AussieJulie

A friend and I are planning to hire an RV and drive through many of the National Parks in the American Southwest region.
From Brisbane we will fly to Honolulu for a brief stopover and then thought we would fly into Phoenix, hire the vehicle then drive to the Grand Canyon (both rims) Canyon de chelly, Monument Valley, Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park then head through to Las Vegas and up through Death Valley, Yosemite and end at San Francisco.
Is this the best start and finish destination to cover the major national parks? Is it better to go in the other direction? Start at San Francisco and finish at Phoenix? If there are penalties for hiring in Arizona and returning the vehicle in California please comment. Neither of us are interested in visiting major cities.
I know that most people do this in a circle starting and finishing in Los Angeles but Yosemite is one we really want to see.
We are planning to do this in September / October and hope to be able to do this in around 4 weeks.
I would be so grateful for feedback from you regarding the best places to hire vehicles, approximate costs per day of the vehicle, any other natural sights you recommend and information on where the best RV parks are to stay.

spirobulldog

In my opinion- Renting an RV(especially in the places you mention and that amount of driving) is a terribly bad idea.

The Grand Canyon North Rim closes Mid-OCT.

I would stick with just Grand Canyon and the National Parks in Utah. This would be a great time of year for them.

Or Just stick with Californina. Late May/and the month of June is probably the best time for Yosemite. Death Valley is best visited in the winter or spring. In September it could still be well over 100 degrees there.

Severe penalties for RV rental with a one way drop off. Your could probably buy one and sell it and come out better off.

janisj

Instead of an RV -- which would be very expensive just to rent and one-way drop fees would be huge -- I'd rent a car, stop by a WalMart in your arrival city and buy inexpensive camping equipment. Driving an RV on some of those mountain roads willbe slow.

You could camp in some parks and stay in motels where that makes more sense.

I think you could do your whole plan in 4 weeks. Definitely include Yosemite. Some say one should Yosemite in late Spring or not at all. But YNP is glorious any time of year. Waterfalls in Spring, Autumn colors in the Fall, quiet and snow in Winter.

InSandy

Sept/Oct would be a great time to do this trip. And I think 4 weeks would be a good amount of time to cover it all. Certainly you could spend longer everywhere, but it would be possible. I had read about some people who have done that along with the parks in Utah and Grand Canyon in a 3 week trip that seemed to include everything.

I wouldn't have any idea about RV rentals, but I wonder as well as spiro about drop off charges if that is even possible with an RV. Should you need to rent and drop off in the same place you could do a round trip from Las Vegas that could include Yosemite and Death Valley. It would just add a few days travel time. You certainly wouldn't have to spend any time in LV if you didn't want to, but it would make a central stop.

Drop offs for regular rental cars might be a possibility if you wanted to try motels instead of the RV. I know of people who were able to find camping spots in all the places in Utah during that time of year without too much advance planning.

utahtea

September/October is the prime camping months and you will have to make reservations at Zion & Yosemite as soon as you know your dates. I'd making them at the private campground in Gouldings for Monument Valley, Bryce and Death Valley.

Since most schools are back in session you might be able to get a deal on an RV. I'd look around at Phoenix and Las Vegas for RV prices. They are not cheap and figure about 7 - 10 mpg depending on the size rig you get. You are looking at around 2000 miles. Gas prices right now are in the $3.50 range. I'd get as small an RV as you think you can live with. If you can get a 24 foot then it will make it easier to find parking and get around the parks...I know, we had a motor home for 20 years now. There are RV size limits in some parks so if you get over 30 feet you might find it hard to get campsites.

I have a couple of ideas for you if you decide to go the RV route. Consider renting in Las Vegas and do the southwest in a circle in the RV. South Rim Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly, Monument Valley, North Rim (or maybe Lake Powell instead), Bryce, Zion and return the RV to Las Vegas to avoid one way fee. Then rent a car and drive to Death Valley, Yosemite and SF.

The second idea would be to keep the RV and do Death Valley, Yosemite and the return to Las Vegas instead of going to SF. This adds 330 miles to the trip but will avoid the drop off fees.

