California trip - Aug 2010 - itinerary help please!
 

Hi
I'm planning a family trip (parents+ 19 and 15 year old) to California for 3 weeks late July./Aug and know I can't possibly visit or do everything. Advice welcome please on whether my so-far random ideas are do-able. Want to mix things up (car hire, RV hire, hotel, beach rental, main cities, national parks etc).

Initial thoughts
- Fly to SF, spend 3 days there and pick up car/RV (?) and go to Yosemite for a couple of days. Then on to Lake Tahoe and rent cabin for a night or two. Then upto Crater Lake and double back via Napa valley to SF. Is this too ambitious for 7 days?

- Drive to Las Vegas - how long? Is Death Valley a silly idea in Aug? Presumably, can avoid it.? Spend a few days in Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Bryce Canyon before striking out to LA. Spend a couple of days getting to LA and a couple of days there. Is this do-able in 7 days?

-From LA spend a week getting back to SF via the coast. Thinking of beach rental here as a base to chill for a few days. This leg - another 7 days. In this stretch quite fancy a rail trip along the coast.

I have no idea if the above is too crazy in the time. i don't want to be driving the entire holday. A couple of hours at a time is generally enough for me.

Any thoughts on whether I'd be better starting out in LV and then going to LA and upto SF area? Would it be worth then flying from SF to LV tfor return flight home?

As you can see, lots of ideas racing round my head. Sanity check needed please!

Thanks




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There is a lot going on here.

I think it is way way way too much so you'll need to prioritize.

If it were me I would drop the Las Vegas leg - lots of driving there and hot desert.

In your one week blocks

1 week - LA and driving north (stealing a day from mountains)
5 days - Mountain - I would pick EITHER Tahoe or Yosemite
1 Week - SF and Wine country (stealing a day from mountains)

Even this is pretty busy!

I would try for open jaw - although car rental is PRICY

I recommend that you think a bit more about where you really want to visit. While it would be great to see everything, there is never enough time. Then come back to the forum with more questions.

That being said, I do have a few suggestions.

I would drop Las Vegas and Death Valley. They will be hotter than hell in August.

If you're going to California, stay in California - you have plenty enough to do and see without adding in Nevada and Utah. Save those places for another trip during a cooler part of the year.

California is huge. If this were my trip, I'd spend the three weeks in either northern California, southern California, or traveling between LA & SF area.

Finally, the weather in most of non-desert California is beautiful in August. You have a lot of options for a wonderful vacation.

Your two 7 day loops are mad. Dump a train trip along the coast, Dump Crater Lake, dump Death Valley, Dump Las Vegas, and (unfortunately) dump the Utah/Arizona bits.

If you want to gamble you can do it at Tahoe in gorgeous country and 40-50 degrees cooler than in Las Vegas.

You can have a fabulous holiday sticking to California. I wouldn't hire a motorhome, but if you want to stay in Yosemite, you need to book NOW.

4 days in San Francisco > pick up a car and spend a couple of days in Napa/Sonoma > 2 or 3 days at Tahoe > 3 days in Yosemite > 3 days along the central coast (Monetery/Carmel/Big Sur/Santa Barbara) > 3 or 4 days in the LA area > a few days in San Diego and fly home.

The only place you'll might get really hot temps is in Napa, though it can get warm in Yosemite.

FYI, most of the better/nicer hotels along the coast between LA and SF have a 2-night minimum stay requirement on summer weekends. I would try to time your drive Monday-Thursday and definitely have reservations.

Jean makes a good point. To clarify my 3 days along the coast, I didn't mean staying one night in each of those places but to pick one or two from the list.

The typical stops would be 2 nights in Carmel or Monterey/Pacific Grove which are all in the same area and can be used as a base for Carmel/Pebble beach/Monterey/Big Sur. And then another night farther south -- Morro Bay, Cambria, San Luis Obispo or Santa Barbara are all good options.

Staying 4 nights along the coast would be even better BTW, if you can cut LA or San Diego back a night.

I agree your above itinerary is mad. Janisj has good suggestions. I tend to get excited about trips and overbook and then regret it. Remember doing less and really enjoying what you do is better than being rushed, stressed and fatigued.

