Hearst Castle

if you are a m/h over 40 feet you can only get to hearst castle from the south on Hiway 1. hiway 1 is restricted for rigs 40 to 45 feet from carmel to almost the castle.

The parking area and Visitor Center are quite some distance away from the Castle itself. The Buses run between the two locations. I don't recall how often the buses run, but it worked out well for our visit.

sgip2000 wrote:


It seems to cover most of the property. After the tour, you're free to roam around the grounds until the bus leaves.

Please explain "until the bus leaves". Is the parking some distance away? How often does the bus leave?

They don't take all that long so we did a couple of them last time.
It was well worth it!!

I have been on all of them a couple times. I would also say the first one to take is the grand rooms. I will say that I do not like it since they changed the tours - used to have great tour guides but you couldn't walk around on your own. The last couple times I took the tours the guides barely talk and are mostly there to make sure you don't touch anything. Its a great place to visit and I see something new every time.

The People of California welcome you to visit our castle - La Cuesta Encantada!

Tours 1 and 2 show the most of the castle, original sleeping, dinning and social areas all great to see. . Tours 3 shows the newer more modern addition he added to the castle. Tour 4 shows the wine room, gold foundry, shower for the outside pool and other behind the scene things.

Make reservations are a good idea for tours 1 and 2 but not usually ever needed for tours 3 and 4. Have fun, it a great place to see.

I agree with squip2000.

hotpepperkid wrote:
I see there are several tours for Hearst Castle. Which one would be the best to take for a first timer

The only one I've done is the "Grand Rooms" tour. It seems to cover most of the property. After the tour, you're free to roam around the grounds until the bus leaves.