Touring holiday to Nevada, California & Arizona

Okay, here is week 1 (week 2 to follow asap) I'm sorry if I've rambled on a bit but we did SO much!

Friday 3rd April
Arrived at Gatwick around 6pm for Virgin's 'twilight check-in', then went to the Travelodge for the night (£29 family room – you get what you pay for!).

Saturday 4th April
DD and I had breakfast at Travelodge (Adult £7.50 + child under 16 free), DH too nervous to eat. Got the bus to South Terminal (£3 per adult, children under 16 free). Flight delayed '30 mins'. Actually took off an hour late. Good flight, flew over central London (saw London Eye, Houses of Parliament & Wembley Stadium - quite exciting for us simple country folk), we didn't know what route the plane would take but flew over Scotland, Iceland, Greenland, northern Canada, Hudson Bay, crossed the U.S. border over North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Utah (all the land we saw from leaving Scotland to well into Utah was covered in ice/snow) started descent and (after seatbelt sign came on and we couldn't us digital camera any more - how frustrating!) we flew over Zion National Park and Lake Mead (saw the Hoover Dam) before landing 30 mins later than scheduled at Las Vegas airport. I know lots of people don't like the Virgin flights from Gatwick - we flew on Jersey Girl (have flown on her before to Orlando) but we thought it was fine.

We had been given the local time on the plane but I was confused the time were given was 9 hours behind. I thought the time difference should have been 8 hours.

Got a taxi at the airport, had just left the airport when the taxi was pulled over by a LV traffic cop! Evidently the driver was taking us through the tunnel (in our excitement/tiredness/bewilderment I had completely forgotten about the two different routes) and the cop asked us whether the driver had told us that the route we were being taken was longer and therefore more expensive. It turned out that the driver also had not filled out a 'trip sheet' that he was supposed to complete after picking us up, before leaving the airport, and the cop took his license. After a while he came back and gave the driver a ticket. He said to the driver “we know what you're doing – you're trying to turn a $13 fare into a $25 dollar fare” and told him to turn around and take us the surface route.
We got to the Excalibur and there was quite a queue to check in. With not much expectation I tried the $20 tip (I said that it was our first time in LV and could she please pick us a really nice room), she said she'd check and worked at the computer for several minutes. She apologised that she was was unable to offer us a complimentary upgrade, but said that she could upgrade us to a refurbished room with a 42” TV for $10 a night. I asked if she had a room with a good view as that was more important to us than big telly (we didn't travel to LV to watch TV!) and she replied that the only outward facing room in Tower 2 (the refurbished rooms) overlooked the pool and was at the very end of the corridor. She looked at her computer again and said that if we took the standard room she could give us a room on the 25th floor in Tower 1, overlooking the Luxor & Mandalay Bay and the airport, which was nearer the elevator. We took that ( she returned the $20) and were glad we did as the room was fine and the view was great.

Had a wander up the strip to find something to eat and were accosted by the 'Flicky-card' people just past MGM. We were so tired by this time that we just ate a quick McDonalds then went back to the Excalibur and crashed out.

Sunday 5th April
Ate breakfast at the Sherwood Forest Cafe. Went to speak to the Virgin Rep at the Luxor and she sorted out the confusion over the time difference – obviously it is 8 hours, not 9 so our watches were an hour behind what they should have been. We told her about our taxi journey and she was pleased that the traffic cops were onto this trick by the taxis.
She advised us not to go to the drive-in I had found details of on the Internet as it was in a bad area, she told us 16 people were shot (killed) there in January and the week before a man had been shot there and just propped up on someone's garden fence! I was glad I'd checked!

After having a look around Luxor we went via the shopping mall to Mandalay Bay. From there we walked down to the 'Welcome to Las Vegas' sign and took some photos, walked back to Mandalay Bay and got the monorail back to the Excalibur. Then we headed up The Strip - had a look at New York New York, passed Monte Carlo and all the construction work, to Bellagio. The fountains were just finishing 'Hey, Big Spender' and we decided to hang around for the next lot. We got a good spot for DH to video, and when the music started it was 'Viva las Vegas'! Perfect! (I've voted for the fountains in the poll as our favourite thing)

After the fountains we crossed the road to Planet Hollywood and had a walk through the Miracle Mile shops. Loved the ceiling painted to look like the sky!

After that we were flagging so walked back MGM to eat at Rainforest Cafe (bit pricey for a burger I thought but DD wanted to go there and we were too tired to go any further) and then went to look at the lions. Shattered by about 8.30pm so another early night!

