Grand Rooms Tour
The main tour for first-timers.
Hearst Castle
Newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst's lavish 165-room hilltop palace, with a Roman-style pool and zebras on the hillside below.
Architect Julia Morgan worked for 28 years on 'La Cuesta Encantada'. Hollywood stars came here in the 1930s. The marble Neptune Pool and gold-tiled Roman Pool are famous.
- Best Time
- Year-round
- Time Needed
- Half a day
- Cost Level
- $$$$
- Open
- Year-round
- Getting There
- In San Simeon, about 4.5 hours from San Francisco or Los Angeles.
What to See
1 of 3 are freeNeptune Pool
A Greco-Roman fantasy in white marble.
Elephant seals
See them at Piedras Blancas, a few miles north.
Know Before You Go
- Book tours online.
- Road closures to the north can complicate the route.
Where to Stay
Stay in Cambria.
Where to Eat
Our picks are on the way.
Editor's picks. Nobody paid to be on this list.
Something wrong or out of date?
Traveler Reviews
Sign in and mark Hearst Castle as visited to write a review.
Go Next
Must-SeePacific Coast Highway
California
California's Highway 1, one of the world's great road trips: redwoods, cliffs, sea lions and surf from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
Full Guide
Must-SeeBig Sur and the Pacific Coast Highway
California
Highway 1 clings to cliffs above the Pacific for 90 miles, with redwood groves and coves along the way.
Full Guide
Worth a DetourMonterey and Carmel
California
A world-class aquarium, the 17-Mile Drive past Pebble Beach and a fairy-tale village, at the north end of Big Sur.
Full Guide
Last checked 2026-11-01. Part of the California list.