Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

First off, your first driving day is simply not going to work. Think about what you're expecting: drive through the heart of the Bay Area in morning rush hour, then drive over 450 miles of mostly two lane road through the mountains, and visit two major National Parks. That's just plain too much, especially with 5 people.

On the other hand, it doesn't take 3 days (8-11) to 'set off to Anaheim'. You can drive from the Canyon (or better yet, Williams just to the south of it) to Los Angeles in a day, leaving you two days to visit the mouse and his cohorts.

Unfortunately, there are no good 'coastal drives' in the L.A. area. It's simply too built up. Santa Monica Pier and the Fun Zone in Newport Beach are entertaining destinations, but fighting your way through traffic to Nicholas Canyon County Beach or Point Mugu State Park probably is not going to be worth it.

Otherwise, your plan is fine. I wouldn't try to add Death Valley, but the Mojave National Preserve is on your way, both to and from Las Vegas, and 5 plane tickets (plus luggage fees) and an extra one-way drop off fee are not going to be worth the hour or two (tops) you'd save by flying from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Remember that flying would entail driving back to Las Vegas from the Canyon, crossing Hoover Dam and the attendant delays, dropping off the rental car, checking in, going through airport security again, getting another car in L.A., and fighting some of the worst traffic in the world from LAX to Anaheim.

AZBuck