Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco: road trip itinerary

How about a road trip on the route "Los Angeles - Las Vegas - Hoover Dam - Grand Canyon National Park - Death Valley National Park - San Francisco - Monterey - Santa Barbara - Los Angeles"? We tell you about what interesting things await you along the way.

Briefly about renting a car in the USA

To realize the route described in this article you will need a car, which can be easily rented from an international or local company upon arrival or booked in advance via the Internet.

Two important nuances:

• there is an ongoing debate on the forums about whether an international driver's license is necessary or whether a national one is sufficient. The website recommends that visitors to the country carry both, as some companies refuse to rent to drivers without an international driver's license. On forums you can also find stories about problems with the police on this ground;
• another stumbling block is the card you need to show to the renter. The rules of many agencies state that the card must be a credit card, but how do you know if it is? You can check this with specialized sites such as www.bincodes.com by entering the first 6 digits of the number (BIN).

Los Angeles

So, you have arrived in Los Angeles and intend to start your road trip there.

From Los Angeles International Airport, located 16 kilometers from the center, you can leave by the following means:

• By car. There are Avis, Budget, Dollar, Hertz, Sixt and other rentals, to their offices you will be taken by free shuttles, the stop of which is near the baggage claim area;
• by cab. A trip to Downtown will cost about $60-75, to Hollywood - $70-80, to Beverly Hills - $65;
• by van. PrimeTime and Super Shuttle will take you to Downtown, Hollywood or Santa Monica for $16, $27 and $21 respectively;
• by shuttle bus. A ticket costs $1.75;
• by subway. The closest station is Aviation Station/LAX, which can be reached by the free Green Line Bus shuttle. A ticket costs $1.75;
• Flyaway Bus to LAX. A ticket to Hollywood is $8; to Union Station is $9.75; there are other routes.

The free shuttle service is available to guests of most hotels near the airport. Their signature buses pick up passengers near each terminal, with stops labeled Hotel & Parking Shuttle.

What to see in Los Angeles in a few days?

• Hollywood. Stroll down the Walk of Fame, decorated with stars bearing the names of celebrities and their hand and footprints, linger near the Kodak Theater, where the annual Academy Awards are presented, and then walk up to the Griffith Observatory, where you can see the famous Hollywood sign.

• Universal Studios Park (100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City). In the themed areas based on movies and cartoons (The Walking Dead, King Kong, Ugly I, Jurassic Park, Transformers, The Simpsons, Harry Potter), you'll find rides for kids and adults, and in the Animal Actors Pavilion, watch animals that have appeared in movies perform. We also recommend visiting the Special Effects Stage show, which reveals the secrets of creating spectacular special effects, and taking a one-hour Studio Tour of Universal's current filming locations. A 1-day ticket is $105-116, with the option to go to each attraction 1 time without a line is $179-269.

• City Hall (200 N Spring St). There is an observation deck on the 27th floor of the Los Angeles City Hall building, where everyone can climb up for free during working hours. From here you can get a panoramic view of the city center.
• Union Station (800 N Alameda St), the interior of which hasn't changed much since it was built in 1939.
• U.S. Bank Tower (633 West Fifth Street) - the tallest building in California and the eleventh tallest in the United States (310 meters).

We also recommend riding the Angels Flight cable car, which runs between Hill Street and California Plaza, connecting the Bunker Hill neighborhood to Downtown. It had been out of service since 2013 and was reopened to the public in August 2017. A one-way trip costs $1 (50 cents if you pay with a Metro TAP card).

A great addition to the above itinerary will be a sightseeing car tour of Los Angeles. During it you will learn the history of California and its capital, walk along the starry avenue of Hollywood Boulevard, the oceanfront and the graffiti quarter. You'll discover everything interesting about the movie industry, see the legendary "Hollywood" sign, star villas, as well as filming locations of famous movies and music videos.

Las Vegas

About 4 hours by car separates Los Angeles from Las Vegas (if you want, you can fly here in 1 hour for $45).

Even if you are not a gambling person, it is definitely worth a visit to "Sin City". At nightfall, life here just begins, the famous Las Vegas Boulevard is filled with thousands of hunters for easy money from different countries. Feel how the air vibrates with their excitement, look in a few casinos, where at the tables gathers a motley crowd, and then go out on the street and forward - to marvel at the ingenuity of hotel owners, who are trying their best to capture the attention of visitors to the city!

The most popular hotels, restaurants, stores and gambling establishments are concentrated on the so-called Las Vegas Strip, a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard about 7 kilometers long.