Monday 6th April
Awake early (again!) Bought a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts and coffee for breakfast and headed out to catch the Deuce up to the Sahara. Went to Bonanza gifts,had a quick look at Nascar Cafe then walked back to the Venetian. Went inside to see the gondolas on the 1st floor. Crossed the road to Caesars Palace and had a look around there. We were too early for the Bellagio fountains which weren't starting for another hour and it was HOT and we all had sore feet so we got the Deuce back to Excalibur and went to the pool. After swimming we went to pick up the car, were given a Chrysler Sebring, which was an upgrade from the car we'd been allocated (a Dodge Caliber) so we were happy. The Dollar car rental guy advised us not to venture out for another hour or two as it was rush hour so I went and had an Aqua-Massage!
Were crashed out again by 9pm.

Tuesday 7th April
Drove out to Red Rock Canyon. Arrived late morning and spent about 3-4 hours, beautiful, well worth the drive. Ate at Applebee's on W. Charleston on the way back, really nice freshly cooked food (Appetizer and two Entrees for $20). Arrived back at Excalibur in time for DH & DD to swim and I had another Aqua Massage.

Early evening walked up to Bellagio as sun was setting to watch the fountains lit up (music was Luck Be A Lady Tonight – Frank Sinatra?), walked back to New York New York for an ice cream at the Hagen-Dazs shop (2 for 1 voucher from a sheet in one of those stands on the Strip). Bought all the snacks and drinks we needed for the next few days at Walgreens & CVS.

Wednesday 8th April
Breakfast at Excalibur buffet – haven't heard anyone praising it on LV thread but we really enjoyed it.
Checked out, loaded up and headed off to the Hoover Dam – the narrow winding road on the approach was a bit startling but gave us a good idea of the roads that lay ahead for us over the next few days.
Stopped at the Hoover Dam for a look around, the Nevada/Arizona State line crosses the middle of the Dam. They are building a new bridge close to the Dam as it is a bit of a traffic bottle-neck and these crazy construction workers were dangling off the bridge on ropes!
From the Hoover Dam on to the Grand Canyon. Was surprised by how mountainous the terrain was. (yes, I know the south rim of the GC is at over 7000ft but somehow thought it would be a flatter, more gradual rise.) We stayed at the Grand Hotel in Tusayan, just over a mile from the entrance to the park. After checking in we walked over to the National Geographic centre to see the Imax film about the Grand Canyon and picked up loads of info for the next day. Spoke to a man at the hotel who told us that day it had been windy and sleety showers at the rim (great! High winds when you're at the edge of the Grand Canyon! :eek: )


Thursday 9th April
When we woke up the next day it was cold but bright and sunny. We had a beautiful clear day, saw golden eagles and California condors flying at the canyon. Awesome is an over-used word in the US but the GC truly is awe-inspiring. You see so many photos of it & pictures of it on TV, that it almost feels that you're not actually seeing it with your own eyes when you stand there. I found my brain couldn't quite process the vastness. There are (free) shuttle buses that take you to various lookout points along the rim in both directions from the main parking areas. DD did the Junior Ranger program (they complete a number of activities from an age-appropriate selection and attend a Ranger talk – we did one on the Condors) and now proudly has a certificate and badge to prove she is a fully sworn in Junior Ranger! Anyone with children (up to 14) going to the GC, I would recommend doing this, she loved doing the activities and it gave her specific things to look for and think about during the day. Best of all – it's free!

We felt we had been lucky with the weather as the Ranger at the Condor talk told us they were expecting 3 inches of snow the following day!

We had planned to hike part of the way down the Bright Angel Trail. I have absolutely no head for heights and bottled it on the first bend (no rails!) but DD and DH spent a couple of hours down the trail while I drank coffee and sat in the sun! Had planned to stay for sunset but got so cold when the sun started to set (although we had layered up in preparation) that we admitted defeat and drove back to Tusayan. Saw Mule Deer and Elk on the way.


Friday 10th April
Left Tusayan and drove back down SR64 to I-40. Turned off at the signs to Route 66 and followed as much of the old road as still exists and we could find. In Seligman we stopped for a look around and went into Angel's Barbershop. Angel was the guy who pushed for Rt 66 to be recognised as a historical route after the road was decommisioned. It took him over 10 years, but he persisted and won in the end. He is retired now and we met his son-in law in the shop who was really friendly and gave us loads of great info on Rt66. In the shop there is a signed drawing from John Lasseter, the guy behind the Disney/Pixar movie Cars and they were quite involved in the research for the film. (They also proudly display the Blue Peter badge they were presented with when the program did their summer expedition along Rt66 a couple of years ago.)

