We would like to take a road trip this summer (August)and are seeking advice! Family of 4 includes 2 boys 15 & 13, We all love the outdoors. Flying out of Hartford, Ct to maybe Lake Tahoe then on to Grand Canyon, but would like to see other sites/parks along the way. We will have 2 weeks. We could also fly to Vegas then on to Grand Canyon and head west. Any and all suggestions welcome!

Just be sure you are aware of the temps in Las Vegas during the summer--100s during the day and dry. You might consider Tahoe to Mammoth--but if the Grand Canyon is really on your radar. . .

Las Vegas and most of the SW will be extremely hot in August. And Lake Tahoe will be pretty crowded. Have you considered San Diego or someplace like that?

The Southwest is hot during the summer, but is beautiful to visit. My family really enjoyed our visits to the Grand Canyon, & Bryce and Zion National Parks. Do a search for "Utahtea" here and you will get lots of information from her posts on visiting those areas.

Have a great trip!

If I were doing this trip, I'd fly into Denver, go to Estes Park NP, drive down to Durango, visit Mesa Verde (all gorgeous and MUCH cooler), head down toward the Grand Canyon seeing Monument Valley, maybe Petrified Forest NP, South Rim of the Grand Canyon, visit Sedona on the way to Phoenix to catch a flight out. Or, if there was a need to head back to Denver for the return flight, back to the Rockies and stopping by Great Sand Dunes NP on the way back.

We did a wondeful ten day southwest driving tour. We started in Las Vegas and drove to Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Mesa Verde over 5 days and then stayed 5 days outside Santa Fe/Albequerque and did day trips, flying out of ABQ (we stayed at Tamaya in Bernalillo which was nice for the family experience). But, it was May and much cooler.

We did Zion and Bryce one labor day weekend and it was very beautiful and the weather was warm but not overwhelming.

When you say head west, were you thinking to go to the coast (LA or SD)? It is about a six hour drive from Vegas (others will say longer because of traffic/construction, but I have friends who say they can do it in less). Or you could do Vegas/Grand Canyon and then fly southwest to Burbank (or pick an airline to LAX) and start your west coast portion of the trip. The coast offers hiking, surf lessons, sailing, biking along the ocean. Lots of activities for an active family.

We often take family vacation in Tahoe, which is gorgeous and offers plenty of hiking and water activities. You could drive 395 south with stops at an old Ghost town (I forgot the name), Mono Lake, Lone Pine, Whitney Portal etc. But it has been awhile since I traveled this route and others will probably have better advice on things to do and the route to GC. Maybe a stop at Yosemite but will be very crowded in August.

Fly into SF and drive north to Seattle.