I am in the final stages of planning an August vacation out west. The trip is 10 days total flying into LA and out of Phoenix. I need to keep 4 kids entertained, ranging from 7-14 years old. I am an occassional business traveller to LA so I have a rough plan for that area, but tips always welcome.

The time table is:

Day 1 (Saturday) Land in LA. Do LA area until check out Tuesday AM.

Day 4 (Tuesday) Make our way east toward Grand Canyon. I have Wednesday and Thursday nights booked at a Canyon village hotel. What we do on Tuesday and Wednesday is still open. Is it worth diverting a bit and staying in Vegas Tuesday night? It looks like it adds about 1.5 hours of travel time, but then we could also see the Hoover Dam. The other plan was to head straight to the GC, but spend the night in the Barstow/Mojave area. Any suggestions? Is there a good way to explore the Mojave for a half day? No hotel lined up for either route yet.

Day5-7 At the Canyon. Any tips for exploring the Canyon? I have found a lot of info in early threads.

Day 7-Check out of hotel and start to head toward Phoenix via Sedona. I thought we would spend Friday night in Sedona and then on to Phoenix.

Day 8-10 We fly out from Phoenix on Tuesday morning.

I am wondering if I try to change my reservation at the Canyon up a night to give me two nights in Vegas?

Any other ideas or thoughts? Great forum by the way.

TB