Road Tripping in the USA!

Does it matter much where I get my Alcatraz tickets from? I note that the "night" tours seem to offer more in the way of a tour?

Thanks
 
From SLO to SB you might want to take 101 from Santa Maria instead of the 1, its driving through farmland but isn't near the coast so the views aren't much different to what you get from the freeway , you might want to use the time saved by staying on 101 to visit Los Olivos which is a lovely winery town instead and then continue down 101. Up to you though, Streetview a couple stretches on the 1 vs the 101 and see what you think, both options have their merits.

May want to stop by Refugio and El Capitan State beaches and enjoy a bit of the Gaviota coast if its daytime, the entry fee is kinda steep $10 I think for a day pass to both beaches but the former especially is a textbook SoCal beach. The latter has a little cafe at El Capitan Canyon (northbound side of freeway) which is good to grab a coffee.

For your stop in SLO pop in to Apple Farm on the way out, good place to get a souvenir or two and good brekkie there too.
 
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Rich_L said:
From SLO to SB you might want to take 101 from Santa Maria instead of the 1, its driving through farmland but isn't near the coast so the views aren't much different to what you get from the freeway , you might want to use the time saved by staying on 101 to visit Los Olivos which is a lovely winery town instead and then continue down 101. Up to you though, Streetview a couple stretches on the 1 vs the 101 and see what you think, both options have their merits.

May want to stop by Refugio and El Capitan State beaches and enjoy a bit of the Gaviota coast if its daytime, the entry fee is kinda steep $10 I think for a day pass to both beaches but the former especially is a textbook SoCal beach. The latter has a little cafe at El Capitan Canyon (northbound side of freeway) which is good to grab a coffee.

For your stop in SLO pop in to Apple Farm on the way out, good place to get a souvenir or two and good brekkie there too.
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Thanks, I'll take the 101 instead of the 1 looking at it.

Driving should all be in the day so will check out those beaches.

I've noticed whilst planning that most of my long routes have popped up to warn about tolls - are these expensive and can I pay with card (or should I carry the cash)?

I'm also trying to find the bit of PCH that you need to pay to drive along as that was mentioned earlier in the thread as a must do!
 
I got a nice car to pick us up from JFK. One of the new S class mercs. Very impressive car.

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Peerzy said:
Less than a week until I fly now!

Think I've got everything sorted and just booking up a few bits and pieces (like a Vegas show).
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When I'm in LV in October I plan to see La Rêve at Wynn's.
I saw House of Dancing Water in Macau a few years ago so it'll be interesting to see how they compare.
 
Anyone fancy taking a quick look at our itinerary for our road trip in September? Not sure if it'll alter any advice but we're two guys in our late 20s so we're looking for a good balance between nice scenery for driving and good nightlife/plenty of activities. Any recommendations or suggestions welcome as we're free to move dates and destinations as we wish, other than the Grand Canyon and Las Vegas as I have a ticket for the Mayweather-Maidana fight. :p

We're planning on staying in downtown LA as per Rich_L's advice as we're not too bothered about the major tourist spots and apparently those areas are a bit of a hole.

Looking to stay in Santa Cruz after leaving San Francisco. Any thoughts on SC as I haven't seen much about it in the comments here?

Also looking at the route from SC to Santa Barbara, which is a 5hr 30min drive. Is it better to do this in one go or would it be better to stop over on the way? If so, any recommendations on where? Obviously we'll be wanting to stop and see the sights at Big Sur etc but are these places to stay or just have a wander around for a bit?

04/09 - Flight > Los Angeles (12.45 arrive)
05/09 - Los Angeles
06/09 - Los Angeles (Saturday)
07/09 - Los Angeles > San Diego (Sunday)
08/09 - San Diego
09/09 - San Diego > Palm Springs
10/09 - Palm Springs > Lake Havasu City
11/09 - Lake Havasu City > Grand Canyon NP
12/09 - Grand Canyon NP > Las Vegas
13/09 - Las Vegas (Saturday)
14/09 - Las Vegas (Sunday)
15/09 - Las Vegas > Yosemite NP
16/09 - Yosemite NP
17/09 - Yosemite NP > San Francisco
18/09 - San Francisco
19/09 - San Francisco
20/09 - San Francisco (Saturday)
21/09 - San Francisco > Santa Cruz (Sunday)
22/09 - Santa Cruz > ?
23/09 - ? > Santa Barbara
24/09 - Santa Barbara > Los Angeles
25/09 - Flight Home

Cheers.
 
Only thing you could possibly add is going from Lake Havasu City to the GC via Sedona and Flagstaff, it's very scenic around there.

We did LA to SF with only a 1 night stop in Cambria. We had plenty of time to get out a wander, we even went to Hurst Castle, however I would highly recommend 2 nights or 3 even if you want to spend a lot of time in the towns along the way. My trip was more about the road and scenery but if I was to do it again I would do 2/3 nights.
 
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Our road trip

Well we got back from our 3500 round trip yesterday, not relaxing trip but some wonderful memories. Highlights Shoshone point grand canyon, we had it to ourselves as there is no signs to it. Antelope canyon. Bryce canyon at dawn. Hail so bad at boulder mountain we had to stop on the road. Vegas. Yosemite. Earthquake and Alcatraz in san Francisco. Big Sur road. We had a dodge charger did not realise just how big they are until we parked next to a golf one day. Any questions just ask.






 
Nice Pics Peter. Anyone ever been to Glacier National park? I'm flying to LA on the 22nd and I have 2 weeks to drive to death valley, Vegas, Bryce Canyon, Yellowstone then Glacier Natl park. Would it be worth it?
 
shrek2 said:
Nice Pics Peter. Anyone ever been to Glacier National park? I'm flying to LA on the 22nd and I have 2 weeks to drive to death valley, Vegas, Bryce Canyon, Yellowstone then Glacier Natl park. Would it be worth it?
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I did it last year and it was absolutely stunning - my favorite National Park for sure.

However it's MILES from LA - if you've only got 2 weeks you really wont get that far up without rushing the trip and spending far too long in the car. I did it on a road trip from Seattle.
 
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