Travel advice please?

[Sparkle]

Hey guys, I've been hanging round the board for a while now, not posted much but checked in everyday to see what's going on. This is a great little community and you guys just seem like the nicest so I was hoping you could help me out...

My sister and I are planning a short road trip in the States in June/July. There are so many places that I'd like to visit but I've always wanted to see the Grand Canyon so we've decided to stick around this area. So the plan is to fly into LA, go to Vegas, to the Canyon, up to San Francisco and then down the coast back to LA to fly out again. If time allows we'd also like to see San Diego. We're going to hire a car (and get used to driving on the right pretty quickly :o) and we'll have just over 2 weeks for our trip – obviously we'd like to see as much as possible but don't want to stretch things too far so that we spend all our time driving. And we'd like to keep it cheap.  

So some questions:
Will this route be possible in the time we've got?
What are the absolute must-sees along the way?
I understand there are quite a few National Parks in the area – for those outdoorsy folk, which ones are the best to visit?
And finally, accommodation-wise, how much should we expect to pay for a simple but decent room?  

Any advice would be greatly appreciated :)

Jen

[Bumbeli]

Can't really help you out, just wanted to tell you that Las Vegas in July is veeeeery hot. I flew there a few years back, it was the end of july, and it was really uncomfortable because you couldn't really do anything.
That's just one special memory I wanted to share, but those of you that live there might give you better answers.

[TheBigChicken]

that's quite some hike.the cost of a rental car and gas alone will be huge. I would list all the places and then mapquest.com. Your trip is achievable but I personally would try and trim it back a hair. I traveled the pacific coast a few years ago by train and had a blast. You can find that at Aamtrax.com. Whatever you do have at least a couple of days for San Fran.....LOVE THAT PLACE....John Muir woods outside San Fran is a MUST...Redwoods that will reduce you to tears...shoot me a pm if you want some more places to check out....damn I wish I was going :- :-[

[Crispy]

Learn about 4-way stops - we don't have many roundabouts here!

[Sparkle]

Thanks guys. We've already booked our flights and couldn't really be flexible with the dates due to work commitments, so I guess we'll have to put up with the sweltering heat. We're from South Africa (although living in UK) so it shouldn't be too much of a shock to the system and we'll be guaranteed a good summer! And 4 way stops are plentiful in SA too so we're ok there  :)

Been doing loads of research today and am struggling to limit the trip :(

Anyone been to Yosemite? Can we really leave it out?

[Penny Lane]

my advice---fly into vegas and skip LA (YUCK) nothing really to see there and the traffic/congestion is ridiculous. you can fly into vegas, soak it all up in a day or 2, then the grand canyon is a half day drive from there (if i remember 5/6 hours?), you can do the grand canyon in one day (not sure if you want to go to the bottom on a camel or mule or whatever lol) that will take another day. I would also see ZION in utah before you head up to san fran. this only takes another day and is a 4/5 hour drive from Vegas, maybe closer. Those are the prettiest canyons you'll ever see.

you should take a couple days in san fran (maybe cross the bridge over to Sausalito) and then drive the coastal highway all the way down to San diego (only takes a few days depending on where you want to stop) i'd stop at big sur, carmel, etc; all the way down to S Diego-go to mission beach or pacific beach for a day, make sure not to miss La Jolla--beautiful area in SD--ritzy area--

then i'd head back up to LA and fly out (2 1/2 hour drive or so from SD to LA)

that's my .02---have a great trip. everything is definitely doable in 2 weeks!@

[Jon T.]

I'm betting BBill will be able to give you some good tips when he sees this.

[Sparkle]

my advice---fly into vegas and skip LA (YUCK) nothing really to see there and the traffic/congestion is ridiculous. you can fly into vegas, soak it all up in a day or 2, then the grand canyon is a half day drive from there (if i remember 5/6 hours?), you can do the grand canyon in one day (not sure if you want to go to the bottom on a camel or mule or whatever lol) that will take another day. I would also see ZION in utah before you head up to san fran. this only takes another day and is a 4/5 hour drive from Vegas, maybe closer. Those are the prettiest canyons you'll ever see.

you should take a couple days in san fran (maybe cross the bridge over to Sausalito) and then drive the coastal highway all the way down to San diego (only takes a few days depending on where you want to stop) i'd stop at big sur, carmel, etc; all the way down to S Diego-go to mission beach or pacific beach for a day, make sure not to miss La Jolla--beautiful area in SD--ritzy area--

then i'd head back up to LA and fly out (2 1/2 hour drive or so from SD to LA)

that's my .02---have a great trip. everything is definitely doable in 2 weeks!@

Thanks Pennylane, I'll definitely look into going to Zion. As I'll be travelling with my sister I've had to make a few compromises one of which was LA. Wasn't that interested in it myself but had to trade so I could get a National Park... hopefully we'll keep it brief!

Thanks also for San Diego advice, wasn't sure but will definitely get down there now.

So excited – 4 months to go  :)

[pawpaw]

 ;D Thanks Jon...yeah, I kinda love to give travel advice around CA, pimp my home state.

