West Coast USA

Vikki_74

northwest1965 wrote: »

Another question comes to mind.....how good are the sat navs that you get with th rental cars?

We'd taken our own sat nav with US maps downloaded but there was one built in to the SUV we got from Hertz in San Francisco (we didn't pay to hire it) so we thought we might as well use it...it was easy enough but really didn't like it as much as the one we're used to. If you have a sat nav already would definately recommend just downloading the extra maps and taking it with you rather than paying to hire one.

northwest1965 wrote: »

Another question coming!..... If we fly into LA, should we stay just the one night? We're not shoppers and dont want to do Disney. Is there something we should see while there?

If you didn't stay there, where would you stay? It's a loooong flight to the west coast and I wouldn't recommend a long drive just after you've arrived. As for things to do in LA, it depends what you like - there's all the Hollywood stuff, studio tours in Burbank (we did both Universal and Warner Brothers last year and both were good) etc but I wouldn't recommend fighting through the LA traffic the day you arrive to get up there from the airport.

There's not much round LAX itself but you could maybe drive to somewhere on the coast and stay there for the night...Santa Monica is really nice with the beach and the pier, also a lovely outdoor shopping area (3rd Street Promenade) which is nice to walk round in the evening even if you don't want to shop. It is an expensive place for hotels though and not sure what your budget is?

northwest1965

We thought when we arrive into LAX, drive to Santa Monica (11miles). I noticed its quite pricey for a hotel and to park the car at the hotel. I think we are just about sorted, so I'll post the final details later for you all to comment on

Nobjocki

Does anyone know of a company that specialises in fancy American cars for one-way rental as I'm thinking of doing the Pacific Coast Highway in something like an open-top Mustang.

shinyahashimoto1

Nobjocki wrote: »

Does anyone know of a company that specialises in fancy American cars for one-way rental as I'm thinking of doing the Pacific Coast Highway in something like an open-top Mustang.

Almost anywhere will do a 1-way route if you are starting and finishing in large Cities. I'm sure San Fran to say, San Diego would not incur any high charges.

I hired a Mustang Convertible whislt in LA(picked up and dropped off at the same place), for about 220 for 6 days. Sure i would have gotten it cheaper if I'd shopped around however I wanted an established major company to easy my mind(Hertz). Would definitely recommend the Convertible. Some of PCH1 was breaktaking, was like driving in a car advert, cliff-side winding roads. Almost like being in an old Bond movie!

Re: Early comments on Sat Nav, it is a rip-off but the one I received was more than adequate for the job. Although actual driving in America was easy, I wouldn't have been able to drive around just using maps - particularly in the main city areas.

northwest1965

Fly to LA
2 nights Santa Monica
1 night Santa Barbara
2 nights Monterey
2 nights SF
2 nights Yosemite
4nights Vegas (to include Grand Canyon)

jackieblack

northwest1965 wrote: »

Fly to LA
2 nights Santa Monica
1 night Santa Barbara
2 nights Monterey
2 nights SF
2 nights Yosemite
4nights Vegas (to include Grand Canyon)

Personally, I'd do it the other way around

northwest1965

jackieblack wrote: »

Personally, I'd do it the other way around

Can I ask why?:)

jackieblack

jackieblack wrote: »

Personally, I'd do it the other way around

northwest1965 wrote: »

Can I ask why?:)

Firstly, Vegas can be a bit manic and after all that driving Santas Barbara and Monica would be a more 'chilled' way to end the holiday.

Also, driving south down PCH means you are on the ocean side of the road and will get better views. (Some friends of ours drove north and saw very liitle of the views due to a constant stream of traffic travelling in the opposite direction, There are lots of 'Vista Points' where you can park up and look at the views, but the more times you stop, the longer the drive will take.)

Finally, I can't see anywhere if you'd said what time of year you're going but we went in April - had snow in Yosemite, constant pouring rain in San Fran (Alcatraz is a 'must do') and howling gales in Monterey. Psychologically, it helped to know we were travelling towards the nicer weather the close we got to LA.

Whatever you settle on, you'll have a fabulous time.

northwest1965

jackieblack wrote: »

Also, driving south down PCH means you are on the ocean side of the road and will get better views. (Some friends of ours drove north and saw very liitle of the views due to a constant stream of traffic travelling in the opposite direction, There are lots of 'Vista Points' where you can park up and look at the views, but the more times you stop, the longer the drive will take.)

Finally, I can't see anywhere if you'd said what time of year you're going but we went in April - had snow in Yosemite, constant pouring rain in San Fran (Alcatraz is a 'must do') and howling gales in Monterey. Psychologically, it helped to know we were travelling towards the nicer weather the close we got to LA.

Whatever you settle on, you'll have a fabulous time.

Thanks. We would be going 1st week October.

Vikki_74

northwest1965 wrote: »

Fly to LA
2 nights Santa Monica
1 night Santa Barbara
2 nights Monterey
2 nights SF
2 nights Yosemite
4nights Vegas (to include Grand Canyon)

As a route I think it makes sense in that you're now going in kind of a big loop. Are you planning to drive it all or take any internal flights? I don't have time to map it right now but I think Santa Barbara to Monterey is a long day's driving - have you worked out the distances and timings?

I personally would split the nights up differently as 2 nights in San Francisco wouldn't be enough for me (I love it there ) but it depends on what you're into and where you'd rather spend your time - all down to personal preference.

The problem with the west coast is that there's so much to do you just want to squeeze it all in, which is difficult with only 2 weeks. We had 3 as it was our honeymoon and still ended up feeling rushed! In theory I'd highly recommend you try and fit San Diego in somehow as it's one of the nicest places I've ever visited, but I don't see how you can

I know a million others on here (on the Vegas board in particular!) will disagree with me, but if I planned our trip again I would miss out Vegas altogether and take more time to spend just in California. Not because I didn't like Vegas, I did, but with hindsight I'd rather go as part of a completely different trip doing say San Diego/Palm Springs/Las Vegas/Grand Canyon/Arizona instead of trying to squeeze it in along with everything else that California has to offer.

If you're happy that all the places you've listed are where you want to spend your time, then I think it's a decent itinerary. If you still have any doubts or questions about it, keep posting and I'm sure the folks on here will be happy to help!