Go West! Day 22 Travel Home

CrispyA · 28 Sep 14, 03:37 PM

We had a super-early start - up at 4.00 am which is no fun for anybody. Check out was very friendly and efficient and then it was into the car for the trip to the airport.

It was a good thing we had the satnav as the car hire drop-off point is quite a way from the airport and we may have struggled to find it by ourselves. We were impressed with how quick and easy the drop-off was and we were on the shuttle bus within minutes.

We did Delta's kerbside check-in and were again very impressed with how efficient and friendly the Delta staff were. It really couldn't have been easier. Our cases were somewhat heavier than when we flew out but we had spread the heavier stuff around the cases and none were overweight.

San Diego airport was really nice - there is a branch of Phil's BBQ in there, but perhaps not at that time of the morning! We didn't have a long wait before boarding and the flight itself was fine - attentive staff, plenty of drinks and enough free TV to keep us going.

After landing at JFK, we caught the JFK Jitney to Terminal 4. I had heard a few strange noises on the plane, that sounded like a cat miaowing, but put it down to a baby squawking. It turned out that it really was a cat - sat next to us on the Jitney were a family who were travelling with their children and two cats! I had no idea you could take cats on a plane like that - their final destination was Armenia and they were planning to walk the cats once they were at the Terminal. Takes all sorts, I guess!

We had 4 hours at JFK and while we would have preferred a shorter connection, it wasn't too bad. We had a Panda Express and then read for a little while.

We also managed to bump into the kids' headteacher from the Junior School Evan had just left! She did look a little bit relieved we weren't on the same flight back to the UK. We have done this before - bumped into Evan's Y1 teacher while camping in Scotland. Small world!

The JFK to LHR flight was okay but not great. Poor Paul and Hannah had full-recliners in front of them who didn't even have the manners to put their seats up for meals, and I had someone who fell asleep and managed to spread sideways onto my seat almost immediately. In the end, I just climbed over her to get to the toilet as she wasn't showing any signs of waking up!

Of all our flights, the two transatlantic flights were by far the worst - not impressed with unattentive Virgin staff and the general lack of care in comparison to the Delta and Little Red flights.

None of us managed much sleep but we did watch a few films. The transfer to the Manchester flight was very smooth and that was fine - over almost as soon as it set off!

Then it was a cold and weary wait for the train back to Sheffield. We were all exhausted and grumpy and wishing we were still in the USA. Fortunately there were some rather fabulous drag queens on the train handing out buns to celebrate Manchester Pride and they did manage to cheer us up!

Then it was a taxi from the station and straight to bed for a couple of hours before we started unpacking and sorting everything out.

The jet lag lasted for a good few days - flying west to east is always a bit of a killer - and it didn't help that we had come from scorching temperatures and landed in a very autumnal UK!

It truly was a wonderful trip - everything worked out just as we had hoped it would and even the few lows that we had weren't real problems. As for many families, spending time just the four of us was one of the best parts of the trip and we have a brilliant collection of shared memories.

While we loved Florida and do plan to go back at some point, we are conscious that there is so much more to America and are hoping to get back on the road before too long.

Thanks for reading and I hope some of you find it useful!

katiebaz · 29 Sep 14, 10:45 PM

Amazing sounding trip. Really want to go and thanks so much for sharing x

Capt Wilko · 4 Oct 14, 08:01 AM

Thanks for sharing your amazing holiday. Absolutely love the photographs of the National Parks and canyons. Although my family love Florida I really want our next visit to the states to be a west coast road trip and you have given me some fab ideas.

I have a DD15 and DS11 so really hope they will appreciate the scenery/great outdoors but suspect they will need a theme park fix somewhere along the way!

CrispyA · 5 Oct 14, 03:46 PM

Originally Posted by Capt Wilko

Thanks for sharing your amazing holiday. Absolutely love the photographs of the National Parks and canyons. Although my family love Florida I really want our next visit to the states to be a west coast road trip and you have given me some fab ideas.

I have a DD15 and DS11 so really hope they will appreciate the scenery/great outdoors but suspect they will need a theme park fix somewhere along the way!

We had a wonderful time, so I'm sure you would love it! Glad you've enjoyed the report.

billybadknees · 28 Jan 15, 11:05 PM

Really enjoyed your trippie. We're headed to San Diego in August so might be on for a few tips! Up the Owls!

