Filled with natural and extravagant sightseeing, one day in San Simeon felt enchanted, just like its lavish Hearst Castle has been for many decades.
Last updated: February 16, 2026
3 Things on Our Day Itinerary in San Simeon
We road-tripped back to California’s Central Coast, a place that still holds so many secrets and beautiful spots that you can’t find anywhere else. Every stretch is a new discovery paired with unique culture and architecture of coastal towns and excellent wildlife viewings.
You can love or loathe California, but you can’t deny its ability to harbor some of the most exquisite sites and provide home or temporary shelter to various animals.
The main mission of our one-day trip to San Simeon was to finally visit “La Cuesta Encantada”or what would be in English “The Enchanted Hill”, a Mediterranean-style estate towering over the town.
Yet the unspoken desire of my heart was to pay another visit to nursing northern elephant seals. At this time of year (in late January), they still were gigantic and clumsy as usual when on land, but always such a remarkable sight to behold.
We had the third reason to return to the Central Coast of California. But like with any wild animals – oh well, feral in this case – we couldn’t be certain of the outcome. Spoiler: It was better than we had imagined.
READ MORE: 11 Reasons to Visit San Simeon: The Best Things to Do
ONE DAY IN SAN SIMEON: MUST-DO THINGS AND PLACES TO VISIT
San Simeon… A beautiful coastal town that happened to be home to newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst. The Hearst family owned the land for years. The sweeping hills to raise cattle and the scenic views intrigued young William who once inherited the land, turned it into something magnificent.
1. Find Wild Zebras
One of these magnificent places was a zoo. We’re jumping ahead here, but the zoo that once was the world’s largest private zoo was eventually dismantled. In its heyday, the place counted some 100 species.
After Hearst faced severe financial difficulties during the Great Depression, he couldn’t sustain the costly zoo. The animals had to be donated to public zoos or sold. A few species were left behind to fend for themselves. These included African aoudads that you can see on the hillsides at the foot of Hearst Castle and exotic zebras.
Where to See: When you drive south to north along California’s Central Coast, be especially alert when you start approaching Cambria. To the right of Highway 1, a herd of zebras can be often seen grazing on the hills.
More than a hundred black-and-white striped animals roam freely, intermingling with cows from time to time. They belong to no one. Nor does anyone care for them. So, it’s fair to say that these zebras are wild or feral creatures at this point.
2. Visit Hearst Castle
They say there are no true castles in the U.S. You may believe it, too, until you visit Hearst Castle or “La Cuesta Encantada” as its former owner called it.
It took a long time, exactly over 28 years, for the castle as we see it now to festoon one of the sweeping hills in San Simeon. Hearst hired a talented architect, Julia Morgan, to bring his vision to life and design his future vacation home.
A woman architect was an unthinkable thing back then. But Hearst wasn’t a traditional man. He was a visionary who didn’t follow the rules. Hearst was involved in the process as much as his busy schedule allowed, often being seen as demanding to throw away pieces of art that he didn’t like.
The lavish Hearst Castle was the talk of California and far beyond its borders. It hosted some of the most extravagant parties of the 20th and 30th. Even today, a day trip to San Simeon is not complete without stepping inside the magnificent castle.
READ MORE: Top 12 Historic Buildings in the American West
3. Watch Elephant Seals on a Beach
When you travel to the San Simeon area, you have to drive some 5 miles north to see massive northern elephant seals lazing at a seal rookery. Lazing is probably not what they think about their time on the shore, deprived of food and losing up to 50% of their body weight.
It was our second time sharing the coast with the elephant seals. Us up at the viewing platform. Them down on the beach. This time, the mama seals were still huge. Some were still expecting their babies. Others had had their pups no earlier than a few hours ago.
So, the animals were still heavy and plumb, and terribly hot. Once on land, the elephant seals cover themselves with sand to cool off their bodies. These seals would leave the shore in a few weeks to resume their solitary existence in the ocean.
New elephant seals would move in to take their spots. It’s a never-ending cycle. And the rookery near San Simeon is never devoid of its semi-aquatic inhabitants.
