RoadTrip from Phoenix to Vancouver via Las Vegas

[danzboop]

Hi. We are planning to go on a very long road trip in an RV from Phoenix then drop off my sister's kids in Las Vegas then enroute to Vancouver & definitely passing by Seattle. Can anyone suggest best route. We have to be in Vancouver b4 July 30 and first time for us to travel in a 42ft RV so any advices on best routes/ rv parkings / must-see places.. We do want to go 2 other places on our way back to Phoenix. Thanks in advance for your advices.

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

You don't say when you actually leave, or how much time you have for the return journey. A common theme here is that there are no 'best' routes or attractions, that will depend on what you are looking for as there are thousands of possibilities to choose from depending on your tastes and time availabiity. For example, you could go up through the Great Basin Ely and to Twin Falls and Boise on a direct route to Seattle, or head to Tonopah and Winnemucca and head towards Mt Hood and the Columbia river Gorge into Portland. With more time you could use 395 to Mono Lake and detour to Lake Tahoe before continuing through Reno, Lassen, Burney Falls, Crater Lake, Mt Hood, Colubia River Gorge and Seattle. You could use one route up and the other back, although you could consider many other options. Take a look around the site and open up a good map, once you have an idea of which way you are headed we can help fill in the blanks and answer any other questions.

[DonnaR57]

We have to be in Vancouver b4 July 30 and first time for us to travel in a 42ft RV so any advices on best routes/ rv parkings / must-see places.

First time with an RV: before you go anywhere, learn the basics of driving something with a lot of length that doesn't bend in the middle! Go to a parking lot that is completely empty - perhaps a church in the middle of the week, or a school, and practice making turns (left AND right), backing it up, pulling into a pull-through parking lot.

Truck stops will be your best friend, as they should always have a lane for long RV's. You didn't say whether it's gas or diesel. Bring a pair of binoculars for the passenger to use to find where the correct pumps are for your vehicle. Many Flying J, Pilot, and Love's stations have special lanes for RV's that have both gasoline and diesel. If you require food, those same 3 (and other truck stops) usually have a brand name fast food place (or 2 or 3) inside. You just park in the RV parking and go in. Some of them also have sit-down restaurants -- Flying J often has Denny's.

A book called THE NEXT EXIT is specially marked for what's at each exit on interstate highways, with the ones that have RV parking marked in RED print. My husband and I still carry that publication with us, as it allows us to find places way ahead of time, though we no longer require the RV in RED feature.

SWDave already pointed out that we don't do "Must Sees" here, because my MUST SEE may be your MUST PASS. He did point out many of the natural wonders of the areas you're passing through.

Here's some general planning advice: Decide how much of that time you want to spend on the road, and how much time you need to stay in one place and actually see something. In an RV, 450 miles in a day is a long day of driving.

Then, you need a map. A paper map, not the kind you see on a 5” screen (GPS or your phone) or a 15” screen (your computer). If you are planning a multi-state trip, a USA map, regional map, or a road atlas of the US will do for starters. Take a pencil, some sticky notes, or other way to mark up the map: what do you want to see? What looks interesting? After a few marks, you'll see a route starting to form.


Donna

[Lifemagician]

As already pointed out, you have an endless number of routes available to you, depending on your interest and the time available. No need to follow what 'someone else'. If you follow the advice above, and feel confident in the RV, any route is your oyster. You might like to follow the advice in this paragraph:

Start with maps. Not GPS, not software, not Google, but real honest-to-god paper maps that show you your entire route, that you can mark up (and erase), that you can stick pins in, and that show something about the land you'll be driving through. Those are your essential tool in any RoadTrip planning process. Start by marking all the places you know you want to visit. Then connect the dots. Then look for more places of interest and scenic routes along the lines connecting the dots. Repeat until you've got as many sites and roads as you think you want.

Have a safe trip.

Lifey