Origin
Nuevo, CA
Late night in Nuevo on Tuesday
Local time
3:26 AM
PDT
Current temp
48°F
Unavailable
Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 21, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
8h 33m
Distance
453.8 mi
730 km
Drive Score
7/10
Good drive
Same Day?
2-day trip
Fuel Cost
$104
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Nuevo, CA
Dominik Gryzbon
San Francisco, CA
Wikimedia Commons
This 453.8-mile journey from Nuevo, CA to San Francisco, CA will take approximately 8 hours and 33 minutes of driving time. Given the duration, it's best split over two days, especially considering the estimated fuel cost of $104. The route is primarily highway-focused, with 96% of it being on major roads like the Westside Freeway and I-5 Truck. You'll experience a consistent driving environment for most of the trip. Planning for at least two stops is recommended to break up the drive. This route connects two points within the Pacific Coast region of California.
Trip Pace
Best split across 2 days
Treat the return leg as its own travel day rather than an afterthought.
Break Rhythm
2 planned breaks
Plan on a short reset every 3 to 4 hours to stay fresh behind the wheel.
Midpoint
226.9 miles from Nuevo, CA
A natural place for your longest stop of the day , about 4h 21m into the drive .
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Westside Freeway | 225.6 mi | 4h 1m |
| Foothill Freeway | 43.9 mi | 50m |
| I 5 Truck | 37.1 mi | 42m |
| Arthur H. Breed Junior Freeway | 29.6 mi | 34m |
| CA 60 | 23 mi | 26m |
| Golden State Freeway | 22.3 mi | 25m |
| William Elton Brown Freeway | 17 mi | 18m |
| MacArthur Freeway | 15.5 mi | 17m |
Step-by-step road directions between Nuevo, CA and San Francisco, CA.
Start on Lakeview Avenue
Turn right onto Nuevo Road
Continue on West Nuevo Road
Take the ramp
Merge onto I 215
Take the exit onto CA 60
Take the exit
Keep slight right at fork
Keep slight left at fork
Merge onto CA 71
Keep slight left at fork
Continue on CA 57
Keep slight left at fork
Merge onto I 210
Keep slight right at fork onto I 210
Keep slight right at fork
Merge onto I 5 Truck
Keep slight left at fork onto I 5 Truck
Keep slight left at fork onto I 5
Keep slight right at fork onto I 5
Keep slight left at fork onto I 580
Keep slight right at fork onto I 580 Bypass
Merge onto I 580
Keep slight right at fork onto I 580
Keep slight right at fork onto I 580
Keep slight left at fork onto I 580
Take the exit
Merge onto I 80
Turn slight left onto I 80
Keep slight left at fork onto I 80
Continue on I 80
Continue on I 80
Continue on I 80
Keep slight right at fork
Merge onto US 101
Continue on Octavia Boulevard
Turn right onto Market Street
Keep slight right at fork onto Market Street
Arrive at destination
To make the most of this 453.8-mile drive, plan to split it over two days to avoid fatigue. Aim to start your first day early to maximize daylight driving. With two recommended stops, consider breaking the journey roughly in half, perhaps after the longest stretch of 225.6 miles on the Westside Freeway. Keep an eye on your fuel levels, as the estimated cost is $104, and plan your refueling stops accordingly. This highway-heavy route means you'll find services readily available, but it's always wise to have a general idea of your next fuel stop.
Morning Departure
Start early — leave by 6-7 AM to arrive at a reasonable hour.
Evening Departure
This is a long drive — plan for a morning departure or consider splitting it into two days.
Consider an overnight stop or starting very early.
Departure
Before you leave
Start with fuel, water, and navigation already sorted so the first hour feels easy.
First stop
Around 100 miles or 2h 1m in
Use this first pause for coffee, a restroom break, and a quick traffic check ahead.
Halfway reset
Around 226.9 miles or 4h 21m in
This is the best place for your longest stop, a real meal, and a full fuel check.
Overnight split
Day 1 wrap after about 226.9 miles or 4h 21m
Stop before fatigue turns the last few hours into a grind. You want day two to start fresh, not just resumed.
Final approach
Final hour starts around 7h 20m
Traffic, exits, and arrival timing usually matter more near San Francisco, CA than in the middle of the route.
Open the route before leaving Nuevo, CA so your first major turns are already loaded.
Leave with enough water and a charging cable within reach, not packed away.
Check your fuel range against the first long segment, especially if you are starting outside city service areas.
Pick one backup stop option before the midpoint in case traffic changes your pacing.
Treat this as a 2-day road trip and book the overnight stop before the busiest arrival window.
Day 1
Settle into the route from Nuevo, CA
Aim for roughly 227 miles and 4.3 hours of wheel time on this day.
Day 2
Finish the approach into San Francisco, CA
Aim for roughly 227 miles and 4.3 hours of wheel time on this day.
