United States of America Travel Forum

Good day!

I will be accompanying my hubby to attend a conference in Las Vegas and we will be extending for another week.

We plan to visit our friends in San Francisco after Grand Canyon and then back to LA for our return flight home. Along the way, we can drive thru Death Valley and stop by Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park, Monterey etc.

Would like to find out the following :-
1) is it too rush to visit so many places in a week?
2) how much do we have to pay for gas/petrol for such long distance drive?
3) is it more costly than taking domestic flights?

Thanks in advance!

I think if you like the scenery driving is nice, however it is a little tight, as you will need a good day to get back to LA (that is, if you want to drive the scenic road on 101 ... if you take I-5 you can get back in around 7 hours).

I'm actually ending a conference in Vegas now, looking forward to flying home!

One word of warning, if you drive north from the Grand Canyon, avoid, by all means, a road numbered 89A. This is not the same as 89, 89 is OK. 89A is a mountain road which goes into the tail end of Zion national park and is extremely dangerous.

Having said that, I would count the days you have (not sure how much is another week, a whole 7 days or less?). Especially if you want to spend some time visiting, you may want to just go to *two* of the places you list.

Driving will be cheaper than flying. Right now gasoline is averaging US$4 a gallon. Depending on what kind of car you rent, your average gas mileage might be 20 miles a gallon (economy car). An SUV will only get about 15 miles a gallon. I think a week is enough time to see the sights you listed. There isn't much to see in Death Valley and if it's July or August, I would totally avoid Death Valley. If you enjoy wine, I highly suggest visiting Napa Valley or Sonoma. I think it's the most beautiful place in California (my opinion, of course). Hope you enjoy your visit!

The Pacific Coast Highway between SF and LA is a wonderful drive. Staying overnight in Monterey or Carmel would be a good overnight break, and Point Lobos (just south of Carmel) is beautiful. The Monterey Aquarium is very interesting. You might want to investigate 17-Mile Drive connecting Monterey and Carmel along by the ocean and into the hills of Pacific Grove to Carmel.

Santa Barbara is also a lovely place to stop overnight and explore should you drive the PCH route.

Thank you so much for your prompt responses!!

nomad, enjoy & have a safe trip home :)

grace, we plan to visit Sonoma (I had been to Napa Valley numerous times) :)

july, yes, we intend to drive the PCH... cool, we will make a stop in Santa Barbara if time permits :)

We will be staying in Las Vegas for 2 nights and will be spending the next 8 days travelling. After hearing your tips, driving is the way to go!

You are really back tracking depending on the time and schedule you have proposed.

GC is east of LV so that puts you some distance away from every thing else. If you understand that you will be back tracking from GC to LV than that's OK.

To get to King Canyon you will have to go really far south then come back north. There is no road that will bring you over the mountains from Death Valley into KC. The road into/out of KC is a deadend so you have to drive in and come back out the same way. Don't get me wrong parts, not much, are an awesome drive.

However, you might find Yosemite a better choice and a better route.

If it were me, I would leave LV (after GC), take Hwy 190 through DV, Hwy 395 to Hwy 120 over west through Yosemite, take Hwy 120/205/80 over to SF, Hwy 101/1/101 south to LA.

I know this is a very general route but if you find it interesting let me know and I can give you more details.

There are some routes you could fly, but with your time frame you have plenty of time to drive and see some awesome country side.

Regarding the question of cost, gas is definitely a factor, but also be sure to look carefully at rental car fees if you plan to rent. Not only does the cost of insurance rack up the cost of the car dramatically vs. the quoted "daily rate," but there can be an additional daily second driver fee if you rent the car in Las Vegas and both you and your husband plan to drive. I had a bad experience with Dollar and high unexpected fees for a rental car that I drove from Las Vegas to LA this past February. Finally, keep in mind that if you rent the car in Las Vegas and return it in LA, the rental fees, taxes and regulations that pertain (for the entire trip) are those for Nevada. As I understand it, if you rent the car in California, a married couple does not have to pay a second driver fee for example. A couple of hundred dollars here and there really add up... and you don't want to start and end your trip arguing with the rental agent (I do speak from personal experience here). As you research options, just keep in mind that the price quoted on rental car and travel booking websites is a small fraction of what you will actually have to pay, and you might be better off calling the rental car company directly to get a list of additional costs and fees charged by the location that you will be renting from since they vary from state to state and city to city, even for the same rental car company.

You would still be able to enjoy yourselves with only 1 week. I'd definetly recommend driving over flying in this area.

From Las Vegas, I'd drive through Death Valley and stay in Yosemite National Park. From Yosemite you can drive to San Francisco in 4 hours. When you're ready to leave San Francisco you can drive to Santa Cruz taking the fastest route (280 to 17) and travel along the Pacific Coast Highway down to San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach. The next day you can continue driving towards Los Angeles this time using hwy 101 and finish in Los Angeles. Santa Barbara is a nice stop between SLO and Los Angeles to stop for lunch or dinner.

1) No

2)Unleaded is going for 3.75-4.00 a gallon. Most cars get around 25/city and 30/freeway.

3) Flight prices always change. www.kayak.com is a good website that checks discount travel sites as well as direct airline sites.

Many thanks for the tips again!

James, yup, we know we are back tracking... but GC is a sight not to be missed :) we are wondering if we can drive across Sequoia & KC from Lone Pine -- gosh, seems like we gotta re-plan the route. Can you give me more details of your suggested route?

AimeeQ, thanks for your tip on rental car issues. Is the car insurance a must? We are checking with our travel insurance agent if he include it. Hmm, I juz confirmed my one-way air tix from LAX to LAS -- else would rent the car from LAX. Another thing, I will be the one driving as my hubby is not familiar with USA -- do we have to pay for a second driver fee?

USanFrancisco, yup, we plan to make a stop at Santa Barbara -- to go kayaking :)

Oh, the reason why we choose Sequoia & KC instead of Yosemite is because I had been to the latter many times during my stay in the bay area. If the access to Sequoia & KC is not convenient, then we will consider heading over to Yosemite.

Another question, for GC, south rim is more touristy. What abt North Rim? Or we should go for both?

There is no direct route over to KC from Lone Pine. You have to either go south and come over through Bakersfield and north to Fresno or go north to Hwy 120 through Yosemite and back south on Hwy 99.

North rim only has one lodge so book early.

You definitely want to have car insurance of some kind, particularly if you plan to drive on the California highways. I don't think you have to buy it from the rental agency though, and you can definitely pick and choose from their menu of available insurance coverage. Your travel insurance may provide some coverage, your credit card company may provide another piece of the coverage. The one thing to be sure of is that you are thoroughly covered for liability if someone else gets hurt and most definitely for damage to the car. Since they will drown you in legal speak, I recommend that you walk up to the rental counter knowing exactly what you have and what additional insurance, if any, you will need. You don't have to pay a second driver fee if your husband will not be driving at all. Bon voyage!