Road trip Western USA, perfect itinerary

This road trip in West America was easily one of the most memorable ones of my life. Together with my mom and younger sister we rented a van back in autumn 2016 and we visited some of the many stunning national parks. We only had 10 days but you can obviously take it easy and visit the same parks in 2-3 weeks.

10 days later we had driven nearly 3000 kilometers, crossed 4 states, visited 4 National Parks, 2 big cities and 1 National Recreation Area. And somehow I still managed to forget about the added tax every single time I paid somewhere.

Itinerary 10 days road trip starting in California

Sept 29 – 30 Arrival San Francisco, via coast to Bakersfield

We flew into San Francisco where we had rented a hand painted van from Escape campervans. I landed earlier than the others so I was the lucky one who had to pick up the van, even though I’d never driven a car this size before.. I had time to spare so went to get some essentials before picking them up, juicy burgers from In ‘n Out!

We spent the first night on a basic campsite at New Brighton Beach State Park. End of September meant pleasant days, but freezing cold nights and mornings, which is not really great when your van doesn’t have a bathroom. Particularly for someone who needs to use the toilet in the middle of the night. Yep, that was fun.

After an early morning walk to the beach and a big stack of pancakes for breakfast, we headed towards Monterey. Monterey is a city at the coast of central California, with a pier full of restaurants and shops, and lots of seals swimming and lounging around it. We strolled around for a bit, stocked up on groceries and continued driving to Bakersfield.

It was a long drive, but the landscapes were stunning, and so was the sunset! Mom and I took turns in driving, but after several hours we were so tired that we decided to spend the night in a park where some other campers were parked. When I woke up during the night for a little toilet break (told ya), I noticed we were the only ones left in the park and we started to doubt if this was actually a place to camp.. Oops.

Oct 1 – 2  Route 66, Las Vegas & Valley of Fire

The next morning there was a lot of noise and it sounded like there was a lot happening around us. We opened the curtains to find people preparing for what looked like quite the event, so it was time for us to move.

Over the famous Route 66 we headed towards the highly overrated, but still must visit Las Vegas. We stopped at a pretty epic place on the way, namely, Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch. In the middle of nowhere at the side of the road there is a big garden full of art, old cars and thousands if not millions of empty colourful bottles. Such a cool project, definitely worth to have a little break and snap some shots!

Since we hád to stop and roam around the photogenic vintage shops, we got a little delayed and reached Las Vegas in the dark, which is actually the best time to arrive in this explosion of light. I had been in Las Vegas in 2012 with some friends, so it wasn’t very spectacular for me anymore, but it was my sisters first time. After quickly freshening up we went out for a neverending walk over the Strip, until we were nearly at the end. The famous Strip is basically a street where all main hotels/resorts and casinos are connected to. Besides that, there is just a lot of lights, noise, wasted people and guys who try to get you into stripclubs etc. For some reason they even think 3 innocent women, dressed in basic travel outfits (one of them underage), could be interested in going there..

After a long walk we filled our bellies and called it a night.

The Valley of Fire State Park turned out to be one of our favorite parks, as it was not as crowded as the other ones we visited, so we could just stop at the site of the road and explore the area a bit more. Besides that, we camped overnight in the park, which was an incredible experience! There were only a few other campers around us, so it was extremely peaceful and dark in the evening. The ultimate combination for stargazing if you ask me.

Oct 3 – 4 Zion, Page, Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon

The fourth day had arrived and waking up in our van, surrounded by nothing but nature was magical, to say the least! We walked around and climbed some more rock formations before we headed towards Zion National Park. I was so excited to go there!

Over 200 KMs later we arrived at the endless line of campervans which were all making their way into the park. Don’t get me wrong, this park is stunning and we loved to see all the different forms and colors of the rocks, but the traffic at the park entrance made it a bit of an underwhelming experience.

After wandering around, we had lunch in a gorgeous spot overlooking the valley, which definitely made up for that first impression. Late afternoon we drove to our campsite next to Lake Powell, where we arrived right before the sun went down. This was a first come first serve campsite, just like many others in the US, meaning if you get there too late you may not have a spot at all. Luckily we found a beautiful spot overlooking the lake.

It was right after sunrise when some early birds, both people and animals woke us, but we didn’t mind as we had an intense day ahead. No day should start without a proper breakfast though, especially if you can sit outside and watch some wild rabbits with a backdrop of Lake Powell. These are the little moments you’ll remember forever.

First thing on the agenda was the Horseshoe Bend, a place we had seen on instagram way too many times, so we had to check it out for ourselves. This is one of the most popular places in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Not only were we blown away by the beauty of this natural phenomenon, but also by the creativity of certain visitors, and how they risk their lives for the perfect photo. Such entertainment. I’m still not sure whether it’s funny or cringy. Well, we certainly had fun copying them!

