Holiday Hightlights-

• Small & Friendly accommodation throughout
• The Grand Canyon
• Hollywood, Santa Monica and Los Angeles
  
• Palm Springs & Joshua Tree National Park
• Phoenix
• The Sonoran Desert, Tucson and The Saguaro National Park
• Red Rock Country
• Death Valley & Badwater
• Yosemite National Park
• San Francisco- The City On The Bay
• The scenic Pacific Coast Highway and the beach towns.
  
• Big Sur region
  

Distance: 110 miles

Palm Springs is a true oasis in the California desert. If you want to have a view over the area, ride the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, or even do their “Ride and Dine.” The rotating tram cars offer a breathtakingly beautiful ride to the mountaintop. Take a light jacket, since it can be 20 to 30 degrees cooler at the top.

Joshua Tree National Park is another of the top attractions in Palm Springs. This immense reserve of nearly 800,000 acres is infinitely variable. Until you understand the special nature of the geography, the Park can seem unwelcoming, even brutal during the heat, when, in fact, it is delicate and extremely fragile. The land forms were and still are shaped by strong winds, sudden torrents of rain, and climatic extremes.

If time allows we'd urge you to consider a jeep trip along the San Andreas Fault too!

Accommodation: Zoso or similiar

Distance: 114 miles

Tucson is large enough to have everything you want and small enough for you to get your arms around it, easily find your way around and understand, enjoy and live it while exploring. The Sonoran Desert landscape in Tucson may be greener than you anticipate, yet areas of desert punctuated with Saguaro surround the city. The Arizona state symbol stands proudly in a cactus forest in Saguaro National Park. A drive up the Sky Island Scenic Byway takes you through an even larger forest of Saguaros on your way to Mt. Lemmon’s pine treetops.

Throughout the Tucson region, dark mountains and bouldered landscapes surround remnants of the Old West intertwined with the New West. Tombstone and Bisbee hark back to the legends of wild west while Texas Canyon appears that it could have come in for a crash landing from the moon. Kitt Peak and the Pima Air Museum feature that cutting edge technology that has allowed man to explore the heavens and beyond.

Accommodation: Lodge on the Desert

Distance: 75 miles

Imagine standing at the edge of a crevasse so huge you cannot see the end and so deep that you could stack up ten 40 story buildings and they would not reach the top.  At 277 miles long and 6,000 feet deep, the Grand Canyon, a World Heritage site, is the granddaddy of natural wonders encompassing over 1.2 million acres.

An easy way to familiarise yourself with Grand Canyon Village is on one of the free shuttle buses that operate on 4 routes. The 60 minute village route runs between Canyon View Information Plaza through the village on a 60 minute round trip. The 30 minute scenic Kaibab Trail Route runs between the South Kaibab Trailhead and Yaki Point. It is the only access to Yaki Point. The 75 minute round trip on Hermit Rest Route provides transportation on the 7 mile historic and scenic Hermit Road with stops at 9 canyon overlooks. During peak seasons, the shuttle bus is the only way to see this area. Don’t miss it. The 40 minute Tusayan Route serves as a “park and ride” shuttle between Tusayan and Canyon View Plaza. Catch this bus after you check in to begin your Grand Canyon visit immediately.

At some point, you’ll want to take Desert View Scenic Drive, a 25 mile stretch of Arizona 64 that parallels the South Rim of Grand Canyon. Along the drive, Lipan Point delivers some of the most breathtaking views of the canyon as does Moran Point, illustrating the massive layers of multicolored rock.

Accommodation: Historic El Tovar, Thunderbird Lodge (canyonside room).

Distance: 349 miles

Today you’re headed for the lowest elevation in the United States, at 282 feet below sea level! Death Valley may sound forbidding and gloomy, yet in reality it is a montage of colourful badlands, snow-covered peaks, beautiful sand dunes and rugged canyons. More than 1,000 kinds of plants live within the Park and in true desert style, once the sun sets and the temperature falls, the vast empty landscape teems with the comings and goings of innumerable small animals.

One of the highlights of Death Valley National Park is Scotty’s Castle, a fantasy house that “Death Valley Scotty” told everyone he built, when really it was constructed by Chicago millionaire Albert Mussey Johnson. A 50-minute guided living history tour of the interior of the home tells the story of Mr. Johnson’s Death Valley Ranch in Grapevine Canyon and Scotty, his cowboy mining partner.

Accommodation: Furnace Creek Ranch

Optional stopover in Las Vegas is available en route to Death Valley - call Bon Voyage for details.

Yosemite is best explored on foot, hiking and taking in the natural beauty. If you’d like to leave the car behind for a couple of days, a shuttle bus runs between Yosemite Village, Curry Village, the Ahwahnee and Yosemite Lodge. The Yosemite Valley Visitor Center has a new exhibit hall that illustrates how Yosemite’s spectacular landscape was formed. Next door, the Yosemite Museum interprets the cultural history of the native peoples who originally inhabited the valley.

Several vantage points provide the best views of Yosemite features. Glacier Point is the most  spectacular viewpoint of the high country with breathtaking views of Yosemite Valley, including Half  Dome and three waterfalls. Washburn Point, just south of Glacier Point, has similar views, though  the views of Vernal and Nevada Falls are a bit better. Tunnel View provides one of the most famous  views of Yosemite Valley. From here you can see El Capitan and Bridalveil Fall rising from Yosemite Valley, with Half Dome in the background. This viewpoint is at the east end of the Wawona Tunnel  along the Wawona Road, Highway 41. O'Shaugnessy Dam, at the west end of Hetch Hetchy Valley, provides a view of the Valley's waterfalls, rock formations, and reservoir.

The Golden Gate National Recreation Area, encompassing the entire area north and south of the Golden Gate Bridge, is one of the highlights of San Francisco. You could take an entire day to explore it completely.

Alcatraz, the island prison made famous in the movies, and Muir Woods National Monument, commemorating the father of the environmental movement in the US, are all units of the Golden Gate. In fact, the collection of parks that make up the Golden Gate National Recreation Area are a microcosm of the region, revealing the true natural beauty of the area as well as 200 years of history.

The San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, located at Hyde Pier, is also a unit of the  Golden Gate National Recreation Area. A portion of the park is “water-born,” with historic ships available for touring. To visit Alcatraz, head down to the ferry from Pier 33. During less busy  seasons, you can likely walk to the ticket office and obtain tickets for the particular day. During busy times, the ferry can be sold out for weeks in advance and we highly recommend that you obtain tickets in advance. Call Bon Voyage for further details.

One of our favourite attractions in 'Frisco is the mind blowing California Academy Of Sciences.

Distance: 109 miles

Your next stop along the scenic California coast is the unique town of Solvang. Settled in 1911 by a group of Danish educators (the flat rolling hills reminded them of home!) this charming town is full of half timber buildings and windmills. You'll love exploring this town and its eclectic shops, check out the excellent bakeries with delicious pastries, take a horse drawn carriage ride or visit one of the many wine-tasting rooms...

Accommodation:Hadsten House Inn or similiar