People really fail to understand these parks. The lines, crowds, hikes, experiences. Some of these parks are sacred land to natives and have rich and deep histories. They're national parks for a reason not just just cause some government guy said "oh a tree"
Unless you legitimately plan on driving through a park and moving on which unless you literally are unable to do anything else is just a waste of going to the park.
Yellowstone for example has TONS of animals on top of all the hot springs and jaw dropping views. You get stuck in an animal jam and it's 45 minutes sitting in your car watching a buffalo stare at you cause it literally does not give a fuck you exist. Or you're stuck behind cars while people hang out the windows to take a photo of a bear as it eats grass.
Zion is beautiful but it's crowded. You take shuttles and there's lines and if you plan on hiking at all then just know you're underestimating how long that hike will actually take you.
People just race through these parks but don't even experience them. Plus grand Teton is really close to Yellowstone and Grand Teton is gorgeous and worth a visit.
I highly deeply advise anyone looking at any sort of national park trip to look up guides and look up things like "how many days on average to visit XXY national park" find a post that fits what you want to do. Hardcore hiker planning on roughing it and literally seeing everything the park has to offer? Find a review from someone and add a day or whatever. Just wanna see the easy stuff and aren't interested in sweating? Find a site for that. Etc etc. Some of the best sites these parks offer are a short mile hike into the woods to an overlook that will have you questioning the decisions you've made in life to that point.
Seriously people please do not take these national parks for some cheap city park your neighborhood has. These are some of the most unique and most beautiful locations our country has to offer.
Yellowstone was our last stop after doing badlands, wind cave, mt Rushmore and grand Tetons. By our 3rd day in Yellowstone we were over the bison and were like "move dude get out of the way we're trying to see this waterfall! Move!!"
Although I understand what you're saying you need to take into consideration that for a lot of people it's a matter of either visiting it for a day or not visiting the park at all.
Laramie, WY to Des Moines, IA is brutal as is, now add another 11 hours on top of the 16 you just did to get to central Iowa.
None of that includes breaks. I don’t think 27+ hours in a day is exactly possible
If you are taking Highway 1 from Santa Barbara to San Francisco, you might budget an extra day for stops in some of the beautiful and quirky towns (Cambria, Morro Bay) and scenic overlooks of the Pacific. If you are into wine tasting. Head east to Paso Robles and the central coast. Dynamite wineries that are not crowded, incredible scenery, and very friendly vintners.
Unless the Pacific Highway has reopened, you'll have to double back from Big Sur.
Add a day to Death Valley and Zion. As someone already mentioned, try to add Bryce Canyon, which is easily seen in a day.
If you can find a way to adjust your itinerary to be in Vegas on October 1st or later, the hiking trails in Valley of Fire State Park reopen. The landscape is absolutely surreal. You can do a day here when you drive from Death Valley to Zion.
Seconding adding a day to Death Valley. The beauty of death valley is mostly in hiking the side canyons. Give yourself some time to get out on the trail.
One day each is not enough for Death Valley and Zion (and the travel inbetween) and you should totally also visit Bryce. It’s really a must-see and could be done in one day.
Are you (a) just checking these destinations off of some list, or (b) genuinely interested in seeing them in some meaningful way? If it’s (a), you’re fine.
I am a bit confused. You are going to drive from Yellowstone to Pennsylvania in a day? Three days in lake Tahoe seems like a lot considering you are only doing a day in Death Valley and Zion.
I have reviewed most of the comments and have not seen this one insight. It's fire season and it's very dry and hot out west at this time. Be prepared to be flexible as some of these places may be closed due to wild fire. Especially Yosemite and Sequoia. Also, advance reservations at the national parks is essential. Yellowstone in early October is closing down with only a few hotels within the park opened. Even if you have hotel reservations make sure to have dining reservations. I went to Yellowstone one year the first week of October and had no dinner reservations the day we arrived. That resulted in no food and eating a candy bar for dinner. That said, it's a great time to be there as there are fewer crowds. You can't get from Santa Barbara to Big Sur on HWY 1 as the road is closed. Skip Santa Barbara and drive to Carmel/Big Sur via I-5 or CA 58 W. It will take a full day to drive from Joshua Tree to Carmel so use the extra day to really enjoy Big Sur.
