Planning your trip to Hearst Castle

THE BEST WAY

Drive north on Interstate 5 or U.S. 101, then head west to California 1 northbound. About 240 miles north of Los Angeles, nine miles north of Cambria and one mile north of hotel-heavy San Simeon Village, you reach the exit for Hearst Castle.

TO BOOK A TOUR

The only way to see the castle is to join a tour, which lasts about two hours. All tours begin at the visitor center, where visitors board a bus that climbs the hill. Of the five tours (which focus on different parts of the castle and its gardens), four are day tours with start times from 8:20 am to 3:20 p.m., later in summer. Evening tour times depend on sunset.

Depending on the season, prices are $20 to $30 for adults, $10 to $15 for children ages 6 to 17. Children younger than 6 are admitted free with an adult. Reservations are recommended, either at (800) 444-4445 or www.hearstcastle.com.

WHERE TO STAY

Best Western Cavalier Oceanfront Resort, 9415 Hearst Drive, San Simeon, (805) 927-4688 or www.cavalierresort.com. The hotel features a restaurant, two outdoor pools, 900 feet of ocean frontage, lots of grass for kids to run around on, three outdoor fireplaces that staffers stoke in the evening and 90 rooms. Doubles from $99.

San Simeon Pines Seaside Resort, 7200 Moonstone Beach Drive, Cambria; (866) 927-4648, www.sspines.com. This old-fashioned roadside lodging (circa 1960) is at the northern end of Cambria’s hotel row and has a wacky nine-hole golf course. About 25 of the 58 rooms are adults-only. Doubles from $100.

Cambria Pines Lodge, 2905 Burton Drive, Cambria; (800) 966-6490 or (805) 927-4200, www.cambriapineslodge.com. You see more pinecones than beach sand at this slightly inland 25-acre property set into a Cambria hillside. It has more than 200 rooms, including cabins dating to the ‘40s and about 30 “superior suites� that were completed less than two years ago. Doubles from $69.

WHERE TO EAT

Brambles Dinner House, 4005 Burton Drive, Cambria; (805) 927-4716. Steaks and Greek food in a rambling, quiet, dark dining room. Dinner entrees $15 to $32.

Hoppe’s Garden Bistro, 78 N. Ocean Ave., Cayuco; (805) 995-1006, www.hoppesbistro.com. Ambitious cuisine (including sautéed abalone) in a sleepy town. Dinner entrees $14 to $49.

Cavalier Restaurant, 9415 Hearst Drive, San Simeon; (805) 927-3276. Simple fare, convenient location, hotel adjacent. Dinner entrees $5.65 to $19.95, with children’s and seniors’ menus.

TO LEARN MORE

San Simeon Chamber of Commerce,www.sansimeonchamber.org. Cambria Chamber of Commerce, www.cambriachamber.com.

SanLuis Obispo County Visitors & Conference Bureau, www.sanluisobispocounty.com.