Ideas for Southwest US roadtrip

I'm from Ireland and I'm going for a 2 week driving vacation to America at the end of May. Myself and my girlfriend are flying to LA and renting a car from there. Our route will be something like this:

LA - Palm Springs - Phoenix - Grand Canyon - Las Vegas - Death Valley - Yosemite - San Francisco - Monterey - Santa Barbara - LA

I was wondering if any of you (being mostly American) have any ideas of particular places to see, things to do, places to stay etc, along this general route, that maybe I haven't thought of?

I can't wait for my trip and want to make sure that I make the most of it.

Thanks!!

Not sure if you're interested in aquatic life at all, but if so I've heard great things about the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and since you'll be in Monterey California why not?

Here's a link:
http://www.mbayaq.org/aa/

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Originally Posted by jphealy

I'm from Ireland and I'm going for a 2 week driving vacation to America at the end of May. Myself and my girlfriend are flying to LA and renting a car from there. Our route will be something like this:

LA - Palm Springs - Phoenix - Grand Canyon - Las Vegas - Death Valley - Yosemite - San Francisco - Monterey - Santa Barbara - LA

I was wondering if any of you (being mostly American) have any ideas of particular places to see, things to do, places to stay etc, along this general route, that maybe I haven't thought of?

I can't wait for my trip and want to make sure that I make the most of it.

Thanks!!

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San Fransisco has a tour of the San Quentin prison. Very famous prison that's a tourist attraction. In L.A. you can check out some of the museums like the Gene Autry museum or go to some of the theme parks like Magic Mountain or Disneyland. Vegas, theres everything to do there. as for Death Valley, uh ... bring water, and drive at night. Even though that wont much of a difference since it's so dang hot!

If my memory serves me correctly, Judy and Sheree are from Phoenix - they should be able to suggest some good tourist attractions there!

If your going up by the grand canyon you can always stop along the way at the meteor crater.

http://www.americansouthwest.net/ari...ter/index.html

I grew up in Az. The Grand Canyon is nice, but Sedona is really awesome, here is a link for ya: http://www.arizona-bed-breakfast.com...lanner-11.html . Also, going that way up north, there is this great town in the mountains, called Jerome, http://www.azjerome.com/ . They have sweet little bed and breakfast joints, antique stores, and all kinds of nifty things there. Although dont be frightened, Jerome is a place where all the bikers in the area tend to hang, so you would get to see some awesome Harley Davidsons and such sitting outside of the bars and stores. There are also the Indian Ruins called Whitehouse Ruin in Canyon De Chelly that I spent all kinds of time at as a kid/young adult at, great photo ops there : http://www.arizona-bed-breakfast.com...lanner-14.html . On your way up North, you could stop in Verde Valley also http://www.go-arizona.com/Verde-Vall..._campaign=city , nice place. I will have to think about more places I frequented as a kid/young adult in Arizona. I was all over that state. Heck, I lived in a small place way down south, toward Judy, called Bisbee, Arizona (Bisbee is home of several very important mines).. which coincidently, was about a 20 minutes drive to Tombstone, Arizona...one of my favorite places. Ohhhh, I could give you a HUGE list of things to see and places to go, but I would have you alllll over that dang state. I miss Az so much, it was my childhood home.

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Originally Posted by Vomitore

San Fransisco has a tour of the San Quentin prison. Very famous prison that's a tourist attraction. In L.A. you can check out some of the museums like the Gene Autry museum or go to some of the theme parks like Magic Mountain or Disneyland. Vegas, theres everything to do there. as for Death Valley, uh ... bring water, and drive at night. Even though that wont much of a difference since it's so dang hot!

