coast to coast. west to florida

Hi all. Not sure if this is the right place to post. Apologies if not. We have booked three weeks at disneyworld in Florida from Aug 5th 2016. However we apan to fly to San fransisco round about 20th julyq then to work out way across by road. Has anyone got any experience and suggestt of stop off points en route from sf to Florida. Any help would be great. Cheers stevet n co. In the very wet miserable UK.

Well, this is a little vague as you have not mentioned any type of route. And then it may take one or many answers to know different point stops. Do you have children? So many different routes you can go to Florida. Do you have any specific interests? Not trying to make it difficult, just need more info to go on.

Hi sorry I was so vague. There will be me and my wife, 47 and 46. 4 children, 19,19, 17 and 12. We have visited the states and Disney 8 times since the kids were 4.we drove from ny to Florida in 2012 via DC and the blue ridge mountains we adore your country and want to see more of it. I was thinking sf, down to la, navada to see Vegas and the grand canyon, Hoover dam etc and then on from there. Hope this is a bit more info. Thank you Steve

The one thing I must visit is the steps that were used in a favorite laurel and hardy short, the music box. Not sure if you are gamut with it but as a movie geek I would live to visit them. I have the location so it is definitely on my list

You can take hikes to the bottom of the grand canyon. Vegas there is so much to see. And the time you are in that neck of the woods the drive to Vegas is all desert so it will still be hot, especially in Vegas. The stratosphere has all the rides at the top if your kids like riding things that high. You can visit the Pawn stars Shop, just go after 3pm due to filming. You can take pictures in there. There are two different Mob museums, one is in the Tropicana, and the other is downtown. You can go down to Freemont st and watch the light show and it has a zip line. You can also look up You tube for rides on the stratosphere. So much shopping, wear comfy shoes and remember if it looks close it is not. There is The Coca Cola store , and the M&M store.

If you like Earl Sandwich there is one in Planet Hollywood. The Drive to Vegas is boring and all desert.

San Francisco there is the Disney Museum in the Presidio.

Look on
Groupon.com

LivingSocial.com

Travelzoo.com

under the cities you want to visit. You can find all kinds of Great deals on there. If you are going to visit Alcatraz in SF buy tickets online prior to coming as they sell out quickly.

Depending on you drive you could visit Yellowstone, Mt RushMore. I am trying to pop out ideas for you.

Wow thank you so much. I would love to see mt Rushmore but thought it was too far north and would drag us out of the way. Monument valley too I would love to see. The problem is you have such a wonderful country if I am not careful we will just end up in New York. Ha ha.

But a drive through the desert may be dull but it's not something we can ever experience here in the UK. I would like to spend some time on the Pacific coast road too and dip our toes in the Pacific ocean would be good

I think you need to start with your timetable, prioritize what you want to see, and then go from there. You don't have time to absolutely blanket the USA!

Assuming you arrive in San Francisco delightfully refreshed on July 20 (not around July 20th), you have sixteen days to make it to Disney World in Central Florida. The shortest route -- which is probably NOT where you would want to go -- is a little less than 3,000 miles. Driving hell-bent, with a decent pain threshold, that's 5 long days of driving.

The shortest route is the southern route, basically along I-10 through the southern tier of states. With a few detours, that route could take you to Vegas, Grand Canyon (and the prettier areas nearby like Sedona and Monument Valley -- we just returned from two full weeks there), across Texas, through New Orleans, and on to Florida. There is no shortage of places to spend extra days along that route -- you could easily spend weeks exploring northern Arizona and southern Utah alone.

Another route would be more northern, and almost 4,000 miles -- SFO across northern CA and NV to Jackson Hole/Grand Teton/Yellowstone, to Mt. Rushmore, across the upper Great Plains to Chicago, then down the Mississippi River system to New Orleans and east to Mickey.

And then there is a combo route: SFO to Vegas, Grand Canyon and Utah, Yellowstone etc, Chicago, New Orleans, Mickey. That's about 4,300 miles. That would give you a very representative look at parts of the US that you have not visited. It's a long grind, but would be worth it.

On that route, first of all I would spend at least two full days in San Francisco itself. GREAT city, one of my all time faves.

From SFO, I would drive 4-5 hours and spend another 2 days exploring Yosemite National Park in east central CA. It's the prettiest place in America, but it will be a tourist madhouse in July.

You'd want to spend a couple of days in Vegas, at least 2-3 days in Jackson/Grand Teton/Yellowstone, and probably at least one full day in the Rapid City/Mt. Rushmore area. The best way to get from Yosemite to Vegas is up into the alpine area via Tioga Pass (north of the valley, still inside the park) and then down the east side of the Sierras to Vegas.

I would also spend a couple of days in Chicago, and a couple in New Orleans.

A couple of things about that combo route.

