Driving from Vegas to San Francisco
Discussion
going to do this over 4 or 5 days, stopping on way. want a reasonably comfortable trip so looking for a large-ish car. some of the searches are coming back with suv's such as ford explorer etc.. whats the perception of these in the US these days, i was under the impression they was a bit of negativity towards them?
Also, is it best to pre-book, or are there deals to be had just showing up?
first ever holiday to Zante we booked with Avis - the car was awful, we had two as the first one broke down, the second one wasnt great. in Europe ever since we've turned up, had a look at the cars and as long as we're happy hired, or moved on elsewhere if the cars look a bit dodgy.
first ever holiday to Zante we booked with Avis - the car was awful, we had two as the first one broke down, the second one wasnt great. in Europe ever since we've turned up, had a look at the cars and as long as we're happy hired, or moved on elsewhere if the cars look a bit dodgy.
It will be a great drive 
I did it from SF to Vegas in '92. We had an Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciero, a bit more old school. A full size car that sat 3 in the front and 3 in the back.
We drove from SF to Monterey then over to Yosemite Park and down into Death Valley with a quick detour to Badwater, the lowest land on Earth and sometimes the hottest. It was a cool 120 degrees F when we were there. From Badwater we carried on and hit Vegas by the evening. Great to see the lights as you cross the desert but it will be so different now.
From Vegas we drove to LA and stayed in Santa Monica for a few days then carried on down to San Diego for some surfing and a trip over to Tijuana.
A long drive back to SF via another stay in LA and home.
Must do it again sometime
Have fun.
I did it from SF to Vegas in '92. We had an Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciero, a bit more old school. A full size car that sat 3 in the front and 3 in the back.We drove from SF to Monterey then over to Yosemite Park and down into Death Valley with a quick detour to Badwater, the lowest land on Earth and sometimes the hottest. It was a cool 120 degrees F when we were there. From Badwater we carried on and hit Vegas by the evening. Great to see the lights as you cross the desert but it will be so different now.
From Vegas we drove to LA and stayed in Santa Monica for a few days then carried on down to San Diego for some surfing and a trip over to Tijuana.
A long drive back to SF via another stay in LA and home.
Must do it again sometime
Have fun.
croyde said:
It will be a great drive I did it from SF to Vegas in '92. We had an Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciero, a bit more old school. A full size car that sat 3 in the front and 3 in the back.
We drove from SF to Monterey then over to Yosemite Park and down into Death Valley with a quick detour to Badwater, the lowest land on Earth and sometimes the hottest. It was a cool 120 degrees F when we were there. From Badwater we carried on and hit Vegas by the evening. Great to see the lights as you cross the desert but it will be so different now.
From Vegas we drove to LA and stayed in Santa Monica for a few days then carried on down to San Diego for some surfing and a trip over to Tijuana.
A long drive back to SF via another stay in LA and home.
Must do it again sometime
Have fun.
Cheers, i'm doing something very similar. I did it from SF to Vegas in '92. We had an Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciero, a bit more old school. A full size car that sat 3 in the front and 3 in the back.We drove from SF to Monterey then over to Yosemite Park and down into Death Valley with a quick detour to Badwater, the lowest land on Earth and sometimes the hottest. It was a cool 120 degrees F when we were there. From Badwater we carried on and hit Vegas by the evening. Great to see the lights as you cross the desert but it will be so different now.
From Vegas we drove to LA and stayed in Santa Monica for a few days then carried on down to San Diego for some surfing and a trip over to Tijuana.
A long drive back to SF via another stay in LA and home.
Must do it again sometime
Have fun.
Flying to Vegas, staying there for four days, then driving to San Francisco to stay for a few nights, followed by a coast drive down to LA and flying home from there.
I'm planning a one-way hire from LV to SF, then another one way hire from SF to LA, i see no point having a car whilst in SF or LV.
I'm planning on having a convertible Mustang from SF to LA.
No idea where i got the idea that SUVs had lost favour with the Americans.
You may think twice about one hire hires when you see how much more they can cost.
Enterprise, for example, can charge $400 for a one-way. They still have to get the car back to where they've been rented from, i.e. many offices are franchises. We I've rented cars in CA, I still kept it when I was in SF and LV. Parking, even at hotel prices in SF, can be much cheaper than one-ways.