You are going to get 40+ replies pulling and pushing you all over the place. Here are some tools to help you to pin your itinerary down a little better so that the respondents can be more effective.

Where to go in California:
http://www.californiatouristguide.com/

Things to do in the three major cities:
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/s...city-guide.htm

http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/l...city-guide.htm

http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/s...city-guide.htm

The Major National Parks:
http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/index.htm

http://www.nps.gov/seki/index.htm

http://www.nps.gov/redw/index.htm

http://www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm

The California Missions:
http://www.californiamissions.com/cahistory/index.html

Driving times and distances:
ttp://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

Climate data:
http://www.weatherbase.com/
Hint: For Death Valley, enter Furnace Creek.

Ocean temperatures:
http://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/spac.html

Rail transport:
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/Conten.../1237405732511

Route 1 Scenic Highway:
http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/LandArch/sc...ays/route1.htm

Hotels and restaurants:
The people on this board.

Forget Crater lake - it isn't worth the drive up there.

It is too hot for Las Vegas in July/August or Death Valley. Otherwise, I think the kids would love it. Lots to do there besides gambling.

If you go to Napa or Santa Rosa, check out Bodega Bay along the ocean.

Be sure you have reservations somewhere in Yosemite It can be really full.

In the LA area, we really liked the Huntington Library. It is not to be missed. Also, the tar pits are great. There is always Knotts Berry Farm and Disneyland.

I am not that crazy about San Francisco that I would want to spend many days there. Fisherman's Wharf is nothing anymore. http://www.nps.gov/muwo/index.htm You might like the Muir Woods.

Montery and Carmel and the drive south along the coast is fantastic. There is the Hearst Castle which I enjoyed seeing. Also, there is a beach in that area where the elephant seals come a few times a year. You will see it as it is right on the road and you will see the seals.

bratsandbeer's post reminds me why you have to be very careful taking advice from strangers about whom you know nothing! Because I would disagree with so much of his/her post - Crater Lake (I agree it's not worth it to drive up there just for that, but if you're going up there, it is spectacular), San Francisco (seriously, I live here, so I guess I'm biased, but he/she is probably the only person on this board who would recommend AGAINST visiting San Francisco!

Las Vegas and Death Valley will be hellishly hot in the summer. I am admittedly not a fan of Las Vegas, so I'd skip it anyway -- 1 or 2 days is enough for me. I don't find it very relaxing, in part because the pools are jammed. We took our kids years ago, and we had fun, but again, it was only for a few days. I would never ever consider spending a week there.

In my opinion, the best advice you've gotten has come from Janisj - San Francisco, Napa/Sonoma, Tahoe, Yosemite, Central Coast, LA, San Diego. A good taste of a lot of California.

Go on a VRBO site & fine a place to stay for your whole time & do side trips from there. Calif is a big state.The abouve posters are right about Deathe Valley-Vegas-too hot in July/August. Grandma & Grandpa might get too tired hopping around. Pick Bay Area-So Calif & go from there.Don't exhaust yourself-enjoy .

Where are u flying in from? Usually it's better to fly into one city and then fly home from another to avoid the backtracking.

Can you even GET reservations for Yosemite in July and August? Seems a little late for that.

With three weeks, you can definitely fit in all the places that you mention, you just haven't allowed any time to SEE OR DO anything while you're there!

I love SF too, and I'm not from there! I am not anti-Fisherman's Wharf; I had a lot of fun there as a teenager, and your kids probably will too. But there's so much more to the city than that. Explore Chinatown, North Beach, the Mission, and Union Square, go across the Golden Gate, visit a musuem or two. Check out the posts by a guy named Stu for lots of info that I found really helpful when we went.

Thanks everyone for your input. It has helped crystalise things. Forgot to add that I am travelling from UK where we have no concept of distance! I guess that much was obvious!
I'll skip Vegas, pity about the Canyons - maybe another time. No-one has yet commented on whether better to start from Southern California and work north or vice-versa?
Hoping to finalise very soon.
Thanks again.

I just spent 20 hours in San Francisco with my kids and wish it could have been 20 days! You wil find plenty to experience in San Francisco and will want to return, time and time again.

