Monterey

this is the article that we read in the pub on monterey http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/northamerica/usa/6972674/Monterey-USA-My-Kind-of-Town.html

planes, motorhomes and automobiles

FLIGHTS

it's possible to fly to one airport and out from another, especially easy to do on http://www.kayak.co.uk/ by clicking multi-city

this would incur an extra charge on car hire usually though

so for example we could fly to LA and out of San Fran, but if we want to do desert as well as coast, a round trip might be better anyway

flights can probably be got for around £400ish

CAR HIRE

reading forums online, everyone says don't attempt the drive in a convertible - hot, cramped, theft magnets, easy to damage, hard to drive, no luggage space blah blah whatever. e.g. here: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/thread.jspa;jsessionid=19BEBB71D19E4B1D80775FFC49211F40.app01?threadID=1434089&messageID=12633198

think we all like the idea so maybe we need to research it a bit more, or see if we can hire one for part of the journey. if we do the recommended it's a big SUV with aircon, tinted windows, big boot / trunk etc

these are car-hire brokers: www.easycar.com / www.holidayautos.co.uk

MOTORHOME

do we want to look at motorhomes for the trip? these seem to be the biggest hire firm: www.cruiseamerica.org.uk otherwise, Virgin Holidays do them too http://www.virginholidays.co.uk/brochures/usa/info/flydrive/motorhomes/prices.aspx

more expensive than hiring a car but a saving on hotels. have to look into camp site costs, some seem quite a lot in areas like Big Sur, up to $60 a night

It's approx $2000 - $2500 maybe plus some extra milage

FLY_DRIVE HOLIDAY

reading articles like this: http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/americas/the-complete-guide-to-flydrive-america-405172.html it says if you book the flights and something else - e.g. one nights accommodation / car-hire the travel company have to look after you if something goes wrong as they become your tour operator, so something to look at i guess

Big Sur

 

it would be cool to spend a few days in big sur, maybe some hiking. you can whale watch june - oct http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/whalesblue.html

we can ask friends where they stayed etc

this is recommended - yurts! but looking at alternatives as not the cheapest -and not sure if its in monterey or big sur]

http://www.treebonesresort.com/

yurts from $155 a night, camping in 'sibley' tents available for $75 but you need to bring sleeping bag and roll. amazing views, heated ocean view pool + hot tub, restaurant, shower etc

cheaper cabins here: http://www.ripplewoodresort.com/

the food menu sounds major

Madonna Inn

highly recommended by friends and travel guides - looks fun and en route

http://www.madonnainn.com/

Joshua Tree

the national park is about 4 hours drive east of LA

it's meant to be a pretty cosmic desert place

http://www.joshua.tree.national-park.com/

http://www.joshuatreeinn.com/

is pretty cheap - less than $100 per night for a room - you can stay in Gram Parson's room, or EmmyLou Harris' or Donovan's Suite - availability for all May / June etc

plans

woop!

the day after deciding on the dream road trip over a cozy pub lunch in south london, here's some initial thoughts and ideas for every one to add to, change, discuss etc:

how long we can get away for etc will obv make a difference to where we can go

places we might want to visit [ones in brackets maybe secondary? / time allowing etc]

i'll expand these places with individual posts later, accommodation etc.

LA

Santa Barbara

Big Sur

Monterey / Carmel

Santa Cruz

San Fran

[Napa Valley - day trip?]

[Lake Tahoe]

[Death Valley - drive through if open, not able to all year round]

Yosemite National Park

[Grand Canyon]

Joshua Tree

LA