Whether you're a Calabasas High student just starting out or a parent trying to figure out next steps, this page covers local pick-up spots, practice routes near Calabasas, and which DMV gives your teen the best shot.
CHS families
mapped
reviewed
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22855 Mulholland Hwy
Calabasas, CA 91302
Before you can drive: the permit basics
California's permit process is simple once you know the order. Here's the path most Calabasas families take.
Includes your DMV certificate + permit test practice questions.
Common permit questions
Six lesson levels, one road to the DMV test
Each lesson has its own focus, from quiet residential streets to freeway merges and DMV-road-test practice.
Level 1: Residential foundations
Vehicle basics, steering, braking, right-of-way, and low-traffic Calabasas neighborhood streets to build comfort and control.
Level 2: City streets and traffic
Turns, lane changes, speed control, intersections, and main Calabasas roads with real traffic flow.
Level 3: Review and freeway intro
Cumulative skill review, first freeway introduction when ready, and a mock DMV assessment to gauge progress.
Level 4: Freeway driving
Freeway entry, merging, lane discipline, safe following distance, and I.P.D.E. defensive driving technique.
Level 5: Canyons and defensive driving
Real-world driving on roads near Calabasas, with a focus on speed control, hazard awareness, and situational judgment.
DMV refresher + day-of test prep
Mock test, common mistake review, confidence building, and use of our vehicle for the road test.
Where lessons start
We pick up from home or directly from Calabasas High School, whichever fits your family's schedule.
🏠 Home pick-up & drop-off
Most common. Our instructors come to you.Pick-up and drop-off are usually the same location, but we can sometimes accommodate a nearby alternate drop-off.
View all locations we service in your area
🏫 Calabasas High School pick-up
Convenient on school days or after activitiesSee the map and photo below for the exact school pick-up meeting spot.
School pick-up meeting location: corner of Mulholland Hwy and Declaration Ave
Your instructor and vehicle
Our instructors are male and female, all experienced with Calabasas-area roads. Instructors and vehicles are assigned based on availability at time of booking.
Over 17 instructors serving CHS students
Jo
Hal
Alejandra
Debbie
Andrew H.
Anthony
All vehicles are equipped with dual brake controls for instructor safety. You can request either vehicle, or switch between them across lessons, subject to availability. Instructors and vehicles are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis at time of booking.
6-hour and 10-hour packages available. Pick-up throughout Calabasas and surrounding cities. Use code CHSsave10 for $10 off.
Local streets and practice areas
Where instructors typically take CHS students, from quiet residential streets to freeway on-ramps.
Driving near Calabasas High means exposure to varied conditions: neighborhood streets, busier roads, intersections, and freeway access. Our Calabasas driving school program starts where the student is comfortable and progresses from there.
Main streets
- Residential streets near Paul Revere Dr When traffic is calm, this nearby neighborhood area may be useful for practicing smooth steering, stop sign procedures, speed control, and scanning for parked vehicles and pedestrians.
- Mulholland Hwy When the student is ready, this larger road may provide opportunities to practice lane changes, maintaining appropriate following distance, and handling varying traffic speeds at intersections with stoplights.
- Old Topanga Canyon Rd When the student is ready, this road may be useful for practicing speed control, scanning ahead through gentle curves, maintaining lane position, and adjusting to changing traffic conditions. It can also help build confidence on roads that feel less predictable than a typical neighborhood street.
- Las Virgenes Rd For more advanced students, this busy corridor can help build experience with heavier traffic, multiple lanes, traffic signals, and making decisions while entering and exiting major intersections.
Key intersections
- Valmar Rd and Park Ora Rd Valmar Road and Park Ora Road offers a relatively low-stress setting for students learning how to navigate signalized intersections. Traffic is typically light to moderate, though activity can increase during school and commute hours. Students can practice approaching green, yellow, and red lights, making controlled turns, checking crosswalks for pedestrians, and developing good scanning habits before progressing to busier intersections.
- Mulholland Hwy and Valmar Rd Mulholland Highway and Valmar Road experiences moderate traffic volumes, with activity increasing during school commute and peak travel hours. Students can practice approaching and navigating a signalized intersection, making turns into and out of side streets, and maintaining proper lane position while monitoring surrounding traffic. The combination of vehicle traffic, occasional pedestrians, and cyclists makes this a valuable training location for students who have progressed beyond basic neighborhood driving.