"<i>No-one has yet commented on whether better to start from Southern California and work north or vice-versa?</i>"

In practical terms it really makes no difference, or very little. There might be slight differences in the open jaw airfare into LAX and out of SFO or vice versa. And rental car drop off charges <i>could</i> be slightly different. But you'd have to research for your dates to know for sure.

Some prefer driving north along the coast, some prefer driving south - and both sides of the argument think they are right :)

But essentially 6 of 1/half dozen of the other. The main thing would be to nail down your accommodations in Yosemite, and maybe your air tix, and then work out whether northward or southward fit better.

Thanks janisj - your posts have been very helpful as have everyone else's. I'm focusing on flying into SF and spending 3-4 days there and then spending a day/night in Napa (not much interest to a 14 year old) before striking out for Lake Tahoe for a couple of days and then Yosemite likewise. After that cutting back to the coast and doing Highway 1 for about 3 days with stops (as yet undefined) before landing up at Santa Monica for a 7 day beach stop from where we'll cover LA and possibly San Diego. We'll return to London from LAX. Is this making more sense? You guys have all been really helpful in making me prioritise. I'd love to have covered more but as FamilyTravilin, divineMissM and others said, it's easy to overcommit. Thanks dbdurand for the really helpful websites. Really looking forward to the trip. Any other thoughts really welcome. Cheers!

You're very welcome. Yes - that is a totally doable itinerary.

The only thing IMO is San Diego from Santa Monica is too far for commuting back and forth - but if you just mean one day trip down to see a bit of SD, that would be OK. If you want to see a lot of San Diego, you'll want to stay at least 1night/2full days down there. But you can have a very full/enjoyable trip w/o hitting San Diego too. It is a really lovely place but so are other places you are visiting.

But do get on those Yosemite accommodation <B>ASAP</B> - as soon as you know your dates. You may need some flexibility and rearranging/reordering the itinerary to get rooms. Think Cornwall or the Lake District over a Bank Holiday weekend. Then multiply.

I have hosted many European relatives visiting CA. From their favorites I suggest the following:
1) Stay in San Francisco for 3 nights. Napa will be of little interest to your 14 and 19 yr. old kids. It's very do-able as a day trip from S.F. though.
2) When going to Lake Tahoe stay in North Lake Tahoe (more wooded and not as crowded as South Lake Tahoe). If possible stay at Northstar. 4 day stay is good:
http://www.northstarattahoe.com/
3) Stay in the Yosemite Lodge while in Yosemite. 3 days is long enough.
http://www.yosemitepark.com/Accommod...miteLodge.aspx
4) When you cut back to the coast, cut back to the Monterey and Carmel area. Very artsy and quaint. Your kids should see the Monterey Aquarium. 2 night stay here is plenty.
Drive on southward but don't stop until you reach Cambria.
5) The Hearst Castle Experience Tour - located in Cambria on the coast, is really interesting. Your folks will enjoy that. Tour takes about 2 hours.
Afterwards either stay in Cambria, Pismo Beach or San Luis Obispo for the night. All are cozy.
6) Next day drive 2 hours south to Santa Barbara. You will love it here! Much less crowded then L.A. Spend 3 nights - very relaxing.
I recommend the Fess Parker hotel - great location and on site activities:
http://www.fessparkersantabarbarahotel.com/
7) I would reconsider Santa Monica for 7 days. It is very crowded, expensive and not too centrally located. The ENTIRE Los Angeles area is always a traffic jam. Took us 4 hours to drive from Santa Monica to Newport Beach last summer (mapquest lists it as 1hr. 40 minutes).
Instead pick what attraction you like and stay closer to it (Disneyland, Laguna Beach?).
8) One last fun sidetrip... a day trip to Catalina Island (boat leaves from Long Beach). It's a throw back in time and your kids might enjoy the snorkeling.
Forget driving to San Diego - make that the next trip!

I think lilib has given you some good suggestions, but I'd like to comment on two things:

1) Stay at Northstar. Northstar is a self-contained ski resort. It's a great place (and I've stayed there in all four seasons), but it's about a 15 minute drive to the lake. I'd recommend you look into staying somewhere ON the lake.

2) Monterey to Cambria - do not stop. I assume she means, do not stop overnight. If so, I agree, but definitely plan to stop. The coast from Carmel south is spectacular. It should be savored!