Road Trip - LA roundtrip?

Hi ... We are arriving in LA on Mar 2 and leave on Mar 12.

I've lived and travelled extensively in the States when I was much (much) younger and am now returning with my husband and 9 year old daughter. Our only fixed travel plan is a three day park hopper pass which we'll use on our last three days in LA.

Other than that I'd love to show them parts of California and Nevada that I've experienced and loved - but can't remember the travel times or best routes. I'm also cautious about exhausting them with too much time spent in the car so would welcome any advice/itineraries from this great forum of experienced road trippers !

We are stopping in Hawaii for over a week before we return home to Australia so I'm not worried about being busy doing/seeing things as we'll get to relax in Oahu.

Some of my favourite memories and places I'd be keen to revisit include:

Seeing the sea lions at Carmel (or was it Monterey?)
Death Valley
Hearst Castle
Alcatraz
Eating clam chowder from a sour dough "bowl" in San Francisco
Canoeing in the Grand Tetons National Park
The gorgeous US1 scenery
Yosemite
The craziness and bright lights of Las Vegas
The magnificence of the Grand Canyon

Any ideas - from suggested itineraries, places to stay, places to eat, experiences not to be missed - would be very welcome. I'm also not adverse to kindly suggestions to limit the busy-ness ! It's been nearly 20 years since I've been in the States so I'm really excited to be coming back to my second "home".

Thanks in advance road trippers :-)

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

With the time you've got available, Grand Teton kind of has to be throw out right off the top, as it is just too far away.

The rest depends a bit more on the specifics. Do I understand correctly that you will have 7 days available for the roadtrip (10 days total, minus 3 days at Disney)? Does your first day include an arrival on an international flight?

Based on what you want to see, a popular loop would be to go out to Grand Canyon, then back to Las Vegas, through Death Valley and onto Yosemite (via Bakersfield, as Tioga Pass will be closed during your trip), and onto San Francisco. From there, you could finish by heading back to LA via the coast (CA-1, not US-1).

Having said that, since it sounds like you've got a week or less, that would likely be too much. I'd probably say limit it to California, and go up to Yosemite to SF and back down the coast. But going out to the Grand Canyon and Vegas - perhaps also adding in a stop or two in Utah, like Zion National Park, could also make sense depending upon what you find most interesting.

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We are arriving in LA on Mar 2 and leave on Mar 12.

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It would appear that you have 7 days on the road. [?]

As Michael said, the Tetons is a definite no, no from the get go go ! I would also agree that if you want to explore SF and Alcatraz and Big Sur coastline then the Grand canyon and Las Vegas will make it a bit too rushed. An inland route north from LA to Sequoia and Yosemite before cutting across to SF and back down the coast [putting the ocean on your side of the road heading south] would probably be ideal given the available time you have.

Have you planned for the 3 Disney days to be the first three days after arrival? If not, then your driving days will effectively be reduced to six days. It is not wise to start driving the day you come off a long haul flight, across the Pacific. If you are arriving from Melbourne or Sydney, you will no doubt be arriving in the morning. Best spend that day sightseeing in LA. Go to bed at local bedtime, and start your driving next day.

Don't forget what happened to Peter Brock.

Lifey

Thank you so much for your suggestions and being the voice of caution. Your input is noted and much appreciated !!