San Francisco to Los Angeles by train, flight, bus or road

Every option, compared

Door-to-door times (flights include the time at the airports). Fares are typical ranges from the cheapest seat to the premium one.

• Flight, United / Southwest / Alaska / Delta / American: Flights every half hour; Oakland and San Jose airports serve the same route. Basic-economy and low-cost fares usually charge for a checked bag ($35-45 each way); the budget fare includes one.
• Train, Amtrak Coast Starlight, Oakland–Los Angeles (daytime, scenic): Along the Pacific for hours south of San Luis Obispo; once a day and often late.
• Private car, Rental car via I-5, per vehicle: Highway 1 along the coast takes two days, and its Big Sur stretch has had landslide closures.

Booking links open the route on the country's transport booking site for trains, buses, boats and transfers, and a flight search for flights, dated about two weeks out; change the date there.

What it costs your group, one way

Fares × people; a private car is priced per car, one car per four people.

Once you’re in Los Angeles

• Best time: March – May, September – November
• Typical stay: 3 days
• November: Mixed month: November is at the end of the recommended season (March – May, September – November). Against it: Wildfire Season.

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