Our California self drive holidays combine return flights from the UK, car hire and hand-picked hotels along your route, so you can explore the Golden State at your own pace. Drive the Pacific Coast from San Francisco to Los Angeles, visit Disneyland California, head inland to Yosemite and Death Valley, or carry on to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon.
Every California fly drive we arrange is tailor-made. Our USA specialists plan realistic driving days, choose hotels in the right places and include your car hire, so the whole trip is booked in one place. Charter Travel has been arranging holidays for UK travellers since 1988, and every flight-inclusive holiday is ABTA and ATOL protected.
California Highway 1 Road Trip along the famous Pacific Coast Highway from San Francisco to Los Angeles
14-night fly drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco via Santa Barbara, Big Sur, Santa Cruz and 3 nights in Yosemite. Flights, car hire and hotels included. ABTA and ATOL protected.
This California, Nevada & Arizona Road Trip includes visits to San Francisco, Yosemite National Park, Death Valley, Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon National Park, Route 66, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Pismo Beach & Monterey. Plus where to stay & things to do along the way.
This California and Nevada self-drive tour allows you to experience the USA cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Yosemite and Las Vegas.
This self drive tour of Californias Redwood Coast starting and ending in San Francisco will display some of Californias best preserved Victorian towns, coasts, mountains and vineyards.
A California self drive holiday with Charter Travel brings all the parts of your trip together in one booking:
Most California fly drives fly into one city and home from another, for example into San Francisco and out of Los Angeles. This saves you driving back the way you came. Car hire companies usually charge a one-way drop-off fee for this, and we include it in your quote so there are no surprises. If you're spending a few days in San Francisco or Los Angeles first, you can start your car hire when you leave the city. That saves you hotel parking charges for days you don't need the car.
California is one of the easiest places in the USA for UK drivers. Roads are wide and well signposted, and almost every hire car is an automatic.
This is California's classic drive. Highway 1, also known as the Pacific Coast Highway, runs south from San Francisco through Monterey, Carmel and the cliffs of Big Sur, then on to Pismo Beach, Santa Barbara and Malibu. The whole Big Sur coast has been open end to end since January 2026. Allow at least 10–12 nights. See our California Highway 1 Road Trip.
Add Yosemite's granite cliffs, waterfalls and giant sequoias to a coastal trip. Yosemite is around four hours' drive from San Francisco, so it fits easily at the start or end of your route. See our California Coast & Yosemite Fly Drive.
With three weeks you can combine California's cities and coast with the great national parks of the American West: Death Valley, the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon and Yosemite, with Las Vegas along the way. See our 21-night California & National Parks holiday.
Head east from California to Las Vegas, then on to the Grand Canyon and a stretch of Route 66, before returning to the coast. See our California, Nevada & Arizona Road Trip.
Las Vegas is around 270 miles from Los Angeles, roughly four to five hours by road, so it's an easy addition to a California fly drive. Many people finish their holiday there and fly home from Las Vegas. See our California & Las Vegas Self Drive.
Yes. We arrange California self drive holidays from the UK including return flights, car hire and hotels along your route, all in one ATOL-protected booking. You can start from one of our suggested itineraries or tell us where you want to go, and our specialists will plan the route and driving times for you.
A full UK driving licence is usually all you need to hire a car in California. Some car hire companies also ask for an International Driving Permit, so we'll confirm what your hire company requires when you book. If one is needed, you can get it from a Post Office branch in the UK before you travel.
Yes, and it's the most popular way to do a California fly drive. Flying into San Francisco and home from Los Angeles, or the other way round, means you never have to retrace your route. Hire companies usually charge a one-way drop-off fee, and we include it in your quote.
We usually recommend driving from north to south, from San Francisco to Los Angeles. You'll be in the lane nearest the ocean for the best views, and it's easier to pull into the scenic viewpoints along Big Sur.
We can include fully inclusive car hire, with collision damage waiver, additional liability cover and local taxes, so the main costs are paid before you travel. You'll still pay for fuel, parking and any optional extras, such as an additional driver or child seats, if they aren't included in your package.
Yes. Las Vegas is around four to five hours' drive from Los Angeles, and the Grand Canyon's South Rim is around four and a half hours from Las Vegas. Many of our California self drive holidays finish in Las Vegas, with a flight home from there.
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