Pre Las Vegas wedding road trip

Hi all,

We are staying in Las Vegas 8th-15th September 2018 as getting married on the 12th.

I am off work from the 5th so we are thinking about heading out and having a few days just us before the rest of our friends & family arrive.

We will be flying out from the UK.

We was originally planning to fly in to SF and drive to Vegas but we are now thinking it may be better suited to fly in to LA so we can see more sights along the way over the few days due to the shorter distance.

The only thing that is set in stone is that I want to attend a few motocross tracks between LA and Las Vegas (Pala Raceway, Glen Helen, Lake Elsinore).

Possibly drive to the Grand Canyon too but not 100% as its not really on route so may get a helicopter tour when we are in Vegas.

So from that info does anyone have any ideas to throw our way? Anything you think just won't be possible in our time frame? Best routes to take?

Part of the experience is the drive so not to fussed about trying to cram lots in.

We haven't done anything like this before so any advice is greatly received.

Thanks in advance 🙂

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

Just so I understand correctly, you're arriving in the US on the 5th, and are due to arrive in Vegas on the 8th? So basically, you have a little over 2 days to explore? (The 5th would be a travel day where you should plan to spend the night near the airport where you arrive, the 6th, 7th, and part of the 8th, depending upon how late you're willing to arrive in Vegas?)

I don't know anything about the tracks you've mentioned, but are you just hoping to stop and see the tracks or are you hoping to actually see a race?

The Grand Canyon certainly is a detour you should consider - most helicopter tours from Vegas only go to the West Rim, which isn't nearly as spectacular as the actual National Park. Note, however, if you go to the National Park, it will take up pretty much all of your time. It's a full day drive from LA and a half day drive back to Vegas.

If you flew into San Francisco, the classic trip would be to go to Yosemite, over Tioga Pass, and through Death Valley into Vegas. You'd have enough time to do that, but again, that would pretty much all you would have time for.

It's a long flight to LA and then you have to adjust the body clock to 'local' time so I would recommend you pick up your rental and stay overnight in the Venice beach area and take your time in the morning to have a stroll along the beach, (perhaps visit Santa Monica Pier) and let your body and mind relax before hitting the road. If visiting tracks is set in stone then that's what you should do but as Michael said, any Heli tours from LV usually go the West rim which is not like the 'real thing' made famous through photography and film, so I would take the National parks south rim over a man made track any day.

You might find this link handy in finding some decent days out from Vegas. If arriving in Vegas a couple of days later is an option, it's one I would consider so you can explore a little more.

Thanks for the quick replies. This is a great forum ��

We are booked to be in Vegas with our friends and family from the 8th-15th so that's pretty set in stone.
We were planning to arrive in LA at around 14.30 on the 5th.

Ive attached a couple of screenshots from an app I'm currently using to get a brief idea of our trip.

5th:
Land around 14.30
Collect rental car
Walk along Rodeo Drive
Hollywood walk of fame
Hollywood sign from a viewing point
Nice restaurant for an evening meal
Stay overnight in the Venice Beach area

6th:
Head to Santa Monica Pier
Start making our way down the coast
Stay overnight somewhere on the coast

7th:
Start making our way back inland
Visit a motocross track or 2
Stay overnight somewhere along route

8th:
Final leg to Las Vegas strip
Maybe visit a motocross track on route

That's a VERY brief itinerary I have put together so far.

If anyone can recommend places to stay in LA and along this route that would be great.
Also if there are any locations I should stop at on route for photo opportunities etc please let me know ��

I know we are trying to get a lot done in just a few days but wanted to make the most of them while we are here ��

It's good to research and have an idea of your options but be prepared to let things take a different course if it's for the best. I mainly refer to your arrival day. If there are no delays it will likely be gone 4pm by the time you are putting your gear in the rental car, you would have been travelling for some 15 hours or more (with check in/out) and your body clocks will be out of whack. Then you are going to try to navigate your way through a heavily trafficked area as it's approaching rush hour. I know you want to cram a lot in, I feel the same when visiting from the UK, but from experience, settling down and relaxing a bit in the evening and getting an early(ish) night sets you up nicely for the start of your adventure the following morning. Sure we stroll around, have a drink and find something eat, but take it easy even though the excitement is keeping you going and masking the fatigue.

I had to removed the screenshots you added - they were too small to read, and they were in a format that is frequently used by spammers which means the forum software was kicking your post into moderation. (Edit: That also applies to your second attempt to add them, they just don't work in the format you're using.)

What you've listed certainly is going to be relatively easy to achieve, but I would caution you about a few things.

You're really pushing yourself on the day you arrive. Sure, you're getting into LA at 14:30, but keep in mind, your body is going to think that it is 22:30 UK Time, you will have already been traveling for at least 14 hours or so at that point (assuming a best case of a direct flight and short travel to the airport), and on top of it all, by the time you collect your bags and rental car it's going to well into LA's notorious rush hour traffic. I would dial back your plans for the 5th significantly.

I would also warn that "driving along the coast" through the LA area isn't exactly a scenic drive. Generally speaking, you're talking about traveling on surface streets, with stoplights every block or two, with houses and condo developments blocking any view of the actual ocean. I'm not sure exactly what you were hoping to see, but I'm guessing that's not it.

Having said that, from LA to Vegas you're generally only looking at 5 hours of driving (depending upon where in the Greater LA area, and how much traffic you see) so with 2 full days just dedicated to LA, you should have no problem fitting in the things you've listed as your priorities.

You are warned now: LA to Las Vegas on a Friday is going to be a longer trip than you think. The earlier a start you can get, the better. The reason? A lot of LA folks *love* to spend the weekend in LV, so it leads to a lot of vehicular traffic, and the road on the California side (I-15) isn't really up to that kind of traffic. So it can be very congested. The one thing you have going for you, is that it isn't the start of a three-day weekend! Expect it to take 6 hours.


Donna