Days 21 - 22: Las Vegas
Distance: 265km / 165 miles
Today you’ll head to Las Vegas where you’ll be staying for the next two nights. There's plenty to do here; perhaps have a flutter in one of the casinos, see a show or simply walk the strip and take it all in. Vegas comes to life at night, so we recommend visiting when the city is up in lights. The Bellagio Hotel is a particularly beautiful sight to behold.
For those wanting to escape Vegas we suggest taking an excursion to see the Grand Canyon. You’ll fly by plane from to the Grand Canyon from where you’ll take a helicopter ride over the stunning North Rim before exploring the South Rim and the Grand Canyon Village, all this and you’ll still be back in Vegas by evening to see a show!
Days 23 - 24: Calico
Distance: 238km / 148 miles
Your journey today takes you south west along the northern borders of the Mojave National Preserve which with its sand dunes, canyons, mountains and carpets of wildflowers is the complete opposite from what you will have experience in Vegas.
Calico is an old west mining town that has been around since 1881 during the largest silver strike in California. With its 500 mines, Calico produced over $20 million in silver ore over a 12-year span. When silver lost its value in the mid 1890s Calico lost its population. The miners packed up, loaded their mules and moved away abandoning the town that once gave them a good living. It became a "ghost" town.
Days 25 - 26: Sequoia National Park
Distance: 444km / 276 miles
From Calico head north east towards the Sequoia National Forest which will be your home for the next two nights. On route make a stop at Bakersfield which is universally recognized as ‘The Country Music Capital of the West Coast’. It is the birthplace for what would become known worldwide as the Bakersfield Sound. The sub genre of country music – described as a mix of twangy guitars, drums, fiddle, and steel guitar and was a defiant reaction to the string orchestras and the polished sound of albums being recorded in Nashville during the 1950s and 60s.
Running adjacent to Kings Canyon National Park in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Sequoia National Park is best known for its huge sequoia trees, notably the General Sherman Tree that dominates the Giant Forest. Moro Rock is a granite dome offering sweeping park views and close by is the Tunnel Tree, a toppled tree that has been cut to accommodate the road.
Days 27 - 28: Yosemite National Park
Distance: 193km / 120 miles
Today you’ll continue your journey north to Yosemite via Fresno, perhaps make a stop here to visit the Shinzen Japanese Gardens in Woodward Park.
Yosemite National Park is arguably California’s best known National Park, located in the Sierra Nevada mountains it counts giant ancient sequoia trees, the towering Bridalveil Fall and the cliffs of El Capitan and Half Dome as its main attractions.
Days 29 - 31: San Francisco
Distance: 359 km / 223 miles
Leaving behind the Yosemite National Park, you’ll be heading east to the San Francisco, the city on the bay where you’ll be spending the next three nights.
No trip to San Francisco is complete without a visit to the former prison on the rock; Alcatraz, make sure you pre-book this though as only a limited amount of places are available each day.
For those with a little more energy we recommend hiring a bike and cycling along San Francisco’s stunning waterfront, across the Golden Gate Bridge and down to the picturesque seaside town of Sausalito before getting the ferry back to San Francisco.
The holidays to America are provided by Alan Rogers Travel Ltd, a subsidiary of the Caravan and Motorhome Club. ATOL No.11309