One, it's heavily oriented toward our biggest National Parks, so you would want to purchase an America The Beautiful pass. It costs $80 currently (might be going up October 1, 2015...not sure), but it will get your entire carload in any federally-managed recreational land (including all National Park Service sites) for a full year from the month of purchase. You can buy one at any national park. Some of these parks (Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite) are increasing their entrance fees to $40-$50 per car on October 1, so that pass will save you big bucks.

Two, if you visit those parks, you will want to stay INSIDE the park. Outside the park is WAY outside where you want to be. National park lodging can be booked one year and a day from arrival, and many of the parks sell out the first day, so you will want to plan carefully and book as soon as you possibly can. In Yellowstone/Teton, you could cobble something together between the two if you couldn't get exactly what you want. One night in Teton or Jackson, WY and two in Yellowstone would work beautifully.

Yosemite will be the toughest, and you should try for Yosemite Lodge -- moderate price, good accommodations. Don't take any of the outlying areas (Wawona, etc) At Grand Canyon, any lodge except the El Tovar Hotel (expensive) will be fine. In Yellowstone, the Old Faithful area, Canyon, or Lake Yellowstone area are all conveniently located. Mammoth Hot Springs area is well north and not that convenient. Anything in Teton or Jackson, WY is fine for Teton. No lodges at Mt. Rushmore, anything around Rapid City, SD is fine.

For National Parks info, go to www.nps.gov . Specific websites are as follows:

Yosemite - www.nps.gov/yose
Grand Canyon - www.nps.gov/grca
(there are many other NPS sites in N. AZ and So. UT, between Grand Canyon and Yellowstone/Teton)
Grand Teton - www.nps.gov/grte
Yellowstone - www.nps.gov/yell

Please remember, if you are not used to dry heat it can be to much. Desert is very dry and hot. There are days it can run into the 100's + . So if you are not used to it make sure to carry plenty of water with you while driving.

usnuzuloose said:

Please remember, if you are not used to dry heat it can be to much. Desert is very dry and hot. There are days it can run into the 100's + . So if you are not used to it make sure to carry plenty of water with you while driving.

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Not just the hot desert. At Grand Canyon and Flagstaff, at +/-7,000 feet, the temp never went above 80F, but we had to fight dehydration due to the low humidity. It doesn't have to be 100F to be problematic.

Thank you so much for taking the time to post all of that information. We drove from ny in 2012 and I know it might sound mad but I loved just the normal driving in a different country. I drove almost 900 miles in one day and found it so much easier than here in the UK.We couldn't drive that far in one day with our road network. And the people we met en route were so nice to us I really enjoyed the drive and have always wanted to do coast to coast.

usnuzuloose said:

You can take hikes to the bottom of the grand canyon.

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Sure that can be done, but it's one heck of a hike. It's about a mile of elevation gain, mostly at high altitude, and the temperatures get hotter and hotter as you go down. Also - getting a reservation to stay at the bottom (camping or at Phantom Ranch) is difficult. Very few people can manage to hike down and back up in the same day. Not saying it can't be done, but it would require a very high level of fitness and ability to deal with heat.

I've hiked part of the way down. During the summer it's typically recommended to only do it in the morning when the temps are reasonable. I saw a park ranger hiking up from Phantom Ranch talking to our ranger/guide. He apparently started at 5 AM and was looking at getting to the top at about 10 AM. Even if you could manage to do a down and back in the same day, that would mean dealing with the heat.

Another issue is lack of water. There is no water source until you get to the campground or the river. I've seen people go down with barely any water. That's not really advisable unless you're going down 500 vertical feet and back up. I also saw some people going down when they'd still be there after noon time.

bcla said:

Sure that can be done, but it's one heck of a hike. It's about a mile of elevation gain, mostly at high altitude, and the temperatures get hotter and hotter as you go down. Also - getting a reservation to stay at the bottom (camping or at Phantom Ranch) is difficult. Very few people can manage to hike down and back up in the same day. Not saying it can't be done, but it would require a very high level of fitness and ability to deal with heat.

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I believe a hiker died recently trying to hike down to Phantom Ranch and back up in the same day.

Another issue is lack of water. There is no water source until you get to the campground or the river. I've seen people go down with barely any water. That's not really advisable unless you're going down 500 vertical feet and back up. I also saw some people going down when they'd still be there after noon time.

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On Bright Angel Trail (the one most used), there is water (and also emergency phones) at the 1 1/2 mile resthouse, 3 mile resthouse, and at Indian Gardens campground, and of course at the bottom at Phantom Ranch. However, the park service cautions hikers to check with the Backcountry Information Center before you set out, because it is always possible that there could be a water line break or maintenance on the water system in progress.

On the South Kaibab, Hermit/Dripping Springs trails there is no water, but there are two springs with treatable water on Hermit/Dripping Springs.

