7 Days: San Francisco and the Open Road

Seven days runs the same spine as 6 days through Yosemite, Big Sur and Tahoe, then fixes the brutal Sequoia push into a real overnight instead. If you’d rather go north than south, the Redwoods are a similar drive time in the opposite direction (200-211 miles, 3.5-4 hours via Highway 101); this version picks the Sierra and the coast.

Book these before you go:

Day Stop Distance from SF Drive time Focus
1 San Francisco - - Basecamp, gear up, early night
2 Yosemite Valley 170 miles 3-4 hrs Tunnel View, Yosemite Falls, round trip
3 Big Sur (Bixby Bridge) 130-140 miles 2.5 hrs Bixby Bridge, Highway 1 coast, round trip
4 Lake Tahoe 190-220 miles 3.5-4.5 hrs South Shore beaches, overnight
5 Lake Tahoe (return) ~200 miles ~3.5-4 hrs Slow morning, drive back to SF
6 Sequoia and Kings Canyon 250-280 miles 5-6 hrs Giant Forest, overnight near Three Rivers
7 Sequoia (return) 250-280 miles 5-6 hrs General Sherman Tree, drive home

Day 1: San Francisco basecamp, not the trip

Spend your last city night near a 101 or 80 on-ramp, SoMa or the Mission both work, and don’t pick up the rental car yet; every hour it sits parked here costs $50-75 a day. Our San Francisco guide covers the city itself properly if you want it. This is a seven-day road trip; pace the first night accordingly.

Day 2: Yosemite, rushed and worth it anyway

Yosemite is 170 miles and 3-4 hours via Highway 120 from Groveland, or Highway 140 from Mariposa. There’s no day-use entry reservation for 2026 (confirmed by the park service) , which means uncontrolled crowding: 60-plus-minute entrance lines and gridlocked Valley parking by mid-morning. The $35 vehicle fee covers 7 days, plus a $100-per-person surcharge for non-US residents in 2026.

Day 3: Highway 1 to Bixby Bridge, the day trip with real stakes

Bixby Bridge is about 130-140 miles and 2.5 hours via 101, 156 and Highway 1. The stretch through Big Sur reopened January 14, 2026 after the Regent’s Slide landslide closure, and it’s open as of this writing, but winter storms and slide-repair work still cause intermittent closures. Check Highway 1 conditions at bigsurcalifornia.org or Caltrans QuickMap the morning you leave.

Day 4: Lake Tahoe, done properly this time

Drive 190-220 miles and 3.5-4.5 hours via Highway 50 or I-80 to Tahoe City, and check in for the night on the South Shore. Winter brings chain requirements and possible outright closures on both routes; check the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit if you’re traveling November through April.

Day 5: Tahoe morning, then back to San Francisco

A slow morning at the lake before the drive back to the city for the night. Restock properly; the next two days cover more driving than any other stretch of this trip.

Day 6: Sequoia and Kings Canyon, done properly this time

Drive 250-280 miles and 5-6 hours on mountain roads, with no direct highway the whole way, and check in near Three Rivers for the night rather than turning around the same day. General entry doesn’t need an advance reservation in 2026 ; the same $35 vehicle fee that covers Yosemite also covers Kings Canyon, plus the same $100-per-person non-resident surcharge, paid at a cashless gate. Get to Giant Forest with enough evening light left for a first look at the sequoias before dinner.

Day 7: General Sherman Tree, then the long drive home

Crystal Cave tours run $18-25 and need booking ahead if you want one; otherwise spend the morning at the General Sherman Tree and the Giant Forest before the 250-280 mile, 5-6 hour drive back to San Francisco. Seven days is the full version of this trip, four landscapes instead of a rushed one or two, and the only genuinely relaxed pacing on this list. The one thing worth cutting if seven days feels like too much driving: Big Sur on day three, not Tahoe or Sequoia, since those two are what make the back half of the week worth the extra days.