The best stops on the Pacific Coast Highway are what turn a long drive into the trip of a lifetime. Running from the foggy headlands of the Oregon Coast down through the redwoods to Big Sur and the Golden Gate, the Pacific Coast Highway strings together sea stacks, lighthouses, drive-through trees, and cliff-top overlooks you will want to pull over for again and again. These are our favorite Pacific Coast Highway stops, in the order you reach them driving south, pulled straight from our own run down the coast.
Every stop below is a real place we photographed and mapped, so tap any name to open it in Google Maps. These are the highlights. When you are ready to drive the whole thing in order, with timing, parking, and overnight towns, the full plan lives in the 14-day West Coast Road Trip itinerary.
When is the best time to drive the Pacific Coast Highway?
The best time to drive the Pacific Coast Highway is September and October, when the summer fog thins out, the crowds ease, and the light turns golden in the late afternoon. Late spring works too. Summer is warm and busy, and winter brings dramatic storms on the Oregon Coast that are worth planning around rather than avoiding. Whenever you go, drive north to south so you are on the ocean side of the road at every overlook.
1. Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock
Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach is the postcard the Oregon Coast is famous for, a 235 foot sea stack you can walk right up to at low tide. Come at a minus tide and the tide pools around its base fill with sea stars and anemones. Park in town and walk down, and stay for sunset if you can.
2. Neahkahnie Mountain Viewpoint
Just south of Manzanita, the Neahkahnie Viewpoint is one of the highest drivable overlooks on the coast. Pull off at the roadside turnouts in Oswald West State Park for a long view down the shoreline, framed by wildflowers in early summer.
3. Cape Perpetua Overlook
The Cape Perpetua Overlook near Yachats is the single best pull-off on the central Oregon Coast, looking 800 feet down over the forest and the winding highway to the sea. Below it are Thor's Well and the Spouting Horn, best at an incoming high tide. Note that cell service drops out here, so download your maps first.
4. Heceta Head Lighthouse
Heceta Head Lighthouse may be the most photographed lighthouse in Oregon, perched on a green headland with the surf crashing below. There is a short walk up to the light, and the viewpoint just south on Highway 101 gives you the classic framed shot.
5. Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor
The Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor is twelve miles of the wildest coastline in Oregon, with hidden coves and the famous Natural Bridges sea arches. Stop at as many of the numbered pullouts as you have time for, they are all worth it.
6. Drive-Thru Tree in Leggett
Crossing into California through the redwoods, the Drive-Thru Tree Park in Leggett lets you actually drive your car through a living 2,400 year old redwood. It is roadside kitsch at its finest and an unforgettable photo, especially for a family road trip.
7. Cypress Tree Tunnel at Point Reyes
Near the Point Reyes National Seashore, the Cypress Tree Tunnel is a quarter mile lane of Monterey cypress that arches completely overhead. Go early to have it to yourself. Point Reyes itself, with its dramatic lighthouse, is a worthy detour just north of San Francisco.
8. Golden Gate Bridge
No Pacific Coast Highway trip is complete without the Golden Gate Bridge. For the best view, skip the city side and drive up to the Golden Gate View Point on the Marin headlands, where you look straight down the deck toward San Francisco.
The Big Sur classics
South of San Francisco, the Big Sur stretch of Highway 1 is the most iconic driving on the entire coast. Do not miss these:
- Bixby Bridge, the most photographed bridge on the coast
- McWay Falls, an 80 foot waterfall that drops onto the beach
- Hurricane Point, a sweeping cliff-top overlook
- Pfeiffer Beach, with its purple sand and Keyhole Rock
See the rest of the route
These are the stops that stopped us in our tracks, but they are a fraction of the full drive. The complete route continues through San Francisco, Big Sur, and Los Angeles, then loops back through Death Valley, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and Crater Lake. Every stop is timed and mapped in order, with a hand-picked overnight town for each night, inside the full 14-day West Coast Road Trip itinerary.
