Expert: Ernest Tufft - 11/22/2007

Question
Dear Ernest,

Greetings and Happy Thanksgiving from here in the UK.

I have read so many of your expert postings and wonder if you could please cast an eye over our plans.  We are coming over next September to celebrate our 10 year anniversary.

The only things that are fixed at the moment are :

1. We land in San Francisco and are hiring a nice big SUV.
2. We leave 15 days later from LAX and we want to spend 3 days in LA (well Anaheim/Disney we are kids at heart!)
3. We plan to spend 4 days in Vegas incorporating a helicopter trip to the Grand Canyon.

So, the difficulties are :

1. From San Francisco, whether to head down the coast and take in Monterey, Carmel etc. and then head for Yosemite, Or to go inland and then back up to Yosemite.

2. Whether to bother with the Sequoias.

3. Whether to bother with Death Valley.

My husband loves mountains and impressive nature, I adore the sea, the coast, cities, the shops.

I would really prefer not to stay in any grotty places, which is putting me off the mountains/Death Valley.

This is turning into a brain-dump!  I am sorry if I have rambled.  The scale of the place is so vast compared to England.  

Thanks for reading!


Answer
Welcome to California Tracey!  I'm not sure what "grotty" means, but I will do my best to recommend some ideas that I think you and your husband will enjoy.  I have additional photos and writing on all these areas at Virtualtourist.com, under the membername of atufft.

First, I'm not sure when you are getting the SUV after arrival, but you certainly won't want that for driving around San Francisco.  Driving in SF is a real time waster given the cramped and hilly driving and impossible parking situation.  Depending upon how many bags you are bringing, among other considerations, you can either hop on BART and head in the direction of your hotel or get a ride from the hotel shuttle van.  Then, when time comes to leave the city, pick up the SUV and go.  I often recommend picking up rentals outside the city of SF to save about $20- in tourism taxes.  BART can be taken to the east bay for the SUV pickup.

Preferences do vary, but I should note that overall you will likely find SF more human scale, intriguing, and beautiful than either LA or Vegas, so I recommend spending 4 days, possibly 5, in the Bay Area.  A ferryboat ride to Sausalito/Tiburon and a trip in the van to the Napa Valley wine country are often high priorities for visitors.

Whichever way you organize your time within the Bay Area, I'd make the drive to Yosemite as soon as time permits, as the alpine climate begins to turn toward winter in September.  Make reservations NOW for a place to stay IN Yosemite Valley.  Accomodations outside the park can be another time waster.  The mountain roads are windy and distances longer than many hotels in the area are willing to admit.  Given your overall time, Yosemite is worth 2 nights.  In September, many waterfalls are just a trickle, but the beauty of the granite mountains around the valley are unique on a world scale.  Take the time to drive out of the valley to Glacier Point where you can view down, and if you visit the Mariposa Grove of BIG trees, you can easily skip Sequoia National Park.  You certainly can't miss seeing the world's largest living things.  Visitors from England are particularly impressed with the cathedral like quiet of forests in California, and the visitors tram at Mariposa Grove is very informative.

Now, from Yosemite to Monterey Bay area take Hwy 141 to Merced, then cross over the great central valley (through a wildlife preserve) to Los Banos.  At that point take Hwy 152 west through the Pacheco Pass toward Hwy 101 and follow signs to Monterey.  After visiting Monterey/Pebble Beach/Carmel, head south along spectacular coastal hwy 1.  In the south central coast, stay a night in Paso Robles/San Luis Obispo/Morro Bay area.  From the south central coast, depart from Paso Robles across Hwy 46 back crossing again over the great central valley, but in the southern desert region.  At Bakersfield, you can head toward Death Valley.  Along Hwy 395, there are a number of old mining camps, such as Randsburg, and yes Death Valley is worth a drive through on the way to Las Vegas.  Then, from Las Vegas back to LA, take hwy 10.  You will obviously need to study the maps to see exactly how these routes will work, but hopefully I've given you the general idea on how to crosscross the great state of California get as much seen within the time available.  If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask again.