Continued along Rt66 (with tumbleweed blowing across the road!) to Grand Canyon Caverns, the largest dry limestone caverns in the USA - the air inside the caverns which you reach by elevator comes from the Grand Canyon, but takes a week to get there! They also have an old fire engine which the character of 'Red' the firetruck in Cars was modelled on.
Back on Rt66 stopped at a fantastic little roadside shop at Hackberry – complete with squeaky Rt66 sign blowing in the breeze!


Stopped in Kingman to eat at Mr D'z Diner – another Rt66 landmark – (great shakes and burgers!) by which time bad weather was closing in and light was fading fast so we decided to skip the section of road over the mountains, through Sitgreave Pass to Oatman, and head straight for Lake Havasu City and our hotel for the night (Quality Inn and Suites).


Saturday 11th April
Ate breakfast at hotel as included in room price, Checked out and went to have look at London Bridge (bizarre!) Had a quick paddle in the lake and saw a couple of roadrunners (no coyote though!).
Long drive across to LA today so stopped to fill up with gas ($1.99 a gallon! They couldn't believe it when I told them we pay the equivalent of about $7 a gallon in the UK!) and check water/tyres etc.
Crossed the Colorado River and into California. Crossing California we saw alot of trains, we counted 288 double-stacked containers on one, they just seem to go on forever!
Stopped at Barstow for a much needed break before continuing and joining the San Bernardino Freeway into LA, switched onto the Santa Monica Freeway, then north on La Brea to Hollywood Boulevard. CRAZY TRAFFIC!!! I am NEVER EVER driving into LA ever again - we almost died twice and the road surfaces are lousy!
Eventually, and with huge relief, we reached our hotel (Renaissance) at Hollywood/Highland Centre. Great hotel, great location. The hotel is part of a shopping/theatre complex that includes the Kodak Theatre (where the Oscars are held) and Graumans's Chinese Theatre (where the hand and footprints in the pavement are) and is right on the Walk of Fame (where the stars in the pavement are).
After checking in we went down to the pool which is an open air pool on the terraced roof of the 4th floor of the hotel and which, we discovered, had a great view of the Hollywood sign in the hills behind!
In the evening we went to check out the Walk of Fame but it was really crowded and felt very slightly unsafe (possibly just due to us being tired after stressful drive and not being city people). Decided to get out early in the morning to beat the crowds.


That's it so far..... will try to post week 2 asap for anyone who might be interested.

FluffyFiFi wrote: »

I don't know how you managed to go to work today, we got back Thursday evening and are still feeling a bit out of it. Last night we were up until 3.00 am as were unable to sleep.

We were away for three weeks and spent 5 nights in LA (Buena Park) 2 nights in Cambria, 2 nights Vegas, 1 night Grand Canyon, 5 nights back in Vegas and a further 5 nights in San Diego. Had an amazing time, our favourite area was probably Cambria.

Didn't feel too bad on Monday (just felt like we were getting up to go to work in the middle of the night!) but couldn't get to sleep until after 3.30am on Monday night/Tuesday morning so felt rubbish all day yesterday (found myself trying to pour butter onto cornflakes instead of milk!) Slept like I was unconcious last night, struggled to get up this morning.....

Here we go... week 2


Sunday 12th April
Spent an hour walking up and down looking for our favourite stars in the pavement and at the hand/footprints (Will Smith wears very large shoes!) My husband stood in George Cloony's footprints (it's the nearest he'll get to ever being in his shoes!) Did one of those open-top red double-decker bus hop-on/hop-off sightseeing tours which went from right outside the Chinese Theatre. It went down Hollywood Blvd, past Chateau Marmont onto Sunset Strip, past the Viper Room and House of Blues, we then turned off and got onto Santa Monica Blvd, through Beverley Hills, past the famous sign and the building that was used as the police station in Beverley Hills Cop, then turned down Rodeo Drive – can't remember exactly where we went after that but we passed the Beverley Wilshire (the hotel in Pretty Woman) and La Brea Tar Pits, where we got off and spent a couple of hours, as DH & DD are into fossils and all that stuff, back on the bus to Farmers Market and The Grove where we got off again and spent an hour (really needed longer here but time was getting on a bit) then back on the bus again, passed Paramount Studios and back onto Hollywood Blvd and back to the Chinese Theatre. Went into the Disney Soda Fountain for delicious ice-cream sundaes, then back to the hotel for a swim. In the evening we went to Johnny Rockets. DD was thrilled when someone selected R.E.S.P.E.C.T on the Jukebox and the waiters danced and sang along.