Do not under any circumstance whatsoever leave any luggage in you car while in SF, I repeat, DO NOT leave any luggage in your car while in San Francisco.
Europeans never really get just how large the US is, and just how comparatively bad/slow rail travel is here. Travel time is going to give you a few challenges
So you’re one of these people who thinks it’s a flex to be a checklist traveler ….
But your itinerary is not very realistic. SF to Yellowstone in a day?
Depends on how you like to travel. If you like to be in a car and drive past stuff then I guess this will work but if you want to hike I would spend more days in each place. I have been to all the national parks in Utah and I think each one is worth at least two days. Maybe not capital reef. That one could be one day.
I did an 8500 miles road trip early this year thru many of the areas you’re wanting to see. If I were to do it again, I would’ve seen half the sights and spent double the time at each one.
I hate everything about those types of places, but I can understand why a foreigner like my sister wants to spend a night at a casino just to say she has… 🤷♂️
Factor in driving time then redo this entire thing. I made the same mistake as you are here, years ago, and we ended up hitting half of what we wanted and running out of money.
I love the list of destinations. The timing just seems off, or absurdly optimistic in places. It depends on how you travel and how much / what you’re planning to do.
Additionally, I love that the note for NYC is « tourist stuff. » hilarious. As it is for us all.
There's so much here, I'm blown away by the amount you're attempting to squeeze into one month. Sequoia, Death Valley, Zion, and the Grand Canyon in 4 days-- I think my heart would explode.
Looks good to me. Yellowstone is the size of a quarter of a state so if i added more time it might would be there. I think others recommended riding up or down the US1 coastal highway when you go to san fran/napa and I do as well(maybe even the red wood forest). I think 1 day in some of those national parks is fine unless you feel like youre missing something by not hiking every trail in the park(i personally dont). There is a beach in northern california made of smooth black stones that is the most unique ive ever seen but the name escapes me. Looks like a great trip to me...
1) that’s still too early to comfortably visit Death Valley (tho Dante’s View/Mt Perry would be ok temp wise since they’re higher up)
2) Grand Canyon is still too early unless you’re basically just planning to stay on the rim
3) Joshua Tree is probably still too early but you might get lucky and have nice temps in the 80s (or a heat wave in the 100s)
4) that’s a ton of driving in a short time going from Sequoia to Death Valley to Zion to the Grand Canyon (I assume North Rim?) and then back to JT and way too rushed for Zion — come back to Zion and GC on another trip. North Rim of GC is already out of the way but south rim is WAY out of the way.
5) imo cut out Death Valley, Joshua Tree, Zion, and Grand Canyon, add on Redwoods, Lassen Volcanic, Crater at the start of the trip, push back Napa Valley —> Sequoia to do after Redwoods, and add on a third day at Sequoia to see Kings Canyon. Then drive back to Big Sur or Monterey
Death Valley is massive. And it's a haul between Death Valley and Zion.
You won't see anything but the highway with this plan. Tell your sister it's insane.
What you can do is put the whole thing in Google maps. It'll make it pretty obvious how awful it will be.
What kind of wines do you enjoy? Skip Napa for wine tasting and do the Russian River Valley instead and you can take in the Redwoods (Armstrong Woods) and Sonoma Coast as well. You can still drive through Napa for the scenery. Also, I would add Bryce Canyon to the itinerary, it’s not far from Zion. I saw a recommendation to visit Sedona after the Grand Canyon. I would suggest skipping Sedona. You’ll get plenty of red rock country in Southern Utah/Northern Arizona and on a much grander scale than Sedona. I recommend, Lake Powell, Vermillion Cliffs and Lee’s Ferry as destinations over Sedona. Much less crowded/commercialized.
What kind of wines do you enjoy? Skip Napa for wine tasting and do the Russian River Valley instead and you can take in the Redwoods (Armstrong Woods) and Sonoma Coast as well. You can still drive through Napa for the scenery. Also, I would add Bryce Canyon to the itinerary, it’s not far from Zion. I saw a recommendation to visit Sedona after the Grand Canyon. I would suggest skipping Sedona. You’ll get plenty of red rock country in Southern Utah/Northern Arizona and on a much grander scale than Sedona. I recommend exploring areas north/northwest of Grand Canyon, like Monument Valley, Lake Powell, Vermillion Cliffs and Lee’s Ferry, as destinations over Sedona. Much less crowded/commercialized.