Also, do not bother staying in Tonopah, NV. It's the ultimate s
t hole!!
Enterprise, for example, can charge $400 for a one-way. They still have to get the car back to where they've been rented from, i.e. many offices are franchises. We I've rented cars in CA, I still kept it when I was in SF and LV. Parking, even at hotel prices in SF, can be much cheaper than one-ways.
Also, do not bother staying in Tonopah, NV. It's the ultimate s
t hole!!chr15b said:
going to do this over 4 or 5 days, stopping on way. want a reasonably comfortable trip so looking for a large-ish car. some of the searches are coming back with suv's such as ford explorer etc.. whats the perception of these in the US these days, i was under the impression they was a bit of negativity towards them?
Large-ish car - just go for a "full size" car which will work out cheaper than an SUV but still be massive. I had a Crown Vic last time out and it was fantastic. Also another thread here http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a.... I would recommend Mammoth lakes as a stopover, is really peaceful. Yosemite is a great place, and the drive through it is awesome You really won't need a car in SF, public transport is good, and you can walk most places too (unless you're a fatty)
You really won't need a car in SF, public transport is good, and you can walk most places too (unless you're a fatty)croyde said:
We drove from SF to Monterey then over to Yosemite Park and down into Death Valley with a quick detour to Badwater, ......
Remember if you're anywhere near Monterey, then you should definitely go down to Laguna Seca - it's only a couple of miles from the freeway, and if there's nothing going on you can drive straight up to the track!5potTurbo said:
You may think twice about one hire hires when you see how much more they can cost.
Enterprise, for example, can charge $400 for a one-way.
I'm pretty certain there's no one-way (or dropp off) fees within California, and I don't think there are any for Nevada either.Enterprise, for example, can charge $400 for a one-way.
If you get a quote from Hertz then where they do charge a drop-off fee then it's either already included in the rate or they note it as a separate item.
Generally, it's better to book and pre-pay for car rental using either the company's own site or one of the consolidators. That way you don't get stiffed for various insurance products when you pick the car up. If there's any uncertainty about a one-way fee then get it clarified before you book.
Our first trip we flew to SF then drove down the coast road. Hired a large pickup truck (no reason just cos that's what OH wanted). Fine, as said before everyone has them. Think it was Enterprise.
On our wedding we hired a convertible mustang in LA, drove to Vegas then Hoover Dam, Death Valley, to Big Sur. Be warned that some hire companies in California and Nevada do not permit you to drive to Arizona. This was through Midway Car Rental - Just worth checking where you are allowed to go.
Have fun - we are looking to go back later this year for our anniversary
On our wedding we hired a convertible mustang in LA, drove to Vegas then Hoover Dam, Death Valley, to Big Sur. Be warned that some hire companies in California and Nevada do not permit you to drive to Arizona. This was through Midway Car Rental - Just worth checking where you are allowed to go.
Have fun - we are looking to go back later this year for our anniversary
Deva Link said:
I'm pretty certain there's no one-way (or dropp off) fees within California, and I don't think there are any for Nevada either.
If you get a quote from Hertz then where they do charge a drop-off fee then it's either already included in the rate or they note it as a separate item.
Not all companies include it in the rate or make it obvious though. Many sites like CarHire3000 will just say that there will be a fee to pay, but dont mention what it will cost. I'm sure this causes problems for a lot of people, as cheap car hire very easily doubles in cost with one way rentals! Everyone should be careful of this If you get a quote from Hertz then where they do charge a drop-off fee then it's either already included in the rate or they note it as a separate item.
Matt.. said:
Not all companies include it in the rate or make it obvious though. Many sites like CarHire3000 will just say that there will be a fee to pay, but dont mention what it will cost. I'm sure this causes problems for a lot of people, as cheap car hire very easily doubles in cost with one way rentals! Everyone should be careful of this
Thanks, I'll be very careful of thisDriving from Vegas to LA/San fran involves a fair bit of desert roads which are fine and easy to drive on. have done the trip several times and would recommend an SUV, jeep grand Cherokee etc. The driving position and view is much better. I hire cars in the states about 4 times a year. Go with dollar (usually the cheapest or not far off) and book on their .co.uk site. All prices up front, take the basic package to cover insurance etc or upgrade to cover extra driver and tank of fuel. if they do have a one way drop off charge its usually quite reasonable.
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