Don't miss:

• Bellagio Hotel and Dancing Fountains (3600 S Las Vegas Blvd). Shows start every 15 to 30 minutes: 3:00 p.m. to 00:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, 12:00 p.m. to 00:00 p.m. Saturday and holidays, 11:00 a.m. to 00:00 p.m. Sunday;
• Caesars Palace Hotel (3570 S Las Vegas Blvd). Guests remember the ceiling, which is designed as a sky with clouds running across it;
• The Venetian (3355 S Las Vegas Blvd). Canals, gondolas, Doge's Palace, Piazza San Marco, the Campanile and the Rialto Bridge - consider yourself in Venice. Episodes of Resident Evil 3, Miss Congeniality 2: Beautiful and Dangerous, and The Rat Race were filmed here;
• Mirage Hotel (3400 S Las Vegas Blvd). A volcano erupts in front of the main entrance at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 7 p.m., 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Almost any hotel can surprise a first-time visitor to Vegas - their owners fight for the attention of potential clients and try to outdo each other, emphasizing on design "tricks". Paris (3655 S Las Vegas Blvd), for example, boasts its own Eiffel Tower, and New York-New York (3790 S Las Vegas Blvd) has skyscrapers and the Statue of Liberty.

Hoover Dam

Coordinates: N 36.016222, W 114.737245. It takes 40-50 minutes to get here from Las Vegas.

The dam on the Colorado River, named after Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States, is one of the largest and perhaps the most famous structures of this plan in the United States, as well as the highest in the Western Hemisphere (221 meters). It has been featured in the films Into the Wild, Transformers, Vegas Vacation, Superman, San Andreas Fault, as well as documentaries and TV series.

A half hour is enough for a tour and photo session, unless your interest in dams is of a professional nature.

Grand Canyon National Park

Coordinates: 36°03'32 "N, 112°06'33 "W (South Rim, visitor information center), 36°11'51 "N, 112°03'09 "W (North Rim, visitor information center). From Hoover Dam to the South Rim entrance of the National Park, it will take you approximately 4 hours to get there.

The Grand Canyon is one of the most famous natural attractions in the United States and North America and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The name is justified: the area of the park is 5,000 km², the length of the Colorado River canyon, around which it is formed, is about 400 kilometers, and its depth is up to 1.6 kilometers. The canyon conditionally divides the park into two parts:

1. South Rim - the most visited and "tourist" zone, where there are three dozen observation decks, several hiking trails, souvenir stores, cafes and restaurants, campgrounds, a railway station and a health clinic. The South Rim is open all year round, but it's best to visit in the summer, as crowds of tourists can spoil the experience;
2. North Rim - the most picturesque part of the park, which is less accessible due to its remote location. There are a variety of viewpoints and hiking trails to suit all tastes. North Rim is available from May 15 through October 15.

In addition to walks in the park on foot or by car, leisure time can be diversified with mule rides, helicopter and airplane flights over the canyon, rafting on the Colorado River, train rides on the historic railroad, jeep safaris, meeting the dawn or watching the stars.

By the way, you can visit the National Park for free three times in 2018: on April 21, September 22 and November 11.

On the other days, you will have to pay $30 for each car, regardless of the number of passengers. This fee allows you to stay in the territory for 7 days, leaving it if necessary and returning an unlimited number of times. Bicyclists, pedestrians and guests arriving by train pay $15.

The famous Skywalk glass bridge is not the property of the National Park, it is located on the Hualapai Indian Reservation. You can climb it for $82. Hours of operation are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (October through March) and 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (April through September).

Planning to stay in the park for a few days? Book your hotel room or camping spot in advance! During the season (May through October) it is difficult to find lodging. If you want to save money on accommodation, you can stay in one of the neighboring towns: Tusayan (10-minute drive), Williams (1-hour drive), Flagstaff (1.5 hours drive) - for those visiting the South part of the park; Jacob Lake (1-hour drive), Kanab (2 hours drive) - near the North part; Peach Springs or Kingman (1.5 hours drive) - in the vicinity of Skywalk.

Death Valley National Park

Address: 328 Greenland Blvd, Death Valley (post office located 400 feet from the visitor information center). The drive from the Grand Canyon will take about 4.5 hours.

Coordinates: N 36°27.70, W 116°52.00.

The hottest and driest national park in the United States. It is also the largest in the country, excluding Alaska parks, at 13,650 km².

