Thorpy

Gday All
I have booked tickets to USA in July 2016 for our young family of 5 (2 Adults 3 Kids all children under 10) we are going for 5 weeks.
We are planning our trip something like this,
arriving in LA and staying for 3 nights
(universal studios)
Anaheim for 3 nights
(Disneyland)
San Diego for 4 nights
(Zoo)
(Sea World)
(USS Midway)
then drive to Las Vegas for 4 nights
unsure to stay at Mirage or MGM ??
after this we will have 3 weeks remaining unsure to do the drive through mountains to San Francisco then coast drive back to LA or fly to New York for a week then back and do the coast road
Needing a little help in times will take to do the trip LA to San Fran
Can everyone please help us with must do's on this trip and if we are best off to do NY in another trip or try to squeeze into this trip
I thank you all for your time in helping our family out

abram

In 3 weeks, I think you have enough time to go to NY.
Once there, you could do a road trip through the Hudson Valley or take the train to Washington, DC for a few days.
With 3 children under 10, I'd skip Las Vegas.

HappyTrvlr

I agree, skip Las Vegas.
Recommend NYC or drive up to San Francisco stopping along the way, Santa Barbara, Cambria, Carmel.

MichelleY

Here is a link to a trip report that is very detailed and can be very helpful to you.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...lden-state.cfm

nytraveler

Agree that in midsummer and with 3 kids Las Vegas is really not your best choice. There are so many places the kids can't go - and you probably don't want them to be exposed to the many semi-public activities of the escort services et al. (Last time there - for business, I won'd go otherwise - we saw a boy about 10 fascinated by the flyers of nude women he was being handed - only 1 step behind his parents).

I would vote for giving 8 or 9 days to NYC and DC - and the remaining 12 or 13 days the area from LA up to SF.

nytraveler

Sorry - note that for Yosemite you should reserve lodgings as soon as your dates are final - since they often sell out far in advance.

And do organize your car rentals from Oz - you can get much better rates already including insurance.

Gretchen

No to Las Vegas--what a waste. Fly to the east coast and DO NOT MISS going to Washington DC for at least an equal number of days you gave to Disneyland and Seaworld . It is a kind of disneyland but with integral history that is IMPORTant to EVERYone--not just Americans.

emalloy

This trip report by a fellow Aussie might give you some ideas:

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...lden-state.cfm

longhorn55

Another vote for skipping Las Vegas. It's not a family-friendly environment and it's going to be hot as hell in July. It's just a recipe for disaster.

With 3 weeks, there are so many great places to go in the U.S. The East Coast (Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.) would make a good itinerary.

But, I'm going to recommend going to Yellowstone National Park and the Black Hills of South Dakota instead. The scenery in this part of the U.S. is just amazing and there's a lot for families to do, particularly in the Black Hills. (Order a copy of the free South Dakota Travel Planner from www.travelsouthdakota.com) But, you need to start booking accommodations in this area soon--July is the peak tourism time.

northie

Smithsonian in Washington DC has lots for kids - we took our 3 there in the 80s , lots of hands on , a zoo as well with pandas I think .
Agree with not going to Las Vegas with kids

jamie99

Universal is really more for tweens and teens, not sure I would take under 10s there. 3 days is plenty for Disneyland although Australian visitors can buy a special 10 day pass that only costs a bit more than a regular 5 day parkhopper. You have to buy this pass in Australia from Flight Centre or similar. You might want to take the kids also to Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, plenty of rides from kiddie types (Camp Snoopy) to coasters.
They might like the California Science Center in LA which has the space shuttle Endeavor and also Griffith Park. La Brea Tar Pits might also interest them. Hollywood will probably bore them, the good news is it only takes an hour or two to see.
I also would not take kids to Las Vegas, it is hotter than heck in July, pools get took hot after 10-11am. Kids cannot do anything other than walk through the casino (they cannot watch you gamble). If you do go, consider driving and staying overnight at the Grand Canyon (reservations needed for a hotel in the park). Mirage is lots smaller than MGM, which involves a LOT of walking.

