What advice are you looking for regarding rental cars?
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What advice are you looking for regarding rental cars?
As deals are constantly changing you just need to search for good deals and compare for the best quote making sure it includes everything such as the one way drop of fee, just the sdame as the hotels. A lot of the rental companies offer info on the different class of rental and how it will suit your needs.
My friends,
About CAR RENTALS, my doubts are related to which of the companies offer the best costs-benefits rate (Avis, Hertz, Alamo, other), which ones are reliable, as well as which ones give us a good assistance service, in case of engine problems or something like that.
Now that the itinerary is more or less steady (thanks to you who helped me a lot), a have to worry about the HOTELS.
I'll spend nights in the following places. One more time I would be glad to get suggestions from the experts! Something around US$100-150 (I'll try Motel 6 and other similar chains, which are cheaper - around US$60-70, I guess, but maybe there are some specific hotels in specific places which are worthwhile, and besides, I don't know if these chain hotels are all over.
- LA (somebody told me Santa Monica and Marina del Rey areas are good ones)
- San Simeon, CA
- San Francisco
- Yosemite
- Bishop (or someplace close to it)
- Death Valley
- Las Vegas
- Grand Canyon
- Monument Valley area
- Somewhere between Canyon de Chelly and Albuquerque
The thing about chains is that they are all going to be roughly the same, and in the end you usually get what you pay for. With rental cars in particular prices can vary dramatically, and while some companies like Enterprise and Budget forcus more on price, while Avis or Hertz focus a bit more on service, I've never found a big difference between any of the companies. You really just need to shop around for the deal that works best for your trip.
The same is true with hotels, where you'll get what you pay for and your amenities will usually be comparable with the price range of place that you are looking for. The other variable is going to be location, where you'll pay more to be in a specific spot, for example, you'll pay a lot more to stay at one of the places right on the rim of the Grand Canyon, a little less in the village right outside the park, or a lot less way out in Williams or Flagstaff. The same is true with Vegas, where your location on the strip, off the strip, or downtown plays a big roll in what you'll pay for your room. Having said that, you might try looking at a site like tripadvisor or one of the large booking sites (hotels.com, expedia, etc) which have a scale big enough to have reviews of the hundreds/thousands of motel options you'd have. This is a realtively small community, and there just isn't enough traffic to have first hand experience of more than a handful of motels.
San Simeon has a Motel 6, and it's about 70 bucks a night.
With Motel 6, I've found locations for $29.99-39.99 along the freeway outside of metro or touristy areas. Nearer small cities, the prices seem to more more in the $39.99-$54.99 range. But then I found one in San Francisco for $119.99. Just like buying a house, it's all about location, location, location.
San Francisco is notoriously high-priced for hotels. You would have to get someplace significantly outside of the downtown area to start getting price breaks. You might find that the time it takes to travel into the city is more of a hassle than the cost-savings is worth. So you might rather pay more when visiting SF and offset that cost with the savings you'll find along the road. When you check hotel prices in SF, ask if there are parking fees. This is common in SF and other more congested cities but you'll get free parking at most locations and in cities not as congested. So always ask so you don't get hit with a surprise.
I'm a fool for Disney so, when I'm in LA, I usually stay in Anaheim right by Disneyland. There are many reasonably priced hotels there for around $60/night, give or take a bit.
We found this motel to be clean and comfortable and good value during our stay in SF, and it has free parking. Situated on Lombard street and not far from the Mariner and Piers where you can pick up the trolley services. I have not stayed here but it is well placed for Yosemite and looked nice as we passed through. The town of Oakhurst would be worth checking for lodgings. In Death valley you are more restricted for lodgings, Panamint springs, Stovepipe Wells and Furnace creek are your main options.
Outside of Grand canyon on the way to MV there is the Cameron trading post and closer to MV you could check out the town of Kayenta and Gouldings lodge.
These are not recommendations as such, but popular choices for you to check out for yourself.
Hi people,
With your big help, now I think I have a feasible itinerary.
Some other doubts:
- LA to San Francisco (Pacific Coast Highway) - I'll leave LA on the afternoon of July 14th and intend to arrive in San Francisco about noon of the July 16th. So I have two nights. The second one will be spent at San Simeon. Where do you think it would be a nice place to spend the first night? Besides Hearst Castle and Big Sur, what can't be missed on PCH, considering the time I have to complete this part of the trip? Carmel? Solvang? Other place?
- National Parks (Yosemite, Death Valley and Grand Canyon): as you've warned me, I had to struggle to find accomodation... I wonder if it is also necessary to book in advance the entrance fees... What do you think? Can I just get there with the car and pay the entrance, or is it too risky?
- Hoover Dam: is it a detour from LV to G. Canyon or it's in the way to G. Canyon? Somebody cited something about security procedures which delay significantly the trip. Is it worthy the effort visiting the Dam (I guess so, but I would like to hear from you guys)? From LV to G. Canyon it's a 5 hour trip with or without visiting the Dam?
- I am worried about the logistics concerning the part of the trip that goes from the Grand Canyon to Monument Valley, and then to Canyon de Chelly. I am planning to leave the G. Canyon (South rim) on July 28th, visit Cameron Trading Post, head to M. Valley, visit there AND arrive at Canyon de Chelly ON THE SAME DAY (just to sleep, and visit the canyon in the following day). Is it possible, without rushing too much, considering the road and traffic conditions? If it is possible, at what time should I leave the G. Canyon?
Thanks again!
Rodrigo
1. How many hours do you want to drive that day? Exactly where in LA will you be leaving from, and approximately what time? Solvang may be a good place to spend the night - as would Santa Barbara. If you want to drive farther, there's Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo, or Morro Bay.
2. No need to book entrance to parks, in fact, you can't. They let everyone in as they arrive.
3. The dam is right on the direct route from LV to GC. You have to drive over it - unless you want to take the truck detour which is about 30 miles longer and doesn't go anywhere near the dam. LV to the South Rim entrance is 5 hours plus dam delays.
4. You are looking at about a 300 mile drive, which would take you 6 to 7 hours not counting your stops. There should not be any significant road or traffic delays, the speed limit for the majority of that route is 65 mph. You might want to consider spending the night in Kayenta instead if you feel too rushed, from there to CDC is about 2 hours.
1] Well as San Simeon is on your second night and then you will continue up to Monterey I guess your first night would be between Santa Barbara and Morro bay, depending on what time you get out of LA. Check out the State parks for the latest info on Julia Pfieffer, Lime kiln parks and others.
2] National parks. You can pay your fee at the entrance kiosk. Check the cost of your entrance fees to the parks you are visiting on the NPS website. If the total cost is more than $80 you can buy an annual pass from the first gate for that sum which then allows you entrance to all parks for a year [admission only].
3] Hoover dam is on the way to GC south rim. If it is busy there can be some delays, allow 5-6 hours to get into the GC plus any time at the Hoover dam looking around.
4] You could get to Canyon De Chelley the same day but it might feel a bit rushed, especially if you haven't already explored the viewpoints from Desert view drive. [The [64] on the way out to Cameron]. If you are not worried about an early start and late evening finish you could make it work in a fairly relaxed manner.