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Yeah..what about those tar pits? They still open? Use to be you could actually see dinosaur bones if you stood there long enough, heck, I cant even remember exactly where they are...Labraia (sp) Tar Pits??? At one time they even had a thing you could walk down into and look into the tar pits under the ground.... now that was yrs ago, so I am not even sure what the deal is with those. Whats the story on Redondo Pier? Use to be one of my fav~ places there, loved the egg rolls you could get out toward the end... mind you, this was before it was wrecked. Weren't they suppose to rebuild it?

Not only did I grow up in Az, but I spent ALOT of time in CA also. My Mom would get a bug and load us up to take us to Grandma's.

I'm down in Tucson, which is about 100 miles south of Phoenix. So that might be a little bit out of your way. But if you wanted to jog down this way, I'll tell you my absolute favorite place is the Sonoran Desert Museum. There is simply no place like it in the whole world! And to get to it from I-10, you drive over the Tucson Mountains through Gate's Pass...which takes you right through a vast saguaro forest that is breathtaking.


Well worth the side trip, in my opinion!

Sounds like a great trip! A few suggestions starting with Las Vegas... Valley of Fire National Park and the Hoover Dam tour are both great stops. If you're into hiking, you can hike in to the Arizona Hot Springs which is along the Colorado river about 4.5 miles from the Hoover Dam. I'm sure you're going up the main route in Death Valley, so try and stop at most of the stops on the map such as the Painted desert and Badwater. On your way across the valley and out of the park, stop at the Dunes and hike in. Great views and great herping!

Going up Owens Valley from Death Valley, you might want to stop at Convict lake. It's not too far off the road by Mono lake, and it's a gorgeous alpine lake. That side of the Sierras is pretty nice being that the elevation changes so drastically. Keep an eye out for Mt. Whitney. Oh, and if you are there around sunset, the Owens Valley has some of the BEST sunsets you could find.

If you have the time, take Hwy 1 from San Francisco to Monterey. The scenery is nice, especially around Half Moon Bay. The trip on Hwy 1 from Monterey to Santa Barbara is much better, so if you're running low on time, go with the second option. The Monterey Bay Aquarium is nice (my wife and son just went yesterday). They have a lot of great exhibits, although most if it is geared towards local fish life so you won't see a lot of exotic tropical fish. The Jelly exhibit is incredible as is the Outer Bay. I was fortunate enough to see the Great White when it was here. Incredible! Anyway, if you are going to the aquarium, try to go on a weekday as weekends tend to be pretty packed. While in Monterey, you can also do 17-mile drive in Pebble Beach. Very nice jaunt, and you might be able to see the sea lions nursing their pups.

If you go down Hwy 1, stop at Big Sur. They have great hikes, a waterfall by the ocean, but watch out for the poison oak. :bolt:

Have a great time and take lots of pictures!!

Such great replies! Thanks so much everyone for all your ideas - and keep them coming!

I'm definitely going to see Sedona. It looks amazing there. Monterey Bay aquarium is high on my list too. I'm really looking forward to that drive along Hwy 1 south from San Francisco. It would be awesome to find some cool herps among the dunes in Death Valley. Are these the sand dunes at Stovepipe Wells?

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Originally Posted by jphealy

Are these the sand dunes at Stovepipe Wells?

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Yep, right before Stovepipe Wells. You can't miss them, they're HUGE! If you're feeling adventurous you can drive through Titus Canyon north of the the Dunes. It's a one way dirt road that winds through the narrow canyon and there are places you can stop if you want to explore some old, abandoned mines. Fun stuff! :carrot:

Having had several friends from England come over and do the exact loop you are talking about twice now, remember it's much BIGGER here and it's longer than you think...

Some tips:
- Death Valley is hotter than hell when it's not cold. Don't turn your car off even when parking to look at stuff, unless you are parking for the night. Totally trippy place tho - I highly recommend it. Closest you can get to feel like you're walking on the moon.

