JUNNY

My husband & I are thinking about a trip to the West in December.
Our itinerary is:
Day 1 fly from NYC to Las Vegas,stay
(Or head to MV and stay somewhere?)
Day 2 drive to Monument Valley,stay
Day 3 leave MV around 10am, head to Grand Canyon,stay
Day 4 go back to Las Vegas
Day 5 leave Vegas to NYC

No more days, just one poor driver. My husband has driven just once within the USA, from Manhattan to Tanglewood, for about 4 hours. I'm wondering if we can make it with no hassle. Any comments & suggestions are highly appreciated.

EricH

This is a bad plan. It's mostly driving, with very little time to see anything, at least during daylight hours. Also, are you aware that you could get serious snow at the Grand Canyon in December? Do you want to drive in that?

Bill_H

Maybe day 1 if you arrive in LV early enough you could drive to Zion and overnight there instead of Vegas? This breaks it up nicely and Zion is very scenic. Otherwise it's a pretty hectic trip with a lot of driving and one-night stands but certainly doable.

EricH

A Zion, Monument Valley route puts you in line for the North Rim, which may be closed for the winter. It would be better to take the southern route.

boom_boom

Remember in December the daylight hours are pretty short, even in the southwest. Barring winter storms you won't have any trouble driving, but you're spending too much time in the car. Consider two night at Grand Canyon. If you get an early non-stop flight from NYC to LV you should still have time to drive to say Laughlin, NV and stay there en route to the Canyon.
Day 1 - NYC to Laughlin
Day 2 & 3 Grand Canyon
Day 4 return to LV via Tuzigoot Nat. Mon. or Montezuma Castle Nat. Mon (near Prescott)
Day 5 LV to NYC.
Enjoy what ever you decide.

JUNNY

Thank you for the advice! I'll think them over. Please let me ask about the itinerary boom_ boom kindly suggested. Can I drop by Monument Valley if I follow this route?

spirobulldog

You should allow a full 2 days in Grand Canyon. You should allow a full day for Monument Valley. You should allow a full 2 days for Zion. A full day means no driving for that day. The times I have suggested are a minimum, a person should really stay longer if they are going to do any hiking or activities. I would probably concentrate on Las Vegas and Grand Canyon for the time you have. Better to experience one park than to say you have driven thru 3 of them. I remember seeing the Grand Canyon as a 10 year old. We drove from Oklahoma for 2 days and spent maybe 2 hours looking at it. Now my dad normally took great trips, but he missed it when it came to National Parks. Finally this summer we rafted the canyon and it was a fantastic experience. You should be planning your lodging ASAP. Vegas has some good bargains over the holidays usually.

gail

Snow ice and snow - think about it.

Also, drive from NY to Lenox, MA is primarily highway - some of the routes you are considering are winding and narrow roads.