinner: Pizza at Fort George Brewery
Note: All of the Adrift Hospitality locations along the Washington and Oregon coast look like wonderful places to stay — worth bookmarking for future trips.
Day 2: Newport, Oregon
We stopped at the Tillamook Creamery along the way for a factory tour, which provided plenty of opportunities for dad jokes about cutting the cheese. We stayed with family in Newport — a great coastal town worth a visit on its own.
Day 3: Eureka, California
We continued down the coast, stopping at stunning viewpoints and driving through the magnificent redwood forest. We stayed at the historic Eureka Inn — a place where presidents have stayed, and which feels a bit like sleeping in a beautiful museum mid-renovation.
Dinner: Brick and Fire, an Italian restaurant. Delicious.
Days 4–5: Healdsburg, California
On the way to Healdsburg, we stopped for a snack at Sea Pal Cove Restaurant — tucked under the bridge and right on the water. My husband insists they have the best fish and chips on the coast, and after tasting them I’m inclined to agree. The nearby Harbor Lite Lodge is also worth considering if you want to break the drive here.
Healdsburg is a special place for us — we visited years ago when we were first exploring wine country, and it still charms. Our first night was at Dry Creek Inn, which was comfortable. The second night we discovered the Healdsburg Inn on the Plaza, part of the Four Sisters Inns collection, and were immediately won over. The rooms are beautiful, the service is warm, and the rate includes a pre-dinner wine and appetizer hour plus a full breakfast buffet. The nightly rate is higher than other stops on this trip, but when you factor in what’s included, it balances out.
Day 6: Pacific Grove, California
We enjoyed the Healdsburg Inn so much that we booked another Four Sisters property for our next stop — Gosby House in Pacific Grove. Think deluxe bed and breakfast with private bathrooms and the same warm hospitality. Be sure to take time to visit Lovers Point and see all the ground squirrels!
On the way, we made time to drive our 12s flags across the Golden Gate Bridge, down Lombard Street (in our truck!), and stop for photos in front of Levi’s Stadium in full Seahawks gear. Sorry. Not sorry.
Pacific Grove is charming — the waterfront park is a must.
Day 7: Big Sur and Morro Bay, California
Seeing Big Sur was at the top of my husband’s list for this trip. The drive is breathtaking — and at times reduced to one lane due to construction, which slowed us down but somehow made it feel even more dramatic.
Be sure to pull off on stops along the way. We noticed a sign for elephant seals and boy-oh-boy, it was an amazing collection of vocal elephant seals!
Morro Bay is a funky, wonderful coastal town. The haystack rock formation in the bay is actually larger than Cannon Beach’s famous rock. We spotted sea otters rafting in the marina. We stayed at the Grays Inn and Gallery, which feels more like a well-appointed Airbnb than a hotel — great bay views, friendly staff, and a lot of character.
Days 8–12: Palm Desert, California
From Morro Bay, we took a detour to Vasquez Rocks in Agua Dulce — I lived across the street briefly as a teenager and wanted to revisit. It also gave us a scenic route around Los Angeles traffic.
We had a wonderful time visiting family in Palm Desert and watching the Seahawks win the Super Bowl. Worth every mile of the drive.
We also made time to visit Slab City and Bombay Beach — a genuinely unique experience that’s hard to describe and worth seeing. I had the famous patty melt at the Ski Inn, reportedly a favorite of Anthony Bourdain.
Days 13–14: Grand Canyon South Rim, Arizona
On the return trip, we decided to skip the coast and take an inland route to beat an incoming weather system. This meant our first visit to the Grand Canyon — and we’re so glad we went.
We stayed at El Tovar, the historic lodge right on the rim. We arrived late and ended up staying an extra day, which was the right call. The restaurant fills up fast — reservations are strongly recommended. We actually preferred our first night’s dinner in the hotel lounge over our second night’s formal restaurant reservation, but both were good.
The Grand Canyon is jaw-dropping in a way that photos simply don’t capture. Everyone should see it at least once. There are other places to stay inside the park – which I recommend doing so you can catch the sunrise.
Day 15: Page, Arizona (Lake Powell)
Page sits just off Lake Powell and is surrounded by stunning slot canyons. We viewed Horseshoe Bend — I was surprised by how many other visitors were there, but it’s worth it. We didn’t arrive early enough to tour the slot canyons in Antelope Canyon — if that’s on your list, plan to arrive early in the day and book in advance. We stayed at the Hyatt Place.
Day 16: Ogden, Utah
Ogden was a genuine surprise. The historic main street is lined with great bars and restaurants and has real character. We had a wonderful dinner at The Angry Goat Pub and started the next morning with excellent coffee and breakfast at The Mercantile before hitting the road. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn.
Day 17: Baker City, Oregon
Valentine’s Day in a small historic town that once boomed during the gold rush. We splurged on a room at the Geiser Grand Hotel — our room was on the second-floor balcony beneath a stunning stained-glass ceiling. We had dinner reservations at the hotel restaurant but ended up canceling in favor of The Cabyn, which was excellent. They were packed but squeezed us in at the bar — one of those happy accidents that makes road trips memorable.
The next morning, breakfast at Sweet Wife Baking while we waited for the Lightning to charge. The hotel does have EV charging but not the right connector type for our truck — worth knowing if you’re traveling in an EV.
Day 18: Oregon City, Oregon
Oregon City is in the middle of an interesting transformation — the city is working to restore the Willamette River waterfront, removing industrial buildings to reclaim the riverbank. It’s also home to one of only four municipal elevators in the world. Worth a stop and a walk around the historic district. We stayed at the Best Western Plus Rivershore and had dinner in the hotel bar.
Day 19: Astoria, Oregon
We returned to Bowline for our final night — it felt right to bookend the trip there. Being a Sunday on Presidents’ Day weekend, some of our favorite spots from the first visit were closed, but we discovered the sauna on a dock over the Columbia River, which was a perfect way to decompress before the drive home.
Astoria is a town we keep coming back to. Highly recommend Bowline with the barking sealions (they’re blending in with the rocks in this picture) and their restaurant, The Knot, while you’re there.
A Few Final Notes
The Grand Canyon–Utah corridor deserves its own trip if you have the time. On a previous Arizona road trip we visited Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park, and Sedona — there’s extraordinary beauty in that part of the country and we’ve barely scratched the surface.
Traveling in an EV added an interesting layer of planning to the trip — charging stops shaped our routing in ways that turned out to be happy discoveries more than once. Happy to share more on that side of the trip if anyone is curious.
Safe travels!
Rhonda Porter is a Washington State Mortgage Advisor based in the Seattle area. If you have questions about buying or refinancing a home in Washington State, she’d love to hear from you.
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