- If you're going to drive through Tioga Pass to get into or from Yosemite, be sure you check if it's open before you get here or you will have a VERY LONG trip around. California is all about north-south highways; not a lot of east-west passages and Yosemite straddles a rather large mountain that is still slathered in snow in May. From the Yosemite website: " -Tioga Pass entrance on Highway 120 from Lee Vining and Highway 395. The Tioga Pass entrance is closed from the first major snowstorm in November until late May to early June due to snow. All other park entrances are kept open all year, but may require tire chains because of snow any time between November and April."

My last trip with the "lads from England" included going through Death Valley, where it was 110 F at 10pm, to camping at Tuolomne Meadows in Yosemite (at like 10k') where the temperature reached 45 F as the highest temp of the day during the month of August. =)

By the way, Palm Springs is pretty boring (it's 20 minutes from where I live); it's mostly a retirement community. I think the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is kinda cool, but a niftier place that's nearby is Joshua Tree National Park, the only place on earth where Joshua Trees are.

So, my advice for a detour would be arrive at LAX, take 105 to the 60. Follow the 60 until it merges with the 10 just west of Palm Springs. Stop off in Palm Springs, hit the Tramway if you like, drive through town. Oh, for a giggle, you can hit the Palm Desert Marriot - seeing the lobby, taking the "boat tour" (some rooms you can access by boat) from the lobby and seeing the valet parking lot full of Lambos, Ferraris, Bentleys, what-have-you is pretty wild.

After hitting Palm Springs (or not) head back to the 10, then take the 62 north so as to enter Joshua Tree from the north side (enter at the town of Joshua Tree). You can drive through JT (do make sure you go to the look-out; it's awesome) and exit back on the 10 east of Palm Springs, then scamper to PHX.

If they're doing business, the little markets right on the CA/AZ border are kinda fun. I bought a really nice pawn turquoise bracelet there once.

I'll leave recommendations for AZ to the AZ people. =)

If you are still hell bent on the West Coast, do be sure to take Highway 1 - taking interstate 5 down the middle of California makes the trip pointless. My highest recommendation on your entire trip? Stay overnight in San Luis Obisbo at the Madonna Inn. I've been there once and I still can't believe the place is real. It looks like it belongs in a LIFE magazine advertisement, circa 1964. It's real and it's wild. Great restaurant - and the hot wings, they are not kidding, they have the hottest wings I've ever tasted in my life!

Oh, I skipped San Francisco. There are plenty of touristy recommendations to be found, but I'll give you a locals restaurant recommendation: Swan Oyster Depot on Polk St. and California (various google searches will find it for you). Itty bitty hole in the wall fish counter and lunch spot run by burly California surfer/fisherman; get there EARLY and have crab, prawns, whatever salad or sandwich, lots of fresh sourdough bread and a pint of the San Francisco local brew, Anchor Steam (which tastes nasty anywhere but here). And don't call it "San Fran" or "Frisco" - the locals *hate* that. It's "San Francisco". =)

LA to me is pretty boring; it's not really a city, but just one sprawling suberb connected to another. Hollywood is not the glamour you've heard about - it's just another dirty city with history. "Doing" LA in my mind can take an afternoon (unless you want to include museums - my recommendation: The Getty). Walk the Walk of Fame, get your picture, 5 minutes done! Wanna see the freaks? Hit Venice Beach for sure. Need a cheap, funky and great place to eat with some real LA/Hollywood history? Without a doubt, Canter's Deli. Had my first date there with my fiance. =)

But really, my best recommendation to make sure you want to drive that much in two weeks - because it really is a LOT of miles. =)

Lemme know if you want more info!

The LaBrea tar pits are on the same property as the Los Angeles Museum of Art (or LACMA to us locals, which sounds like some sort of breast feeding product to me...=P). Anywho, as far as I know, there isn't any under ground viewing thingy anymore - just the bubbling pit.

