Campervan on the California Coast
In 2016, I fulfilled a dream of living in a van. By “live” I mean “rent for five days,” but regardless, it was a blast. I had found a company called Escape Campervans and was hooked on the idea immediately (check out our reflections here). We made plans for that December: we would fly to San Francisco, rent a campervan, drive the Pacific Coast Highway, and then fly out of Los Angeles to meet Evan’s family for Christmas.
Although I loved the campervan experience itself, my biggest takeaway from the trip were the stunning mental pictures that I consistently revisit (because our photographs couldn’t possibly capture it accurately). Big Sur is one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. I love the ocean and I love mountains, so the juxtaposition of the two next to each other for miles on end was truly unbelievable. Every corner you came around was better than the last, and I missed it the minute we got too far south. There have only been a few times in all my travels when I have felt a physical aching upon our departure from a place… this was one of those times (the other two were Zion National Park and the Malayaka House).
In case you’re interested in making a trip of your own – with a campervan, a tent, an RV, or just your car – here are some tips and suggestions.
Accomodations
There are a variety of places to stay along the California coast, from traditional campsites to RV parks to county parks. We sampled several different types, and we’ve listed them below with the price we paid for a campervan during Christmas week.
- Camping/Glamping on a Mountain: Saddle Mountain Ranch in Carmel ($45/night).
- Camping in a Redwood Canyon: Ventana Campground in Big Sur ($40/night).
- County Park on the Beach: Jalama Beach County Park in Lompoc ($30/night).
- RV Park on the Beach: Dockweiler RV Park in Playa Del Rey ($55/night).
Food
There are not a lot of options for grocery shopping along Highway 1, so definitely stock up before you get too far outside an urban area. We made all of our meals and kept it simple. Here are some meals that are easy to whip up in a campervan.
- Pasta & sauce
- Macaroni & cheese
- Hot dogs (over the fire is even better)
- Grilled cheese
- Eggs
- Sauteed vegetables (especially great if you can find a fresh farm stand along the route)
Activities
We scheduled our trip to be slow enough that we never had more than 4 hours to drive per day. This was intentional to allow for activities and spontaneous stops to soak it all in, which was the perfect way to travel through Big Sur. Here are some activities we enjoyed along the way.
- Walking around San Gregorio State Beach
- Exploring downtown Monterey
- Hiking in Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park or Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
- Watching elephant seals sunbathe at San Simeon
- Hiking to Inspiration Point in Santa Barbara
- Wandering around downtown Santa Barbara
Bonus: If you’re curious about campervan adventures in Southern Utah, check out our article here.