I can answer campground questions if you decide to do the RV.

Utahtea

Shanti

I think you could visit all the places on your list in four weeks. I'd skip Death Valley as it'll be hotter than hell then, but that's me.

I'd also skip the RV and either get camping equipment like janis recommends or stay in motels. Don't know about drop off fees. I'd probably start in California and end up in Phoenix. While Phoenix will still be hot in October, it won't be as godawful hot as it will be in September.

Since you're not interested in cities, you may want to fly into Sacramento or Reno instead of San Francisco, if you're able to find flights.

janisj

Ooh - I like utahtea's idea of doing the SW loop by RV and the CA bits by car. That would solve the RV drop off fee problem. There are one-way drop fees for cars too, but they aren't nearly as high as RV fees. (Sometimes foreign visitors can get car rental deals that eliminate/reduce the drop off fees)

Tomsd

Some great advice and you certainly can do it in 4 weeks, especially as most Aussies know what big really means.
If you wanted the RV to sleep in - can understand that - but there will be fees charged at the various parks, and a rental car would probably be a lot cheaper. That time of year - you could probably find good hotel deals or even cabins in some parks, "or tent cabins" such as in Curry Village at Yosemite. Just west of Monument Valley is the Navajo National Monument - which has Cliff Dwellings and a nice visitor center, and is easy to get to, walk around, et.

Tomsd

As for where to start/finish - not sure it really matters but the weather in Yo might be a little warmer in Sep than Oct.

AussieJulie

Thank you so much to everyone who replied. I'm afraid camping is not an option (age and physical constraints)so will consider the car / motel option instead.
Particularly like the round trip idea from Vegas to avoid drop off fees and then add in (or not)the Death Valley / Yosemite option. You are right about Aussies knowing the meaning of big! Have driven around all of Australia so if I can return the favour to any of you, let me know.

Carrabella

Dear Julie,
We are senior Aussies, and have done similar trips many times over the last 20 years or so, including a freezing camping one , once in August - we are just not used to high altitudes down under! Now, we plan months ahead and try to get good hotel accommodation at a reasonable price. We've always just had a car, and try to stay somewhere for several nights and do day trips from there. This area is all so wonderful, one just wants to return again and again!

Yosemite in October, with falling autumn leaves is wonderful, but the spectacular Tioga Rd, which you will use if you come from Death Valley via Bishop, can be closed by snow, so plan this part earlier in your trip. A round trip from Las Vegas is a practical way, even returning the way you came, from Yosemite and Death Valley back to Vegas, you get a different perspective. Alternatively, we rather like Reno too - it's actually a very pretty place, and has great accommodation. The whitish mountains to the west remind me of Yosemite, and the road trip from Reno back to Vegas through proper wild west country, with old mine trappings here and there and lonely desert, was one to gladden this old heart!

We've found Flagstaff to be a convenient place to stay a few nights. Not as great as right in the National Parks, but much cheaper for Grand Canyon, south side, and there are several good national parks handy, as well as Sedona and Jerome. Once we did a long day trip to the Suguaro National Park out of Tucson - well worth it, we thought, even if tiring. We had to drive home in an exhilarating snowstorm, which quickly rejuvenated us. The National Parks Pass at $80 per car is the way to go.

From Australia, all flights land in San Francisco or Los Angeles, so you'll need an add-on flight to Vegas. Whatever you decide, you'll love it! Safe travels.

Tomsd

BTW - I think Yosemite is incredible, and people come from all over the world to wonder at it's beauty.

IMO - one could save Death Valley for another trip. Some people love it - but to me - it's a whole lot of scorched barren wasteland, with some interesting rock formations.

Actually - if you came in Sep - you could drive from say Las Vegas through Death Valley on the way to Yo - coming in from the east/the beautiful Tioga Pass - and maybe even spend a night at Tuoloume Meadows - http://www.yosemitepark.com/Accommod...dowsLodge.aspx

Or continue on for two more hours to the main area - the Valley Floor. Once there - they have a great bus system around the valley floor with many things to see. We like to rent bicycles and go out to El Cap and watch the mountain climbers. Helps to have a good pair of binoculars.