Los Angeles to Redwood National Park Driving Guide

Two routes connect Los Angeles to Redwood National Park, and they differ enough that picking the wrong one for your schedule can reshape the whole trip.

The inland route follows Interstate 5 north through California's Central Valley, then transitions to US-101 through the redwood corridor. According to lazytrips.com's 2023 guide, this 690-mile route takes just over 11 hours of pure driving time. That figure assumes no stops, no traffic, and no detours. In practice, add at least two to three hours for fuel, food, and the stretch of congestion around Sacramento.

The coastal route follows US-101 and CA-1 up through Big Sur, the Sonoma Coast, and the Avenue of the Giants before reaching the park. At 840 miles, it runs 150 miles longer than the inland option. The extra distance buys you some of the most dramatic coastline in North America, but it also means two very full driving days or a more relaxed three-day pace.

Neither route is a day trip from Los Angeles. The park sits in the far northwest corner of California, close to the Oregon border. Plan for at least one overnight stop on the way up, and build in a second if you want to arrive without burning through your energy before you've seen a single tree.

The right route depends on your available time and what you want from the drive itself. Use the table below to compare them directly.

Inland I-5 moves fast. The Central Valley stretch between Los Angeles and Sacramento is flat, straight, and efficient. You trade scenery for speed, which makes sense if you have a limited number of days and want to maximize time inside the park rather than on the road.

The Coastal Highway earns its extra miles. Big Sur alone justifies the detour for many travelers, and the route through Sonoma and Humboldt counties adds redwood groves, fishing towns, and cliff-side ocean views that the inland corridor simply doesn't offer. The tradeoff is time: plan for 17 to 20 hours of driving spread across two or three days.

One practical note for winter travelers: sections of CA-1 through Big Sur are prone to closures after heavy rain or slides. Check current conditions through Caltrans before you leave, particularly between November and April. No specific closure dates are predictable, but the risk is real enough to have a backup plan.

If you drive an EV, both routes pass through populated corridors with charging infrastructure. The inland route through Sacramento and Redding gives you more consistent access to charging stops than the more remote coastal stretches north of San Francisco. Plan your charging stops before you leave, particularly for the final leg into Humboldt County.

The inland route is the most direct path to the park. Follow these steps in order:

1. Exit Los Angeles heading north on Interstate 5. The first major stretch runs through the San Fernando Valley and into the Central Valley. Expect traffic through the LA metro area, particularly on Friday afternoons. Once you clear Bakersfield, the road opens up considerably.
2. Merge onto I-680 to reach the San Francisco Bay Area. This transition takes you through the Altamont Pass and into the East Bay. The Bay Area is the natural overnight stop for travelers splitting the drive across two days, and it puts you within a manageable distance of the park for day two.
3. Connect to CA-12 to enter the Napa Valley region. This leg adds scenery without significant extra time. Napa and Sonoma are worth a stop if your schedule allows, and the route rejoins US-101 efficiently from there.
4. Join US-101 at Eureka and follow the winding northern route. US-101 through Humboldt County is slower than the freeway miles to the south. The road narrows, curves, and passes through old-growth groves. Give yourself more time than the map suggests for this final leg.
5. Continue through Mendocino County and Humboldt Redwoods State Park to reach the park. Humboldt Redwoods is a worthwhile preview of what's ahead. The Avenue of the Giants runs parallel to US-101 here and is worth a short detour even on the inland route.

From the Bay Area, the drive north to the park covers the bulk of the San Francisco to Redwood National Park distance on US-101. That leg alone takes the better part of a day, so most travelers who stop overnight in San Francisco treat it as a two-day drive from that point.

For a broader look at planning multi-park road trips through the Pacific Northwest and California, the national parks road trip planner covers how to link parks, driving legs, and overnight stops into a coordinated journey.

The coastal route trades speed for scenery. At 840 miles, it runs 150 miles longer than the inland option and takes 17 to 20 hours of driving spread across two or three days. The stops along the way are the reason to choose it.

1. Leave Los Angeles on US-101 north toward Ventura and Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara makes a natural first stop: walkable, well-supplied, and roughly two hours from downtown LA. Stock up here before the road gets more remote.
2. Transition onto CA-1 north of San Luis Obispo to enter Big Sur. This is the stretch most travelers picture when they think of the California coast. The road hugs cliffs above the Pacific for roughly 90 miles. It's slow, narrow, and worth every minute. Check Caltrans conditions before this leg, especially between November and April, when slides can close sections without much warning.
3. Continue through Monterey and Santa Cruz, then rejoin US-101 near San Francisco. Monterey and Santa Cruz are both easy stops for food and fuel. San Francisco is the logical overnight point for travelers doing the coastal route across two days. It sits well past the halfway mark and gives you a full second day for the northern stretch.
4. Head north from San Francisco on US-101 through Sonoma and Mendocino counties. The road passes through wine country before the terrain shifts to dense forest and rugged coastline. Bodega Bay and Fort Bragg are good fuel and meal stops along this stretch.
5. Continue through Humboldt Redwoods State Park and on to the park entrance. The Avenue of the Giants runs parallel to US-101 through Humboldt Redwoods and is worth pulling off for. By the time you reach it, you're already in old-growth redwood territory.