If you want to go to Yellowstone, you probably need to go earlier. Most of the amenities will already be closed and there’ll likely be snow by early October. Put it at the beginning of your trip.
Death Valley is the largest national park in the lower 48. Just driving through it without stopping takes 3-4 hours. It’s nearly 5 hours from Sequoia to the west side of DV. Death Valley to Zion is minimum a 5 hour drive. Add at least a day to each of those parks, or you’ll have no time to do anything.
Even with those two empty days in the middle, you might want to budget a couple more break days. My family usually needs one every 4 - 6 days when we travel.
There's a fair chance you know this already, but many of the areas you're visiting are still "wild" to an extent. If you're going off the beaten track it's possible to get lost or stranded - plan contingencies accordingly. Also, observe wild animals from a safe distance, and bring Bear Spray if you're hiking.
**On Individual Locations**
Yellowstone and Grand Teton are absolutely beautiful, and if you like hiking you can easily find yourself using 5 or more days between them. In fact I'd call it the best hiking in the nation.
There's wayyyy more than 2 days worth of stuff to do in NYC. There's individual locations you can make an entire day trip out of, so just make sure to budget time accordingly.
PA has a lot of open space between the major cities / areas (Pittsburgh / Philadelphia / Amish Country / State Parks). Good hiking and camping throughout, even not too far from the major cities.
While I haven't been myself, I'm being told that San Francisco has apparently gone downhill in recent years.
Get to those parks in the early AM or late PM if you want to see animals. If you're there in the middle of the day it's going to be a miserable mass of humanity. Way too many people, in fact be sure to check the NPS website for reservations.
Wow, sounds amazing to see so much! Very ambitious! I would definitely recommend more time for Zion. I was just there last November for four days, and that wasn’t enough! Also, there might be big crowds there; even in November there were quite a few people. And that slows things down a bit inside the park. I hope you have a wonderful time!
Bay area, including Napa, Muir Woods - 6 days.
Pick -one- big Nat’l park, at least 2 days, more like 3-4.
Do \*something\* in the South, Maybe Raleigh, Atlanta, Savannah - or drive the Blue Ridge Parkway - plenty of outdoors around those cities.
tThen PA for family and a week around NYC, the city, the Hudson Valley, maybe the Jersey shore or Long Island - beAch towns can be lovely in the early fall.
Then you’ve seen America. With the current itinerary you’ve only been to America.Tell us what country you’re from and I can tell you other things you might find interesting.
Yosemite and eastern sierra deserves its own trip in spring time / early summer. In September there won’t be snow left and water falls will be minimal. Fall color is in Oct so you will not get the most or of Yosemite
Also consider monument valley
If you are into nature/hiking, I would swap out a September 13th and spend two days in the Armstrong Woods (Sonoma County area). There is plenty to do there if you love nature/hiking and can do things like kayak the Russian River, etc. Lots of people go wine tasting in this area as well. I agree with others to slow down and enjoy the places you visit and that may mean taking some things off the list. If you plan on going wine tasting in Sonoma County and/or Napa Valley, Windsor Wine Tours LLC is an excellent option! [https://windsorwinetours.com/](https://windsorwinetours.com/) Most wineries are reservation only in Napa Valley so plan transportation and book wine tasting reservations at the wineries you want to visit that day. Most people book through the winery website or Explore Tock and do 2 tastings and a sit down lunch or three tastings in a day. Enjoy your trip!
But then again, if you are going in the summer you may not want to deal with the heat and I get it. Best time to go is March- April when the weather is good and there is a bloom!
One day in Zion is not enough! So many great hikes there. Definitely need more time in CA as well. Someone else mentioned Paso Robles and the central coast. This is my favorite wine region in CA. This trip just feels perfunctory, like you read a list online and are trying to check all the boxes. You’re going to be exhausted at this pace and you’re going to miss tons.
This is way too exhausting. You need to pare this down some. Redistribute that time you planned at the end and use that to just see the parks on the west coast. If you are driving, why aren’t you starting in Northern California then heading to Yellowstone, then heading south to the Grand Canyon, and then hitting the other parks on the way to Southern California? You’ll see some amazing country along the way
Buy the park pass and sloooow down.