Monday 13th April
Checked out and collected the car, followed the route the bus had taken to get onto Santa Monica Boulevard and followed it all the way to the beach. Parked by the pier and spent a couple of hours on the beach and pier. The water was much colder than I had expected the Pacific Ocean to be!
We spoke to an English lady selling dresses on a stand on the pier who gave us lots of great tips for things to do in San Diego. We had been in two minds about whether or not to go to San Diego zoo – we have three great zoos/wildlife parks within an hour or so of where we live - but San Diego Zoo is world famous so we were tempted. This lady (whose name I have forgotten) asked if we were planning to go to the zoo, I told her we were in two minds about it, as she advised us that she had been there a few weeks earlier and had been really distressed by the small cages that some of the animals are in. We later heard the same thing from another English couple we met who had been.

Left Santa Monica and drove down the Pacific Coast Highway to Dana Point where we saw sea lions swimming in the harbour. Drove on to San Diego where we were staying at Humphrey's Half Moon Inn on Shelter Island. The grounds looked beautiful but the accommodation didn't look anything special from the outside, two storey wooden clad buildings with two rooms, one at the front and one at the back on each floor with the buildings angled so that the backs made a continuous, curved line but the fronts had a gap between with stairs to the upper floor in the triangular space between. We had been given an upper floor room at the back which looked out onto a green lawn surrounded by beautiful lush green plants and trees. Inside, however, the room was beautiful with a sloping wooden ceiling and wooden shutters – it felt like how I'd imagine Hawaii to be! We could see the pool just the other side of the lawn so DH & DD went down to check it out while I unpacked.


Tuesday 14th April
Woke to a chilly, grey, cold day. Ate breakfast in the hotel restaurant with a stunning view of the marina at the back of the island. Drove down to San Diego Embercado to check out whale-watching trips. I knew we had missed the grey whales migrating, but had seen on the Internet a few days before we left that one company had extended their season and were still taking tours out. It appears that this year, while taking boats out to watch the migration, the boat captains noticed more different species of other whales than they have ever seen before and after plotting all their sightings for a few weeks, realised that these whales were staying within the same areas, not passing through, so these were the whales they were taking tours out to look for. We booked to go the next morning. We spent the rest of the morning on the USS Midway, a decommissioned Aircraft Carrier that is berthed in San Diego harbour and has been turned into a museum/visitor attraction. Walked along to Seaport Village to look at the shops that walked over to Market Street and Kansas City Barbecue where some of the scenes in Top Gun were filmed. They have a display of memorabilia including stills from the film of the scenes shot there. It had, by now, started to drizzle (cold grey and rainy – just like the weather we'd left in the UK!) so we decided to call it a day and went shopping. Ate dinner at Chuck'E'Cheese (DD's choice!).

Wednesday 15th April
Woke in the night to howling winds – not a good omen for our whale watching trip!
In the morning it was still windy, weather forecast was 30mph winds with gusts of up to 40mph. We all took some travel sickness tablets and set of for the harbour to discover (somewhat to my relief) that the whale watching was cancelled. We had the choice to re-book or get a refund. I asked about the forecast for the nxt two days, Thursday looked dodgy but the forecast was good for Friday so we rebooked for Friday (our last full day).
As we couldn't go out in a boat watching whales, we went to Seaworld instead.
Seaworld is my daughter's favourite place in the whole world and she has been mad on orcas (killer whales) since she was about 3! (We have had two holidays in Florida in the last few years and, both times, spent several days at Seaworld there.)
When we arrived we went and booked Dine With Shamu for 4pm, where you get to eat in a special area right next to a pool with a killer whale swimming so close you could almost touch it! My daughter was so excited, we had wanted to do this in the Orlando park but never been able to get a reservation. We had a great day, the sun came out and because we were a bit inland it was much more sheltered. The San Diego park is much better laid out than in Orlando (which has a massive lake in the middle) so we felt it was much easier to get around and we felt we were able to do and see much more in a shorter space of time. They also have Sea Otters, which they don't have in Orlando, and these were really comical. We had a great day and stayed for the evening show Shamu Rocks, which is one of our favourites.

