Inspiration for your own tailor-made trip
San Francisco - Napa Valley - Yosemite National Park - Mammoth Lake - Death Valley - Las Vegas
100% customisable for you
The wait is over: your epic USA road trip begins today. Head to the airport and speed through security before hopping on your 11-hour flight to San Francisco.
After you land in San Francisco mid-afternoon, jump in a classic yellow cab and ride 30 minutes to your hotel, where you’ll stay for the next three nights. Treat yourself to a tasty dinner (your clued-up Concierge is on hand with recommendations) before getting a good night’s rest, ready to explore the city tomorrow.
Today, it's time to hit the hilly streets of fabulous Frisco. Head to hippie Haight-Ashbury, home of the 1967 ‘Summer of Love’, to admire its psychedelic murals, before grabbing lunch in the Mission District, the city’s resident hipster hangout.
You’ve got a couple of days to explore, so use our Dossier to plan a self-guided meander around the city’s close-knit neighbourhoods. Enjoy fantastic views at Nob Hill, cycle across the famous Golden Gate Bridge and visit the infamous island prison of Alcatraz, which housed renowned gangster Al Capone.
Feeling peckish? San Francisco is home to a thriving Chinese community, so swing by Good Mong Kok Bakery for steaming chop suey and the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory for a lesson in fortune cookie production (they make a whopping 20,000 a day). Spend your evenings sampling the city’s trendy microbreweries and discovering your new favourite craft beer.
On your last morning in San Francisco, enjoy a slow brunch before picking up your hire car and driving one hour to Napa Valley, one of the world’s premier wine regions.
What better way to kick off your two-night stay in Napa than with a winery tour? Get to know your cabernets from your malbecs as you’re whisked between wineries and vineyards, before settling down in a local pub.
On your second day, swap four wheels for two on a vine trail bike ride. Coast along quiet Calistoga roads, enjoying the views and stopping for a tipple (or two) at a few off-the-beaten-track wineries. Back at your hotel, relax and recuperate with a massage, ready for tomorrow’s early drive inland to Yosemite National Park.
Ah, Yosemite. A national park superstar home to 3,000-foot-tall cliffs, gushing waterfalls and grassy meadows flanked by oak, cedar and fir trees.
After a four-hour drive from Napa, head out on foot to stretch your legs. If you’re up for a challenge, hike the Mist Trail, a seven-mile loop that takes you to both Vernal and Nevada Falls with a 1,900-foot elevation gain. And if you’d rather keep things low-key on your first day? Don’t worry – there are plenty of shorter walks to choose from.
Spend the next two days exploring the park’s winding trails, snapping pictures at Glacier Point – the jaw-dropping 3,200ft overlook with views of Half Dome and Yosemite Falls – and admiring the park from horseback as you trot towards Grizzly Giant (the oldest sequoia in the park). In the evenings, unwind with a few beers at South Gate Brewing Company. You’ve earned it after two days of hiking.
Today, enjoy a lazy morning in Yosemite before driving south for two hours via the Tioga Pass – a spectacular mountain pass in the Sierra Nevada Mountains – to Mammoth Lakes. If you’re road tripping between November and May, the pass will be closed to cars, but don’t worry: you’ll simply drive along Route 120’s wildflower-fringed highway instead.
If you have time to spare, take a quick detour to Merced and Tuolumne Grove to see their impressive giant sequoia forests. Fancy yourself a photographer? Stop at Olmstead Point, a viewpoint famed for its vistas over Half Dome and Tenaya Lake.
Once you’ve got a camera roll full of scenic snaps, continue your journey down to the little mountain town of Mammoth Lakes. Spend the rest of the day relaxing in your hotel, ready for the next two days of adventure.
Located 7,800ft above sea level, Mammoth is a maze of lakes, mountains and ski trails. Begin your first day by cycling along the Mammoth Lakes Trail System, crisscrossing country paths up Mammoth Rock before heading down the Mountain View Trail to Earthquake Fault. Once you’ve worked up an appetite (and a thirst), reward yourselves with dinner at a rustic restaurant in town, followed by a drink at a local distillery.
We’re of the opinion that the best way to see Mammoth is from above, so on day two, hop on a scenic gondola ride (and snap a selfie at the summit sign), before enjoying lunch at the Eleven53 Café. Once back on solid ground, take to the water in kayaks on Lake Mary.
This evening, set off on the three-and-a-half-hour drive to Death Valley, enjoying the sunset en route. Once you arrive, settle into your hotel for the evening with a cool drink in the desert heat.
From extreme heat and extinct volcanic craters to windswept crevices and sunlit mud flats, Death Valley is an eerily beautiful destination. We’ve arranged for you to see this desert valley in all its glory on an early morning 4x4 excursion, so load up with water and suncream before heading out. Once behind the wheel, head up the valley’s water-sculpted canyons and sun-scorched sand dunes.
Stop at Racetrack Playa, a scenic dry lake complete with moving ‘sailing stones’, before looping back to Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere.
Once back at your hotel, hop from the 4x4 into your trusty hire car for the final two-hour leg to Las Vegas. Check into your hotel for the next two nights before trying your luck in a glitzy casino – this is Vegas, after all.
Forget New York, Las Vegas is the city that never sleeps. You’ve today to explore this indulgent oasis, where fine-dining restaurants mingle with mesmerising casinos and pulsing dancefloors. But before you’re drawn into Sin City, how about a helicopter tour over the nearby Grand Canyon? Much like Mammoth, it’s best admired from above. Discover its 70-million-year history as you speed over the sprawling 277-mile-long canyon, keeping an eye out for the weaving Colorado River as you go.
Back in Vegas, there’s only one way to spend your last night in the USA – at a show. Your trusty Concierge can secure the best seats in town for the current mega-star residency artists, whether you’d rather see Bruno Mars or Barry Manilow. Afterwards, hit the iconic Strip for dinner at one of its world-class restaurants, before heading to a bar for a drink (or two – or three…who’s counting?).
Sadly, it’s your last day in the USA, so spend your final morning in Vegas learning about the city’s notorious criminals at the Mob Museum and picking up some last-minute souvenirs at Fremont Street.
After lunch, drop your car off at the airport and check in for your direct ten-hour flight home. You’ll land in the UK the following day, ready to plan your next epic USA road trip.
Each of our trips is entirely tailor-made with originality, quality and cultural immersion in mind. Our team of destination specialists will craft itineraries based on your tastes, using their first-hand knowledge and the help of our in-country team of Concierges and guides. All trips are accompanied by a wide range of additional services, including a 24-hour helpline, the Original Travel app, fast-track airport services and much more.
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Our team of destination experts will get to know you and your unique requirements for your holiday
We work with you to build an ultra-personalised holiday itinerary with your choice of accommodation, experiences and activities
All of our holidays include little extras designed to make a big difference to your trip, from fast-tracking you through airport check-in and security to our network of local Concierges
