Tips for student roadtrip in the West?

Hi!

we are four 23-old students who want to experience an unforgettable road trip in the West of the USA in July! I already have traveled in the east coast previous year.

I have some crucial questions which I would be thankful if you experts would be able to give me some good advice. Here is some key information:

WHO? young adults in need of ADVENTURE (a nice mix of big city life & nature)
WHAT & WHEN? roadtrip in July (probably 3 weeks)
WHERE? LA - Las Vegas - San Francisco + some NP along the way (including Grand Canyon)


1) CAR OR RV?
We don't want to be stuck with a car or RV in the big cities because there it is not necessary. That's why I came up with this plan:

*ARRIVAL LOS ANGELES
* FEW DAYS L.A.
* GETTING TO LAS VEGAS //car or plane
* FEW DAYS LAS VEGAS
* RENTING RV IN LAS VEGAS //as the road from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon & in the end to San Fr is quiet a lot of nature, I think it is wise to rent an RV. That will be more adventurous and as we are 4 people, it could be cost efficient in comparison with renting a car & finding a place to sleep. Also, we would like to have as much freedom as possible. Agree?
* VISITING SOME NP'S
* ARRIVAL SAN FRANCISCO //here we would give our RV back and stay in SanFr for a few days.
* RENT AN SUV FROM SanFr to L.A. //sleeping in motels along the way?
* LA flight to home

Good plan or not? Any great tips for students in search of adventure???


THANK YOU! :)

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

The problem with keep renting different vehicles and part flying would be the extra costs with one way drop off fee's and tickets. I think you would be better off choosing your transport of choice and sticking with it.

I agree that the City's are not RV friendly, apart from Vegas that has some RV parks on, and close to the Strip. I also think that it could be cost effective with 4 of you if you want to spend time in the National parks, where lodgings can be quite expensive.

Whether you choose a car, RV or both you will be facing some surcharges for each named driver under 25 years of age.

You will find lots of info throughout the forums on routes and ideas, but here's a few of our favorites to get you started.

Do a little research and get back to us as and when you have other questions.