Touring holiday to Nevada, California & Arizona

malid

STSAVER wrote: »

seen a few people talking about Sedona so been wondering whether that might be worth doing.

Will need to get the "better half" to show a bit more interest in the organising of where we go as got a feeling she might actually prefer to fit in visits to Disneyworld or SeaWorld for a day or two, which would be easy to do if going up the coast from San Diego.

Check it out with her. Both options are fab but very different. Disneyland is the California park and if you've never been, it's great even without children. Sea world is also highly recommended as is San Diego Zoo. Remember it's a long way from LV to San Diego. Have a look at www.mapquest.com
:rotfl:

tingtong

STSAVER wrote: »

Hi everyone.

Got flights booked for Honeymoon in August flying into Vegas on 10th August and back home from San Francisco on Sunday 24th.

If hiring a car from Vegas what would people advise for places to see and visit over approximately an 8/9 day period (want to spend around 2 or 3 nights in Vegas then 2 or 3 nights in San Fran area).

Areas I would quite like to see and visit are Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Yosemite Park, San Diego, Napa Valley, Highway 1 drive etc.

Problem is though with the time available is it going to be possible to do a drive and fit in all those places or will I have to give some areas a miss? Could anyone give a bit of advice as to how they would go about this and whether it is feasible or not?

Looking at the amount of time, I would suggest this is a little bit too much. When planning our trip, I was strongly advised to see a bit less but enjoy it more, if that makes sense.

Also, as you are going in Summer, Yosemite is a must, as the Tioga Pass, which runs right through (and is apparently a great drive) is normally closed from around December to May, whereas all the coastal drives will be open all year round should you visit again at a different time of year.

FYI, we have decided to fly from Vegas to SF, then drive back over 4 days, going through Yosemite and Death Valley. We have saved the Pacific Coast Highway for our next trip, so we can take our time and enjoy it properly.

As I have recommended previously, it may be worth visiting the forum on the website below for further advice and information.

www.roadtripamerica.com

nelly_2

Dont drive to the Grand canyon do a hellicopter tour you see more and better views too.

Its a full day drive there and back but 2 hours on a hellicopter and its better.

I hated the hellicopter itself cos Im a scaredy cat custard at flying but over all the experience was worth it and it flys back down the strip too

malid

What to see is a matter of personal choice but as it's all new, all the experiences should be good.

As for flighing v driving, for me and my family it's driving every time. I know the journeys can be long but for us it's all part of the experience and we make the most of it.

STSAVER

thanks for all the replies everyone.

Great to get some advice from people that have been and know - typically though some say do the coast and some say do the Yosemite journey!! :-o

Yosemite was the first plan, but the more I've read about San Diego the more that's sounded appealing and would fit with a drive up the coast (which I would love to do).

Will have to grab myself a new book I think and read in more detail about the various places and see what I think would be best.

If driving through Yosemite would a trip to Lake Tahoe be too much to do before heading to San Fran? Either that or go north of San Fran into the Napa Valley after Yosemite and then head into San Fran from the north over THAT bridge!

PandaPants_2

Has anyone driven from San Francisco to South Lake Tahoe?? Any ideas on how long it will take??

malid

Lake Tahoe is about 200 miles from SF - approx 4 hours driving. Similar sort of distance from Yosemite to Lake Tahoe but it will take longer.

Have a look at the maps and decide what you want to do/see. If you opt for Yosemite, how about going criss ciuntry to San Simeon (Hearst Castle). It will be a long drive - about 240 miles through Fresno and Paso Robles. Spend a night or two here. You can do the tour of Hearst Castle (suggest the first timer one) then travel up the coast to through Big Sur, Carmel and Monterey en route to SF. What do you think? This would omit San Diego and Lake Tahoe but give you H1.

Alternatively, go from LV through Needles, - detour to Lake Havasu City for a quick look - Blythe to San Diego (you could go via LA if you prefer). This would be a long day as it's about 350 or so miles. Spend a few days in SD then drive up the coast through Santa Barbara, Morro Bay, San Simeon etc to SF. If you really want to do Yosemite, you could drive there from San Simeon and miss out on Big Sur, Carmel and Monterey and go from Yosemite to SF. Decisions, decisions. :rolleyes:

malid

PandaPants wrote: »

Has anyone driven from San Francisco to South Lake Tahoe?? Any ideas on how long it will take??

Hi there

Have a look at my recent post to see if this helps. www.mapquest.com gives you a good idea of distances.:cool:

MOLLYBRUSH

I'm driving from SF to Lake Tahoe. It has apparently one of the best "drives" in America and was very cheap to stay there. We are then going on to Yosemite. I then have 3 nights I need to book coming back to Highway 1. I was thinking of going to Monterey but the idea suggested above, going straight to the Hearst Castle sounds interesting - I might now do it that way round. Anyone stayed around there?

malid

MOLLYBRUSH wrote: »

I'm driving from SF to Lake Tahoe. It has apparently one of the best "drives" in America and was very cheap to stay there. We are then going on to Yosemite. I then have 3 nights I need to book coming back to Highway 1. I was thinking of going to Monterey but the idea suggested above, going straight to the Hearst Castle sounds interesting - I might now do it that way round. Anyone stayed around there?

I have stayed in San Simeon near Hearst Castle many years ago and it was fine and great for site seeing the castle.