Hey y'all!
We are looking into planning a trip out west for next year. I originally wanted to see Yosemite, Grand Canyon, & Yellowstone, but apparently, the map is telling me those places are...er, rather spread out
so, we've revised a bit. We'd like to spend about a week wandering around.
Looking to fly into Vegas - have never been to Vegas. We like to eat & drink, might have interest in a show or two, but aren't huge gamblers. How many days do people generally spend in Vegas?
We usually fly into Vegas for a four day weekend but DH is a gambler. Personally on a big trip like this I would do 2 nights. Lots of great restaurants and the shows are amazing. As for hotels it is a lot cheaper staying in Vegas from Sun-Thursday. Weekend prices can get out of control. I've been to Vegas at least 16 times and we prefer to stay on the strip. Lots of great properties. You honestly can't go wrong with any of the MGM properties. (Though Mandalay bay has an amazing pool it's too far down the strip for my taste)
We have interest in Zion National Park. Anyone been there? Worth it/enjoyable?
It's a beautiful park! It is one of my favorites. I also recommend taking a day and driving up to Bryce National Park. It is completely different with amazing scenery.
Definitely want to do the Grand Canyon, obviously. Can it be seen in a full day trip, or would we want to spend the night somewhere nearby? We like to hike, but we aren't 18 mile hiking professionals or anything. Pros and cons of driving vs. taking a helicopter over? (Price, obviously, but aside from that...)
Helicopter day trips are very expensive. What you might consider is flying into Phoenix or Flagstaff and driving up to the Canyon first. It's an easy drive from the Grand Canyon to Vegas. You can even stop and see Hoover Dam on your way. If you are going to drive from Vegas to the GC I would spend the night at the GC so you have time to enjoy the park. It would literally be a drive, spend a short amount of time and drive back for a day trip to the South Rim.
Also thinking about driving over to Los Angeles or San Diego for a few days at the end of our trip. I've been to San Diego and remember it being beautiful, but we didn't really do much in terms of activities. What's there, besides sea world and the zoo?
The drive to LA is only 4 hours but AVOID it like the plague on Sundays! It can take up for 8 hours to get from Vegas to LA on a Sunday or a Holiday Monday. If you want to go to San Diego you might look into flying on Southwest. We actually flew from San Francisco to Vegas for $70 per person. That was a lot better than 8 hours of drive time. I would think they would have decent fair to San Diego.
Another thing to consider is how much extra would it cost you to rent a car and return it to another state. Sometimes that really raises the price.
Sorry for all the questions - just in the planning stages now and a bit unsure. I've googled quite a bit, but would like some first hand recommendations. Feel free to only answer what you want/can, lol. Thanks guys!