4/5 week trip with teens-New England/Monument Valley & Yosemite or both?

[Str1ngofhearts]

Spending a week in NY city regardless.

Had discounted MV et al as finally decided it was too expensive( flying out of SF really bumps up flight pricesand would be spreading ourselves to thin iykwim.

Dp worried NE on its own will be a bit dull for teens.

Going round in circles and need to book.

Help!!!!!

We spent 2.5 weeks in New England a couple of years ago - kids were 14 and 12 at the time. We all had a brilliant time - it perhaps helped that I lived in the area for a while in my 20s.

NYC
Cape Cod
Salem
Connecticut/mass borders (where I lived)
New Hampshire lakes and mountains
Maine coast including a day at a theme park
Boston

If we'd had a little longer I'd have added in Toronto and Niagara, northern Vermont.

Yosemite and San Francisco are also awesome of course, but I'd recommend seeing California in a separate holiday, another time. If that's an option!

Thanks for that.

So this is what dp's vision is looking like. Finding time and money for 2 trips in the near future may be tricky.

NYC 1 week
Cape Cod 10 days
drive from NY to Chicago 2 days
train from Chicago to Grand Junction in coach seats(😩) 2 days
MV,GC,Sequoia,JT,LV road trip 7-10 days
Yosemite/SF 4 days
Home

Thoughts. 2 out of 3 teens prefer this idea to

NY 1 week
MV 1 week
Cape Cod 1 week
New Hampshire/ Maine and Boston road trip back to NYC 2 weeks

The latter seems more relaxing but teens are saying it will be just like England

I want to see everything in the first idea( initial dream)but also the second( seems more relaxing). Dp and I have done SF and coastal California before. I think they'd actually love New England,may find all the travelling in the second exhausting.

Thoughts?( please)

What time of year?
What are you doing for 10 days in Cape Cod. Teens may find pottering and going to the beach every day a bit dull. I lived in Boston for a few years and had weekends there but not sure 10 days. Okay if dc happy just mooching.

It will be very hot in Monument Valley in the summer.

Monument Valley, GC, Sequoia and Yosemite are all stunning - I've been but on two different trips. It is a long drive MV to L V. Sequoia and Yosemite are reasonably close.

It does sound like it might be better on two trips - it took us two different three week just AZ/CA trips - and maybe focusing on the East might be more relaxing.

I think there are bits of your first itinerary where you will end up seeing nothing because you will be travelling too much.

There’s plenty to do if you stay south in the West and avoid Sequoia, Yosemite and SF.

Look at Bryce and Zion NPs for a start, plus spending some time in Southern California. Then you can fly out of LAX which might be cheaper.

Plus spent some time in Chicago, it’s awesome.

Can happily cut out LV,reduce Cape Cod to a week( though 10 days relaxing after NYC advisable plus lots to see.

Kids may well be gone before we do this again and time with exams,money may well be issues.

Gah!!!! We just go round in circles. Both have elements of appeal.

Would fly out of SF and Yosemite non negotiable.

Got to go to work. Back later. Thanks for the advice,getting desperate for a decision.

If you are doing NY for a week, you can then either go North or South. That would be sensible. Going west is a bit silly in my view.

You can go to Washington from NY on the train and then get out into the historic towns and battlefield sites of Maryland and Virginia. You also have the coastal areas south of Washington. West of Washington there is the Blue Ridge mountains and I would have thought you would find plenty to do and places to relax in this area. Fly home from Washington.

Nearly everyone who looks at the USA flits around and spends all the time travelling. The canyons will be ludicrously hot in August. Much better to go in April. If you don’t think you will go again, savour the best and stuck to an area with less driving. It’s the real America!

Not interested in North or South. Just East and West.
Looked at flights and we could fly to Lax after 2 weeks NY and Cape Cod then do a 2 week road trip round canyons and Yosemite. Out of SF. Same price as NY NY.

Insanity?

Want to see all but worried we’ll scrape the surface of both iykwim. Have done SF and coastal California before pre kids. Have family there. Kids have never been to USA and we could afford a second trip bar any disasters but you know how things can pan out re time and money. Still going round those circles.😩

You are scraping the surface with so much running around. Shame you cannot appreciate a bit more of what the USA has to offer and spend time actually enjoying it. Do you even know what is in the areas I suggested? Probably not.

Yes but would rather see New England and or 4 corners parks area and Yosemite.

Haven’t decided to do both hence the title. Still trying to decide which to do. Which would you suggest if not a combination of both?

Sorry if I've missed it, but what time of year are you looking at?

Late July and August

.......I suspect going by UK hols.

Apologies for the highjack but we're wresting with a similar dilemma and age dc and going July/ Aug. Any advice for us?