Thursday 16th April
Sunny, but still a bit blustery, we had breakfast in Dennys then headed off to La Jolla. After seeing the seals at The Children's Pool, a sheltered cove intended as a safe place for children to swim, but taken over by the wild seal population shortly after opening, we headed down to Avenida de Playa to check out surfing & kayaking availability.
My DD, wanted to learn to surf so we booked hour an hour and a half lesson with Surf Diva, a surf school with all female instructors, and my husband wanted to kayak.
Because it was still a bit blustery the kayak places weren't doing kayak rentals for safety reasons, but he arranged a sea kayak tour, with an instructor. His tour started first so he got wetsuited up and headed off to the beach while my daughter changed into her wetsuit and we followed him down to the beach just in time to see him battling to get out through the surf on the kayak. They went out to the kelp beds and he had a great time, with sea lions and dolphin swimming around their kayaks.
DD and I, meanwhile, walked further along the beach to meet the instructor from Surf Diva, a really friendly Hawaiian girl who had been surfing practically since she could walk. They spent a little while talking about safety and practising 'pop ups' on the board on the beach before heading out into the surf. DD is a strong swimmer, belonging to a swimming club and the school swimming team, so I wasn't worried, but I was impressed how fast she picked it up, getting on her feet on her first wave! (But squealing in a very girlie way when she fell in.)

Tired, but very happy, we drove back to Shelter Island via Pacific Beach, Mission Beach and Mission Bay, and collapsed in the jacuzzi to soothe our weary bodies.

Friday 17th April
Woke up to a beautiful blue sky and no wind – perfect! Had breakfast and headed down to the harbour where we boarded the boat for our half-day whale watching trip. The captain was great and gave us a fully narrated tour of the north bay as we headed out to open water. On the way out we passed a nuclear submarine on its way in to the base in the bay. There were trained naturalists on board to tell us about the various species of whale and what to look for. We hired binoculars and took up prime viewing positions. We saw lots of dolphins, who love to swim alongside the boats, sea lions and pelicans. It took a while, but eventually we heard, then saw, a spout (the air expelled from the blow-hole as the whale surfaces) then saw the back of a massive Fin whale as it surfaced and disappeared again below the waves leaving it's 'footprint' on the surface of the water. We saw several Fin whales (Fin, or Finback, whales are the second biggest whales, only Blue whales are bigger) and a Minke whale before heading back to the bay. Result!

When we got back on shore it was a beautiful afternoon so we decided to drive over the bridge to Coronado and drove to the Hotel Del Coronado, where Some Like It Hot was filmed, and where Edward VIII first met Wallis Simpson. More importantly, they sell the most fabulous ice-creams and sorbets at the Mootime Creamery which we took down to the beautiful white sandy beach to eat.

Back to Humphreys for a last swim and spa (while watching the wedding which was in progress on the lawn) and then back to our room to, very reluctantly, start packing.


Saturday 18th April
Very sad to be leaving, we checked out and headed up to Point Loma (the most south/westerly point in the mainland USA) for some last, fabulous, views of San Diego.

Drove to LAX to return the car and checked in for our 5.35pm flight home. Flight left on time, a bit bumpy, but otherwise uneventful. Landed at Heathrow and arrived home just before 5pm, exhausted, and feeling like we'd been away for a month!



We had an absolutely fabulous time, DD says she will remember it for the rest of her life.
Now just have the washing and 1343 photos to sort out!

jackieblack wrote: »

Here we go... week 2

Excellent trip report jackieblack!

Glad you liked San Diego, we thought it had a really nice atmosphere about it. The Zoo wasn't too different from an typical zoo when we went, just 5 times the size. However we didn't really have any issues with the enclosures and the pandas are worth it! Although San Diego Wild Animal Park (its sister site) is much better IMO and more natural to the animals in a safari setting.

SimbaK2K wrote: »

Excellent trip report jackieblack!

Glad you liked San Diego, we thought it had a really nice atmosphere about it. The Zoo wasn't too different from an typical zoo when we went, just 5 times the size. However we didn't really have any issues with the enclosures and the pandas are worth it! Although San Diego Wild Animal Park (its sister site) is much better IMO and more natural to the animals in a safari setting.

Like I said, we were in two minds as we live within about an hours drive of a great zoo and two wildlife parks, all of which have beautiful natural enclosures, and with only 4 days in SD felt there were other things to do that we couldn't do at home. We would really only have gone to see the pandas and koalas.

In the end though, we had a fabulous 4 days and I wouldn't have swapped any of them so I think we made the right decision for us - had we had more time maybe we would have gone.