With the success of our first family road trip to Florida in the Summer 2005 under our belt, my family was ready to spread their wings — literally. Our next big trip would also be a road trip — but this one would require us to fly to one destination and road trip to other points from there. I had always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. This destination seemed a great starting point for a road trip that would continue west into California.
In early February, I started researching and planning our vacation. I knew that we would go away for two weeks in the summer. School vacations seemed to be the season of choice for my family. No taking our kids out of school to vacation!
So I booked my vacation time with my employer and began the planning process.
I learned two important things from this trip that would be beneficial for future travels involving air travel and National Park visits:–
(1) Research what airports would be the best to fly into, both economically and and logistically. Set up travel alerts with travel sites for airfares. Book an “open jaw” flight, where you fly into one place and out of another city. If using airline miles, book as soon as possible to get the best flights and,
(2) Use the NPS.gov website for valuable information about your National Park destination from accommodations to planning your daily itinerary.
So here’s my itinerary:
Day 1- Flew into Las Vegas, Nevada arriving late afternoon.
The two airport choices when visiting the Grand Canyon are McCarran- Las Vegas and Phoenix. Both are about a 4 hour drive to the Grand Canyon. With that in mind, I knew we’d spend at least one night where we flew in to acclimate.
We picked up our rental car and started our adventure.
We checked into our hotel, freshened up , got some food and explored our hotel. Since this was the first time that we would face a time change, as a family, I wanted to make sure we took it relatively easy.
Our hotel of choice was Circus, Circus. I figured a hotel with a theme park built in would be a definite hit with my kids.
Day 2 — Explored Red Rock Canyon, met some Star Trek aliens and experienced the Strip at night
Waking up refreshed, we got some breakfast and headed over to Red Rock Canyon to do some hiking. The landscape was absolutely amazing. It is here that my kids participated in their first Junior Ranger program. This tradition would continue in our future visits to other National Parks and historic sights.
After an amazing morning of exploring and hiking, we were hungry! Lunch at the Las Vegas Hilton and the Star Trek Experience was a big hit.
This hotel has since changed names and this exhibit is no longer in operation but there is always something to do in Las Vegas. Do some research and you’ll be rewarded!
Back to the hotel for some pool time, theme park rides and dinner. A walk at night along the Las Vegas strip ended a perfect day.
Day 4 — Drove to Grand Canyon with stops along the way.
We started our four hour journey in the morning, passing by the Hoover dam and stopping in Williams, Arizona for lunch. Driving into Williams was a full on sensory experience. We immediately began to smell the alpine ecosystem.Williams is known for being the gateway to the Grand Canyon. Visitors can choose to take the Grand Canyon railroad into the park from here.
My daughter had to get a pic with the Route 66 sign!
We then finished our drive and entered the Grand Canyon National Park. We parked and walked out to the Rim and got our first look at this Natural Wonder.
Days 4-6 — Explored the Grand Canyon
We spent the next several days exploring the many trails this park had to offer, using the shuttle system to get around, and participated in Ranger programs. Make sure to visit the Ranger Visitor Center soon after you arrive. It is here you will get valuable information about what to do by professional park rangers.
Day 7- Drove to Carlsbad, California
A long drive over to California was on our itinerary today. Dinner and a walk on the beach was enough.
Days 8-9 — Visited Legoland and San Diego Zoo
Legoland was a big hit with my kids. The creativity behind these amazing structures built from Legos was quite inspiring. Seeing the famous panda at the San Diego Zoo also was a hit.
Days 10-11 — A visit to Big Bear Mountain and family
My Uncle Freddie lived in California since he was young man and had retired to the Big Bear Mountain area. I was lucky enough to connect with him and my cousins and made it a conscious effort to spend some time with him.
This area is know for its skiing but that didn’t stop us from taking the ski lift to the top to see the amazing views.
Days 12-14 — Hollywood, Here we come!
We were ending our trip in where else — HOLLYWOOD! I booked the Magic Castle hotel which was a delight.
We visited all the best LA sights including Venice Beach, Universal Studios, Graumman’s Chinese Theatre and Hollywood Boulevard. We even took in a show at the Hollywood Bowl!
Well, all things come to an end. So we waved goodbye to Hollywood and headed home. But we knew, our travel story would continue to grow each year.
And almost one decade later, we would revisit the Grand Canyon yet again with a road trip that would include a more extensive list of National Parks.