Thorpy

Thanks Guys you have been a great help
Sounds like Vegas not a great idea for the kids, but the wife wants to see the lights so we are going for 2 nights.
Planning out like this
LA for 3 days
arrive
LA Day 1 Rest Day recover
LA Day 2 Hollywood walks and Boulevard ect
LA Day 3 Universal Studios
LA - Anaheim Day 4 Bus or Train to Anaheim ????
Anaheim 2 days
Day 5 Disneyland
Day 6 Adventure Land
Day 7 Drive to San Diego
San Diego 6 Nights

Thorpy

Any other suggestions
i will post the rest of the trip as we plan it
need some help on one more issue
driving for Vegas to San Francisco whats the best way to go and what and where should we stop along the way

Stargatesg30

Hi,
We are from UK and have done California road trips about 6 times in past. For car rental I have always used Dollar or Hertz has their rates for overseas visitors are usually quite good and I have never had to pay a 1 way drop off fee when collecting the car from one rental depot and dropping off in another city. If you have kids under 10 then I would recommend a multi day pass for Disneyland and also stopping in the Anaheim area. The Park Vue Inn on Harbor Blvd in Anaheim is just across the road from Disneyland and is actually as close as stopping in a disney hotel but without the high prices and no parking fee. Whilst in the area you should also visit some of the beach resorts such as Laguna Beach and Newport Beach(25 min drive). It is also easy to drive to Universal Studios from Anaheim and 1 day there is ideal (ensure that you do the studio tour).
Other possibles to do and all within driving distance from Anaheim are Santa Monica and Venice Beach.
If you fancy a day of not driving then its quite quirky to do one of the Hollywood stars homes tours for an afternoon although more for the adults than the kids.
If you stopped for a week or more in Anaheim then you could fit all of these in.
With regards to driving to San Francisco then you will need to stopover for 2 seperate nights. Do the coastal highway 1 and stop somewhere near Pismo Beach or Cambria for your first stop. Hearst Castle is worth a visit on the way if stopping near. I can recommend Moonstone Beach as a lovely stop off.
Your next stop should be around Carmel or Monterey, you can also fit in the Aquarium at Monterey and the 17 mile drive around Pebble Beach on this journey.
Ideally spend 5 nights then in San Francisco to ensure that you get to see all the sights and with having a car you can also drive over the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods and also Sausalito.
From SF you can drive to Yosemite in a day, its a pleasant enough drive and if you stay in the park itself you will need to book early but its worth it.
Other options for your trip to consider is driving to the Grand Canyon from Vegas if you decide to go there. We have visited most of the places you are considering so I am happy to help with any further questions.

Stargatesg30

One more thing if your trip is for 5 weeks (35 nights) then this is what I would dobr /> Fly to LA, drive to Anaheim as your base and stop for Day 1 to Day 8
Day 9 and Day 10 driving up Big Sur Coast to San Francisco
Day 11 to Day Day 15 in San Francisco
Day 16, drive to Yosemite and stop for 2 nights (day 16 and day 17)
Day 18 drive to Las Vegas from Yosemite stopping overnight somewhere en-route.
Day 20 to Day 22 in Las Vegas (plenty for kids to see and do, despite what previous reviewers say and lets face it you have flown a long way from Australia so why not at least give it a shot)
Day 23 drive to Grand Canyon, stop just outside the GC if you can't get an hotel in the village itself.
Day 24, Drive late afternoon to Sedonda and stop 2 nights
Day 26, Drive to Phoenix airport and fly to Washington DC and New York for the remainder of your trip.
Hope all this helps

Stargatesg30

I forgot to add in your days in san diego, so just subtract these from the remainder of your days in Washington/New York and just do one of these. For kids I would recommend Washington due to the history and fantastic museums.

jamie99

As mentioned, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Chinese Theater, View of the Hollywood sign, etc. only takes 1-2 hours max (plenty of parking at Hollywood & Highland mall) and can be combined with a visit to Universal Studios. Universal should only take 5 hours for most people unless you have to see every show and ride every ride multiple times. This will free up one day for visiting the beaches, Santa Monica is nice and so are the South Bay beach cities like Manhattan and Hermosa Beach, fun to ride bikes on the bike path and watch the surfers and volleyball players.
Read up a bit on Venice before you go there (if you do), since it has a very strong and pervasive marijuana culture which you may or may not want to expose your children to. It is also pretty boring outside of weekends. Not what it used to be.

