Sheefa Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Hi guys, Thinking of taking a 2 week break in California in June before I start the RAF in late July. Going away with my best pal for a bit of well earned fun. Basically I would like to know: Who has been here and your experiences? What's there to do and best places to visit? Any ideas on prices of flights?? Expedia says average around £700 is this about right? Any hotel/accomodation recommendations appreciated What would you give the typical CA woman out of 10? Thanks all. Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz1 Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 ilived in san bernadino for a while just outside los angeles, i loved it, you have the original disneyland there, aberdeen angus steak house, i never really went for the women in my area they were a bit stuck up, but the mexican girl i stayed with for a while was mmmm ok:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest steve77964 Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 i travelled from san fran down to la i would say you definately have to go to see one of the national parks... i went with my mate and we both loved los angeles best...was really tempted to move out there, best holiday of my life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muffleman Posted March 9, 2008 Share Posted March 9, 2008 Been a couple of times to the states and IMO LA was okay, seemed to me to be the few famous roads and then LOADS of dodgy areas ! I wasn't keen on LA, Las Vegas was cool as was San Francisco. Really enjoyed the drive up route 1 from LA to SF Depends what you want I guess. As for flight costs, I flew from Gatwick to San Diego last week via a stop in Minneapolis (yes I could've gone direct from Heathrow but I live 10mins from Gatwick and couldnt be arsed to go to Heathrow) and the return ticked cost me a staggering £271 !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lust2luv Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 Best places? San Francisco, Yosemite NP, Sequoia NP, Death Valley, Pacific Coast Highway, Venice beach. In July you're gonna have to pay £650 minimum to fly to LA. Most chain hotels are pretty decent, depends what you want to pay. I favour Hampton Inns, good balance of cost/quality, but often stay some place cheaper like Super 8s, Red Roof Inns, Motel 6s, etc to stretch the budget. *Typical* CA woman? 3/10. YMMV depending where you are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 I spent a month in Santa Cruz and ended up getting a visa and a job over there, it fell through due to 9/11 but I guess that's an indication of how much I liked it there. Just a totally relaxing experience, even when you are working. I didn't get much chance to explore the region because of work but did spend a couple of days in San Francisco and had lots of drives out up in the hills, down the coastal roads, it's quite a place. What sort of things do you want to get up to? Wild times or just a relaxing break? I stayed here for the first week: http://www.coasthotels.com/hotels/usa/california/santa_cruz/coast_santacruz/overview No complaints at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 You could visit Boyd Coddington's grave? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tannhauser Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 Best places? San Francisco, Yosemite NP, Sequoia NP, Death Valley, Pacific Coast Highway, Venice beach. I would second all of those and add in Kings Canyon. I also really liked Northern California - Lassen NP was great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conrad Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 Never been myself but going there next month. I'm off to Vegas to watch Calzaghe then me and the missus are driving over to San Diego and then Palm Springs for the Coachella Music Festival! A friend of mine who's been before loves San Fran and said that San Diego was nice too. My only advice is use Trip Advisor.com! You can list all the top rated hotels, restaurants, attractions etc for each and every place you visit. It's a handy resource plus all the reviews are from fellow travellers so it's honest and unbiased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Black Posted March 10, 2008 Share Posted March 10, 2008 California is a really nice state, chics can be somewhat pretentious around LA, which i dont care for much. San Fran is cool, great to drive from there to LA, via Monteray/Carmel, there is also a dutch town & a permanent XMAS town north of LA, i've also heard santa barbera is nice. oh and as said before death valley is a good excursion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIJ8631 Posted March 11, 2008 Share Posted March 11, 2008 Drove around California and through Death Valley to Vegas and then back through the Mughabe Desert (possibly incorrect spelling) and down to the Mexican border. Best places were - San Fransisco, Yosemite NP, San Deigo, and Disneyland @ Anahiem. Worst place was definately Los Angelos - felt quite threatening and I'm not easily scared. You'll have a great trip and the prices (especially petrol) are great. We stayed at Best Western and Travelodge's - there were reasonable and relatively cheap. Cheers Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lust2luv Posted March 11, 2008 Share Posted March 11, 2008 then back through the Mughabe Desert (possibly incorrect spelling) Mojave? Yeah Tripadvisor.com is priceless, especially for checking out hotels. You've got to remember people are more likely to complain than give praise though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIJ8631 Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 Mojave? QUOTE] Yeh thats the one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheefa Posted March 12, 2008 Author Share Posted March 12, 2008 Thanks all, some brilliant responses. Michael - looking to do a bit of everything really, as much as we can fit in over the 2 weeks we'll be there. I certainly plan on visiting a few of the National parks, mainly Yosemite and the Grand Canyon. Planning to head over to Vegas for a few days too. Not sure what to do about accomodation. I was thinking about booking a hotel for 3 nights when we arrive beforehand and then palying it by ear. We're going in June so it shouldn't be too hard to find some good places to stay last moment style should it? I'll have to check out Trip Advisor now. Cheers all Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Geneb Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 just f**k anything smaller than a size 12 thats female and you wont go wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supragal Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 just f**k anything smaller than a size 12 thats female and you wont go wrong. Is that a UK or US 12? haha Do women that are slim not get STI's then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tannhauser Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 Not sure what to do about accomodation. I was thinking about booking a hotel for 3 nights when we arrive beforehand and then palying it by ear. We're going in June so it shouldn't be too hard to find some good places to stay last moment style should it? Greg I've done that a few times and it's always worked out fine, just watch out for any places with a huge tourist draw (e.g. Yosemite). A few more ideas: If you're going Nevada/Arizona way, consider Utah if you've got time. I love Bryce Canyon, Brian Head area, Moab and so on. Might be a bit far for the time available. North Rim of the Grand Canyon is less visited than the South Rim but is just as spectacular. In the Summer, you can drive through the Tioga Pass in Yosemite, which is great. Also, if you want a kitsch masterpiece to visit, try Hearst castle outside San Luis Obispo (itself a nice little town). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lust2luv Posted March 13, 2008 Share Posted March 13, 2008 Good call, if you're roadtripping and don't mind a fair bit of driving, Utah is a must - incredible state. Arches NP and Dead Horse Point (where they filmed end of Thelma & Louise and start of MI:2) both near Moab are 2 of my favourite places in the world. If you can't get that far over, the Valley of Fire a short drive from Vegas has some cool desert vistas. You shouldn't have any problem finding hotels on the fly; we always do that, since it gives you so much more flexibility. There are so many motels to choose from, I've only really come unstuck twice - near Yellowstone and in Lake Tahoe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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