LA, San Fran, Yosemite, death valley, Vegas and Grand Canyon in 2 weeks

[David]

Hi can someone help..?

I will be driving from LA up highway 1 to San Fransisco, east to Yosemiti then south and across Death Valley to Vegas. Finally from Vegas to Grand Canyon and back to Vegas for the flight home.

We only have 15 days for the trip.

We leave LA on the 3rd of July.

Is the trip possible without too much hassle in the time? Can anyone suggest a scenic route and where to stay between Yosemite before we hit Death Valley.

Has anyone done Death Valley in this period and was it safe..?

Any advice would be helpful thanks.

David

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

This is the most popular and well documented trip on the forums and rightly so, it has amazing scenery and diversity, you are in for a treat ! You can use the search button to gather info but here are some of our favorites.

With 15 days to play with you have enough time to make it a relaxing trip and enjoy time in those places you visit. From Yosemite the scenic route is also the most direct to DV which is the Tioga pass [120] to the 395 at Lee vining/Mono lake and head South to Lone pine. Stopping anywhere between the those two places will set you up for DV the following day where many tourists and locals travel safely at that time of year, taking the usual precautions in extreme heat, lots of water,sunscreen and hats if you are out the car for any period of time etc.
Just to make sure you are aware, the Grand canyon is more than a day trip from Vegas and would be at least a one night stop but two would be better. You can choose from the North or South rim, the first being quieter and the latter has more facilities and therefor more people.
When you have worked on your itinerary and new questions pop up just ask and we can help piece your trip together.

[PNW Judy]

In addition to what Dave said about the differences between the North and South rims, I'll add that the pictures you see of the Grand Canyon are normally taken from the South Rim. The views are quite different. There are more viewing points at the South Rim and these tend to be easily accessible.

The North Rim is quieter and has less viewing points that don't require hiking to get to. I believe the North Rim is at a higher elevation so the weather is usually cooler. And you don't feel as close in to the canyon. There is also more green in the form of plants and trees at the North Rim.

Both sounds are wonderful yet both are quite different. If you can do both, it's interesting to see the contrasts.