Rest stops, refuel points, and overnight suggestions along this route.
Mid-route town
Overnight candidate
227 mi into the route
Best for: Hotel check-in, dinner, and a fresh start
This lines up well with a realistic day-end stop if you are breaking the drive into stages.
Find hotels in Bakersfield, CANight 1
227 mi · about 4.3h in
A practical overnight split lands near Bakersfield, CA after about 227 miles or 4.3 hours of driving.
Find hotelsA short stop after about 100 miles helps settle the day before fatigue starts building.
The midpoint is around 226.9 miles from Nuevo, CA, which is a good place for a longer meal and fuel stop.
Before the longest stretch
Fuel checkTop up before Westside Freeway if your tank is already low. That segment runs about 225.6 miles.
Overnight split
Hotel stopFor a steadier pace, wrap day one after about 227 miles or 4.3 hours on the road.
These stop ideas are pacing suggestions — the exact town or exit can change with traffic, hotel plans, and fuel range.
5 decision points cluster between mile 43.2 and 452.4 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
Take the exit toward CA 71 South, CA 71 North: Corona, Pomona
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Keep slight right at fork toward CA 71 North: Pomona
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Keep slight right at fork onto I 210 / Foothill Freeway toward I 210 West: Sacramento
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Keep slight right at fork onto I 580 / MacArthur Freeway toward I 580: Oakland, San Francisco
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Keep slight right at fork toward US 101 North: Golden Gate Bridge
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Regular Gas
$104.30 one way
$208.61 round trip
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $6.02 | $107.48 | $214.97 |
| premium | $6.18 | $110.36 | $220.72 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $100.19 | $200.39 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Estimated Trip Cost (one way, 1 person)
Fuel
$104
Hotel (1n)
$80–$140
Meals
$50–$100
Total
$234–$344
Rough estimate based on US averages. Hotel $80–$140/night, meals $25–$50/day.
Estimated CO2 emission: 158.8 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $48 in charging · 1 stop · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 136.1 | 1 | $47.65 | $21.78 |
| Efficient EV | 113.5 | 1 | $39.71 | $18.15 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 181.5 | 2 | $63.53 | $29.04 |
Gas CO2
159 kg
EV CO2
53 kg (67% less)
Plan for 1 charging stop. A 30-minute DC fast charge mid-route should be enough to complete the trip comfortably.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Origin
Late night in Nuevo on Tuesday
Local time
3:26 AM
PDT
Current temp
48°F
Unavailable
Destination
Late night in San Francisco on Tuesday
Local time
3:26 AM
PDT
Current temp
63°F
Sunny
Wind Advisory
Wind Advisory issued April 14 at 11:57AM PDT until April 15 at 3:00AM PDT by NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard CA
Wind Advisory
Wind Advisory issued April 14 at 9:35AM PDT until April 15 at 8:00PM PDT by NWS Medford OR
Seasonal Notes
Summer travel usually means heavier construction, hotter rest stops, and busier weekend traffic around major cities.
Winter travel shortens daylight, so a route that looks manageable on paper can feel much longer after dark.
Holiday weekends tend to make both departure and arrival windows slower than the raw route time suggests.
For long drives, weather on day two can matter just as much as conditions at departure, so check the whole travel window rather than only the first day.
Time zone
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
This is long enough that the arrival forecast matters almost as much as departure conditions. Recheck both ends before you roll.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Expect a highway-focused drive for the majority of this trip, with 96% of the route utilizing major freeways. You'll encounter the Westside Freeway, Foothill Freeway, and I-5 Truck as your main arteries. The longest uninterrupted stretch clocks in at 225.6 miles on the Westside Freeway, so be prepared for extended periods of consistent driving. This profile suggests a generally straightforward and efficient journey, with minimal deviations onto slower, local roads.
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on Westside Freeway and Foothill Freeway. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 43.2 miles in.
High effort - long or complex enough to need steady focus all day
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a demanding drive. With 33 significant decision points across 453.8 miles, you will need to stay alert - especially through interchange areas and urban stretches. Consider splitting it into segments if you are not comfortable with fast highway navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 43.2 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 43.5 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 71.2 miles (I 210 / Foothill Freeway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here.
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
On the drive from Nuevo, CA to San Francisco, CA, road signs begin pointing toward Pomona along the way.
Pomona
“Frisco” · Founded 1776
The centerpiece of the Bay Area, San Francisco is one of the most visited cities in the world, and with good reason. The cultural center of northern California, San Francisco is renowned for its mixture of scenic beauty and unique culture that makes it one of the most vibrant and desirable cities in the nation, if not the world. Sandwiched between the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean on a small square of land seven miles (11 km) on each side, San Francisco offers a wealth of treasures for the visitor, from the windswept and often foggy bay to the steep hills lined with Victorian homes that overlook the spectacular scenery of the city.
Top landmarks
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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