Continuing our 3-month road trip, Dillon and I left Las Vegas on Friday (June 24th), and headed to California. We actually planned to return to Las Vegas on Sunday-Thursday because we enjoyed relaxing at the hotel so much. However, I’ll save that for a future post! For now, you can read part one of our Las Vegas trip on my blog post. Anyway, we drove there on Friday and returned to Vegas on Sunday.
Santa Monica
Since we are also doing a part 2 for California when we leave Vegas again, we mainly stayed in a smaller area this time around. We planned to drive to Santa Monica and from there, drive down the A1 beaches. When we arrived to Santa Monica, we wanted to see the pier which is probably the most popular feature there. We parked our car at the public parking garage. Right next to the garage, we had a late lunch/early dinner at Ivy at the Shore. I recently learned they have a location in LA as well. I ordered a seafood pasta dish which is quickly becoming my favorite meal!
After eating a delicious meal, we walked over to the Santa Monica Pier. They have casual restaurants there as well which is another good option if you prefer to eat ON the pier. The pier is big enough to fit a rollercoaster. I’m definitely not used to seeing that back in South Florida, where I’m from. While Dillon and I were dealing with the desert heat, I was surprised at how chilly it was. Well, I’m a Floridian so for me it was chilly. It was more like mid-70s F. There was a nice ocean breeze as well.
After checking out the pier, we walked down the street park that gives you a view of the ocean and the pier. It was nice to walk around in the cooler weather after driving a few hours from the desert. If you are planning a road trip, a good idea is to stop often and give your legs a break from driving. Move around, you’ll fee so much better. That day, we checked in to our hotel called it a day 🙂
A1
The following day, Dillon drove through the A1 to see the California Beaches. Our first stop was Huntington Beach. We parked at the Pacific City beachfront mall’s garage. I absolutely loved this place! They have a ton of restaurants and even clothing stores. It’s an outdoor mall as well so it felt amazing outside. Dillon and I first got coffee at Philz Coffee. I ordered a rose latte. That might have been one of the best lattes I’ve ever had! Dillon tried a sip and he even loved it too (even though his go-to is iced coffee). Since he works remote, he worked a bit while I worked on my blog. It was so refreshing just sipping coffee and doing what we love!
For lunch, we ate at Bear Flag Fish Co. We wanted seafood because it was just that kinda vibe! We both ordered the salmon. It was healthy and tasty! Then after eating a good meal, we got our beach towels from the car and laid out at the beach for an hour. Actually, Dillon did more of the laying out. I had to grab a jacket because it was cold! Dillon can handle the cold so much better than I can! But I was definitely not the only one in a jacket at the beach. I didn’t realize Cali was still kind of cold in June.
Then after that, we continued our mini road trip south on A1. We drove past Newport Beach and then headed to Laguna Beach. On the way, I saw the Oppenheim Group Real Estate in Newport. I watched Selling Sunset before so I immediately recognized it. I believe that’s their newest location. It was pretty cool to see. The homes in Newport & Laguna are definitely more upscale. While Dillon was driving, I was admiring all the beautiful homes! So pretty!
When we arrived at Laguna Beach, we parked on the side of the road and walked to this tiny secluded beach called Table Rock Beach. It actually wasn’t that secluded…you could see people doing photoshoots or just laying out. But it is smaller and more hidden. There are rocks and cliffs on either side framing the gorgeous beach. It’s a great place for sunset. Scroll down to see the sun almost setting.
For dinner, we ate at Ahba. Our car was actually parked right across from it and we thought it looked like a cool restaurant so we went there. This place has a great atmosphere! It’s a small beachside cottage, but I really enjoyed it. They seem to specialize in wine and cocktails, but Dillon and I just stuck with food. I tried their squash blossom quesadilla. The squash blossom is an edible flower! Never tried something like this before but I was curious to try. It was actually really good! After that, we checked in to our hotel before driving back to Vegas the next day. More on that later!
Xo, Jessica
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