Road Trip Vegas LA SF

[K.john]

The Grand Canyon is over 200 miles from Las Vegas though you can easily get to Grand Canyon on highway 93 south from Las Vegas to Interstate 40 east to highway 64, which takes a little under 5 hours.

If you've never been to GC I really recommend visiting Grand Canyon Village to get oriented with the National Park. The visitors center is located in the village and offers lectures, videos and rangers to assist you.

I wouldn't advise though attempting to hike to the bottom of the canyon by yourself. It's best you take a brisk walk about a third of the way down which still gives you great views of the expansive canyon.

Originally Posted by acker00

Hi

Me and my friends are going on a road trip in august. We fly into Las Vegas, then want to go to Grand Canyon, then LA, Monterey, San Fransisco.

I have some Q´s:
-How long time do we need to drive from Vegas to Grand C?
-How long time to drive from Grand C to LA?

Will it be necessary to make stop-overs, and if so, any recommandations on cities/places on the way to see?

Does anyone have any tips what´s not to miss out on?And is there any big happenings in the area between 5-15 of august?

Best,Cam

[dominoeffect]

You should do Vegas to Grand Canyon in one trip without any stop overs, though you could do Hoover Dam which is either a one hour stop to see it, or 1-2 hours more for guided tours.

As far as Driving from Las Vegas the highway no longer travels across the dam. There is now a bypass bridge over the canyon, and the dam is not visible from the bridge. If you want to see Hoover Dam, save it for the return trip, or take a short trip from LV another day.

Also iIn my opinion, Chloride is not worth the stop, and you cannot drive to Supai Village as it can only be reached by hiking down 9 miles.

In my opinion, spend your time at GCNP. The amount of time you have planned is perfect for a first-time visitor to the canyon.

[joancantona]

I've done a road trip between LA to Vegas a few times before and I'd suggest to avoid doing it over the weekend as the traffic is really bad. On any weekend, you'll see traffic lots of traffic and your drive to Vegas wont be pleasant at all.

Also, on the stop there, you may want to stop over at Barstow which is a good place to stop and fill your tank and your stomach.

[t@m@r@]

I did a road trip early this year between Los Angeles and Las Vegas and took over 4 hours. I took the Interstate 5 which takes you northeast from Los Angeles to Barstow then across the vast expanse of the Mojave Desert to Las Vegas Nevada. The road is great, though I remembered it being very busy on Friday which is why I suggest you avoid the Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings as many Californians head to Vegas for weekend getaways.

[joancantona]

I did a road trip to Vegas not long ago over a weekend, and roads were jam-packed with traffic. Trust me,there will be traffic even at 3 a.m on a Saturday morning! My advice is to do the road trip during the week. On an average weekend, the traffic is not too bad and you can usually make it from L.A. to Vegas in about 6 hours. Mind you, you'll still encounter a bit of traffic around Barstow, but it'll clear up and you could end up going about 70 mph the rest of the way.

[biooil]

I drove to Vegas this past labor day weekend, though it's a drive I have done many times before from Los Angeles. I realized that this drive has barely changed at all in the last few years as I'm still seeing the same sights, the same funny landmarks like the World's Largest Thermometer and the Zzyzx Road sign.

There is also the useless agricultural inspection station booth.... If you're unfamiliar with that, when you're driving from Vegas to L.A., right before you hit Barstow, you have to drive through an agricultural inspection. It looks like a toll booth and, in theory, I guess it's there to make sure you're not smuggling oranges or something into California.

[milfordplaza]

I individually recommend going down the shore along the paciffic freeway, and quit at Monterey and Fantastic Sur before going to San Francisco. From SF, you can check out Yosemite and Loss of life Area nature, which is on the way to Nevada.