So...I'm really not that familiar with Arizona or Nevada, but the Grand Canyon and Vegas sound like good ideas. Driving from Vegas, I'd recommend cutting over to Interstate 395...you can route this through Death Valley, which will be scorching in the summer, but it is a pretty impressive desert landscape. Once on 395, head north...this is the Owens Valley, which is AWESOME, allowing for amazing views of the East side of the highest part of the Sierras. Continue north on 395 until Lee Vining, and then cut west on highway 120, which will take you up and over Tioga Pass into Yosemite. Don't miss Yosemite...spend at least one full day there hiking (I can give you some recommendations on trails). From there, cut West to San Francisco. Stay in a hostel there if you want to do it cheaply, 'cause hotels can be expensive. RC's recommendation to visit Muir Woods is a great one...it's a short drive north from SF, as is Point Reyes, another great National Park in the area. You could spend 2 weeks just between Yosemite and the greater Bay Area, so I'd say pick a few spots that are must sees, and really look at travel distances and lodging areas realistically....things are pretty spread out here in the western US.

The train is a good way to get down the coast from SF to LA...there are a lot of cool things to do and see in LA, but it's really spread out, and most of it is worth skipping. Santa Barbara, north from LA is a much smaller, much nicer area with great beaches, and ferry access to the Channel Islands.

I realize I'm rambling, but I love me some California. If you have any questions, pm me and I'd be glad to help. Also, do some web research on these areas to see if they interest you...

Joshua Tree National Park (HIGHLY recommended, though will be hot)
Big Sur (Central California coast, remote and beautiful, need car)
Santa Cruz (Great coastal town, with nice beaches and redwoods)
Santa Ynez Valley (Santa Barbara County wine country)

[Sparkle]

Wow, thanks bbill. I'm going to have to get the maps out and re-think this route with everyone's good advice. Ideally I'd like to see all the places that have been mentioned but time and money are limited  :(

Might be an idea to ditch the car and save on rental when we can - presumably they won't be needed in LA or San Fran?

Anyway, thanks a bunch guys, I'm sure I'll have more questions but I'll drop you a pm sometime  :)

[Jaimoe]

Might be an idea to ditch the car and save on rental when we can - presumably they won't be needed in LA or San Fran?

You'll need a car in LA that's for sure. It's one of the most car-dependent big cities in the world.

[Sparkle]

Might be an idea to ditch the car and save on rental when we can - presumably they won't be needed in LA or San Fran?

You'll need a car in LA that's for sure. It's one of the most car-dependent big cities in the world.

Damn! Probably not the best place to learn to drive on the right then either. This is going to be fun  ;D

[Jaimoe]

Might be an idea to ditch the car and save on rental when we can - presumably they won't be needed in LA or San Fran?

You'll need a car in LA that's for sure. It's one of the most car-dependent big cities in the world.

Damn! Probably not the best place to learn to drive on the right then either. This is going to be fun  ;D

Actually, I think learing how to drive on "the wrong side of the road" on a LA highway or major road servicing LA's famous urban sprawl is perfect. Driving downtown in say Chicago or Manhattan is extremely stressful by comparison. I've done it and I'm used to driving in huge North American cities.

[pawpaw]

Yeah, LA is definitely a car town, but San Francisco has a pretty good public transit system (BART and MUNI, plus ferries around the Bay). AMTRAK is the train system that would get you down the coast to LA.

Also, here are some good music venues to start checking the concert calendars for:

Bay Area:

The Fillmore, SF
Great American Music Hall, SF
Warfield, SF
Bimbo's, SF
Greek Theatre, Berkeley

Los Angeles:

El Rey Theatre
Hollywood Bowl
Spaceland
Knitting Factory

I'm sure you can search online for more...I sometimes plan whole trip schedules around a good concert!

[Jon T.]

;D Thanks Jon...yeah, I kinda love to give travel advice around CA, pimp my home state.

Hell yeah, man.  I always enjoy reading your travel recommendations.

[Penny Lane]

yeah stay away from the subway in LA

[Paulie Walnuts]

Hey Sparkle, I only just saw your post but bbill's advice is spot on. My wife and I did a California road trip a few years back and we pretty much covered everything Bill said.

From Vegas through Death Valley is amazing and the views of the Sierras are well worth it. Tioga Pass to Yosemite is breathtaking. In my view you have to do Yosemite, but also Sequoia National Park (the trees there are HUGE and one of the most amazing things I have seen). Big Sur is beautiful. Forget Carmel (it's a touristy toytown), but stop at Santa Cruz (it's a fantastic little place) - Jefferson Starship were playing a free gig on the boardwalk when we were there!

Just thinking about it makes me want to do it all again. It was the best holiday I ever had.

Hope you enjoy it.

[xmascriminal]

Jefferson Starship were playing a free gig on the boardwalk when we were there!

I would have thrown some California produce at them.

[Paulie Walnuts]

Point taken, but when you live where I do standing on a boardwalk with a load of old hippies in the Santa Cruz sunshine was pretty cool!

[Sparkle]

yeah stay away from the subway in LA

Why is this? Unsafe? Congested? Sorry to sound really naive but I doubt the guide books are gonna tell me things like this which I really need to know.