Las Vegas to San Fran in 7 days

[Vegas to San Fran]

Hi,

My girlfriend and I will be flying into Vegas and spending 2 days there before setting out to go to San Francisco via a few nice places.

We will be leaving Las Vegas on the morning of the 3rd of June and arriving in San Francisco on the afternoon of the 9th.

We want to go to somewhere in and arounds Death Valley for the first night, then drive to Yosemite and stay there for a couple of nights, and finally a couple of nights making our way to San Francisco maybe via Monterey/Santa Cruz.

We do have a few questions that we hope people on here might be able to answer for us:

1. On the first day to Death Valley, what is the best route to get there, where is best to stay and if we only have a day and a half, what is best to see?

2. On our way from Death Valley to Yosemite, is there anywhere we should stay for a night on the Death Valley side of Yosemite?

3. Should we stay 2 nights in the same place in Yosemite or best to stay second night on San Fran side?

4. When leaving Yosemite, where is best to go near the coast and what route do we take to get there?

5. During all of this, do we need to book accommodation an advance or should we just wing it (not sure if early June is peak)?

Would really appreciate your help with this as want it to be a trip to remember.

Cheers

[Mark Sedenquist]

My girlfriend and I will be flying into Vegas and spending 2 days there before setting out to go to San Francisco via a few nice places.

Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum! There are ample nice places between Las Vegas and San Francisco. First problem with your plan is that Tioga Pass (between Owens Valley and Yosemite is still closed due to the heavy snowpack). You can not reach Yosemite Valley from the east side of the Sierra Nevada mountains at the moment. There are hundreds of posts describing places to stop between these two places on this Forum. Happy Planning!

Mark

[Mark Sedenquist]

1. On the first day to Death Valley, what is the best route to get there, where is best to stay and if we only have a day and a half, what is best to see?

I-15 to SR-160 to Pahrump and then SR-372 (which becomes CA SR-178) into Shoshone (quirky museum in Shoshone) and then follow SR-178 over Jubliee Pass in to Death Valley -- stopping at Bad Water and then on up to Furnace Creek. Here are some ideas about places to see in DV, (read the entire thread).

2. On our way from Death Valley to Yosemite, is there anywhere we should stay for a night on the Death Valley side of Yosemite?

If Tioga Pass were open (which it is not) I really like staying at either Bishop or Mammoth Lakes. But you have some decisions to make about which route you are going to use to get over the mountains.

3. Should we stay 2 nights in the same place in Yosemite or best to stay second night on San Fran side?

If you can spend two nights in Yosemite -- Do it!

4. When leaving Yosemite, where is best to go near the coast and what route do we take to get there?

If you have the time, take SR-41 to the coast and drive the incomparable Big Sur.

5. During all of this, do we need to book accommodation an advance or should we just wing it (not sure if early June is peak)?

For the most part, you should be fine without advance reservations this early in the summer.

Be sure to look at the bottom of this page for other ideas!

Mark