New York to San Francisco - 3 weeks
 

Family arriving from Scandinavia in New york July 5. July 8 we start our road-trip to San Francisco - from where we leave July 29. Which route is the best at this time of year? Have you done the crossing yourself? What is a MUST to see in your fantastic country?
Many greetings from
Hanne

I assume you are going by rental car. Are you driving round trip or one-way drop off in San Fran?

What sites are you looking to see? Grand Canyon? Yosemite National Park? Las Vegas? The U.S. is pretty big. Any States/cities in particular you are looking to visit? ((b))

It is a one way trip in an Alamo minivan. Go back to Scandinavia from SFO. We wan´t to see it all - but know that we can´t. As Europe can´t be seen in 3-4 weeks. Therefore: What is a MUST to see? And which route is the best seen in that view?

Like Budman says, what's your interest?

But with 3 weeks, you have enough time to cover the best and most popular national parks in the West. And earlier you can definitely stop in Chicago for a day or two.

I'd suggest mostly I-90 for your drive. Go to Yellowstone Park in Wyoming, then head south to see the parks in Utah, then Grand Canyon and Vegas. Head back up California via Yosemite.

You'll need to make reservations early for summer stay at many of the National Park lodges or hotels close to them. So decide quickly.

I agree with rkkwan. However, I'd add the obvious - stay in NYC for a day or two at least. (I'm assuming you are flying in to JFK or LAG) It's the greatest city in the world!

I suggest a somewhat northerly route. If museums interest you, a stop in Chicago is a must. I also would not dawdle between the East Coast and the Rockies. The distances will be impressive enough just driving through. Expect hot weather until the Rockies where it will cool down at least at night even in the high desert areas. I would wander around the West, trying to hit the following sites (not necessarily in this order):

Yellowstone NP, Arches NP, Dinosaur National Monument, Grand Canyon NP, Mesa Verde NP, Taos and Santa Fe, Yosemite and the San Francisco. You may have to make a choice given the limited time you have (I assume that you will want to spend at least a couple of days in NY).

Do post a trip report when you're through. I'd love to hear about the places you pick to visit. Personally I'd be more interested in hitting the top sites like NYC, Washington D.C. (maybe meander a bit to see things like Monticello, Williamsburg, etc.). I've never been to Chicago, but it seems like a good stop on the way west - though while the country is beautiful - there's a reason much of it is called "fly-over" country.

I spent a week once driving from San Francisco to Vancouver - and that was enough for me.

I have heard that the views in Montana are spectacular.

You may enjoyr reading a recent thread from Poster Denmark who is doing a similar holiday in July from New York to San Francisco.

Just type Denmark into the seach box and you will be able to read his thread.

Sandy

The thread was called California and I just sent it to the top.

Sandy

Since you are from Scandinavia, the high desert country might be more interesting for you. So if you need to establish limitations, consider concentrating on the Southwest (Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona) before going to California.

Thank you very much for all advices. We´ll post info about our route when decided. Most important question now: Driving the south USA from New York to San Francisco sounds most interesting for a Scandinavian. But is it too hot in July?
Hanne

In terms of natural beauty, the Eastern half of the US is pretty boring when compared with most places on earth. Going the northern or southern route isn't going to change that. But once you hit the Rockies, the highest part is in Colorado, and to the NW of it is the Yellowstone Park. That's why most of us will suggest you take a mostly northern route across the US instead of going deep south.

Hanne--I think most of the middle-U.S. will seem quite hot to a Scandinavian, other than the most northern parts. Expect 30-34 degrees Celsius. If you want to hike the Grand Canyon, July is not the easiest time to do it! But if you just want to sight-see, you'll be okay--any car you rent will have air conditioning, anyway, as will all hotels.

I would leave several days to explore San Francisco, maybe the Napa Valley around it, or south to Bug Sur. En route, I'd recommend stopping in Chicago, and exploring the southwestern areas (a few national parks plus Santa Fe New Mexico) as suggested by some of the other posters.

Liz