Bit of both - September 2014 pre trippie

[Guest]

Well thought I would make a start on or pre-trip report for September. Exciting
as it is a first time to America for most of us and I have gone the whole hog
and got some nice places to stay, whilst being mindful that we have to have
two rooms everywhere and this is a month long trip!

The crew:
Me - Linda 50, chief organiser and first timer to America. Seem to have spent forever
looking at flights, hotels, villas etc. Relieved it is all in hand and can now
relax for the countdown. (Sneaky week in Scotland in a week or so as a warm up!)

Rachel, daughter, 20 when we go. First timer to America and this is the first
holiday she has shown any excitement over beforehand, despite her disgust at not
being able to drink over there. Usually get the typical teenage "whatever" when discussing
holiday plans and shows no interest till at the airport.

Martin, 47, my partner and chief driver whilst we are away. Has been to Orlando
five or six times but not since 2006 and never been to the places on the rest of
our month long trip.

Lewis, 23, boyfriend of Rachel and another American first timer.

I turned this into a bucket list type of thing and asked everyone what they had always
wanted to do so have managed to organise most of the stuff and still have free time
for anything we spot on our travels we may fancy trying. Don't expect a lot of photos
of me when I do my trip report as I hate photos and leave that to my more photogenic
daughter!

I have booked and paid for a lot of our excursions in advance so we know we are definately going
to get to do what we want, particularly on the California leg as we are flitting around a
fair bit.

We settled on September as it is a bit cheaper and cooler and the kids are back at school
and hoping it won't be as busy at that time of year.

This itinerary may seem a bit wacky to some of you but we wanted to get as much in as we
can and have a nice beachside (well waterside) rest if needed for the last week before we
come home. If we are still standing we will do more stuff the last week but at the moment
I have left it fairly free to see how we are holding up.

Flights:
Direct flight Manchester to Orlando booked back in December at a cost of £2,258 for the
four of us which I am happy with for a direct flight, as didn't fancy doing stops as
would be panicking about connections and also 9hrs without a ciggy is bad enough! Flying
out 2nd September and return early hours of 1st October.

Car Hire
Booked with Alamo Brits, full size hoping for a Dodge Charger!
Booked with USRentACar a full size SUV for the Las Vegas to Los Angeles leg
Booked Standard SUV from Alam Brits for final week in Miami as we need the space to
get luggage back to the airport.

Accommodation
2nd to 10th September we have booked a lovely villa at Cumbrian Lakes, £850 for the
8 days, way too big for the four of us but it is gorgeous and has a lovely big pool
and jacuzzi. Juke box in the kitchen, cinema room and a games room with allsorts
of slot machines, electronic golf arcade game, pool table, air hockey, darts .
you name it they've got it as well as fishing equipment and cycles.

On the 10th we fly from Orlando to Las Vegas with Southwest Airlines, they seem to be the
only airline that goes direct, cost £628 for all four of us with baggage. Leave MCO at
8am and arrive in Las Vegas at 09.50am. Flight is actually 4hrs 40mins or thereabouts
so may manage a bit of a kip on the plane.

Have been playing the MyvEGAS game for the last year so have managed to get 2 rooms at the
Aria for two nights free of charge, just pay resort fee. Still have lots of points left
for buffets etc and Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. Just planning walking the strip and popping
in and out of the themed areas of the casinos, due to Rachel being underage and also we are
not gamblers.

After two nights in Vegas we pick up our SUV and will be driving to Bishop via Death Valley.
Have an overnight stay at the Creekside Inn, which seems to be one of the best hotels there.
£225 for two king size rooms with internet and breakfast.

(I review the heck out of hotels with TripAdvisor etc before I book anything then used all
the comparison sites to get the best prices.) My hotel for San Francisco has gone up £350
since I booked it and also saved £30 or £40 on other bookings so quite pleased with the prices.

After an overnight stay at Bishop we are going to the Laws Railway Museum which also is a
mock up of a pioneer town so looks interesting and only costs a donation.

