Follow the C.N.A. sales team to California - September 2009
Duncan, Charlotte and Sarah will be travelling to San Francisco on September 01st 2009 to visit destinations across California over a 10 day period. This training forms a key part of the development investment we make in all of our sales team, we believe passionately that at C.N.A. we should offer the very best guidance and advice to our customers and there simply is no substitute for 1st hand experiences. C.N.A. will be launching a new 14 day drive programme in 2010 to California. This trip will follow the planned route from San Francisco through the wine regions of Napa and Sonoma to the north before heading east to Lake Tahoe, beautiful Yosemite National Park and then back to the coast at Monterey and Carmel before following the quite awesome coastal scenery south along the Pacific Coast Highway. There they will visit Santa Barbara, San Diego before finishing in Los Angeles. Daily updates will be posted here (Internet connection allowing) so do check back for interesting updates on how things are going in 'The Golden State'. **************************************************************************************************************************************** Day 1 - September 01st 2009. We arrived at San Francisco Airport on the direct service from London with British Airways and took a cab from the airport (Cost approx $45 inc 15% tip). This was very easy as you just follow the signs from the baggage claim to taxis and there is a despatch point where the cabs line up. We arrived at the Agagio which has an excellent location on Geary street, just a 5 minute walk from Union Square. Having visited before it was good to see that the hotel has not changed, the public areas are pleasant, relaxed and the rooms very nice, very clean comfortable and the decor is of a high standard. We immediately headed out for a walk, firstly to Union Square where Sarah got friendly with a couple of monkeys (See picture) and then we took a cab to Fishermans Wharf for a walk around before dinner at one of my favourite spots, the Gordon Bircsh Micro Brewery. This was verynice sat on the veranda outside just below the impressive Oakland Bay Bridge. After this it was time to wave the white flag and head back to the hotel for a good nights sleep before a busy day in San Francisco tomorrow. Day 2 - September 03rd 2009 After a hearty breakfast at the little known but world famous Dotties restaurant round the corner from the hotel we took the San Francisco sightseeing tour. There are 2 loops and we took the downtown loop, which conveniently we could catch at Union Square just down the road from the hotel. I do reccomend the other loop which I have done before, this takes you out to Pacific Heights for some great views of the city and also to the Golden Gate Bridge. The tours are an excellent way to start your stay in San Francisco as you get an early idea where everything is and of course you can get on an off at the various stops to explore. After the tour we decided to catch the cable car form Union Square down to Fishermans Wharf. This is such a great experience and a must for everyone. From Fishermans Wharf we split up, Charlotte and Sarah had a reservation for the 1.10pm ferry to Alcatraz Island, but having done this before I headed for the Red & White Fleet pier to take a 90 minute Bay Cruise. The weather was great so a cruise under the Golden Gate Bridge was a great option. This cruise utilises a personal walkman style system so you can get commentary on the earphones provided. Really good.. and I got some great pictures of Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island as we rounded it on our way back. After this I headed for the Aquarium at Pier 39. Having visited some much larger aquariums in the USA before I was not expecting a lot here but was pleasantly surprised it was a really nice place with some good interactive attractions and a glass tunnel you walk through with the water and fish/sharks swimming all around you - Here again I got some fab pictures. Took me about an hour to get round but I'd suggest allowing maybe an hour and 30 minutes but well worth a visit. After this I took the cable car back to Union Square, sussed out where the Alamo Car Rental location was ahead of collecting the vehicle when it opens tomorrow at 7.30am before I headed back to the hotel. This evening we took a reccomendation from the hotel to visit Ideale Italian Restaurant in North Beach, the Italian area of the city. Great district, lots of atmosphere in the evening and we can highly reccomend this restaurant for a very good yet casual experience. Be sure to get the hotel to call and book for you if you come. Tomorrow we head out early to explore the wine region to the North and figure out the best route for our customers to drive when we launch this itinerary, we then head to South Lake Tahoe, hopefully in time to take the Sternwheeler trip we have been told about. Extract from Charlotte & Sarah's diary for today. We took the ferry across to the spectacular Alcatraz Island where we followed an audio tour within the prision itself. This tour was an incrediable insight into the history of some of the most famous inmates in the world. We learnt about the Capone stint in prision for tax evasion, the famous escape attempt by 5 of the inmates and the life of the famous Birdman of Alcatraz. This tour is not to be missed but is so popular you must pre-book. When we returned to Pier 33 we