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Idyllwild California is a 2 hour drive from the San Diego Area as well as the Los Angeles area.
From Orange County:Orange County residents have the most choices of routes to get here. There are many routes, but one of the easiest that offers some scenery and not so many curves (before you hit the mountains) is to take the 91 Eastbound to La Sierra. Take La Sierra South until you reach El Sobrante (left at T in road). Take El Sobrante until it ends at the Cajalco Road expressway. (If you miss El Sobrante, keep going since you will run into Cajalco Road). Left on Cajalco Road. It becomes the Ramona Expressway after you cross the 215. Follow this until it ends on Florida (Highway 74 is the main road in Hemet). Make a left. You will now be going toward the mountains on highway 74. Follow 74 until you run into highway 243 toward Idyllwild and Banning which is a left-curving exit on the road. 20 minutes more and you are in town... If you prefer a route with only main highways, take Hwy 60 (which merges with I-10 at Beaumont) or I-10 east to the HWY 243/8th st. exit at Banning, following HWY 243 south up the mountain to Idyllwild.
From Los Angeles County: Again, there are many ways to get here. One is to take the 10 Eastbound. Keep on going until you hit the 8th Street-Highway 243 exit at Banning. Exit South (right) onto 8th Street, following the signs for a left on Lincoln and a right onto San Gorgonio, which is Hwy 243, to Idyllwild. Follow it up the mountain and keep going. You go through Pine Cove and then you will wind up in Idyllwild. You'll see the big green highway sign that says "IDYLLWILD" with the elevation and population, and the Tahquitz Inn will be on your left (east side) in about 150 feet!
If you are coming from Los Angeles and want scenery, you can take the 60 East until you reach Gilman Springs exit and turn right. This will eventually run you into an intersection at Sanderson Road. Turn right. Make a left on Ramona Expressway. Follow this until it ends on Florida (the main road in Hemet). Make a left. You will now be going toward the mountains on highway 74. Follow 74 until you run into highway 243 toward Idyllwild and Banning which is a left-curving exit on the road. 20 minutes more and you are in town... Pass through the center of town, where you will see a two story mall that looks like an old west fort. In about 350 yards, you will find the Tahquitz Inn on the right (east side) of Hwy 243, across from the San Jacinto State Park.
From San Diego County: Take the 15 North to the 215 North. Follow the 215 North until you hit Highway 74 East (Florida Avenue) and go through Hemet (and we mean THROUGH Hemet). Keep on going until you run into highway 243 toward Idyllwild and Banning which is a left-curving exit. Bear to the left on the road to Idyllwild. 20 minutes more and you are in town... As an alternative, you may use Hwy 79 North to Hwy 74 east (Florida Ave. in Hemet), or Hwy 79 South to Hwy 371 north (through Anza) to Hwy 74 west to Mountain Center, where you go north on Hwy 243 into Idyllwild. The Tahquitz Inn is on the north end of Idyllwild, across from the San Jacinto State Park and at the end of the 25MPH speed limit.
Tip: Idyllwild California is often mistakenly spelled Idylwild California or Idlewild California. When searching the internet, be sure and spell it Idyllwild for best results!
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We hope you enjoy your visit to Idyllwild, and we hope that you stay with us at the Tahquitz Inn!
All material on this page Copyright 2000-2005 by Bob Sargent. All rights reserved.
Idylwild California