Trip from Denver to San Francisco (Belgians)
 

Hi everyone,

I'm from Belgium, and with two of my friends we will be travelling from Denver to San Francisco in a rented car. We'll depart from Denver on Jul, 7 and must take our plane in SF on the 20th.

We planned our itinerary as follows: Denver, Richfield, Lake Powell, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Los Angeles (Santa Monica), Monterrey, then San Francisco.

Does anybody here have tips, infos and recommendations on things to see / not see on this travel?

Thank you very much,
Fabrice.

Don't miss Lake Tahoe, it's very nice.

Unless you are visiting someone what is in Richfield that warrants a visit. There is lots to see going from Denver to Las Vegas if you alter your route. I would visit, from DEnver, in this order: Moab, Ut (Arches/Canyonlands National Parks, Monument Valley in Arizona, South Rim of GR. Canyon and then Las Vegas. If you want to add Lake POwell you could go there from MOnument Valley and then go to the North Rim of GR. Canyon followed by a quick visit to Zion National Park on the way to Las VEgas. You would have to alter the length of time spent in places you intend visiting but it could make your trip more interesting. Why don't you post your day to day itinerary - suggestions could be offered as to how to get the most of the 14 days you will be on the road.

I think your schedule looks great, except I would spend a little more time in the Rocky Mountains. Take the way through Vail/Telluride, and you'll get a great taste of it.

In Los Angeles, the Getty Museum is a must, an easy drive from Santa Monica. <BR><BR>In Monterey area, visit Point Lobos. <BR>Try to plan your arrivals so that you hit Las Vegas on Wed/Thurs and stay in Los Angeles on the weekend. Las Vegas is much less crowded on the weekdays, and Los Angeles traffic is MUCH easier to bear on Saturday and Sunday, especially if you will be car-touring Hollywood and the sites.

If you want to vary the terrain, as in mountains,desert,and coast, you need to spend a little more time in Colorado. a possible suggestion is to do a little more back roads through Colorado. Go I 70 to reach Breckenridge(ski town style western like). Back to I 70 to Leadville turnoff. Through Leadville over Independence Pass(scary drive, but beautiful so take your time). Go to Aspen. Pass through and go north to Glenwood Springs.Enjoy the HotSprings pool. Then, go back the same way to Carbondale, to Redstone. Have lunch at the castle.. Go over McClure Pass and onto Delta. Head south to Montrose. If you have the time, visit Black Canyon National Park. If not, continue south to Ouray, and stay the night. Youu can take a side trip here to Telluride (ski town and summer events). Then continue south from Ouray to Durango. Stay in Durango. Visit Mesa Verde National Park(wonderful), and maybe Four Corners Monument (touristy). Then, head into Arizona. from here you can reach Monument valley or Canyon De Chelly National Monument. The route along highway 160 is desert sparse, but has a few interesting Navajo sites. Try the Navajo Fry Bread. From Monument Valley, you can also visit Lake Powell. Go south towards Flagstaff. Wupatiki has a small Indian ruin site, and Sunset Crater is a volcanic site. Pass through Flagstaff to Willaims and north to Grand Canyon. Of course, the Utah National Parks are great too.

Watch out, folks, this post is from 1997. Whoever this Kim person is, he/she keeps resurrecting all this old stuff and topping it with idiotic replies. It's very annoying and distracting and I wish Fodor's would sweep Kim and his/her nonsense back under the carpet. A lot of good energy is going into answering questions that died years ago.