- Mulholland Hwy and Old Topanga Canyon Rd Mulholland Highway and Old Topanga Canyon Road is a signalized intersection with moderate traffic volumes and multiple turning movements. It can help intermediate and advanced students practice lane positioning, protected turns, and scanning for pedestrians and cross traffic in a busy suburban setting. The intersection also features integrated bike lanes that travel through the intersection alongside vehicle traffic rather than remaining on the far right, giving students valuable experience identifying and safely sharing the road with cyclists in a more complex traffic environment.
Freeway on-ramps near CHS
- Las Virgenes Rd (southbound) onto the 101 S This on-ramp requires drivers to merge into active freeway traffic rather than continuing into a dedicated lane. Traffic heading eastbound toward Los Angeles can be heavy, making this location more appropriate for intermediate students who are comfortable with freeway-speed driving and gap selection.
- Las Virgenes Rd (southbound) onto the 101 N This on-ramp is a good choice for beginner freeway students because drivers can enter the 101 North and continue to the nearby Lost Hills Rd exit if they are not yet comfortable merging into faster traffic. Traffic volume is often moderate to heavy, but the nearby exit provides an easy fallback option while students build confidence.
- Lost Hills Rd (northbound) onto the 101 S The Lost Hills Rd northbound on-ramp to the 101 South features a relatively comfortable freeway entry because the entrance lane continues onto the freeway as a dedicated lane. Students can accelerate to freeway speed without needing to make an immediate merge decision, which helps reduce stress. With moderate to heavy traffic common on the 101, this ramp is an excellent choice for beginner and lower-intermediate students building freeway confidence.
- Valley Circle Blvd (southbound) onto the 101 N Valley Circle Blvd onto the 101 North can be a useful advanced practice ramp because the challenge starts before the freeway entry. After the all-way stop, traffic from nearby streets comes together before the ramp, so students need to watch their spacing, lane position, and timing before they begin accelerating. The acceleration area gives some room to build speed, but 101 traffic can be busy, so this is best for students who are already comfortable with faster traffic and basic merging.
Between lessons: progress and practice
How to make the most of practice time, and what California actually requires before your student can test.
There are two California requirements that must be met before a teen can apply for their license:
- Minimum 6 hours of behind-the-wheel training with a licensed driving school (this is what our lesson packages cover)
- Minimum 50 hours of supervised driving practice with a parent, guardian, or licensed instructor. At least 10 hours must be at night
The 50 hours can be tracked using our free California driving log. Individual or custom lessons with our instructors count toward this total.
Beyond the standard package, students can add individual or custom lessons whenever they want. They are useful for:
- Extra practice on specific skills (freeway driving, parking, canyon roads)
- Logging additional hours toward the 50-hour DMV requirement
- Night driving practice with a licensed instructor (counts toward the required 10 nighttime hours)
- Building confidence before the DMV road test
If individual lessons sound useful, mention it when you sign up, or get in touch once your package is completed.
Stick with what was covered in the last lesson before moving on to anything new. Familiar Calabasas streets are perfect for this kind of low-pressure repetition.
- Quiet residential streets with minimal traffic
- Empty public parking lots (school or shopping center off-hours)
- Avoid jumping to busier roads or freeway until the instructor confirms the student is ready
Students who practice between lessons advance significantly faster. Less time reviewing old material means more time building new skills.
We typically recommend spacing lessons across the 6 months students hold their learner's permit. This allows time for real supervised practice between sessions, and helps each lesson build meaningfully on the last. That said, every family's schedule is different. We work around school, sports, and activities.
It is more common than you might think, and completely understandable. Parents and students should not feel pressure to practice beyond their comfort zone. Wait for the next lesson, and your instructor will assess readiness and pick up from there.
DMV road test prep, Calabasas edition
Most CHS students use one or both of these before test day. They work well together.
A targeted lesson 1-2 weeks before your scheduled test. Your instructor runs through DMV expectations, conducts a mock road test, identifies habits that could cost points, and builds confidence before test day.