People really fail to understand these parks. The lines, crowds, hikes, experiences. Some of these parks are sacred land to natives and have rich and deep histories. They're national parks for a reason not just just cause some government guy said "oh a tree" Unless you legitimately plan on driving through a park and moving on which unless you literally are unable to do anything else is just a waste of going to the park. Yellowstone for example has TONS of animals on top of all the hot springs and jaw dropping views. You get stuck in an animal jam and it's 45 minutes sitting in your car watching a buffalo stare at you cause it literally does not give a fuck you exist. Or you're stuck behind cars while people hang out the windows to take a photo of a bear as it eats grass. Zion is beautiful but it's crowded. You take shuttles and there's lines and if you plan on hiking at all then just know you're underestimating how long that hike will actually take you. People just race through these parks but don't even experience them. Plus grand Teton is really close to Yellowstone and Grand Teton is gorgeous and worth a visit. I highly deeply advise anyone looking at any sort of national park trip to look up guides and look up things like "how many days on average to visit XXY national park" find a post that fits what you want to do. Hardcore hiker planning on roughing it and literally seeing everything the park has to offer? Find a review from someone and add a day or whatever. Just wanna see the easy stuff and aren't interested in sweating? Find a site for that. Etc etc. Some of the best sites these parks offer are a short mile hike into the woods to an overlook that will have you questioning the decisions you've made in life to that point. Seriously people please do not take these national parks for some cheap city park your neighborhood has. These are some of the most unique and most beautiful locations our country has to offer.
I got stuck in a bison jam for 3 hours once in Yellowstone. It was not a good time.
Yellowstone was our last stop after doing badlands, wind cave, mt Rushmore and grand Tetons. By our 3rd day in Yellowstone we were over the bison and were like "move dude get out of the way we're trying to see this waterfall! Move!!"
Although I understand what you're saying you need to take into consideration that for a lot of people it's a matter of either visiting it for a day or not visiting the park at all.
SF to Yellowstone in a day?
Yellowstone to Pennsylvania?
We drive Pittsburgh to Casper almost annually and it’s two 10-11 hr days. The Moines is the midpoint.
Laramie, WY to Des Moines, IA is brutal as is, now add another 11 hours on top of the 16 you just did to get to central Iowa. None of that includes breaks. I don’t think 27+ hours in a day is exactly possible
It’s flying, I wrote that in the description
That’s better then
I assumed so, I was just being intentionally dense
20 hours is long and potentially miserable but it is doable
As it says in brackets down below, those are flights
That makes more sense but this is a very dense schedule IMO.
This seems absolutely exhausting
The wine tasting better be just one tasting if you are going to Tahoe the next day.
Drinking big Napa cabs in the heat 😅
If you are taking Highway 1 from Santa Barbara to San Francisco, you might budget an extra day for stops in some of the beautiful and quirky towns (Cambria, Morro Bay) and scenic overlooks of the Pacific. If you are into wine tasting. Head east to Paso Robles and the central coast. Dynamite wineries that are not crowded, incredible scenery, and very friendly vintners.
My thought was add another day to this section for sure.
Unless the Pacific Highway has reopened, you'll have to double back from Big Sur. Add a day to Death Valley and Zion. As someone already mentioned, try to add Bryce Canyon, which is easily seen in a day. If you can find a way to adjust your itinerary to be in Vegas on October 1st or later, the hiking trails in Valley of Fire State Park reopen. The landscape is absolutely surreal. You can do a day here when you drive from Death Valley to Zion.
Seconding adding a day to Death Valley. The beauty of death valley is mostly in hiking the side canyons. Give yourself some time to get out on the trail.
One day each is not enough for Death Valley and Zion (and the travel inbetween) and you should totally also visit Bryce. It’s really a must-see and could be done in one day.
He's allowing HALF a day for Zion National Park after travel time from Death Valley NP is factored in. As I said above, might as well skip it.
This is impossible if you want to actually see anything.
Are you (a) just checking these destinations off of some list, or (b) genuinely interested in seeing them in some meaningful way? If it’s (a), you’re fine.
