[Clevelumbus]

I was wondering how long it takes to get from Downtown San Francisco to Monterey using route 1, traveling at a decent pace (10 miles over).

Also, any suggestions of a good place for dinner (No more then $20 a meal), possibly in Carmel, Monterey, or Santa Cruz?

I will be traveling in early august with a girlfriend (we're 22 and 18), thanks for your help.. I'm sure I'll have a million other questions.

BTW we are staying at the Dakota Hostel, any tips or warnings?

Well I'm at it, any tips on nightlife in San Fran. that is 18+.

Thanks again.

[fflint]

*I don't know for certain how long that would take--I've always taken other, faster routes--but it would be slow-going.

*You really cannot speed on that road in many places, as it is mostly a two-lane highway, popular with tourists who aren't in a hurry, that winds along cliffs and such.

*You should expect to spend more than $20 per person for a nice dinner in those areas.

*Not much nightlife for 18+ that I can think of, perhaps others can

[BTinSF]

^^^I agree. You probably aren't going to go 10 mph over the limit on Highway 1. Consider yourself lucky if you don't get behind a slow-moving camper van. Passing can be near impossible (and/or illegal) much of the time. Route 1 is surely the scenic way, but to make time there's 101.

When it comes to dining, Carmel is high end turf. You are more likely to find $20 meals in Monterey or Santa Cruz. For Monterey options, see http://www.restauranteur.com/ca/monterey/showcase.htm . Look here for Santa Cruz: http://www.infopoint.com/sc/restaurants/ .

At 61, I'm too old to know about the 18+ nightlife (if I did know about it, you probably wouldn't want to go there). Sorry.

[Clevelumbus]

Thanks everyone so far. Yeah, I plan on taking route 1 there, and highway 101 back.

What would you say is the most scenic part stretch of route 1, outside of the Monterey Penninsula (17 mile drive)?

[Reminiscence]

Ahhh, the ol' Highway 1. I've been to Santa Cruz and Monterrey a few times through there and I would say I averaged about 50-55 mph. I usually made it in around 1.5 hours. I would personally not recommend speeding on that freeway, there are some sections where its a long way down to the rocky ocean below.

As for dining, I'd say the same as BT and fflint.

[fflint]

Most all of it is scenic. I think the entire stretch between SF and Santa Cruz is beautiful. Just understand you'll be traveling at low rates of speed.

Also, I go to Monterey often and it's fairly expensive for a nice sit-down meal with romantic ambience, but you can probably find something within your price range if you drive around downtown Monterey--or better yet, do an Internet search. Here is a link to a yelp.com search for Monterey restaurants--you should use that website to research your trip overall: http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=&find_loc=Monterey%2C+CA&x=0&y=0&cflt=restaurants. Yelp is the website I would use if I were to look for a new restaurant or nightclub or bar experience in SF, Santa Cruz, or Monterey.

[peanut gallery]

If you do end up in Carmel at dinner time and are too hungry to wait to drive to a cheaper locale, you can try a place called the Barnyard. It's a shopping center just off 1. Since it's outside the village, there are a couple of less-expensive places in there. Also, since this is Carmel we're talking about and even though it's basically an outdoor mall, it's full of flowers and unique shops, so it's not the worst place to stop. It's just not the village area. If you can splurge one night though, I would definitely recommend eating in Carmel. There are tons of great restaurants, all within 1 square mile.

As others have said, definitely don't be in a hurry going down 1. You won't want to be anyway because the scenery is awesome. Have a great trip!