We've driven to San Diego, to the Mexican border and walked over to Tijuana, and another time taken a bus tour to Rosarito Beach - which doesn't compare with ours, although it is pretty

Not any more. You may be allowed to walk to Tijuana, but don't. It's a dangerous place. Seriously.

As for Rosarito Beach, it is the ugliest beach I've ever seen -- and the worst vacation we ever took as a result.

can anyone advise?..

is it better to book accommodation and airfares this end in Australia for Mexico or are there enough bargains out the on the net?

cheers

B and B

" Sure, the traffic can be a nightmare, but the road system is good, and the freeways are forgiving if you find you have made a directional mistake."

I am a LA native and I respectfully disagree. The freeways during rush hours are to be avoided. Notice I said HOURS because they are several hours long, in the AM and in the PM. Don't forget, you are used to driving on the "wrong" side of the road. This will be another big stressor. The freeways may be forgiving but people in a hurry to get to work or back home may be less charitable. Try to get out of town during the middle of the day.


"You will need good maps - our NSW Auto club has reciprocal agreements, and the AAA maps are great."

Yes, they are, but they have more than maps. They will route you to your destination(s), give you advice on road conditions and rest stops as well as places of interest. If you can, try to get a tourbook for each state you are visiting.

thanx..all excellent advice

cheers

B and B

Please make sure you stay in Sedona, Arizona for at least one night on the way to Grand Canyon..its about 2 hours away..fly into Phoenix..drive to Vegas about 5-6 hours.
One of the most beautiful places in the world.
Sedona Rouge Hotel $150
Enchantment Resort $480
La Quinta Inn $90
Best Western Inn and Suites $125
Radisson Poco Diablo $125

You will be so happy you stopped
here!

www.enchantmentresort.com

Whoops! I meant Bruce and Barb, not Bob! Sorry, Barb! I was up too late...that post was 2:48 am.

I always recall seeing a list of the top 10 US cities with worst traffic and Los Angeles is one of them. It's just NOT an enjoyable driving area, it's very aggravating (and tiring) to drive in the traffic up there. (I live in San Diego).

My husband and son used to drive down to Baja from San Diego and camp somewhere. But not lately...locals here are generally more nervous about travel to Mexico in light of recent news of violent crime in Mexico. My husband used to take lots of extra cans of Coke or other sodas when he drove down to Baja, because at certain stops he would be swarmed with kids who wanted to "watch" the car for him...and apparently they love soda!

I hope you have a great trip.

The popular surf spot in Cabo is near the Zipper's restaurant - called Costa Azul. Closer to San Jose del Cabo.

MY

thanx again everyone.

the current position is...

we have paid the airfares yesterday for West, Aus to Sydney to Honolulu, staying a few days there..then flying into Los Angeles, and also the flight home.
As costs are rising all the time it seemed best to at least get flights.
We will take our time looking at the land content.
Some of the comments about driving in LA kinda worry us but hey...we do heaps of driving here...probably around 1000kms every week and more...but of course it isnt the same as there!
and you guys drive on the wrong side of the road.

we are looking at biting the bullet and hiring a car at LA airport....transfers to hotels are so expensive and it seems if we can manage our driving times to off peak it wont be so bad.
If we do that we will probably drive to Las Vegas and do the touring bit for a few days till Bruce gets withdrawals from being too far from the sea!
we have San Diego as a must do...altho we love the beach and want to look at all the surf beaches that have been part of our life thru surfing mags for years and just cruise round...if we can.
after a few days there we think we might now go into Mexico by bus..airfares to Cabo have been quoted at ridiculous prices and accommodation at like $300 a night!..our agent says that it is full of young drunken students!! (sounds like Bali and doesnt worry us at all) and expensive.
this doeant sound right so we are looking at alternative ways to get there..maybe look at different towns down the peninsular and stay around the beaches, rent a car and drive around, bearing in mind the dangers that several people have pointed out.
thanx Michelle for advice about Cabo...it sounds really nice there...we hate crowds and hope to find some out of the way beaches that are safe and not huge surf.(2000 drunken,screaming teenagers learning to surf isnt our thing...hahaha!)
i am sure its not as bad as people say...lol..and we hope to get there somehow.

oh...Melissa..we come from a city called Mandurah, just south of Perth, the capital, on the sea, and on the way to the southern part of the state..you can google it to see where it is and all..but any info you want about West Australia, just ask..no probs.

thanx again all....its coming together, albeit slow..

