Since getting together with Alex, I’ve been her permanent trip companion, during Valen-times or any time. I have certainly opened up my travel palette in worldwide ways since our partnership started, but she has also hit the passenger seat for a few of my travel itineraries as well.
Despite always yearning for international flair, I have convinced her to join me on a few good old American road trips (and more coming in the future I hope!). I’ve been known to point my roadster across the whole country, but with limited time there is also great satisfaction in a well-planned local trek. Why not use the holiday as an excuse to hit the road with your honey?
To help you get started, I have planned two different 1-night road trips from our home base of Los Angeles: a more relaxing route and a more active option.
- Coastal Cali Chill (6.5-hr roundtrip)
- Desert Dunes Adventure (8-hr roundtrip)
1- Coastal Cali Chill
This trip is all about takin’ her easy, so need to rush right out in the early morning (the traffic will be better around 11AM anyway). Sleep in with your sweetie and enjoy a relaxing round of coffee at home.
When you are ready to depart, hit the 101N and head for Santa Barbara. In 90ish minutes, you and tu amor should be ready for lunch under the shadow of the Santa Ynez mountains. This being SoCal, Mexican is always on the menu, and La Paloma Cafe is a great choice for a classy opening meal on your trip. Alternatively, you could go classic with La Super-Rica Taqueria, which many locals consider the best in the area.
Con buena comida filling their stomachs, the couple should be prepared to brave another northward 90 minutes on the 101. Just outside Pismo Beach, pull off at Monarch Butterfly Grove, a free-to-visit sanctuary for the eponymous winged insects. February is generally the last month of the season to see the Monarchs flitting in large numbers amid the preserve’s eucalyptus trees. Post-preserve visit, you can promenade on the nearby Pismo Beach Pier, or head a few miles north to Avila Beach where you should have the opportunity for a more private playa stroll.
The late afternoon sun should now be blazing over the shoreline, so it’s about time to head to your trip’s primary destination. 10 miles up the road in San Luis Obispo sits the world-famous Madonna Inn with 100+ themed guest rooms (Jungle, Yosemite, Pioneer, etc.). With bright pink plastered throughout the premises, this should be a fun (if kitschy) location for Valentine’s night especially. You and your paramour can dine and drink cocktails (and take many photos) in the garishly opulent on-premise steakhouse before retiring to whichever suite you have chosen (#183 is the Love Nest, perhaps too on-the-nose) and continuing the holiday however you see fit.
Relaxation is the theme of this road trip, so be sure to lounge at the heated pool before heading out the next morning. You can also consider a spa treatment on site, possibly as a V-day gift to your partner. Check-out is noon, so get back on the road for about an hour and check out Solvang, SoCal’s Danish cosplay of a town. Bakeries, coffee shops and windmills abound (sample the former and stare at the latter).
You can definitely get a nice lunch in Solvang, however if you drive 30 minutes further into the mountains there is a saloon sitting at an 1800s stagecoach route. Cold Spring Tavern features an eclectic mix of “Old West” ephemera, live music, and a highly-rated tri-tip sandwich. Share a BBQ-flavored besito and head back home rejuvenated (until inevitable LA traffic gets the better of you…).
2- Desert Dunes Adventure
Maybe a laid-back coastal excursion up SBO-way isn’t the right speed for you and your boo? If a bit more adventure and activity is what your couple craves, put the tent in the trunk and point the front bumper southeast.
With this trip, hitting the road on the early side is probably advised. Brave traffic patterns on the 10 (or 210) East and reward yourself with coffee and fresh strawberry doughnuts from The Donut Man in Glendora. This starts your trek out on Route 66, an auspicious beginning to any US road trip glory (or “kicks” as the saying goes). A sugar and caffeine combo should nicely propel you another 45 minutes east to the San Bernardino foothills. Catch glorious mountain and valley views around hairpin turns on the Rim of the World scenic drive, which originates at the Cajon Pass and lets out around Arrowhead Springs.
After this mountainous diversion, it’s time to hit the desert and refuel. Palm Springs is definitely the playground for SoCal daytrippers and weekenders, and if you are a resident you have probably been here before. This trip will not focus around the city in the Sonoran, but is a great spot to fill your stomachs. Elmer’s Restaurant is an ideal option for a hearty late-morning breakfast, while King’s Highway offers a more cosmopolitan vibe for the same (you can get a jump on lunch at either as well).
Satiated by your stop-off by the springs, it’s time to move on from a current tourist mecca to the gateway to a former one. Quite literally called Mecca, CA, this hour-and-a-quarter drive south from Palm Desert sits atop the north shore of the Salton Sea. You’ll get to that now-inhospitable former tourist haven later in the day, but now it’s time to leave the car and test your walking sticks. The Painted Canyon trailhead awaits in Mecca and offers a moderately challenging 4-mile scramble over rocks and ladders. The cooler temps of February will be ideal for this afternoon hike.
Hydrate with your honey back at the car, and get ready to explore the shores of the Salton Sea, one of California’s greatest ecological disasters (it is definitely worth reading up on the history). Your campground for the night will be just outside the semi-abandoned seaside town of Bombay Beach. You can use the website Hipcamp to book a campsite for your car and tent at a private hot springs and organic farm.
After soaking off the day’s excursions in your private spring with your sweetheart, it will be time to explore what remains of Bombay Beach. It is considered only semi-abandoned, as there is a small population and a single bar/eatery. Fortify yourselves with beer and a burger at Ski Inn, the proclaimed “lowest bar in the Western hemisphere.” Sights within the ghost-ish town include plenty of unique art installations, mainly revolving around abandoned sites, such as an opera house and a drive-in theater. Take your Valentine to the latter as the sun goes down over the desert and make time among the classic coupe wrecks.
After taking full advantage of the hot springs again the next morning, it’s time for some adrenaline and one of the main reasons you came this way. The Imperial Sand Dunes are open to the public from October to mid-April each year (for a $35 weekly permit) and are one of the best places in the world to do some off-roading. Rent an ATV from one of the many companies in the Brawley, CA area and speed over towering dunes to your heart’s content.
It’s a roughly 4 hour ride back to where you started, so be sure to stop off for a good meal on the way home. Retreating back to Palm Springs offers plenty of possibilities for an ambient early dinner, but for a more unique option, head north of the valley to the tiny Pioneertown. Here you can eat at Pappy + Harriet’s, a barbecue shack that once hosted a concert by Paul McCartney, among other incongruous events.
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So in the end, both itineraries seem to have concluded with BBQ, but that is only fitting as this is a great American road trip after all (though hopefully one infused with a little romance). If that type of cuisine is not your style, you can of course alter course, as you can do with any part of these proposed trips. At the very least, I hope to inspire the desire to travel the many great routes throughout the country. While these trips were targeted to SoCal residents, I am certain there are great 1-night road trip options from just about anywhere you are located. If you would like Alex and I to look into it personally for you, our services are available 😉
Happy travels (and Valentine’s)!
Drew
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