Should we visit Grand Canyon or San Francisco
 

Hi there, we are visiting in December and I am trying to decide between these two options. We are taking our children to Disneyland (they will be 6 and almost 3 when we travel), then we will pick up a car and take one of these options, taking 3 or 4 nights to do it:

Option 1: Drive to Williams Arizona, do a day trip to Grand Canyon, 1 night in Sedona and do a jeep tour, 1 night in Scottsdale and fly out of Phenix.
Option 2: Overnight in Santa Barbara, drive Big Sur, 1 night in Carmel or Monterey, and 2 nights in San Francisco.

Our next destination is Dallas/Fort Worth so will fly to there from either of these destinations.

Do you have any advice on which itinerary we should pick? Considering it will be December and cold weather. I should mention my husband has done a flight over the Grand Canyon once before out of Las Vegas.

I would advice you to go with your Option 1, the reason being that Grand Canyon is beautiful!
You would never want to miss it. San Francisco's only main attraction is the Golden Gate bridge.

There is more than the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. We have been ther 10+ times and alway find something new. Big Sur alone is a destination. The kids will love the cable cars. The weather in December in SF should be fairly warm, maybe some rain. We go there often at Christmas.

The Grand Canyon will be cold and possibly snowy (the North Rim is closed in the winter). It was beautiful but not a lot to do with little children, as they will not be able to hike into the canyon. I actually liked Zion better.

With children that age I would consider option 3: going south to San Diego. It will probably be warmer than either of your other options, there is more to interest kids, like the zoo and perhaps some time playing in the sand at a beach and not as much seat time in the car.

Both of the other choices would be good for older kids or adults.

I agree with emalloy for the kids sake. However, if you want something for adults after all that time at Disney, then I would pick the Big Sur, Carmel, SF option. I would see Grand Canyon at a warmer time of year. I have a friend who was there this March or April and he complained of it being too cold with snow on the ground.

Also, there is waaaaaaaay more of interest in SF than just the Bridge. One could spend 3 or more days there and not have a boring moment.

Having lived in the best Metro area in the West - SF - and driven the beautiful coast too many times to count - and having just visited the magnificent Grand Canyon for the 4th? time - I would third the suggested alternative of coming down here to San Diego where the kids would love it and it's easier to get to/around than the other desinatons. :)

For December the California coast would be better than GC.
The reasons would be the risk of snow at Grand Canyon and the fact that the kids would not remember being there in 15 years.
Come back to the US in a few years earlier in the year to see the Grand Canyon flying to Las Vegas and skipping Disneyland.

Option 2 (but as mentioned lots of driving) or San Diego.

<i>San Francisco's only main attraction is the Golden Gate bridge.</i>

Other cities with only one reason to visit include Seattle (Space Needle), Paris (Eiffel Tower), New York (Empire State), Chicago (Sears/Willis Tower).

Where are you from?

Too funny happy!

I would think 3 and 6-year olds would have a lot more fun in San Francisco (although I don't disagree that San Diego is even more kid-friendly in terms of attractions) than looking at nice outdoor scenery.

I agree that you should save the Grand Canyon for warmer weather and older children. San Diego is a wonderful option but San Francisco is also a good idea. These boards have a wealth of information on both cities if you use the search feature at the top of this page.

In Dec I would definitely do SF. Better weather - a lot more to see and do - and more friendly for littler kids that might want to play and rest instead of being in a car for days at a time.

I like happytrails' joke. Also will add that the only reason to visit Hawaii is to have a Mai Tai.

The only reason to go to Disneyland is to see Mickey, Minnie and Snow White.

Only reason to come to SD: Great Mexican Food (and Margaritas. :) )

Oops: #2 - San Diego Zoo and Safari/Wild Animal Park - with Sea World a throw in. :)

SF...with kids that age, it's the better choice. Ride the cable cars, have a Ghiradelli sundae, go to Muir Woods.

Save the Grand Canyon for when they are older and can actually hike it.

Thanks for the replies!! I should have mentioned San Diego is already on our itinerary. We are going to spend a few days there after Christmas before flying home. We are spending Christmas week in Breckenridge Colorado to do all the winter activities so I figure it will be a nice place to visit and warm up before going home.

We are from Queensland Australia. I guess the thing that concerns me about the Grand Canyon is the weather. But I am assuming San Francisco will be cold also (compared to what we are used to). But the GC is one of those places that you have to see once right? Although we will probably be back in a few years time again because I really want to go to Yellowstone in warmer weather. So maybe we should save it for then when the kids are older..