Next stop is Yosemite Westgate Hotel nr Big Oak for an overnight stay. £178 for
two king rooms. We will be doing a few hours driving but will be breaking it up with stops and
photo opportunities and not too worried ifwe arrive at the hotel mid evening, as we are only going
to sleep in the rooms We are driving via the tuolumne meadows and tioga pass road.

From there we are continuing the rest of the Yosemite leg via Wawona and Mariposa Grove and
then stay overnight down in Oakhurst at the Yosemite Gateway Hotel. £195 for two queen rooms
with internet and parking. There seems to be a Denny's and a few diners so will grab some
breakfast from somewhere.

Onwards to San Francisco where we will be staying three nights. Have booked the Handlery
at Union Square. £1,176 for two premium king rooms for three nights, plus have to
pay extra for parking so may find a garage and leave it there till we leave, seems
cheaper. They sure know how to charge in California! This hotel has however gone up £350
since I booked it so glad I booked when I did. Took advantage of a Travel Republic offer
of a £2 a booking deposit back in November. First full day I have bought a San Francisco Pass
for the four of us from Alcatraz Tours. If you buy from them you swap out some of the other things
but for $94 you get the Alcatraz tour and also can do Monterey Aquarium, use of the MUNI and cable cars
for 7 days, Academy of Science and the Exploratorium. Plan is do Alcatraz morning tour and then hop
about on the buses and cable cars for the rest of the day visiting various areas, next
day will be Academy of Science and then over Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito and possibly Muir
Woods.

Leaving San Francisco we are driving down Pacific Coast Highway and stopping the first night
at Carmel. Have booked Svengaards Inn for the night at £190 for two queen rooms, with breakfast
and free wi fi. Next morning we are going to Monterey Aquarium with the passes we bought in
San Francisco and then continuing down Pacific Coast Highway to our next overnight stay at
Cambria. Have booked the Pelican Inn & Suites at Moonstone Beach. This seems to be a pretty
expensive area as this is £272 for two king rooms for the night, never know we may get lucky
and get a sea view upgrade. As it is close I a hoping I can leave the window open and hear
the surf even if I can't see it

Onwards then to Los Angeles via Santa Monica for a stop at the pier. We have three nights booked at
the Crescent Hotel at Beverley Hills, spitting distance from Rodeo Drive. This came in at £894 for
two king rooms for 3 nights. Next day we have a Hollywood Bus Tour booked for lunchtime and
then will have a look around Walk of Fame area and visit Tussauds, which I got a good price
for from Travelzoo with a wax cast of your hand included!. Next day have Warner Bros Studio
tour booked for the morning and we will see where we go from there. Will be going up to the
Griffith Observatory around dusk though to see the lights come on over LA, should be a great
vantage point.

Up early next morning and we are flying Los Angeles to Fort Lauderdale with Virgin America.
£350 for the 4 of us with baggage. Land in Fort Lauderdale mid afternoon. Pick up car hire
and drive to the villa in Miami Beach I have booked for our last week. This last week caused
me many a headache as I wanted a condo or villa that opened out straight onto the beach. How
hard was that! Impossible so I settled for a fanastic villa that has Biscayne Bay at the
back with a couple of palm trees with hammock and an artificial beach and a gorgeous tiki
area at the back and a lovely pool. I will say this quick as it came in at ... £1800 for
the week gulp.. but hey it is a first time/bucket list holiday so needs must. We may
never get to go again.

Last day we check out of the villa, drive back up to Orlando for our evening flight from
MCO back to Manchester arriving early hours of the 1st

PHEW... Hope you are not worn our reading that little lot but we aim to pack in as
much fun in a month as we can and see as much as possible.

We chose to fly back to Miami so if we are worn out after California we can just
relax if we want to. Have booked the Thriller Speedboat Tour for Miami but the rest
is play it by ear.

[wakeuplaura]

This holiday sounds amazing!

You will have an absolute ball

[lovedisney89]

Sounds like an epic trip! And for a whole month, amazing

[Guest]

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