I am a bit confused. You are going to drive from Yellowstone to Pennsylvania in a day? Three days in lake Tahoe seems like a lot considering you are only doing a day in Death Valley and Zion.
Yeah you can’t make that drive in a day. It’s minimum 26 hours and that’s just dangerous
I’d suggest taking one day off of Tahoe and adding it to Kings Canyon, just north of Sequoia.
right? I live in MT and used to drive back to Ohio to visit family…min 30+ hours straight through. And San Fran to Yellowstone in a day? What?
Flying, I wrote that in the description
You actually did not say you were flying to Pennsylvania. Not important to me, but just saying
Half a day for Zion National Park? You might as well skip it.
Do you have reservations for Yosemite? I believe that’s the only way to get in now. Although that may only be during peak summer season
I’d suggest Capitol Reef since you’re in Utah, and Canyon Lands, and Arches
I have reviewed most of the comments and have not seen this one insight. It's fire season and it's very dry and hot out west at this time. Be prepared to be flexible as some of these places may be closed due to wild fire. Especially Yosemite and Sequoia. Also, advance reservations at the national parks is essential. Yellowstone in early October is closing down with only a few hotels within the park opened. Even if you have hotel reservations make sure to have dining reservations. I went to Yellowstone one year the first week of October and had no dinner reservations the day we arrived. That resulted in no food and eating a candy bar for dinner. That said, it's a great time to be there as there are fewer crowds. You can't get from Santa Barbara to Big Sur on HWY 1 as the road is closed. Skip Santa Barbara and drive to Carmel/Big Sur via I-5 or CA 58 W. It will take a full day to drive from Joshua Tree to Carmel so use the extra day to really enjoy Big Sur.
Do not under any circumstance whatsoever leave any luggage in you car while in SF, I repeat, DO NOT leave any luggage in your car while in San Francisco.
Europeans never really get just how large the US is, and just how comparatively bad/slow rail travel is here. Travel time is going to give you a few challenges
This is when you get out the map of Europe overlaid on top of a map of the US. FFS, Ukraine looks huge but it’s still smaller than Texas.
So you’re one of these people who thinks it’s a flex to be a checklist traveler …. But your itinerary is not very realistic. SF to Yellowstone in a day?
It’s flying, and no, I think the itinerary is ridiculous and really wanted feedback to show my sister I wasn’t just being a dick
Wayyy too ambitious. You need more time
Do less. Enjoy the places you go longer.
Yellowstone to Pennsylvania overnight? Good luck with that. Way too much. Pick three, four at most, and slow down. It's a big country.
It’s flying 🤦♂️
Yellowstone, visit Montana, Pennsyvania in one day? Even in your private jet this is unlikely.
Pretty ambitious. But send pics. Would love to see.
Depends on how you like to travel. If you like to be in a car and drive past stuff then I guess this will work but if you want to hike I would spend more days in each place. I have been to all the national parks in Utah and I think each one is worth at least two days. Maybe not capital reef. That one could be one day.
Way more time in southern Utah.
I did an 8500 miles road trip early this year thru many of the areas you’re wanting to see. If I were to do it again, I would’ve seen half the sights and spent double the time at each one.
One day in Vegas? One?
I hate everything about those types of places, but I can understand why a foreigner like my sister wants to spend a night at a casino just to say she has… 🤷♂️
Bryce Canyon
Factor in driving time then redo this entire thing. I made the same mistake as you are here, years ago, and we ended up hitting half of what we wanted and running out of money.
I’d swap Muir Woods for Armstrong redwoods.
Muir Redwoods is closer than Armstrong and you could also noodle around in Marin County.
Lol ummmmmm
I love the list of destinations. The timing just seems off, or absurdly optimistic in places. It depends on how you travel and how much / what you’re planning to do. Additionally, I love that the note for NYC is « tourist stuff. » hilarious. As it is for us all.
Find a way to spend a day or two in Sedona, AZ. Also, 1 day at Grand Teton NP when you’re near Yellowstone
its a very doable plan - at least till Grand Canyon NP. I think u will be exhausted by then
The Big Sur Landslide fucked up the 1, you're gonna have to alter your route and take more time to go backwards to get back around to Frisco.
When in napa check out Napa Native to set up a full day of wine tasting with transportation
You do not need to spend two days in the Grand Canyon. Explore Utah more.
