California road trip – best done in a convertible (top down of course!) with sunnies and a hat (always practical!)
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| Our Ride |
Start: San Francisco
Finish: Las Vegas
Route:
San Fran > Napa Valley > Yosemite > Monterey > The Big Sur > Santa Barbara > Los Angeles >
Las Vegas
The car: Mustang convertible
Who: Hubby and myself
Flights: Virgin Atlantic both ways – outwards flight: London Heathrow > San Francisco – return flight: Las Vegas > London Heathrow
How Long: 15 days
How many suitcases: 1 large, 1 medium and a sports holdall (hand luggage: handbag and backpack)
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| Grand Canyon |
This road trip was such a long time coming! We booked the majority of things back in Jan 2018 and had to wait until 30 June to jump on the flight to finally get to the US. Was it worth the wait… 100%. The whole trip blew our expectations out of the water. Just look at these views – out of this world!
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| Monterey Pebble Beach 17 Mile Drive |
Highlights:
- San Fran: Seeing the Golden Gate bridge through the hazy fog
- Napa Valley: Wine tasting at the Castello – what a place!
- Yosemite: The scenes wherever you look – Vernon Falls was worth every step
- Monterey: Watching the sunset at Pebble beach (17 mile drive)
- The Big Sur: Driving along the coast and the incredible views
- Santa Barbara: Eating lunch along main road at The Brewhouse
- Los Angeles: Little Venice and Abbots Kinney
- Las Vegas: Helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon
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| Yosemite Vernon Falls |
Although the whole trip was fantastic, there were a few (just a few) things that could have been better…
‘Low’lights:
- San Fran: The amount of homeless people in the financial district (where our hotel was) – I didn’t feel like I would have been comfortable walking around by myself in this part of the city
- Napa Valley: Had our most expensive sandwich here (to be honest it was tasty!)
- Yosemite: Being scared a bear or mountain lion might pop up on us – I know… I’m a muppet… in my defence there were signs everywhere to be on the outlook!
- Monterey: It was quite touristy in the main area
- The Big Sur: I can’t think of anything – it was amazing!
- Santa Barbara: Wish that we had stayed in Santa Barbara itself rather than Goleta
- Los Angeles: Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame – not very impressed with the specific part of the city
- Las Vegas: So expensive!
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| Napa Valley V. Sattui Winery |
