Denver - LA - a Finn needs help :)
Hey guys!
Iīm a 22 year old girl from Finland, and I have always dreamed of visiting USA.
Well, seems like the dream of an American road trip is finally coming true. This is the road trip plan that me and my family have come up with. Please comment and share your thoughts and opinions.. if we are missing something important, if we are choosing a bad route.. Iīd appreciate any help we can get. If you have any great motel tips, please let me know!
This is a summer 2009 trip which we will do in June.
We will begin our trip in Denver, Colorado. Instead of taking the Interstate 70 we are choosing the smaller road through places like Jefferson, Fairplay.. we will probably spend the night on a motel we found in Poncha Springs (pictures looks great on internet). Then we continue all the way through Gunnison and Montrose to the town of Telluride which is very interesting for us since people we know emigrated there.
After Telluride we take the San Juan Skyway through Ouray, Silverton and Durango. Then we head west (Hwy 160) towards Utah and Monument Valley, passing through Cortez. After Monument Valley we head southwest to Tuba City. After the town of Cameron we turn to west once again and head for the East Rim of the Grand Canyon NP.
[Between Telluride and Grand Canyon I have no idea when or where we should spend the night!]
After Grand Canyon we hit the Route 66 and we are also thinking about taking the original mother road through Peach Springs, AZ. Then we head back to the Interstate and drive all the way up to Vegas where we spend one night. I NEED MOTEL TIPS HERE! Thereīs simply too many motels to choose between in Vegas. I need a budget one but it should be clean and nice and a pool wouldnīt be too bad.
We end our trip in Los Angeles and we spend the following two weeks in CA.
For this Denver - LA trip we have 7 days! Is this doable?
Iīd appreciate any help we can get!
Thanks!
// T
Yes, the road should be the destination!
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ellinorah
Where in Poncha Springs are you staying?
Re: We are considering the Poncha Lodge http://www.ponchalodge.com/
Looks nice & the rates are good, too.
It looks nice. Hopefully someone will pop in with experience there. I usually find the reviews at TripAdvisor interesting to read. If that lodge has been reviewed there, it will at least give you some idea of what to expect.
Quote:
You might consider stopping for the night in Cortez. Although I'm not sure if this will be too early in the day to stop for the night.
Re: No, I think Cortez will be OK since we really want to enjoy the Skyway and stop for a while in Silverton.
Cortez will probably work fine then.
Quote:
You might want to drive onto Mexican Hat. If you don't stop at Mesa Verde, you could probably get to Kayenta or Tuba City before you need to stop for the night. Hmmmm....total miles isn't the issue. We're only talking 440 miles from Telluride to Grand Canyon, the issue is the stops you might make that makes this hard to figure out. What all are you planning on doing? How early do you think you'll hit the road and how long into the evening are you willing to travel?
Re: Well for us the road is the destination really, so we donīt want to rush it. We really want to enjoy the beauty of Monument Valley and of course the sunset would be the best part, but I think we need to reach Grand Canyon, or at least Tuba City before dark. We donīt really want to travel after dark, so I think 7 p.m. is the latest we are willing to travel.
I wouldn't go all the way to the Grand Canyon because the route along there is filled with fantastic viewpoints of the Grand Canyon. Why backtrack the next day? I think gommy's recommendation might work out great for you. I can't vouch for the accomodations but the location is good. Go to bed early and get up before dawn so you can drive to the Grand Canyon to see sunrise. You'll need about 40 minutes to get from Cameron to Desert View Lookout Point, the first one you'll come to on the eastern edge of the park.
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What price range do you need to stay at? (Vegas) That might help us figure out the best choice in your price range.
Re: 100 $ for 2 ppl is the maximum!
Well, you can't do better than visiting Living Las Vegas to find out about what there is to see and do there. You can follow various links there to find out about hotel prices. At one of the links there, I found a room at the Golden Nugget (4-star rating; 5 stars is the highest) for $75 a night. This was for a room in mid-June 08. It's hard to know how prices might change in 2009. But I think you'll find plenty of worthy choices when it comes time to book this trip.
Well, hope this helps. Keep planning and asking questions and we'll help you as much as we can.
My What a Big List You Have!
1) $60-70 is a relatively standard rate for a relatively standard room in a non-resort area. You should occasionally find rooms for less although the quality may not be as good, and will sometimes have to pay more in areas and at times when there a lot of tourists.
2) I usually book mine several weeks in advance if I know when and where I'll be, but unless you're in a popular area (as above) you can usually find a vacant room on the fly without too much trouble.
3) If you really know the dates you'll be there, do some on-line shopping ahead of time and lock in any particularly good rate you find. If you find something better at a later date, you can almost always cancel a reservation with 24-48 hours notice. Check the cancellation policy whenever you book a room. But Santa Barbara in June is one of those places/times when things might get booked up.
4) Rooms can be booked by phone, either to the motel chain's headquarters or to the desk at the actual motel. I prefer the later, and get the full name of the person making the reservation as well as the confirmation number. You can also usually book on line, again get the confirmation #. Most hotels taking on-line bookings will send you an e-mail confirmation. Print it out and bring it with you.
5) You will be asked to present a credit card number when making the reservation, but should not be charged until you actually stay. There is no need to pay beforehand.
6) Visa Electron is not used or recognized in the United States. If you can get or already have a standard Visa or MasterCard credit card, that is what you want. One or the other is practically de rigueur for travel in North America.
7) 8) 9) Other than giving you generic, cheesy warnings such as "avoid South L.A." the best advice is to follow your instincts. If you get into an area that makes you feel uncomfortable, just drive on the mains streets until you are in a better neighborhood. If you are worried about booking a motel in an undesirable neighborhood, use Google Earth to take a virtual walk down the streets around your prospective hotel and decide accordingly.
10) There will be "Rest Areas" about every 25-50 miles on the major Interstate Highways, but as a rule there are not a lot of public restrooms in America. However, for a nominal purchase, say a cup of coffee, you can use the restrooms in the practically ubiquitous fast food restaurants such as McDonalds, Burger King and the like. Also restrooms in public buildings such as libraries, town halls, etc are available as are those in many public parks.
11) As noted above, most motels allow cancellation up to 24 hours in advance.
12) No idea.
13) ATM's are everywhere and support most of the major international banking networks such as Interlink, Plus, Star, and the like.
14) A Continental Breakfast is basically just juice, coffee and breads such as buns or bagels. Some may include cereal and fruit but none will include eggs or breakfast meats unless they specifically say so.
15) Complimentary means free - included in the cost of your room.
16) In my neck of the desert, yes. But I have never gotten close to one without it making its presence known well before I was close enough for it to strike. They don't want to bother with you any more than you want to bother with them. Still, keep an eye out and if you are camping in the desert, be sure to check all items of clothing, including your sleeping bag, before putting them on or getting in.
AZBuck
