Short notice to go out West
 

It is April, but my family finally have our dates lined up. We want to take a road trip from MN to one of the National Parks out west. We have been to Mt. Rushmore, so no need to stop there. We will be leaving June 9th or 10th and we need to be back June 18th. We are a family of 5, we plan on renting a passenger van for leg room and 4 of the adults can drive, with the fifth having his permit (so some driving, good practice). For places to stay, I was thinking of renting a VRBO. Advice much appreciated, and time is of the essence!

Which park? "Not Rushmore" doesn't narrow it down much. In your shoes I'd probably aim for Colorado- visit RMNP and Mesa Verde. I don't know how RMNP is in June, though. I think snow and/or mud would be involved.

Way too early for Glacier National Park. Park is open 365/24/7 but the Going to the Sun Road, the only road through the park's east to west, doesn't normally open till late June, sometimes mid July.

Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Sequoia NP ...

My choice -YMMV. Fly to Albuquerque rent the van.
You have your choice of 2 (maybe 3) of the following - Mesa Verde NP, Grand Canyon South Rim, Canyonlands NP, Arches NP, Monument Valley, Petrified Forest NP and Saguaro NP.
Albuquerque should be easier than Phoenix or any other airport IMO.

Yellowstone and Grand Teton are fine but you don't have enough time to drive all the way to Sequoia.

I agree with southern Colorado/northern New Mexico.
Or Utah.

The person on a learners permit will be unlikely able to legally drive a rental vehicle.

Yellowstone and Grand Teton

Ok, lets say you want to see some of the Utah parks, Minneapolis to Moab will take 2 days out and 2 days back. That leaves 4 or 5 days to actually spend in the parks. (days 1 and 2)

You could leave at the crack of dawn each day, head for Moab, and be at Arches NP late afternoon for a hike out to Delicate Arch for some wonderful sunset views (bring flashlights for the trip back). Spend the next 2 nights in Moab visiting other parts of Arches and Canyonlands Island in the Sky District. (days 3 and 4)

Day 5 Head for Mesa Verde, stay the night at Far View Lodge in the park, do a ranger let hike to one of the cliff dwellings.

Day 6 head up to Rocky Mt NP if Trail Ridge Road is open take it through the park

Day 7 and 8 beat it back to MN.


Yes, this is rushed, but other than flying to Albuquerque, Denver or Las Vegas, it is what I could come up with since you wanted a road trip.

Thank you to all, and I really appreciated the advice going to the Utah parks. I also can find a VRBO just outside Yellowstone (a little closer in distance?) and I am debating to drive or fly there, flying just gets alot more expensive! Flying to Vegas is the cheapest, but the drive from there is still about 11 hours where driving for us is 18-19. I will have to look, but possibly flying to Vegas and attempting the Utah parks, Mesa Verde ... Vegas to Moab is about 6.5 hours. Thoughts once again appreciated!

If you are considering flying to Vegas, why not check out Zion NP and Bryce NP? Only a couple hours from Vegas, then you could do a loop over to Page, AZ and see Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend before heading back to Vegas. If you push it you could get the Grand Canyon as well, but that would be pretty rushed for a week I think, depending on what you want to do in each park.

We've done the southern Utah parks and Mesa Verde from Vegas, Albuquerque and Denver. Usually we decide on which airport based on costs of flight and car rental as well as any other things that factor in like family obligations.

Depending on what you want to see, Vegas and Albuquerque usually are the best deals if you want to include Mesa Verde and Moab parks. You can plan a loop from either depending on how you want to pace the trip, how early you can get in, and what else to see.

We are coming from the east coast, so the first day is mostly eaten up getting there. If you click my name you can find some TRs for the area. I think the 2013 and 2011 would be most relevant.

I should have mentioned that Salt Lake City is also a choice for a loop. I think Albuquerque has been the best price wise recently.

This map with mileage charts and times that was posted a long time ago by another fodorite might help with planning:

http://ohiohickstraveltips.weebly.co...-utah-map.html