Oh well, let’s continue cause we had a busy day remember?!

Only a short drive from Horseshoe Bend you’ll encounter the Antelope Canyon, a slot canyon existing of the Upper and Lower Canyon. It is located on the land of a Navajo Tribe and is considered sacred and spiritual to their culture.

Therefore, the only way to explore these canyons is with a guided tour, which is recommended to book in advance. We booked a tour at the Upper Antelope Canyon the evening before, but if you have a specific time preference it’s better to book it further ahead of time.

FYI: The sunbeams are only visible between late March and early October.

Although this is a highly visited attraction, I wouldn’t have want to miss out on this natural wonder. Our guide knew exactly what he was doing and helped us getting the sunbeams perfectly photographed, by simply changing the iPhone filter. Pff cheater. Some areas are very tight so if you’re claustrophobic I suggest that you stick to watching the photos or visiting another canyon in the region.

We spent that night in Las Vegas where we walked through some of the most famous hotels, such as the Venetian and Caesars Palace.

Oct 5 – 6 Las Vegas, Death Valley, June Lake

For a change we had a relaxing morning at the pool and did some shopping in the outlet just outside the city. Death Valley was the next park on the route. The nature in Death Valley is very different from the other parks as it is completely dry and certain areas are even like the desert. Did you know Death Valley retrieved its name from a group of pioneers who got lost and expected to die there? Eventually, only one of them did not make it out.

That afternoon we entered Yosemite National Park, which is enormous and so green! Only driving through it was already a wonderful experience. Once we arrived at Oh Ridge Campground, we found our spot next to the gorgeous June lake. We had conquered one of the best spaces of the whole park and could literally see the lake from our beds.

This was definitely a night to remember, not only because of the setting but mainly because of the people we met. It started when we were dipping our feet in the lake and all of a sudden a woman came over, offering to take some photos of us. She happened to be a photographer and got all excited using my moms camera, (the photos turned out very nice, so if you read this lovely crazy photographing woman, thank you!)

After the sun went down, it got extremely cold so we tried to make a bonfire. These three muppets had never made a fire in their life, so we obviously failed big time. Our friendly neighbors spotted us struggling, so they came over to help. We ended up eating marshmallows together, while listening to their stories and the guitar music of the photographers husband.

Oct 7 – 8 Yosemite Park & San Francisco

The end of our road trip was near, and this was our last day surrounded by nature before we would drive towards the big city. We spent all day exploring and hiking in Yosemite National Park. This park is covered in more than 800 miles of trails, so I would love to come back in a different season, because late summer is definitely not the best time to see impressive waterfalls. You should have seen our disappointed faces once we reached what was supposed to be Vernal Fall, but in reality was nothing more than a sad stream coming from the top of a rock. Thankfully, it was a wonderful trail and the weather was amazing, so we still really enjoyed it.

After getting lost in the woods and driving around on a campground full of gypsy-ish people and old caravan wrecks, we finally found the right place. The locals working there built a big bonfire and everyone came together to listen to their stories and warm their hands, as we were located in quite a mountainous area. Though, I had to get used to having my sisters feet next to my ear, I guess sleeping together in the same bed was actually a great cure for the cold nights.

Oct 9 – 10 San Francisco

I know I haven’t even seen half of the major cities in the United State, but based on the ones I have visited, San Francisco is definitely one of my favorites. It has a unique character with all its different neighborhoods. Although it is a large city, certain areas really have more of a town vibe.

San Francisco is loaded with iconic places, such as the prominent Golden Gate bridge, the crowded Pier 39 leading all the way to Pier 29 where you’ll be welcomed by the loudly roaring sea lions, the picturesque Painted Ladies and of course the crooked Lombard Street, which is known as the crookedest street of the world, but is actually the second curviest. These are all places the majority of people have on their bucket list, resulting in hordes of tourists all trying to get the best shot, while there are loads of lesser known places you can’t miss out on. Not to mention all the restaurants..

To be honest, this itinerary is quite packed and may not be for everyone. I think we can all agree that it’s always better to spend more than 1 day in a National Park, but since we simply didn’t have more time and had to take all of our opinions and preferences into consideration, this was the only solution. Nevertheless, we had the time of our lives and it didn’t feel tiring or jammed at all. I’m pretty sure we would do it all over again if we had the chance, only with the little bro included.

Some great operators that offer Fly & Drive trips (from the Netherlands):

TUI Fly & Drive Sunweb Fly & Drive

Or just rent a car or campervan seperately!

Sunnycars