If you want to spend 2 weeks traveling between the main tourist destinations in the United States, this is it 16-day Western USA tour that we propose, could be for you.
Description
This 16 day tour it has Los Angeles as its arrival and departure cities, but it's fine even if you arrive and depart from San Francisco. Those with a little less time can start the tour in Los Angeles and finish it in San Francisco, or vice versa.
In this way you can reduce the tour by 1-2 days, but it must be considered that the rental company may apply higher costs. The One Way tax is often mandatory when returning the car to a location other than the pickup location.
The itinerary we are going to present touches 4 American states: California, Arizona, Utah and Nevada. It goes to touch big American cities, important national parks, attractions, amusement parks and unique landscape beauties. In addition, for lovers of road travel, there is a stage entirely dedicated to Route 66.
Technical data
Range: 5000 km
Petrol: 80 gallons (about 300 liters)
Toll: required for San Francisco bridges only (entering the city). Beware some streets in Los Angeles require a toll (avoid taking them).
Driving hours: 60 (an average of 4 hours per day)
Places
A short list of the main places that the itinerary touches.
San Diego
- SeaWorld San Diego
- San Diego Zoo
- Balboa Park
- San Diego Historic Center
- Tourist port
Barstow
Route 66:
- Oatman
- Kingman
- Seligman
Flagstaff
Monument Valley (Indian reservation)
Grand Canyon (National Park)
Las Vegas
- Freemont Street
- The Strip Las Vegas
- Stratosfere Tower
- Bellagio Hotel and Fountains
Red Rock Canyon (National Park)
Death Valley (National Park)
Bakersfield
San Francisco
- Golden Gate
- Pier 39
- Alcatraz
- China Town
Kings Canyon‎ (National Park)
Sequoia national park (National Park)
Los Angeles
- Hollywood: Walf of Fame – TCL Chinese Theatre – Griffith Park
- Rodeo Drive
- Beverly Hills
- Universal Studios Hollywood
- Disneyland Park
- Disney California Adventure Park
- Warner Bros Studio Hollywood Tower
- Santa Monica
- Venice Beach
Stages
1 ° day: arrival in Los Angeles, car collection and departure for San Diego. After 120 miles (about 200 km) I arrive in San Diego.
2 ° day: Morning visit to SeaWorld San Diego. In the afternoon and evening visit the city of San Diego.
3 ° day: in the morning visit the San Diego Zoo and Balboa Park. After lunch, short visit to the port area and departure for Barstow, one of the cities most linked to the myth of Route 66.
4 ° day: in the morning visit the ghost town of Calico Ghost Town. After departure for Flagstaff along the legendary Route 66. We will cross spectacular places, unique landscapes. 350 miles, almost 600 km of a pleasant On Road trip on American roads.
5 ° day: one of the most challenging. Early morning departure for Monument Valley (277 km). Visit this spectacular desert plateau and its imposing red rocks, made famous by many western films. Departure for the Grand Canyon (285 km). Short visit to the most important points of this American national park and departure for Flagstaff (125 km).
Visiting Monument Valley and Grand Canyon in one day can be quite challenging. If you want a more relaxing and in-depth visit, it is better to dedicate a full day to each place.6 ° day: departure for Las Vegas (400 km). Afternoon - evening visit to Freemont Street and The Las Vegas Strip.
7 ° day: Full day to visit the main sights and attractions of Las Vegas.
8 ° day: in the morning visit the Red Rock Canyon National Park and continue the journey towards Death Valley (180 km). Visit of the spectacular “Death Valley”, one of the most evocative places on the planet. Afternoon departure for Bakersfield (280 km)
9 ° day: departure for San Francisco (450 km). Afternoon and evening visit of the city.
10 ° day: Full day to visit the main sights and attractions of San Francisco.
11 ° day: departure for Kings Canyon (385 km). Short visit of the park and its gigantic trees. Continuation of the journey to Sequoia National Park (75 km). Visit of General Sherman, the imposing specimen of giant sequoia. Departure for Bakersfield (280 km).
12 ° day: departure for Los Angeles. Afternoon and evening visit of the city
13 ° day: visit the 2 Disney amusement parks, Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park.
14 ° day: in the morning visit the Warner Bros Studio Tour Hollywood film studios. Afternoon visit to the Hollywood district and its attractions.
15 ° day: visit to Universal Studios Hollywood theme park
16 ° day: morning visit to Santa Monica and Venice Beach. Afternoon or evening direction Los Angeles airport, car delivery and departure return to Spain.
Modification
If you have more time available, you can add days to the itinerary, according to your preferences. In this way you can extend the stages of the places you want to visit with more care. If you don't want to visit Los Angeles amusement parks, 1-2 days are enough to see the city.
Conclusions
It sure is a very demanding tour, and this is the negative expectation of this choice. In our first trip to the American west coast, we chose this itinerary, and in some stages (in the first week) we felt tired after so many hours of driving. Although driving in America, especially when crossing beautiful landscapes and views, is very enjoyable.
The choice of this itinerary is recommended for those who want to see a lot and don't have many days. By choosing this itinerary (just over 2 weeks) you can see at least 3/4 (75%) of the most interesting places, parks and cities in the American West.