walked to Pier 39, America's 3rd most popular tourist attraction (After Disneyland and Disneyworld). Here there are many shops and restaurants to visit and also the excellent Aquarium of the Bay. We stopped to see the famous Pier 39 Sea Lions which live on the pontoons in the harbour. They are certainly full of character and seem to enjoy posing for pictures! From Pier 39 we strolled through the bustling street of Fishermans Wharf to the Argonaut Hotel which is located in the historic Cannery. It's nautical theme adds to the waterfront atmosphere on the streets outside. This would be our choice pick of hotels on the Wharf and the rooms with a view of the bay are certainly worth the upgrade. After this we caught the historic 1940's tram which took us down to Embarcadero where we had a great view of the Bay Bridge then back towards Union Square. Day 3 - September 04th 2009 - San Francisco - Lake Tahoe We set out to collect our car from the Alamo rental location just round the corner from our hotel at 7.15am this morning. We wanted to avoud any queues and make an early start. We collected our car from the O'Farrell Street location. We had to wait a little while for our car as it had been booked from 9am and we were there at 7.30am. I've never had an issue with pick-up times before and this again highlights some of the minor frustrations you can experience from collecting downtown. The rental agent did inform us that queues can often form. There is certainly a good argument for taking a cab back out to the airport where they have a lot more rental agents and a huge choice of cars. If you do rent downtown I would suggest requesting an early pick up time and getting down there when the door opens at 7.30am. We soon got going and headed out north over the Golden Gate Bridge, there is a pull in park just after you cross, you should definately stop to take some fabulous pictures of the bridge and bay. Heading northbound is toll free, you only pay heading southbound across the bridge. A couple of miles up the road we pulled off for a quick drive through Sausalito a very quaint waterside community. We then continued north to explore the wine regions of Sonoma and Napa. We concluded that this is pleasant but it is questionable whether you would drive out here if you did not want to call in at some of the wineries for some tasting and to sample what I am told is excellent food. We then dead headed through relatively boring farmland past the capital Sacremento and on to Lake Tahoe. This journey was a quite easy 250 miles and we arrived at about 1.45pm which included a several stops for refreshments or to take pictures. The last 30/40 miles of the journey is far more scenic as you head into the moutains, the picture of Charlotte below is as you approach Lake Tahoe. This afternoon we took the Sternwheeler cruise across Lake Tahoe. This was 2.5 hours and a really nice way to enjoy a sunny day with some great views, seem picture below. Day 04 - Lake Tahoe - Yosemite National Park
Today we took breakfast at 7.30am knowing we would have plenty of driving to do to reach our destination, Yosemite View Lodge at the gateway to Yosemite National Park. Unfortunately the on-going forest fire in Yosemite meant that the Tioga Pass, route 120 that runs right through the middle of Yosemite Park was closed. I had been really looking forward to driving what is by all accounts a spectacular drive.
Instead we had to take route 108 through the Sonora Pass, this road ran north of the park and then we dropped down south on route 49 to pick up the CA140 which runs up to the park entrance where the Yosemite View Lodge can be found on the right.
The early parts of this driver were scenic but certainly the last part was rather mundane compared to what we had already experienced and knew we were about to experience in Yosemite. This whole journey was about 230 miles but we left at 8.30am and did not arrive until 2.30pm with only a very short 15 minute stop so it’s a long drive. Driving via the Tioga Pass would have cut the journey time by about 1 hour but I suspect we would have been making quite a few more stops for photographs.
Last time I came to Yosemite it seemed busier, so this was a nice visit. Perhaps arriving into the park at about 3.30pm was an advantage. The weather was wonderful; in fact we had been experiencing 100 degree temperatures earlier in the day. We made some nice stops at Bridal Veil Falls and of course El Capitan mountain to take what turned out to be some amazing pictures – We were all really pleased with our handwork.
We made visits to see the Awahnee Hotel, an incredibly expensive hotel but a beautiful location and the Yosemite Lodge, which is slightly more reasonable in cost. There is other lodging, namely Curry Village but this is incredibly basic tent like accommodation so if you really want to stay in the park we would suggest one of the 2 hotels mentioned. Naturally this is a popular option so reservations 12 months in advance are recommended and expect to pay a premium for the location. The rooms for the record are nothing special.
After a lovely late afternoon visit to the valley floor we headed back to the Yosemite View Lodge. Ideally you would have 2 nights at Yosemite and take a full day to explore some of the short walks and do the highly recommended valley floor tour from the Village / Visitor Center. Sadly we left having seen no more than a few chipmunks and squirrels, the much anticipated bear sighting had not materialised.
