heledw

Hi

Just decided this morning that I want to see some of the LA coast, San Fransisco and probably end in Vegas for 3 nights and thought "road trip"......

Got 2 weeks off from 26th Feb 2014, is the weather going to be ok as in warm (hopefully enough to wear t-shirt), not rain all the time.
Not booked or looked at anything as honestly don't know where to start!!!
Fly into where????? LA or San Fran..., which direction do I head?, what maps should I be looking at???
How long are the driving between stops and where can I stop for overnight breaks, think the coastal path would be nice, dependant on time difference......

I know I'm asking a lot, but I honestly have no idea where to start, so hoping that you can take a complete novice and turn me into someone who can do this (a 48 year old lady doing a road trip with my friend, who is also a complete novice).

Many thanks in advance, I really appreciate any help you can give

Regards

Helen

jent103

I'd really just start with Google Maps. You can get directions and times between cities, or build a whole itinerary (LA to Vegas via SF or whatever you like).

maps.google.com

PaulRabe

> 26th Feb 2014, is the weather going to be ok as in warm
> (hopefully enough to wear t-shirt), not rain all the time.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, it most likely will be wet, too cold for T-shirts, and dreary. It COULD be warm and pleasant, but don't count on it.

> Fly into where????? LA or San Fran..., which direction do I head?

Fly into the city which has the best combination (price-wise) of air fare and car rental. Pick up the car and do a circle from City A to City B to City C and back to City A, returning the car to City A.

You MIGHT save money by flying into San Francisco and not using a car for either the first couple of days or the last couple of days of your trip using public transit. In the other two cities, you'll pretty much need a car.

Note that, from 2014 March 4 to March 8, and expected 150,000 convention goers will be descending on Vegas.
http://tinyurl.com/cpkfpbr
Do NOT go near Vegas during a major convention like this: you'll be LUCKY to get a flea bag room for $300 a night.

One last thing: BEFORE you ask us, "What things should I see?", *PLEASE* tell us what YOU want to experience during this trip. We can tell you what WE like, but YOU might find our likes a complete bore. The more specific, the better.

Michael

In the San Francisco Bay Area, it most likely will be wet, too cold for T-shirts, and dreary.

Only when it rains. It is often bright and sunny between storms--which hardly occurred this year--but not T-shirt weather. However, February is traditionally a wet month, and many people are reluctant to drive the along Big Sur in that season.

To know what to see, a guidebook might be in order, Fodor's California perhaps?

WhereAreWe

First off, are those the right dates? Feb 26 2014 is a Wednesday and it just seems odd to have time off starting mid-week and ending mid-week..If you are indeed starting/ending your vacation mid-week, that's a good thing usually for Vegas as hotels are generally much cheaper mid-week than on the weekends.

Anyway, if you want to end in Las Vegas for 3 nights, it probably makes the most sense to fly in/out of Las Vegas then. I would guess the combo price of flight/car from Las Vegas will be comparable or better than San Francisco or Los Angeles.

Really your other option is to fly into one of the California cities (San Diego, LA or San Francisco) then drive up or down the coast and fly to Las Vegas from wherever you finish the road trip.

msteacher

You do not necessarily have to fly in and out of the same city. Use the "multi-city" feature on the airline website if you want to do something like fly into SF and out of Vegas. Often there's not much price difference and it may save you a few days of driving. Though you'll need to see what the price difference is for your car rental if you drop off in different city. Then consider whether the cost is worth the time you will save. Happy planning!