# Family from Australia needs advice



## shona (May 14, 2007)

Hey guys,
We are a family from Oz that are renting an A class and travelling in Sept from LA to Las Vegas, Grand Canyon and then on the Banff. We want to travel to the west coast in Canada to visit family and return to LA. We are allowing  a month to do this. We will have 4 adults and 4 kids aged 6-11. I know this is a bit squishy, but we think the inconvenience is worth it. Any advice on where to stop, travel times and distances or anything at all would be greatly appreciated. The more info, the better the trip!!
Thanks, 
Shona


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## shona (May 15, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Sorry guys, 
Shona again. Is there a good guide for RV parks that show how far off the highway they are, facilities, phone numbers etc. I am going to have to source this on the internet from Australia so something not too heavy to ship over would be good.


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## hertig (May 15, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

I'm looking at the Woodall's Campground directory which has all that, but its pretty big and heavy.  I think Good Sam club has an online service like that you can subscribe to.


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## C Nash (May 15, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Next Exit is a great book but for interstate travel only. It tells where fuel, food, campgrounds are located (only those located at the exit or close) and even Wally Worlds


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## shona (May 16, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Thanks for the help guys!
Can anyone help me with the actual trip too? How long it would be to drive ( and sightsee!) heading north from the grand canyon, or down the west coast?
Shona


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## hertig (May 16, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

From LA to Las Vegas is claimed to be 271 miles, 4:37 driving time, from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon (South Rim) is claimed to be 276 miles and 5:00 hours.  From Grand Canyon to Banff is claimed to be 1483 miles, 26:12 hours, and lots of steep grades.  At least 3 days, and 4 or 5 would be less stressful.  From Banff to Seattle, Washington is claimed to be 571 miles and 10:48 hours driving, probably 2 days minimum.  And back to LA is claimed to be 1143 miles with 19:37 hours of driving and some steep grades.  I'd say at least 3 days.

So total for the trip listed above is estimated to be 3744 miles and 66:14 hours of driving.  I'd say 12 days or more of driving between stops, and one presumes you will spend at least 1 day at each stop.

Don't forget to allow time for buying gas, stretching your legs, eating, shopping and sightseeing, and crossing the US/Canada border.


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## shona (May 16, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Wonderul help. Thank you so much. We are allowing 10 days to Banff. 12 days with a bit of a stopover to head west and 10 days to get back down to LA. Definitely any sightseeing must do's would be helpful. Do you know how far out of the way it is to Yosemite or Yellowstone?
Shona


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## hertig (May 16, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

If you really want to see the Grand Canyon with minimum hassle, see if you can book a tour with Marvelous Marv.  There is a fairly nice campground (Canyon Gateway Park, I think) about 30 miles west of Flagstaff just off I40, (they belong to Passport America and are half price for members) and if you book the tour through them, there is a significant discount.  Marv will pick you up, take you to the best places, tell you all about the canyon, allow time for lunch and shopping, all while avoiding the crowds, and take you back to the campground.  If you want to see the South Rim, I don't know of any better way to do it.

Yosimite is in California, North of Las Vegas, so you would have to do some backtracking to see it on the way to Las Vegas.  Alternatively, you could leave the coast and hit it on the way back to LA, but it is east of LA, so again you would have to backtrack a bit.  Probably would not add more than a day to either leg of the trip (not counting time spent there, of course).  

Yellowstone is in the North West corner of Wyoming.  I'm not familiar with the route between Las Vegas and Banff but it is possible you could swing by Yellowstone with little or no distance out of your way.


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## TexasClodhopper (May 17, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Wow!  You guys are going to wear out the driver quick!     :laugh:


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## hertig (May 17, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

What do you mean?  I used to drive 12 hours a day and sleep in my truck to get where I was going.  So only 8 hours a day and hauling a real bed is a cakewalk by comparison.  

Of course, once I got there, I would stay for at least 2 weeks...


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## shona (May 18, 2007)

Re: Family from Australia needs advice

Would we be better to head from Las Vegas to the north rim of the grand canyon, than go to the south rim and then drive north? It seems like it would save about 5 to 6 hours driving. Is there a good RV park near the north rim? I like the idea of seeing the scenery without big crowds and lots of shops. The south rim seems very commercial from what I can tell. Would we then be close the Zion national park? We would then be heading north thru Utah.


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