Sad to say but your travel agent is giving you some false info. from taking a bus to Mexico..it is so dangerous and busses are being held up and all monies taken by the tourists..beheadings are very common..yes, its mostly drug traffickers but it is so bad that you don't want to spend your time driving around..it used to be so lovely but not anymore.
Cabo is not a bunch of drunk teenagaers..it can be a party place at night at some of the clubs but with the pricey resorts, that really isn't the case.
There are some really good deals for 3-4 days with flight/hotel at a 4-5* for $500pp. from San Diego.

LA is fine to drive..they are aggressive drivers so no driving in the fast lane (far left) and only go the speed limit.

San Diego you will have a lovely time.

thanx...yes..we thort it was a bit far fetched.Cabo looks a lovely place and i guess we could rent a car from there and do a bit of day travelling up the coast.
we will start looking online for packages.

driving doesnt scare us...shouldnt have a problem, just drive carefully..lol

cheers

We have rented cars for the day up the coast from Cabo to Todos Santos..its right on the tropic of Cancer and it is a small town on the Pacific Ocean that is famous for the Eagles song..Hotel California..Google it..lovely artsy town and the Santa Fe restaurant is charming.
You could also drive up to San Jose del Cabo too.

just wanted to chime in with my two cents worth....

I think having a car rental is a good idea; you can manage LA, just drive carefully and know others may be rushing around you. I think Vegas is worth a look see, kinda like Disney for adults. Check out Bellagio, Caesar's Palace, Venetian and the Wynn. Just touring the hotels is fun. Vegas does excess well, .

I also agree Sedona is quite lovely....wonderful hiking amongst the red rocks. I would personally highly recommend it over the border towns of Mexico such as TJ. Totally unsafe and highly inadvisable. If you must go to Mexico, you must FLY to Cabo or La Paz. I've never had problems renting a car and driving around Cabo. I like San Jose del Cabo because it seems more authentically Mexican. Cabo itself is more of a touristy beach town. There are also gorgeous hotels along the "corridor" which is the road that links the two.

San Diego is lovely and can easily consume 3-4 days. Be sure to kayak the La Jolla cove and hike the Torrey Pines state park while here. Also visit the downtown Gaslamp, Balboa Park, Coronado, our world famous zoo and Wild Animal Park, etc.....not to mention all the cute beach towns dotting the coast (Del Mar, Solana Beach, Encinitas, Leucadia, etc)

Have a great time!

hi all..cant thank everyone enough for all your help..overwhelms us..thanx.

oh..the place re hotel california reminds us of something we thought funny..hope you do also.

we were in Sri lanka last year...down at Galle..where the tsunami went thru...we had a young guy, 22, who latched onto us in his tuk tuk and drove us around.
First day as we got in his little car, he goes..oh..sir, madam. I have new cd..brand new song in Sri Lanka...velly, velly good (yes..they do say velly while shaking the head!!)

and he plays hotel california by the eagles!

we go..you know that song is 35 years old mate?

he says...oh..no sir..just new to Sri Lanka..new song sir!

struck as as funny at the time

cheers

B and B

Hi bruce and barb, another West Aussie chiming in with some input. I was in California in 2007 and, like you, was nervous about the driving issue. I was told driving was almost essential and yet incredibly difficult because of the dreadful traffic etc.

Since hiring a car was really the only way to do what I wanted to do, I bit the bullet and rented a car. I had very little problem driving on the other side. Most intersections are traffic light controlled and roads are well signposted (though the surfaces are even worse than Sydney) Mostly it's just a matter of following the car in front and giving yourself plenty of time to change lanes. A busy freeway is usually not travelling that fast and it doesn't really matter how many lanes there are- the only ones you really need to worry about are the two either side of you. That said, I did avoid the freeways where possible - there are other roads! I'd really advise renting a GPS as well as maps and prinitng out directions from Google maps or equivalent.

I did mostly movie related stuff. I know what you mean about wanting to check out all the places you've heard and read about - all the places i the Beach Boys songs lol. Surely you can rent boards and wetsuits. You'll come home realy appreciating our beaches!

