Hi, 6 of us did almost the exact same trip last September so hopefully I can give you a little 'heads up' on what to expect.

SF - Parking is a costly business, and the Cable Cars & Trolley buses are so handy & cheap (I think it was $11 for a three day passport) that if you can get to your Hotel from the airport (it was about $50 for a cab, but parking is about $25 to $40 a night anyway!) it's probably better to book a car once you're ready to leave the City. There's not such a huge choice of vehicles but if there's just the 2 of you it wont be a problem. Alcatraz is excellent and pretty spooky. It's a popular tour so don't leave it to the last day to book otherwise you may not get on it. If you can, pre-book the night tour in advance, very popular & books up weeks in advance. Make sure you visit the Sea lions at Pier 39 and say hello.

We drove up towards Sacramento & then down to Yosemite, stopping off on the way at a little place called Murphys. Stayed at the Murphys Hotel, Nothing fancy but very pleasant. We had dinner on the lawn in the sun, and drank in the Saloon with the locals and if you like wine you’ll find there are loads of local wineries nearby. We visited one called ‘Ironstone’(you can find it on the web), excellent!

Booked a log cabin in the ‘Redwoods in Yosemite’ very peaceful, and a deer and its fawn wandered by our deck whilst we enjoyed our evening bbq which was nice. Just search for log cabins in Yosemite and you’ll find them along with quite a few others. Glacier point definitely worth a visit.

We crossed out of Yosemite through the Tioga Pass Road, and down the 395 and stopped in Bishop. If I did it again I’d drive on a little further to Lone Pine, not so much choice of hotels/motels but quainter.

DV – We stopped in Stovepipe Wells, it was 102 degrees when we arrived but cooled down to 90 in the evening! The heat wasn't a massive issue but then we we taking it very easy. Plenty of water to hand is the thing, especially if you intend to be active. The sunset on the sand dunes at Stovepipe Wells is beautiful, but if you want a romantic sight, (and if you’re on your honeymoon I guess you will), walk out at night and just take a look at the night sky. I’ve never seen stars like it, and in the space of about 5 minutes or so we saw a couple of shooting stars, highly recommended.

LV- If you don’t mind where you stay I’d leave booking the hotel until you arrive. If you check the websites for their room prices for months in advance you tend to pay the proper rate, whereas if you turn up late in the day and they have rooms they tend to be cheaper. Check it out on Hotels.com or similar for prices for September and prices for tonight ! As there are a squillion hotels, with gazillions of rooms it shouldn’t be an issue. If you do want to stay somewhere specific though you may have to book in advance as they can get booked up with conferences and the like. Personally we found Vegas to be a bit OTT and moved off to nearby Boulder City, where we stayed at the Boulder Dam hotel which was very pleasant. If you do stay in Vegas you have to watch the Bellagio fountains, and a night time visit to the Stratosphere is a must, although if you do you’ll realise that this end of town isn't quite as upmarket as the ‘strip’.

We did the Plane/Helicopter/Boat trip into the Grand Canyon. Very touristy but hey, we were tourists! Excellent photo opportunities and a great experience.

All in all you should have a great time.

Charlie