The LACMA is okay - personally if I had one LA museum to pick, I'd pick the Getty more for the architecture, but it's conveniently located right near Canter's Deli, soooo you could much down on a pastrami sammich and matza ball soup, then stroll over and see the bubbling tar pits (which look like a dirty oil lake upon which you see a occ. bubble). =)

/agree with Judy on the Sonoran Desert Museum!
I've been there several times with my Aunt and Uncle, so neat...although, it would be WAAAY out of your way, especially when I think you need to be cutting back miles for a two week trip. =)

Joshua Tree is definitely something to see and worth the trip. Bring water, I was there at the end of May a few years back and it was 100F there already.


In San Jose there is the Winchester Mystery house, build by the widow of the man who founded the rifle and ammunition company. It's a little touristy, but I thought it was kind of interesting. I was in San Francisco back in 1981 I think, and I took the Alcatraz tour, it was interesting too. Yosemite is beautiful too. Muir woods outside of San Francisco is also worth seeing, as is Sequoia National park. Both have enormous redwood trees.

Thanks Cassandra! That's a lot to take in. We are pretty prepared for the driving. We've done similar trips before. The reason we're stopping at Palm Springs is that my girlfriend's great uncle was a priest who emmrigated to the US and he built a church in Palm Springs. She's never been over there so we thought we'd check it out. We're kinda using it as our starting point too - gonna get straight out of LA once we pick up our car, but don't wanna drive too far straight after the flight. We might spend half a day checking out a couple of places in LA at the end of the trip. It's not somewhere we're planning on spending much time in though.

I think we will go through Joshua the way you said. Sounds like it's worth seeing. I'm aware Tioga Pass might not be open by the time we arrive there. We plan to enter by Tioga and exit on the west side. If it's not open it'll definitely mess us up a bit! We'll be arriving there around the 3rd of June. I better come up with a back-up route if it starts to look like it'll still be closed by then.

Good tip with the Palm Desert Marriot! I'm really into cars, so that should be sweet. I think maybe my girlfriend might get a bit impatient watching me drool in the parking lot though!

Anyway, thanks again everyone for all your tips and ideas! I'm getting more excited by the minute.

Stopping in that Marriott just to see the lobby and have a cocktail is worth it because it's pretty trippy...it's the kind of hotel you'd expect to be in Palm Springs. =)

So yeah, LAX -> 105 -> 60 -> 10* will get you to Palm Springs in the straightest shot possible while avoiding the worst of the bad traffic (minus the interchange in Riverside, but just keep on truckin').

*Californians refer to all freeways and highways just by their number, usually "the 10", "the 60", etc. hehe. =)

Also, if you decide to go directly from Palm Springs to say Vegas (as opposed to continuing on the 10 to Phoenix and then up to Sedona/Grand Canyon that way), continue north around Joshua Tree and through the town of Twentynine Palms and then through the desert. It's an empty 2 lane highway that goes through some amazing desert vistas and sand dunes and past some interesting places, like Kelso (a ghost town with an amazing defunct train station), and will pop you out on the 15 right by Baker, which has the world's largest thermometer! Also, there's a restaurant in Baker that has the world's best fresh strawberry milkshakes, hehe. Be careful about speeding on the 15 - it's the main thoroughfare between LA and Vegas, so it's heavily patrolled by police (NOT THAT I WOULD KNOW THIS, oh no, not me). ;)

P.S.
Of course you gotta go to JTree while listening to "Joshua Tree" - but then you knew this already, right? =D

i was gonna say Joshua Tree too. definitely look for chuckwallas while you're there if you go. when you're in San Fran you have to go to pier 39 no matter what you do. it has some awesome shops, restaurants, etc. BTW, if you have the time/money GO TO MAGIC MOUNTAIN in valencia california. they have some awesome coasters!!

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Originally Posted by cassandra

*Californians refer to all freeways and highways just by their number, usually "the 10", "the 60", etc. hehe. =)

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That must be a Southern California thing. I guess we're just lazy up north. We don't even use the "The". "Take 101 to 680 to 80..."

Tangent... remember the '80s band The The? :P