If you have already booked your DMV appointment, share the location with us. We will work to practice nearby beforehand, within legal limits. Keep in mind that DMVs prohibit driving the actual test route during business hours, but our instructors know the roads around local DMV offices well and can prepare your student for similar driving conditions.
This lesson works great on its own, and pairs naturally with the day-of test prep below.
Of all our options, this is the easiest one for families to manage. After you book the DMV Test Prep package, we work with you to land a DMV appointment that aligns with your schedule and our availability for instructor and vehicle. The scheduling burden lifts off you. Just one heads-up: if you choose this package, please skip booking your own DMV slot, since we may not be available on a self-selected date.
On test day, we pick your student up about an hour before the appointment, warm up with focused practice near the DMV, then drive to the test in our licensed, insured, and test-ready vehicle. Our instructor checks the student in, makes sure all paperwork is in order, and provides last-minute tips and a confidence boost right before the examiner arrives.
You don't need to provide a car, arrange transportation, or navigate DMV logistics. We handle it all.
Which DMV should Calabasas students use?
Our recommendations are based on recent student pass trends, route predictability, and local traffic conditions.
Choosing the right DMV can make a meaningful difference. Most of our guidance is based on ongoing data from student road tests, not just general reputation.
Winnetka DMV
20725 Sherman Way, Winnetka, CA 91306
Other DMV options in the area
Thousand Oaks DMV
1810 E Avenida De Los Arboles, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
Simi Valley DMV
3855 D - Alamo St, Simi Valley, CA 93063
We'll tailor the session to your test location, current skill level, and test date.
For current students and families
Logistics, progress reports, and what to focus on between lessons.
For most families, home pick-up is the most convenient and common choice. Your instructor comes directly to your front door at the scheduled time, greets the student and, when a parent is available, briefly discusses the lesson plan beforehand and shares progress at drop-off.
Calabasas driving school lessons have a 15-minute arrival window to account for traffic. All lesson time is always taught in full from the moment the instructor arrives.
A convenient option on school days or after activities. Students can meet us at or near the corner of Mulholland Hwy and Declaration Ave. Our vehicles have a large leaf logo on the side. The instructor will exit to greet your student when safe, or your student can approach and enter directly.
Pick-up and drop-off can sometimes be different locations. For example, picked up at Calabasas High School and dropped at home.
Following every lesson, your instructor sends a written assessment by email to both the student and parent. It covers what the student practiced, how it went, and the priorities for between-lesson work. When a parent is at drop-off, the instructor also takes a few minutes to talk through it in person.
Practice what your most recent lesson covered. The progress report will spell out specifics, but the general principle is simple: get comfortable with what you just learned before stepping up to anything more advanced.
- Quiet residential streets, good for Level 1 review
- Empty parking lots, good for parking, turning circles, and low-stakes maneuvering
- Main streets throughout Calabasas once residential driving is solid
If you and your parent or guardian are not comfortable practicing a particular skill between lessons, just wait for the next lesson. Don't push into situations that feel unsafe.
You can choose between male and female instructors, and bios are available to read before booking. Vehicle preference is also yours to set: families pick between our Toyota Prius and Lexus SUV, each equipped with dual brake controls for instructor safety.
We accommodate instructor and vehicle requests based on availability. Assignments happen on a first-come, first-served basis when you book.
Most CHS students test at Winnetka DMV (our top recommendation for this school). Other good options include Thousand Oaks DMV. See the DMV section above for full details.
Many students use both of our test prep options together: a refresher lesson in the days before the test to sharpen skills, followed by our full DMV Test Prep package on test day where we handle scheduling, bring a licensed and insured vehicle, check the student in, and provide a confidence boost right before the examiner arrives. They work well in sequence.
Access your lesson history, progress reports, and scheduling.
Driving resources for CHS students
Short videos and practice tools. Students who review these between lessons tend to progress more smoothly.
Behind-the-wheel tips
Short videos covering turns, lane changes, blind spots, and common early mistakes.
Watch videos
DMV road test preparation
Real examples of point deductions, automatic fails, and how to avoid common test-day mistakes.
View test prep
Permit test practice
Practice questions and explanations to help students pass the California written knowledge test.
Start practicing
Driving skills explained
Clear breakdowns of right-of-way, intersections, parking, and other key skills students ask about most.
Learn more