It's only a short hop by plane to Vegas but then you have to factor in the time it takes getting to and waiting in the airport. People tend to regard the time spent driving as a waste, a chunk of time out of their trip, but in my opinion you see lots and it's part of the adventure.

Anything else I can help with, just ask

hi eigasuki.

thanks...we are getting more confident about driving in LA.

i have decided not to take my board...which is a problem cos its one of 6 i have but my favorite....25 years old!..but a bit heavy and i can see heaps of problems driving round with it in a car or on buses or planes...been there...

i will rent a board or maybe buy one and give it away to some kid when we leave i guess...

will i need a wetsuit in May?

probly not when we get down to Mexico tho.

i think we will drive to Las Vegas..you make a good point about waiting in airports..that would take as long as driving and we do enjoy driving.

we will spend some time in San Diego as from what people in here say, it sounds really nice...

just stay a few days in LA to see some of the sights and head off to Las Vegas from there then stay in San Diego a few days before Mexico.

At least we have paid the airfares so now its just a matter of doing some homework on the net.

Do you think it is better to wait till we get there before booking hotels and airfares etc?...or would it be cheaper from home?

it seems that doing it from there has more options.

cheers
and thanks...oh..do you surf and did you surf there?

if you want nice warm waters, surfing, and if you're going to fly into mexico anyway, you might as well go somewhere where the surfing is great, food is great, water is warm, people are nicer, etc. etc. In other words, not Baja - it's overpriced and not as interesting. Try flying into Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, rent a car (easy) and drive 30 minutes to beach town of Troncones - lots of great, inexpensive hotels & B&Bs. Or the beach areas North of Puerto Vallarta. Or even better for surfing, the area around Puerto Escondido (Oaxaca state), but a bit more difficult (and fun!) to access. And believe it or not, Acapulco remains one of the all time great swimming bays in Mexico (it's cleaned up and safer recently than it has been in years).

We go to mexico almost every year, and find these areas much better than Baja.

And the other writers are correct - limit your time in L.A. (check out a few museums, Venice Beach, etc), then scram to San Diego, Grand Canyon and other more interesting areas.

Hello westaustralians:
I wanted to concur with what others
have written about driving to Mexico. It is a gamble for you to cross the border and drive across that country. Many political issues that are occurring and even if you are minding your own business, things can happen. I speak from experience. Fly down to Cabo or any of the other tourist sites. As for surfing, the nicest area is the San Diego beaches. Los Angeles is one huge parking lot. Lots of horrible traffic congestion but if you want to say that you visited Hollywood or other places in the area, that's where you stay. A couple of hours down the coast and you could stay in San Diego, which is a beautiful area with lots of places to see.

Do not wait to book your hotels and car until you get here..Spring break and other factors could have you with no hotel or car.
Expedia.com is good to book a 4-5 star hotels for a good deal right now.

You can rent a car to drive into Mexico but you need addtional insurnace on the car which is often more than the daily car rental rate. My husband does business in Mexico and has had to use Hertz since they were the only ones allowing their cars into Mexico. His last trip was a year ago so I can only assume it is still allowed.
We drove down the Baja many years ago and loved it all. However, given your time frame and plans, I would suggest flying to wherever surfing is accessible in Mexico. For surfing, you could drive from LA to San Diego,stopping at San Clemente or Encinitas, (Swami's). My suggestion is to get out of LA as soon as possible and concentrate your time elsewhere. You must visit San Diego instead. You can drive or take a trolly out of SD to the border, walk across, grab a cab to the Tijuana airport for your flights into Mexico. Aero mexico is your most reliable airline and it is cheaper flying out of Tijuana. You may also be able to find some inexpensive flights out of LA to Mexico. Return back to SD and fly or drive to Las Vegas. Research your air on Kayak.com for the LA or Tijuana flights to the Baja and to Las Vegas. Include a search on the Southwest airline sight for Las Vegas. If you fly to Las Vegas, you can rent a car and drive to the Grand canyon. Remember in S. cal it is called "May Gray" for a reason. it is my least favoirete time of the year due to the marine layer that can linger on all day. The water is cold so you'll need a wet suit.

Native San Diegan and used to live in Mexico and I would not advise ANYONE to drive to Mexico, especially from another country and then tell them to fly out of TJ airport to save a couple of bucks and the border wait can be 2-4 hours..