L.A to see Grand Canyon, LV, Bryce & Zion Canyon + a few more!

[treecat]

Hi everyone. I am planning a trip for mid September and am starting in Los Angeles. I would like to visit Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Bryce Canyon, Zion, Lake Havasu, Hoover Dam, the Sequoia National park & Havasu Falls. We will have 7 full days to explore everything!
I just want to know if this is feasible to do, and what the best/quickest route would be. I am confused about which routes to take, since there are so many... but a route that is a straight shot (or close to it) is what we're looking for.

Any tips will be appreciated. If you can add anything along the way that we should not miss, please feel free to add. Thanks!

[glc]

Welcome!

7 days is not enough to see all those attractions. You will have to remove Havasu Falls and Sequoia to even have a chance. Havasu Falls is a 10 mile strenuous hike in - and 10 miles back out. Sequoia is out of the way.

Even with those 2 removed, you will be pretty much constantly on the run. The most efficient route is:

I-10/CA-62/AZ-95 to Lake Havasu
AZ-95/I-40/AZ-64 to the Grand Canyon
AZ-64/US-89/UT-12 to Bryce Canyon
UT-12/US-89/UT-9 to Zion
UT-9/I-15 to Las Vegas
Hoover Dam as a day trip from Las Vegas
I-15 back to LA

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

I agree, to do that little lot you will end up rushing through and not seeing much of anything ! I would head direct to the GC south rim from LA and spend the next day exploring the park, either staying there the night or out of the east entrance, such as the Cameron Trading post, or you could head to Monument valley. Day 3 to Bryce and day 4 drive from Bryce to Zion NP and stop the night in the park or Springdale, a lovely little town near the west entry point. Explore Zion and drive to Vegas mid afternoon to arrive in the evening on day 5. From Vegas you could head to Lake Havasu via Hoover Dam, or continue to Twentynine Palms and take a detour through Joshua Tree NP on the way back to LA.

[treecat]

First off, thank you both very much! This is very helpful for planning our trip. I wanted the most efficient timing for this trip, but want to see as much as I can, while taking in the beauty of everything. I am thinking of either skipping Hoover Dam, Havasu Lake, or Zion to increase time at the Grand Canyon. I don't even know what I'd do at Zion, but I'm sure it is breath-taking... What do you think?

[Southwest Dave]

I think Zion is a wonderful National Park [as they all are] and as you will be headed right by there, it would be a shame not to spend a day there walking alongside the Virgin River with the Red rock canyon walls towering above you. There are many Trails and viewpoints such as Emerald Pools and Weeping rock and you can even wade into the Virgin River through the Zion Narrows.

[glc]

If you eliminate Lake Havasu, you can drive from LA to the GC in one long day via I-15/I-40.

At the other end, you *could* see Hoover Dam on the way back to LA from LV.

[treecat]

I think Zion is a wonderful National Park [as they all are] and as you will be headed right by there, it would be a shame not to spend a day there walking alongside the Virgin River with the Red rock canyon walls towering above you. There are many Trails and viewpoints such as Emerald Pools and Weeping rock and you can even wade into the Virgin River through the Zion Narrows.

Southwest Dave, you are right. After reading about and looking at the wonderful photos of Zion, I am pretty set on at least spending a whole day there. I think I will actually camp overnight.

glc, I am thinking about skipping Lake Havasu. We were only going to do a day trip there to maybe have a picnic, but I'd rather go straight to the Grand Canyon.

So according to both of you, do you suggest that I go from L.A to Grand Canyon-to Bryce Canyon- to Zion- to Las Vegas- back to L.A?

If I take this route, will I land at the north or south rim of Grand Canyon?
Also, we want to avoid traffic as much as possible... so we are thinking of leaving at 10-11 p.m. Is that a good idea? I would love to see the sunrise, but we may not catch it, since apparently, it takes 8-9 hours from L.A.

Thanks again for your replies. Clearly, I am clueless, haha. Thank you for your wonderful suggestions!

[glc]

The south rim is easier to get to, you can't make it to the north rim in 1 day from LA. It is NOT a good idea to leave at that time - leave before morning rush hour and get to the GC well before sunset - then you can see the sunset and the next morning's sunrise. You can try booking lodging in the park, but if it's not available Tusayan is the closest to the park. That way it won't take long to get out of the park after sunset and back in again before sunrise.

[Southwest Dave]

I agree, don't leave late at night as it's going to be counter productive. You will be tired all next day and your sleep patterns will be disrupted for the trip. Hit the road early [5-6pm] after a good nights sleep and have time to see part of the GC and witness a sunset.

As you are thinking of camping at Zion NP you will have the equipment so why not try and get a camping spot at the South rim ? I would get on to both options asap to see if there are availabilities, Mather campground at GC is in a good location and just a realtively short walk to the rim for that sunrise ! Watchman Campground in Zion is recommended and from both you can catch the free shuttle buses to various parts of the parks.

[glc]

Hit the road early [5-6pm]

You mean AM, right?

Here is where you get campground reservations at the GC, and here is Zion camping information.