It's a lot further than you think. We once had a spare ten days in San Francisco and drove over 1800 miles around that part of California. Yosemite is a must. Giant sequoias at Mariposa grove and the other one. Muir woods north of the Golden Gate for the giant redwoods. Wine valleys at Healdsburg, Napa & Sonoma valley. Gold mine history at Columbia, up near Reno Silver City & Virginia City are interesting. On the coast Carmel is beautiful, Pebble Beach & 17 mile drive are glorious. San Francisco to LA is about 440 miles, I think, so be warned! (edit: 347.16 miles apparently but that's by crow) You should be able to find a motel without any trouble. If you're worried, look up some names online and ring ahead in the morning, worked well for us in New England. Have fun I'm jealous!