As if often the case on these types of holidays I suspect, we had a nice meal and headed off for an early night anticipating an early start tomorrow as we head west to the coast and Monterey across the agriculture heartland of California. On the way back to my room I was joined along the path by a group of raccoons ambling along.
Day 5 - Yosemite National Park - Monterey
We again were up for a 7.30am breakfast, something that is easier than it might sound to some people. With the time difference it is much easier to get up earlier... at least for the first week...
We were greeted by another beautiful morning, however the smell of smoke from the nearby forest fires was more evident today.
Heading west it’s not long before you leave the hills and enter the valley flatlands where huge fields of nearly every kind of fruit and vegetable greet you. The next hour or so is really just a straight road before you enter the hills of the Santa Clara region. We knew we were getting close to the coast as the traffic started to build up, we were here on Labor Day Weekend, kind of like Bank Holiday in the UK.
We quickly dumped our bags at the Portola Plaza Hotel in the heart of town and headed off to meet Anne from the Tourism Association. Anne took us to the amazing aquarium where we got to see some of the behind the scenes operations as well as the baby great white shark which they currently have there. Everything at the Monterey Aquarium is about preservation and like the great white shark many species are released back into the ocean. The aquarium really is a must on any visit and you need about 1.5 - 2 hours here.
We then went on a whirland drive tour...and I mean whirlwind. We drove along the coastal road from Monterey through Pacific Grove and onto the famous 17-mile drive in Carmel. This section costs 9.25 to enter but is again an absolute must to see some of the most amazing coastal scenery in the world, not to mention the mansions and houses of the rich and famous dotted along the coast and around the famous golf courses like Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill. We then took a tour of the Carmel village area and I think the girls would agree we felt this was the preferred location to stay, it is very pretty set amongst the Cypress Trees.
Before heading back to the hotel in Monterey we took a drive inland through the Carmel Valley, again very scenic and ideal if you want to stay at one of several luxury full service resorts such as Carmel Valley Ranch.
We felt Fishermans Wharf in Monterey was a little tacky to say the least and I would not waste any time there. Other things you can do from here are whale watching boat trips and it is well worth renting a kayak. A good restaurant reccomendation if you are staying in the Monterey area is Montrio Bistro -we had a lovely dinner.
One other point of interest today, Charlotte had her first driving in America experience and indeed her first driving an automatic... I think she enjoyed it.
Day 6 - Monterey - Santa Barbara
Today we headed out early for what we knew would be a long but one of the most scenic coastal drives in the world. Driving south on thr Pacific Coast Highway between Carmel and San Simeon is certinaly preferable if you can as you are on the right side of the road, so aside from better views for the driver inparticular it is easy to quickly pull off and the many turn outs when you see great picture opportunities, and there are many of them... Setting off early we had some issues with the fog on the early part of the itinerary but the flip side is it also made for some very good photos.
It took us about 2.5 hours to drive with stops to San Simeon where we visited Hearst Castle the extravagant home of William Randolp Hearst. Built from 1919 to 1947 it it had everything from it's own zoo to oppulent indoor Roman pools. Set in thousands of acres with many different animals roaming freely it will take you about 2 hours to do the tour. You cannot tour the house on your own. Best to pre-book or at least pre-plan which tour time you are going to take. We took the 12.30 tour so getting done by 2.30 was ideal, leaving us 2.5-3 hours to drive on to our stop for the night Santa Barbara. Another site worth seeing at San Simeon are the huge Elephant Seals that come ashore on the beaches here.
The drive to Santa Barbara is not as scenic as what you have just driven, a detour out to see the community of Solvang is an option before you arrive into Santa Barbara. We stayed at the historic Upham Hotel, which is really like a New England B&B and makes a really freshing change. The property is just of State Street the main place for a walk later and offers a very peaceful retreat, not to mention an excellent buffet continental breakfast which is complimentary. As I said State Street is just a block away so it was great to take a walk over and then head down to the front where the pier is located, which is about a mile. State Street is lined with lots of shops and restaurants. Santa Barbara also has a wonderful beach, a wine region you can explore and a rich history in the film world. Their are trolley bus tours you can take to learn more about this very Spanish feeling town. Certinaly Santa Barbara is a preferred stopping point between Monterey/Carmel and Los Angeles, everything else such as San Simeon is a bit non-descript.