And it is one HECK of a hike. Even a short hike to the 1 1/2 mile resthouse (3 miles round trip) on Bright Angel Trail involves an elevation drop of 1,120 feet, and of course a gain of 1,120 feet coming back up -- 2,240 feet of down and up in a 3-mile hike. And that's the part of Bright Angel Trail rated only moderate. From that resthouse the rest of the way is rated difficult and very difficult -- and that means very difficult for very fit, experienced hikers. Hiking into the canyon is no simple walk in the park for tourists.

JimMIA said:

I believe a hiker died recently trying to hike down to Phantom Ranch and back up in the same day.On Bright Angel Trail (the one most used), there is water (and also emergency phones) at the 1 1/2 mile resthouse, 3 mile resthouse, and at Indian Gardens campground, and of course at the bottom at Phantom Ranch. However, the park service cautions hikers to check with the Backcountry Information Center before you set out, because it is always possible that there could be a water line break or maintenance on the water system in progress.

On the South Kaibab, Hermit/Dripping Springs trails there is no water, but there are two springs with treatable water on Hermit/Dripping Springs.

And it is one HECK of a hike. Even a short hike to the 1 1/2 mile resthouse (3 miles round trip) on Bright Angel Trail involves an elevation drop of 1,120 feet, and of course a gain of 1,120 feet coming back up -- 2,240 feet of down and up in a 3-mile hike. And that's the part of Bright Angel Trail rated only moderate. From that resthouse the rest of the way is rated difficult and very difficult -- and that means very difficult for very fit, experienced hikers. Hiking into the canyon is no simple walk in the park for tourists.

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The only time I've done it was on the South Kaibab, I only went down to Cedar Ridge, and we were warned that there would be no water at all for the duration of the scheduled hike. We were guided down and told that getting back up we were on our own. Before we started the hike, it was also strongly suggested that we be completely off the trail by noon.

In any case, I would pretty much make sure that I would be ready with lots of water if I were ever able to do it. There was that foolhardy woman who thought that she was super fit because she ran marathons, and attempted to do rim to rim (and back) on the same day with only 1.5 liters of water. She eventually couldn't do it any more, her hiking partner left to find help, and she was eventually found off trail suffering from heat stroke and eventually died. Getting down to the bottom is a serious hike and it pays to be prepared. However, there seem to be a lot of "ultralight" hikers who are going for speed and suffering the consequences.

http://hikeclimbsurfrun.com/2012/08/16/grand-canyon-fastpacking-becoming-a-problem/

Still - nothing quite like the folks who think they can hike Death Valley during the summer. The stereotype is that it's mostly German-speakers from German, Austria, and Switzerland.

Driving straight through without any sightseeing and only stopping to sleep at night would take you a week. Looks like you have 2 weeks allotted to get you from SF to Orlando.

I disagree with the suggestion to go from SF to LA then up to Yellowstone, Chicago, down to New Orleans.

Pick either a northern or a southern route. Since your destination is in the southern half of the US, I think that you should go that route. Interesting things to see along the way:

• SF to Las Vegas - take I-5 to I-15 east.
• Las Vegas eastbound - make your way to I-40 eastbound. This will take you to Flagstaff (close to the Grand Canyon).
• Continue on I-40 east through the rest of northern Arizona and into New Mexico. New Mexico is a beautiful part of the country. There are MANY Native American reservations in New Mexico. Each tribe has their own specialty in terms of art work. Many New Mexico tribes are famous for their pottery. An hour north of Albuquerque is Santa Fe...Santa Fe is an art mecca and is the oldest continually inhabited city in the United States.
• Keep going on I-40 East and turn south in Oklahoma City. Go south on I-35 and eventually, you will hit Dallas & Fort Worth.
• In Dallas, you have 2 options...go east on I-20, which will take you to Shreveport, Louisiana. Or go south on I-45 until you get to Houston and then get on I-10 east. Louisiana is the heart of bayou country.
• I imagine that you'd want to make a stop in New Orleans. So once you're done in New Orleans, go east on I-10. Once you leave Louisiana, you'll pass through Mississippi, then a small part of Alabama. Then you'll finally hit Florida.

What sort of things does your family like to do? A cool website that is full of unique roadside attractions in the US is http://www.roadsideamerica.com/. That might give you some ideas for odd & unique stop overs along the way.

I forgot to add!

If you're driving through New Mexico and it works out for your dates, you shouldn't miss the Crownpoint Rug Auction in Crownpoint, New Mexico. It happens once a month in a school gym in a small town in the middle of nowhere. But Navajo people from all over Arizona and New Mexico go there each month to sell their hand made Navajo rugs. They are true works of art and this is an opportunity to purchase it directly from the weaver/artist.