If you're approaching from the Bay Area as a starting point rather than a stopover, the San Francisco to Redwood National Park leg follows US-101 north through the same Sonoma, Mendocino, and Humboldt corridor. It's a long day of driving on its own, so build in time for stops rather than treating it as a quick run.

Driving is by far the most practical way to reach the park, but three alternatives exist for travelers who can't or don't want to drive the full route.

• Fly into Eureka/Arcata Airport (ACV). United Airlines operates direct and connecting flights from Los Angeles (LAX) and Burbank (BUR) to ACV, which sits close to the park's southern end. Flying cuts travel time dramatically, but you'll need a rental car once you land. The park has no meaningful public transit, so a car is essential for getting between sections and trailheads. Fares run higher than the bus and rail options below.
• Take the Amtrak Coast Starlight. The Coast Starlight runs from Los Angeles Union Station north through the Central Valley with scenic stretches along the way. You'll need to transfer to an Amtrak Thruway bus to reach the coast, and total travel time can exceed 24 hours. Fares are budget-tier. This option works best for travelers who enjoy the journey itself and aren't in a hurry.
• Book a Greyhound or FlixBus. Both carriers serve routes from Los Angeles to Northern California hubs at budget-tier fares. Travel time typically runs 17 to 24 hours depending on transfers. Like the train option, you'll still need ground transportation once you arrive.

For more on visiting national parks without a personal vehicle, the guide to national parks accessible without a car covers parks and routes where car-free travel is genuinely workable.

Redwood National and State Parks is a collection of connected units spread along the northern California coast. The park is managed jointly with three California state parks: Prairie Creek Redwoods focuses on old-growth groves and wildlife meadows, Jedediah Smith Redwoods holds some of the densest ancient forest in the system, and Del Norte Coast Redwoods combines coastal bluffs with towering trees. Give yourself at least two days to move between areas without feeling like you're just driving through.

Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway is the most accessible introduction to old-growth redwoods. The 10-mile road runs through Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and passes directly through stands of ancient trees. You can drive the full length in under 30 minutes, but most people stop repeatedly. Pull-outs are frequent, and short walks from the road put you among trees that coast redwoods can grow to exceed 300 feet tall.

Howland Hill Road offers a different experience. This unpaved road runs through Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park and is one of the quietest ways to see the park's densest old-growth groves. The road is passable for most standard vehicles in dry conditions but is not suitable for large RVs or trailers. Plan 45 minutes to an hour to drive it slowly.

For hiking, the park's trail network ranges from short, flat walks through the grove floor to longer routes that climb into the coastal hills. Flat, paved sections near the visitor centers work well for families or anyone with limited mobility. The longer backcountry trails require a permit for overnight use.

Dogs are not permitted on most trails inside the park. Leashed pets are generally allowed on paved roads and in parking areas. If you're continuing north, the Portland to Redwood National Park by Car guide covers the northern approach.

Gold Bluffs Beach is accessible by a dirt road off Davison Road and is one of the few places in the park where you can walk along the coast directly beneath the redwood forest. The Klamath River Overlook, a short walk from a parking area off US-101, gives you a wide view of the river mouth and the Pacific.

A route from Los Angeles to Redwood National Park involves more moving parts than a single drive. You're choosing between two routes, deciding where to stop overnight, picking which park sections to visit, and figuring out how to link driving legs to specific trailheads and campsites. Xploreum is built for that coordination. Xavier, its AI Adventure Companion, takes your plain-language trip idea and confirms a short trip brief with you: starting point, dates, group size, travel style, budget, and vehicle. Then he builds the Xpedition one day at a time, and you confirm each day before the next. Xavier organizes routes, driving legs, trailheads, campsites, accommodations, fuel stops, and meal stops into one connected journey with an interactive map. With Xplorer Pro on mobile, you can hand one stop at a time to Apple Maps or Google Maps for directions.

Where Xavier stops: it builds the itinerary from your inputs, but it doesn't replace official sources for permit requirements, road conditions, or trail closures. Check current conditions through the NPS and Caltrans before you leave, particularly for the CA-1 coastal stretch and any backcountry permits inside the park.

Both routes are multi-day commitments: the inland option covers 690 miles and the coastal route stretches to 840 miles. Most travelers stop overnight in the Bay Area and arrive at the park with enough energy to actually use it. Once there, Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway and Howland Hill Road are the two drives that give you the best access to old-growth redwoods without requiring a long hike.

Start by deciding which route fits your timeline, then map your overnight stops before you book anything. If you want the coastal scenery, check Caltrans conditions for CA-1 before you go, especially outside of summer. If you want to maximize park time, take I-5 and save the coast for another trip.

• lazytrips: Road trip from Los Angeles to Redwood National Park. The 690-mile inland distance and the just-over-11-hour driving time cited in the first section.
• NPS: Redwood National and State Parks, Current Conditions. Current road, trail and closure notices, including the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway.
• Caltrans QuickMap. Live road closures and conditions, including CA-1 through Big Sur.