Help me fit everything into my trip!

[danisleigh]

We now have flights booked flying into San Francisco on 22nd April and flying home 3 weeks later from LAX. I assumed now we were going for 21 nights it would be easy to fit it all in but I am struggling!
For some background DS21 will be with us. He hasn’t had great health needing a liver transplant to cure his cancer and having other complex health issues and he has lost interest in travelling with the old fogeys now so this will be his last holiday with us, at least for now. Bearing in mind his fragile health this could be the only west coast trip he takes where as DH and I can always go back again and spend longer in places we loved but for DS sake I want to fit as many places in as I can to tick off his bucket list!

Obviously we will start in San Fran…We all want to do Alcatraz and a Dylan’s full day tour.

We want to visit Yosemite, perhaps 2 nights

PCH…happy to stop a couple of times but only for one night each time break up the drive…we are not doing a whale watching trip as I get horrendously seasick on small boats!

LA…we want to do a full day tour, WB studios and Universal

3 nights in Anaheim for Disney

San Diego…I want to do the trolley tour, DS wants to do seaworld and DH USS Midway.

Palm Springs Ariel tramway

Las Vegas with one night at Bright Angel Lodge. We are happy just to tick Vegas off the list…DS would like to go to Fremont St one evening and I would like to see a show.

Can anyone help with the best route to take to achieve this and if it isn’t achievable what would you drop?

[Sandraoh40]

If I was doing this I would look at this route.
Of course you can give however many days to each place you think you need to get what you need to do done.
Land San Fran stay for 3 nights
2 nights Yosemite
1 night Monterey
1 nights pismo or a bit further down
3 nights somewhere in LA that suits you for your plans there
3 nights Anaheim
2nights vegas
1 night grand canyon
2 nights Palm Springs
3 nights San Diego
Then drive back to LA for your flight.

This is a lot. And a lot of driving

When we went in 2016 for 19 nights we did the following
1 night marina del Rey after flight
4 nights Monterey
1 night pismo
5 nights Palm Springs
3 nights vegas
5 nights San Diego
Then drove back to LA for flight.
But we wanted a little more time in most places. However I understand that you may want to do as much as you can with your son if this is potentially his last holiday with you.

I also have to add that some of the places you want to go to I haven’t been so have only guessed at the time required

[danisleigh]

That’s great, the first bit is what we had planned but it was from Anaheim i was getting confused! Our flight home was meant to be the 10pm virgin flight now we have rebooked with BA and our flight home is 3.45pm meaning we need to be at the airport to drop the car at around 12.30. DH is panicking that we should be in LA for that last night due to the traffic, not sure how true that is having never been before?!

[Sandraoh40]

The LA traffic is defo something else!
I’m sure we were on a late flight and I don’t remember any issues going down from San Diego but maybe you could go to vegas from LA and move Anaheim to after San Diego?

[pritch]

midway a must well worth a visit nd the tours by retired staff are grea.Have lunch in kansas city bbq bar, that was the bar in top gun, the top gun bar

[danisleigh]

Originally Posted by Sandraoh40

The LA traffic is defo something else!
I’m sure we were on a late flight and I don’t remember any issues going down from San Diego but maybe you could go to vegas from LA and move Anaheim to after San Diego?

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That’s what I was thinking, Vegas and the canyon from LA then Palm Springs and San Diego and finish in Anaheim. Might be nice to finish with Disney too!

[danisleigh]

Originally Posted by pritch

midway a must well worth a visit nd the tours by retired staff are grea.Have lunch in kansas city bbq bar, that was the bar in top gun, the top gun bar

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We are all top gun fans so that sounds great!

[Sandraoh40]

Originally Posted by danisleigh

That’s what I was thinking, Vegas and the canyon from LA then Palm Springs and San Diego and finish in Anaheim. Might be nice to finish with Disney too!

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Sounds like an excellent finish to an awesome trip!

[danisleigh]

Originally Posted by Sandraoh40

Sounds like an excellent finish to an awesome trip!

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I just don’t know if we should drop Palm Springs. I don’t think DH and DS would be bothered if we did but I would love to do that aerial tramway!

[Sandraoh40]

Originally Posted by danisleigh

I just don’t know if we should drop Palm Springs. I don’t think DH and DS would be bothered if we did but I would love to do that aerial tramway!

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The tram is certainly a great experience but not one of those ones that I would miss if I hadn’t done it, not the way seeing the Grand Canyon is.
We love PS but my dh is a golfer and it’s amazing for golf. There is a really nice zoo where you can feed the giraffe’s.
I think if you like a ‘cool’ vibe and pools it may appeal. Also if your able to make it work , there is a great street market on a Thursday night.
Also we always take a drive up to Pioneertown and eat at Pappy and Harriet’s. And we’ve went to where the San Andreas Fault appears, that was great.
But I can see if you had to cut a part it would be here.