In case you're interested, their website is located at http://www.crownpointrugauction.com/.

And if you miss that month's rug auction, driving along the I-40 route will have you passing by many trading posts. One of the more famous ones is the Hubbell Trading post (http://www.nps.gov/hutr/index.htm).

bcla said:

There was that foolhardy woman who thought that she was super fit because she ran marathons,

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Yeah, I used to do a lot of running -- 70 miles per week.

Two problems with her theory. One is that there is a huge fitness difference between a sub-4 hour marathon runner and a 6-8 hour marathon walker/jogger. And two, even a serious marathon runner is fit in a different way than a GRCA hiker needs to be fit.

...she was eventually found off trail suffering from heat stroke and eventually died.

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In addition, there is a specific type of heat stroke for highly trained athletes -- exertional heat stroke -- and even if she was in amazing shape, that may have gotten her. I've only seen one of those, but it was ugly. Or hypoglycemia because she burned all her fuel. Nothing in the body works without sugar.

Still - nothing quite like the folks who think they can hike Death Valley during the summer. The stereotype is that it's mostly German-speakers from German, Austria, and Switzerland.

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Yeah, we get those at Everglades too. They hike 15 miles, completely in the open, no shade at all, in 90+ degree heat, with one 20 oz bottle of water. But most of them do fine, despite what you'd expect. Hiking is a big darn deal in Germany and they are used to it.

I don't worry about the Germans; I worry about the 100 lb overweight Americans trying to do a one mile walk in completely flat terrain!

VandVsmama said:

Since your destination is in the southern half of the US, I think that you should go that route. Interesting things to see along the way:

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That's basically one of the routes I mentioned, but I wouldn't go that way for two reasons.

One is I-5 down the Central Valley of California has to be one of the most boring drives I've ever taken. California is such a beautiful and interesting state, but that stretch of road is just road. And the other reason is the drive from Santa Fe NM to New Orleans is 1,100+ miles with absolutely nothing to see. Both of those drives are beyond boring.

JimMIA said:

Yeah, I used to do a lot of running -- 70 miles per week.

Two problems with her theory. One is that there is a huge fitness difference between a sub-4 hour marathon runner and a 6-8 hour marathon walker/jogger. And two, even a serious marathon runner is fit in a different way than a GRCA hiker needs to be fit. In addition, there is a specific type of heat stroke for highly trained athletes -- exertional heat stroke -- and even if she was in amazing shape, that may have gotten her. I've only seen one of those, but it was ugly. Or hypoglycemia because she burned all her fuel. Nothing in the body works without sugar.
Yeah, we get those at Everglades too. They hike 15 miles, completely in the open, no shade at all, in 90+ degree heat, with one 20 oz bottle of water. But most of them do fine, despite what you'd expect. Hiking is a big darn deal in Germany and they are used to it.

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This was the death I was thinking of:


Well - Death Valley is a bit hotter, but it is indeed a dry heat. At least during summer, mosquitoes aren't going to be a problem. The only issue is that it's so dry that many people don't even sweat - water leaving the pores just vaporizes. I've been to Death Valley in summer just once, and I can't imagine walking more than the distance from my car to the convenience store.

JimMIA said:

That's basically one of the routes I mentioned, but I wouldn't go that way for two reasons.

One is I-5 down the Central Valley of California has to be one of the most boring drives I've ever taken. California is such a beautiful and interesting state, but that stretch of road is just road. And the other reason is the drive from Santa Fe NM to New Orleans is 1,100+ miles with absolutely nothing to see. Both of those drives are beyond boring.

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True, but I-5 to LA is just a 5-6 hour drive. It's not like you're on it for days and days.

And yes, New Mexico to New Orleans is full of wide open road with not much to see. But one could stop at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. That's a really cool place. http://www.nps.gov/CAVE/index.htm

Or you could spend a night or 2 on a dude ranch in New Mexico or Texas. Get an authentic Old West experience.

Austin, Texas is a really cool town with lots of fun shopping and outdoorsy things to do.

Or you could spend a night in San Antonio, see the Alamo, and go along the River Walk in downtown.

The OP could also stop in any major city and probably see a major league baseball game given the time of year that they're going. Or even better....go to a minor league baseball game. Those are tons of fun.

Or while in New Mexico, visit the White Sands National Monument.

Or stop in Roswell, NM and visit some of the quirky UFO kitchsy roadside attractions.

Or if you have money to spend, go to the Santa Clara Pueblo. If you're interested in visiting a Native American reservation in New Mexico, there's lots of info on this website which explains all of the Pueblos' locations, etiquette, etc. http://indianpueblo.org/

You could also do an eating tour of those states...for example, sample BBQ in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida. Texas BBQ is different than Mississippi style ribs. And the cuisine in Louisiana is different than in Arizona or New Mexico.