The main tourist points of Death Valley:

• Dante's View - an observation deck at 1,669 meters above sea level. The Panamint Mountains can be seen to the east and the Sierra Nevada range to the west, where the highest point of the Continental States, Mount Whitney (4,418 meters above sea level), is located;
• Mesquite Flat sand dunes;
• Twenty Mule Team Canyon - a trail of over 4 kilometers, ideal for hiking or biking;
• Zabriskie Point - the most popular observation deck in the park, where the sunset is best watched;
• Badwater Basin - the lowest point in North America, located 86 meters below sea level. After heavy rains, a temporary lake forms here;
• Devil's Golf Course - a course made up of unusually shaped rock salt deposits.

The park is available to visitors daily and around the clock, but some facilities may be closed due to weather conditions or for renovation.

There are 9 campgrounds for those who want to stay overnight in the area, their opening hours can be found on the website.

Keep in mind that there is no mobile operator coverage in most of the "valley of death". It's also worth remembering that many of the roads here were built back in the 1930s: they are narrow and twisty, so you should drive with extreme caution. Make sure you choose the right car and bring the necessary tools and spare parts in case it breaks down.

Entry to the park costs $25 per car, regardless of the number of passengers. The ticket entitles you to stay at Death Valley for 7 days, entering and exiting unlimited times. For pedestrians and bicyclists, admission is $12.

San Francisco

From Death Valley, it takes about 8 hours to get here by car. If you decide to stay in the city for 1-2 days, we recommend including:

• A walk along Fisherman's Wharf, a waterfront promenade that offers beautiful views of San Francisco Bay, city neighborhoods, the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island. Check out the famous Pier 39, where restaurants serve delicious crab chowder and harbor seals roost on the pier. At the entrance to the pier is the Aquarium of the Bay, which showcases the many inhabitants of the bay;

• a tour of Alcatraz Island. There is an interesting museum in the building, which was once a fortress, a military prison and a prison for especially dangerous criminals. The tour (including ferry to the island and back) costs $37, it is better to buy a ticket in advance, as there are a lot of people who want to get here;
• cable-car ride. This hybrid of streetcar and funicular is one of the symbols of the city and is a favorite of San Francisco visitors. It was put into operation about 150 years ago, and in 1964 it received the status of a historical landmark. Departs every 10 minutes starting at 6:00, a one-way ticket costs $7;

• photo session in front of the Transamerica Pyramid (600 Montgomery Street), the tallest building (260 meters, 48 floors) and the most recognizable skyscraper in San Francisco;
• a visit to Baker Beach at sunset. From here you can get the most beautiful shots of the legendary Golden Gate Bridge, which is San Francisco's calling card. It is a favorite of moviegoers and has starred in such famous films as Interview with the Vampire, Bicentennial Man, House of Sand and Fog, The Hulk, Coach Carter, X-Men: The Last Battle, Terminator: May the Savior Come, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Pacific Rim, Godzilla, Planet of the Apes: Revolution.

A sightseeing auto excursion around the city will help you to put contrasting manifestations of the city into a single picture and form a holistic idea of its appearance. You will see the Japanese quarter, business financial center and bohemian town of Sausalito, the largest park in America and Fisherman Wharf - a haven for musicians, artists and performers.

Monterey

It takes about 2 hours to get here from San Francisco. The city was the first capital of the state of California from 1775 to 1849, and today it is an important tourist destination in the region.

Recommended to see:

• Old Fisherman's Wharf (200 Washington), a fishing dockyard with many fish restaurants and gift stores. Here you can rent a boat to fish or buy a tour and head out into the ocean to meet the whales;
• California's oldest theater (Pacific St), which opened in 1847;
• Monterey Bay Aquarium (886 Cannery Row), one of the best oceanariums in the United States. A full ticket is $50, children (ages 3-12) are $30, and $40 for teens (ages 13-17);
• Pacific grove is a suburb of Monterey where you can see some of the most expensive homes in California. The famous scenic 17-Mile Drive, which runs along the ocean, begins here.

The waters of the bay are suitable for surfing and kayaking.

Santa Barbara

Another 4 hours of driving and you're in Santa Barbara, a city whose name is known even to those who have never been to the USA.

In addition to the white arches familiar to fans of the series, noteworthy are:

• Mission Santa Barbara Church (2201 Laguna Str), erected in 1820;
• Casa del Herrero (1387 East Valley Road, Montecito), a Spanish Colonial-style estate built in 1925. It now houses a museum; tours cost $25;
• Botanical Gardens (1212 Mission Canyon Road) and Orchid Garden (1250 Orchid Drive);

Swim and sunbathe at Leadbetter Beach, East Beach, West Beach or Butterfly Beach, considered the best in Santa Barbara.

If you choose not to visit museums and parks, 3-4 hours is enough time to explore the city.

It takes about 2 hours to return from Santa Barbara to the starting point of our trip, Los Angeles.