Best route to take to cover California, Las Vegas, and Grand Canyon and possibily Arizona in a week?

4 Responses to “Best route to take to cover California, Las Vegas, and Grand Canyon and possibily Arizona in a week?”

1. TitoBob on October 12th, 2008 10:44 am

   That's a lot of territory to cover by car, but it could be done with a lot of driving in between sites. Here's one possible route. Fly into LAX and drive east on IS 10 to Blythe. Just east of Blythe, turn north onto 95, past Lake Havasu City to connect with IS 40. Stay on IS 40 to Williams, just west of Flagstaff. From Williams, go north on Hwy 64 to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, then east to the junction with State 89. North on 89, cross over Marble Canyon, west on Alt 89 to connect with IS 15. You can catch the South Rim along that route. Go southwest on 15 to Las Vegas. Be sure to take in the Hoover Dam just a bit SE of LV.

   Head NW from LV on State 95 to Beatty, then go down into Death Valley. (Be sure your car is in good condition and carry lots of extra water.) On the west side, connect with State 395 heading north. From 395, you should be able to go through Yosemite National Park, unless the entrance is closed due to snow. If it is, continue north on 395 to the junction with 108, and follow that to Manteca. From there, follow the freeways to San Francisco and finish your trip there.

   Get a set of good maps to show you all the sights and attractions you can take in along the way if time permits. Reserve your car ahead of time, noting the drop-off at a different location. Be sure to figure out the distances between various points so you end up at a good place for accommodations. You shouldn't need to reserve many motels in advance at that time of year. Have fun!
   References :
   I have traveled in that area

2. The Corinthian on October 12th, 2008 11:07 am

   Well, it really depends on what you want to see and what interests you. (and it is a lot more spread out that many people think)

   I might suggest flying into San Francisco, and touring the city and restaurants for a day. Then drive down the Pacific Coast Highway to Southern California – a good drive, with various stops would take another day. Spend a day in the LA area – too much to mention as far as attractions. Then a drive up to Las Vegas for a day or so – again depending if you want to see shows or gamble or whatever. Then drive over to the Grand Canyon – again another day, at least, there. Then perhaps swing up through Monument Valley, UT and head back to Las Vegas for a flight out.

   Honestly, it would be hard to cover all those things in a week. You'd probably be better off doing Vegas/Grand Canyon and other places (Lake Powell, Canyonlands,etc) on one trip and then California on another trip.
   References :

3. tom c on October 12th, 2008 11:16 am

   Day 1( 9 hr drive) From LAX, go up Hwy1 to see hearst castle( Original film Citizen Kane), take tour 1.and then drive up hwy1 to see big sur( most beautiful coast ), stay SF

   Day 2( relax)See SF in one day( http://www.bayareavisit.com)

   Day 3 (4hr drive)Take Freeway 580, 120 to see yosemite(one of must see 4 national parks), stay there.

   Day 4( 6hr drive)Take hwy 41, and 99, 58, 15 to Las Vegas, see vegas night( time sq like)

   Day 5( 4 hr drive)Take Hwy 93, 40 and 64, 180 to Grand canyon, stay there one night.

   Day 6( 7 hr drive)Take 180, 64, 40 back LAX, stay hollywood,

   Day 7( relax)see one film studio( MGM, paramount, universal, warner brother), and take star house tour( 3hr) if you like. Take red eye flight back.
   References :

4. mr danger on October 12th, 2008 11:55 am

   A couple of things ;
   While you are of legal age to drink ,there is still the requirement of being 25 for renting cars to deal with and they will charge you a fee for being under 25 .Talk to the car rental company to make sure that you know exactly how much that fee will be and include that as part of your basis for comparisson shopping
   Make sure that the car you rent has a V-6 in it.The roads of the West have a lot of elevation changes on them .In addition there will be 2 lane high speed roads where you may be required to do a passing move using the oncoming traffic lane as your passing lane. In both situations there is simply no substitute for horsepower and the trade-off of increased safety for decreased gas mileage is more than worth it.
   When driving in remote areas i.e most of the West -keep this statistic in mind ;While numericaly about only 20% of accidents happen in rural areas ,80 % of the fatalites from auto accidents happen in rural areas .The reason is simple : if you are a 100 miles or more away from a hospital [like that little trip up to Death Valley NP] and /or in an area where cell phones don't work by the time help gets to you and you get to a hospital you could be quite dead.
   The easiest and best flights are the non-stop coast to coast flights
   Do EWR-LAX
   ????
   I'm not sure if you want this to be a party trip w/ a little nature tossed in or a nature trip w/ alittle partying tossed in.
   Let me know and I'll route you accordingly
   References :
   me

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