Bokhara2

Hi Thorpy,

Fellow Aussie here - looks like a great trip in the making. There are some good family Trip Reports which might be useful for you. I'll have a look later & see if I can find some links for you.

I'll add a vote for WashingtonDC. It's compact, easy walking, attractive, and the kids will be fascinated by the museums. ( Questacon, Powerhouse x 10!)
The hop-on,hop-off bus is a good idea on your first day to orientate yourselves & decide what's in close proximity that you want to go back to see.

I was only there for 3 days ( over Anzac Day) & would like to go back for a week & explore further.

Have a look at Union (railway ) Station. Like Grand Central Station in NYC, it's a gorgeous building & a real tribute to the grand days of train travel.

If you have a chance, take a train trip - perhaps NYC - Washington or the reverse? I wish our trains were as good as the one on that route!

NYC is fabulous too. Squeeze it in if you can. Have fun planning

Geordie

I've done all the places you mention, these are a few ideas:

Fly into LAX, go to Universal, see Hollywood etc for a few days

Drive up the coast towards SF, stopping at Hearst, Monterey

Stay in SF for a few days, use the car to go over the
Golden Gate bridge, the Science museum, the winding road (Lombard St), & the painted ladies houses

Drive across to Yosemite and stay a few nights, travel down and then across Death Valley to Vegas (try to go mid-week as its a lot cheaper than the weekend)

From Vegas drive and stay a few nights in Zion Nat Park, Bryce Canyon, Page, Monument Valley, Grand Canyon South Rim, back to Vegas, then onto San Diego and finish back in LA

Fly into DC, try to fly into Reagan National (DCA)as its closer to the city

The Smithsonian museums are great, including out at Dulles Airport where they have the Discovery Space Shuttle, the Blackbird, Concorde, Enola Gay etc and the museums are all free. The zoo is also free and has giant panda's although they were not on display the last time I was there as it had just given birth but you could see them on webcam

Go up to NYC by train, I have stayed in Hoboken, New Jersey, its not for everyone but it worked for us, as I could take a bus or ferry into Manhatten, its a lot cheaper and with a 10 year old child it suited us fine as we were not staying out late

GBelle

We did a trip up the California coast years ago in May with our children who were about the ages of yours.

We began in San Diego and drove up the coast to San Francisco. This was a 2 week trip.
I don’t recall our complete itinerary, other than we chose historical and educational places as well as entertainment places for our family. I always tell my kids to read about our trip and make suggestions of places they would like to see, otherwise they can’t complain.

I think we stopped at some of these:
San Diego Zoo
Hotel Del Coronado – just to see this National Historic Landmark, learn a little about the history of the place and allow our kids to take off their shoes and say they were “in” the Pacific Ocean. We spent less than an hour here en route to another destination.

At least one of the Historical Missions up the coast (stopover for a few hours) en route. http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=22722 and http://www.mtycounty.com/pgs-mission...1missions.html

Hollywood area (we missed the LaBrea Tar Pits in LA but they children thought it would be an interesting stop; there was too much construction and detours at the time (before GPS))
Anaheim for Disney & Universal Studios
Hearst Castle in San Simeon
Monterey Bay Aquarium
17 mile drive around Pebble Beach
San Francisco – Exploratorium Science Museum; drive down Lombard Street; take in a baseball game at AT&T Park; dessert at Ghiradelli Square; Fisherman’s Wharf for lunch.
Yosemite

Here are average weather temperatures for Las Vegas in July. As others have said, it’s HOT. http://www.accuweather.com/en/us/las...weather/329506

Others have made recommendations about the East Coast. I agree with many of their suggestions. Washington DC is great for visitors with the National Zoo and many museums. You can drive (or take the train) to Philadelphia for a day or two and see the sites. Then head up to New York City and/or Boston.
Check airlines for the best rates & schedules for your return city so you can choose your East Coast from north to south or reverse.
Have a great trip.