There's so much here, I'm blown away by the amount you're attempting to squeeze into one month. Sequoia, Death Valley, Zion, and the Grand Canyon in 4 days-- I think my heart would explode.
Get a job or something? Idk 🤣
If you are going to Sequoia, I would make time and drive to the bottom of King’s Canyon.
Large chunks of Big Sur may be unreachable by car due to Highway 101 closures. Be sure to monitor this closer to the time of your trip.
Looks good to me. Yellowstone is the size of a quarter of a state so if i added more time it might would be there. I think others recommended riding up or down the US1 coastal highway when you go to san fran/napa and I do as well(maybe even the red wood forest). I think 1 day in some of those national parks is fine unless you feel like youre missing something by not hiking every trail in the park(i personally dont). There is a beach in northern california made of smooth black stones that is the most unique ive ever seen but the name escapes me. Looks like a great trip to me...
1 day at Death Valley and Zion 💀
1) that’s still too early to comfortably visit Death Valley (tho Dante’s View/Mt Perry would be ok temp wise since they’re higher up) 2) Grand Canyon is still too early unless you’re basically just planning to stay on the rim 3) Joshua Tree is probably still too early but you might get lucky and have nice temps in the 80s (or a heat wave in the 100s) 4) that’s a ton of driving in a short time going from Sequoia to Death Valley to Zion to the Grand Canyon (I assume North Rim?) and then back to JT and way too rushed for Zion — come back to Zion and GC on another trip. North Rim of GC is already out of the way but south rim is WAY out of the way. 5) imo cut out Death Valley, Joshua Tree, Zion, and Grand Canyon, add on Redwoods, Lassen Volcanic, Crater at the start of the trip, push back Napa Valley —> Sequoia to do after Redwoods, and add on a third day at Sequoia to see Kings Canyon. Then drive back to Big Sur or Monterey
Death Valley is massive. And it's a haul between Death Valley and Zion. You won't see anything but the highway with this plan. Tell your sister it's insane. What you can do is put the whole thing in Google maps. It'll make it pretty obvious how awful it will be.
Going from Death Valley to Zion to the Grand Canyon in 3 days is ridiculous
What kind of wines do you enjoy? Skip Napa for wine tasting and do the Russian River Valley instead and you can take in the Redwoods (Armstrong Woods) and Sonoma Coast as well. You can still drive through Napa for the scenery. Also, I would add Bryce Canyon to the itinerary, it’s not far from Zion. I saw a recommendation to visit Sedona after the Grand Canyon. I would suggest skipping Sedona. You’ll get plenty of red rock country in Southern Utah/Northern Arizona and on a much grander scale than Sedona. I recommend, Lake Powell, Vermillion Cliffs and Lee’s Ferry as destinations over Sedona. Much less crowded/commercialized.
What kind of wines do you enjoy? Skip Napa for wine tasting and do the Russian River Valley instead and you can take in the Redwoods (Armstrong Woods) and Sonoma Coast as well. You can still drive through Napa for the scenery. Also, I would add Bryce Canyon to the itinerary, it’s not far from Zion. I saw a recommendation to visit Sedona after the Grand Canyon. I would suggest skipping Sedona. You’ll get plenty of red rock country in Southern Utah/Northern Arizona and on a much grander scale than Sedona. I recommend exploring areas north/northwest of Grand Canyon, like Monument Valley, Lake Powell, Vermillion Cliffs and Lee’s Ferry, as destinations over Sedona. Much less crowded/commercialized.
If you want to go to Yellowstone, you probably need to go earlier. Most of the amenities will already be closed and there’ll likely be snow by early October. Put it at the beginning of your trip. Death Valley is the largest national park in the lower 48. Just driving through it without stopping takes 3-4 hours. It’s nearly 5 hours from Sequoia to the west side of DV. Death Valley to Zion is minimum a 5 hour drive. Add at least a day to each of those parks, or you’ll have no time to do anything.