CrispyA · 29 Jan 15, 07:14 PM

Originally Posted by billybadknees

Really enjoyed your trippie. We're headed to San Diego in August so might be on for a few tips! Up the Owls!

Up the Owls indeed!

Really glad you found the trip useful - you will love San Diego!

fishwife · 7 Nov 16, 07:50 PM

Great trip report - thanks for sharing! We're heading to the West coast in August and trying to pick up tips for San Francisco and San Diego so good to get some from some fellow Sheffielders #WAWAW

CrispyA · 13 Nov 16, 04:15 PM

Originally Posted by fishwife

Great trip report - thanks for sharing! We're heading to the West coast in August and trying to pick up tips for San Francisco and San Diego so good to get some from some fellow Sheffielders #WAWAW

Glad you enjoyed it - have a brilliant trip!

28 Sep 14, 03:37 PM	#1
	28 Sep 14, 03:37 PM CrispyA Imagineer
CrispyA Imagineer Join Date: Oct 11	Go West! Day 22 Travel Home We had a super-early start - up at 4.00 am which is no fun for anybody. Check out was very friendly and efficient and then it was into the car for the trip to the airport. It was a good thing we had the satnav as the car hire drop-off point is quite a way from the airport and we may have struggled to find it by ourselves. We were impressed with how quick and easy the drop-off was and we were on the shuttle bus within minutes. We did Delta's kerbside check-in and were again very impressed with how efficient and friendly the Delta staff were. It really couldn't have been easier. Our cases were somewhat heavier than when we flew out but we had spread the heavier stuff around the cases and none were overweight. San Diego airport was really nice - there is a branch of Phil's BBQ in there, but perhaps not at that time of the morning! We didn't have a long wait before boarding and the flight itself was fine - attentive staff, plenty of drinks and enough free TV to keep us going. After landing at JFK, we caught the JFK Jitney to Terminal 4. I had heard a few strange noises on the plane, that sounded like a cat miaowing, but put it down to a baby squawking. It turned out that it really was a cat - sat next to us on the Jitney were a family who were travelling with their children and two cats! I had no idea you could take cats on a plane like that - their final destination was Armenia and they were planning to walk the cats once they were at the Terminal. Takes all sorts, I guess! We had 4 hours at JFK and while we would have preferred a shorter connection, it wasn't too bad. We had a Panda Express and then read for a little while. We also managed to bump into the kids' headteacher from the Junior School Evan had just left! She did look a little bit relieved we weren't on the same flight back to the UK. We have done this before - bumped into Evan's Y1 teacher while camping in Scotland. Small world! The JFK to LHR flight was okay but not great. Poor Paul and Hannah had full-recliners in front of them who didn't even have the manners to put their seats up for meals, and I had someone who fell asleep and managed to spread sideways onto my seat almost immediately. In the end, I just climbed over her to get to the toilet as she wasn't showing any signs of waking up! Of all our flights, the two transatlantic flights were by far the worst - not impressed with unattentive Virgin staff and the general lack of care in comparison to the Delta and Little Red flights. None of us managed much sleep but we did watch a few films. The transfer to the Manchester flight was very smooth and that was fine - over almost as soon as it set off! Then it was a cold and weary wait for the train back to Sheffield. We were all exhausted and grumpy and wishing we were still in the USA. Fortunately there were some rather fabulous drag queens on the train handing out buns to celebrate Manchester Pride and they did manage to cheer us up! Then it was a taxi from the station and straight to bed for a couple of hours before we started unpacking and sorting everything out. The jet lag lasted for a good few days - flying west to east is always a bit of a killer - and it didn't help that we had come from scorching temperatures and landed in a very autumnal UK! It truly was a wonderful trip - everything worked out just as we had hoped it would and even the few lows that we had weren't real problems. As for many families, spending time just the four of us was one of the best parts of the trip and we have a brilliant collection of shared memories. While we loved Florida and do plan to go back at some point, we are conscious that there is so much more to America and are hoping to get back on the road before too long. Thanks for reading and I hope some of you find it useful! __________________ West Coast July - August 2014, Howdy Texas! August 2015, Rocking in the Rockies July - August 2016, Bier, Bratwurst und Bahnsteige: Berlin 2017, Touring Tennessee 2017, Expedition East Coast 2018, Hola! Madrid 2019, Great Lakes Grooving 2019, It's Czech, Mate, Prague 2022, Veni, Vidi, Edi, Bibi Italy 2022