California Guide Coast towns, wine country, islands, mountains, and desert

Arrival

Getting to California

California is enormous, so the practical question is not "how do I get to California" but "which airport is closest to the corner I am visiting." The state has several major international gateways plus a network of regional airports, long-distance Amtrak routes, and the interstate spine of I-5 and the coastal US-101.

Last checked July 12, 2026

Which airport for which region

Southern California is served mainly by Los Angeles International (LAX) and San Diego International (SAN); Santa Barbara (SBA) and Palm Springs (PSP) are convenient regional airports for the Central Coast and the desert. Northern California runs through San Francisco International (SFO), Oakland (OAK), San Jose (SJC), and Sacramento (SMF), with Monterey Regional (MRY) closest to the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel, and Big Sur.

Because the drive between regions is long — Los Angeles to San Francisco is roughly 380 miles — pick the airport nearest your first zone rather than defaulting to the biggest hub. Flying into Monterey for the Big Sur coast or Palm Springs for the desert can save several hours of driving over LAX or SFO.

Arriving by train

Amtrak connects much of the state. The Pacific Surfliner runs along the Southern California coast between San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and San Diego; the Coast Starlight links Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and the Pacific Northwest; and the Capitol Corridor and San Joaquins serve the Bay Area, Sacramento, and the Central Valley, often with connecting Thruway buses.

Trains are a scenic, car-free way to reach coastal towns such as Santa Barbara, but most California micro-zones — Big Sur, wine country, Lake Tahoe, Mendocino — still require a car or onward transit once you arrive. Check current schedules and any construction reroutes on Amtrak before you build a rail leg into the trip.

Driving into and across the state

Interstate 5 is the fast inland spine running the length of California from the Oregon border through Sacramento and the Central Valley to Los Angeles and San Diego. US-101 is the slower coastal-valley route through the Bay Area, the Central Coast, and Santa Barbara, and State Route 1 (the Pacific Coast Highway) is the scenic but slow shoreline drive that includes Big Sur.

Mountain and coastal routes are weather- and closure-sensitive: Highway 1 through Big Sur periodically closes for rockslides, and Sierra passes to Lake Tahoe can require chains in winter. Check live conditions on Caltrans QuickMap before committing to a long drive, and allow far more time than the mileage suggests on CA-1.

Sources

Reviewed source trail