So, my nephew has decided to marry an American lass so we are all off to California for the wedding in late June/early July.
In total we have 16 days to kill and we will be bringing the 3 teenage kiddies with us.
Flying into LAX, have to do 4 nights in Vegas for the 4th July and the bucks/hens night.
Was going to rent a decent sized SUV. Wanted something decent as will have a fair bit of luggage etc for the time away. Any suggestions of what a decent sized 7 seat SUV is?? The American SUVs seem a fair bit bigger than what we have here in Australia. Any common scams or things to watch out for with them??
We are starting to put together an itinerary now. I think we will spend the first day and a bit in LA, likely get the cheesy Hollywood stuff out of the way for the kiddies. Then thinking of driving up to San Fran for a few days, then make our way to Vegas, then Vegas to the wedding and then have the last 3-4 days doing theme parks before flying back mid July.
Am happy to hear any suggestions of must do things to see etc. The wife and I have been to LA before so don’t really plan on spending much time there. I don’t have the name of the wedding venue to hand but I think it is in Southern California somewhere…
The last time we did something similar, I rented a Dodge Grand Caravan and drove it from Washington DC, across to California, and then back again. Was a fantastic car and while the majority of the time it was just for my wife and I, we did have 4 adults and a young teenager with luggage fit comfortably for about 3 weeks as we drove back east.
We ended up going with Alamo and the trick I learnt is to book via the UK website as they include CDW and Liability Protection by default. I think usually this is included in your personal insurance for US residents/citizens so it’s often an additional charge if booking via the US site. This was 8 years ago, so maybe this has all changed, but it’s worth looking into.
The drive between LA and Vegas is boring af and quite slow going, so don’t expect great scenery. If going up the coast to San Fran take as much of the coastal roads as you can. It’s obviously slower but much better views.
Rented a Jeep Wagoneer last year in HI. 4 adults, but we wanted something with decent interior room because we knew we’d be driving a good amount. Was a little tight in some parking spots (and in our hotel parking garage until we figured out we could drop the ride height with a button).
Also got a Chevy Tahoe in MN last year, seemed about the same size but felt like it drove smaller than the Jeep.
Both from Avis, they weren’t much more to rent than a standard-sized SUV or car although I have a corporate discount that I use so that may be a factor there.
I believe a minivan, as already stated will be the most comfortable for everyone. My experience is that the third row in SUV’s are typically not convenient.
If you have a strong preference for SUV, you will want a full size SUV and confirm what is the standard offering in the class. The classification at the rental car companies is often smaller than what is Americans think of as a midsize SUV or similar.
My unsolicited opinion - San Francisco is great, but with this itinerary you will spend a lot of time in the car. Have you considered Los Angeles, San Diego and Vegas instead?
I agree with minivans over SUVs as rentals. But if you go through any mainstream rental agency you will have a geed enough vehicle. It won’t be what you would buy for long term use, but it will be relatively new and should be functional. If you look at prices on US website then all of the insurance costs will not be included. Insurance can double the costs.
If you are more nature folks than city folks then LA to SF to Yosemite to LV (via Death Valley) is a good way to spend a week and a half. Just a note that right now the road that connects the west side of Yosemite to the east side is closed for winter so Google Maps will not show that routing. But using route 120, it takes a little over two hours to go from Yosemite Valley to Mammoth Lakes in the summer.
A couple other considerations….
Select the larger class vehicles - which with kids, luggage and duration should be a minivan, or the larger suvs - Expedition or Tahoe. I think an explorer or similar would be tight. Definitely nothing smaller than that. . Dodge caravan was mentioned, but I doubt rental cos have them as they haven’t been made in years.
On the insurance, check what’s covered automatically by your CC. You can decline what the rental companies offer if it’s already covered by your cc.
As others have suggested insurance via rental companies can be expensive. We did a 17 day rental car trip 5 years ago. We bought a rental car insurance policy before we left Australia and saved a lot of money.
We travelled SF, Vegas, LA, SF. We visited Disney and Universal in LA. We went through death valley and the Joshua Tree NP. From Vegas we did a helicopter trip over the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam. If you have the time Yosemite is great.
Fellow Aussie here. Can’t comment on the car as we’ve always rented RV’s when in the US. It’s a perfect way to travel and would highly recommend. I would definitely go to Lake Powell, it’s amazing - you could even get a houseboat for a few nights. Rent a boat (you don’t need a license there).
Utah is unbeatable in my opinion if you have enough time to get there.
It’s a fair track up to SF with not too much in between. If you like mountains & hiking & mountain biking we also loved Mammoth Lakes.
You want a minivan or a full size/premium SUV. The standard SUV or Standard Elite SUV won’t have enough room for all of your luggage and people. The Full size/Premium SUV’s will be Yukon, Suburban, Expedition. They are larger vehicles. Minivans are smaller but can pack in the people and luggage (7 people).
And get travel insurance. You can usually add car coverage for a lot less than through the car rental agencies. US healthcare is shit compared to what you are used to so having an insurance plan that covers medical is definitely worth having. Hopefully you don’t need to use it but having it should bring peace of mind.
Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and fabulous wine in Paso Robles.
Minivan or a full size (Expedition, Tahoe, Pilot, or Grand Wagoneer) SUV
You put a Pilot in the same category as Expedition or Tahoe?
Alamo does so I assume every else does(and Pilots are full size SUVs that can seat 7)
Interesting. I didn’t realize that. My wife and I both have Pilots and they seem considerably smaller than the Expedition that I rented a couple of months ago. The fuel mileage on the Pilot is much better than the Expedition. We get about 26-27 mpg on her car, and it is pretty peppy. I wouldn’t want to tow a heavy trailer with it, but by itself it does well.
+Nissan Armada or Lincoln Navigator.
I was surprised too, just more so it alway seemed rental cars are US cars.
National rents all of Mazda’s models, and VWs, Toyota’s SUVs, Nissan Armadas, and their prestige collection has the usual German makes.
While they may have to pay for it. I would still argue that we have the best healthcare in the world overall.
Our system of healthcare and billing sucks… but the care… is the best.
As a medical specialist working in Australia I might beg to differ Eric!!
Particularly the areas I work in.
You have some exceptionally high maternal mortality rates, amongst other things.
If you can afford care, then yes, the care can be great.
But some countries do their overall healthcare far far better than the USA, but it can take some inside knowledge to see how that is the case.