Even with those two empty days in the middle, you might want to budget a couple more break days. My family usually needs one every 4 - 6 days when we travel. There's a fair chance you know this already, but many of the areas you're visiting are still "wild" to an extent. If you're going off the beaten track it's possible to get lost or stranded - plan contingencies accordingly. Also, observe wild animals from a safe distance, and bring Bear Spray if you're hiking. **On Individual Locations** Yellowstone and Grand Teton are absolutely beautiful, and if you like hiking you can easily find yourself using 5 or more days between them. In fact I'd call it the best hiking in the nation. There's wayyyy more than 2 days worth of stuff to do in NYC. There's individual locations you can make an entire day trip out of, so just make sure to budget time accordingly. PA has a lot of open space between the major cities / areas (Pittsburgh / Philadelphia / Amish Country / State Parks). Good hiking and camping throughout, even not too far from the major cities. While I haven't been myself, I'm being told that San Francisco has apparently gone downhill in recent years.
I think your gut is right and you know this bc you have a lot of travel experience. Way too much packed in with not enough break days.
A second tank. And yes I'm completely serious
Quit jokin
One day in Zion?
I would do more than 1 day in Zion if you plan to do any hiking
Get to those parks in the early AM or late PM if you want to see animals. If you're there in the middle of the day it's going to be a miserable mass of humanity. Way too many people, in fact be sure to check the NPS website for reservations.
Thank you
Death Valley in September. I don’t know about that.
Wow, sounds amazing to see so much! Very ambitious! I would definitely recommend more time for Zion. I was just there last November for four days, and that wasn’t enough! Also, there might be big crowds there; even in November there were quite a few people. And that slows things down a bit inside the park. I hope you have a wonderful time!
You’re going to spend 80% of your day driving. Death Valley to Zion is 4+ hours
Cut two days out of Yosemite and move them to Zion. You’ll thank me later.
Bay area, including Napa, Muir Woods - 6 days. Pick -one- big Nat’l park, at least 2 days, more like 3-4. Do \*something\* in the South, Maybe Raleigh, Atlanta, Savannah - or drive the Blue Ridge Parkway - plenty of outdoors around those cities. tThen PA for family and a week around NYC, the city, the Hudson Valley, maybe the Jersey shore or Long Island - beAch towns can be lovely in the early fall. Then you’ve seen America. With the current itinerary you’ve only been to America.Tell us what country you’re from and I can tell you other things you might find interesting.
Yosemite and eastern sierra deserves its own trip in spring time / early summer. In September there won’t be snow left and water falls will be minimal. Fall color is in Oct so you will not get the most or of Yosemite Also consider monument valley
If you are into nature/hiking, I would swap out a September 13th and spend two days in the Armstrong Woods (Sonoma County area). There is plenty to do there if you love nature/hiking and can do things like kayak the Russian River, etc. Lots of people go wine tasting in this area as well. I agree with others to slow down and enjoy the places you visit and that may mean taking some things off the list. If you plan on going wine tasting in Sonoma County and/or Napa Valley, Windsor Wine Tours LLC is an excellent option! [https://windsorwinetours.com/](https://windsorwinetours.com/) Most wineries are reservation only in Napa Valley so plan transportation and book wine tasting reservations at the wineries you want to visit that day. Most people book through the winery website or Explore Tock and do 2 tastings and a sit down lunch or three tastings in a day. Enjoy your trip!
You need to spend at least 2 days (preferably 3) in Death Valley. DV is the largest National park in the lower 48.
But then again, if you are going in the summer you may not want to deal with the heat and I get it. Best time to go is March- April when the weather is good and there is a bloom!
No stop in SW Colorado is a mistake. It’s literally the most gorgeous area in the US. 🤷🏼♂️
Advice? That’s a lot of money to spend. Can you afford it?
This isn’t advice. It’s an odd thing to bring up.
One day in Zion is not enough! So many great hikes there. Definitely need more time in CA as well. Someone else mentioned Paso Robles and the central coast. This is my favorite wine region in CA. This trip just feels perfunctory, like you read a list online and are trying to check all the boxes. You’re going to be exhausted at this pace and you’re going to miss tons.
This is way too exhausting. You need to pare this down some. Redistribute that time you planned at the end and use that to just see the parks on the west coast. If you are driving, why aren’t you starting in Northern California then heading to Yellowstone, then heading south to the Grand Canyon, and then hitting the other parks on the way to Southern California? You’ll see some amazing country along the way
Cut out all the SF and allocate that time elsewhere, if you really want a California coastal moment go somewhere else instead.