California summer 2024

[mrsfeatherbottom]

I need your help! We think we might do a family holiday to California next summer but the usual itinerary that a lot of people do probably isn't going to work for us. I have a physical disability and cannot walk very far. It's degenerative so I'd like to do this holiday before I get much worse. We went to Germany 4 years ago and hired a wheelchair so that we could visit sites etc so would probably need to do that again.

I've always dreamt of going to the Grand Canyon but not sure how doable it would be with a West Coast holiday but equally don't think we'd be able to justify a separate holiday at a later date so if we don't do it with this holiday, I probably won't ever get to.

DD (who will be 14 next year) has ASD and doesn't like too much time in the car and a lot of the itineraries I've seen involve a lot of driving. We'll need some downtime/rest days. But, I do think a holiday with a car will work better for me as I couldn't manage loads of walking etc.

No interest in Las Vegas or Death Valley. Would need a good few days in LA for theme parks. Would love to go back to SF (both DH and I have been there separately years ago. Although we would like to see Sequoia or Yosemite, I couldn't do any hiking so not sure how that would work.

Hit me with your suggestions/thoughts. TIA

Hi OP, I am planning my own California trip, and while looking for articles on travelling to Yosemite without a car (we're thinking of getting Amtrak from SF to Merced then the YARTS bus) and I came across this article about Yosemite being wheelchair accessible and remembered your post. Not sure if it's useful, but just in case!

emerginghorizons.com/explore-wheelchair-accessible-yosemite-without-a-car/

Also, we are doing a mix of Amtrak and driving, so it might be worth looking at the train routes available.

Thanks very much. I'll check that out.

Some info
https://www.explorebetter.com/travel-stories/the-4-most-wheelchair-accessible-national-parks/

hi we did the West Coast in oct 20.
flew to San Francisco for 3 nights, getting a taxi to hotel, picked up hire car on last day in San Francisco,

drove to yosemite for 4 nights we then drove along Pacific coast highway stopping for a few days each at;-
monterey,
los Angeles ( did universal) santa barbara,
san Diego,
then drove back to anaheim for Disney,
flew home from LA airport and dropped hire car at LA airport.

you could always add in grand canyon instead of monterey, plus stay for longer time in each place or miss out a place, so longer time staying somewhere between each drive.
whatever you decide you'll have a brilliant time, it was our best holiday ever.

My family live in the US and I spend a lot of time there.
I have done a lot of the National Parks with twin pushchairs.All the parks mentioned in your post have been road tested by us.
Also I do everything to avoid long car rides.
Nearly all the parks have a central area ie around the visitor centre and accommodation that is very accessible.
You could absolutely see and do loads using the paths and boardwalks.
Don’t know if it is the same for wheelchairs but I had a all terrain pushchair and this allowed us some access to some of the steeper or rougher trails and walks.
We do lots of motel stops, just to break the driving up.
Also if you want to have evening meals at the parks, book your table really far in advance.
Local coaches nearly always fill up the restaurants and residents/ overnight guests can find it hard to get a reservation.
Popping into the local town for a pizza is normally a hour or two drive from a park.
I have recently returned from a visit to SF and I found it so sad to see how much the city has declined.The fentanyl addiction is horrible to see and it is very prevalent.
I don’t mean to put a downer on any plans or special memories you have and you may be nowhere near the central districts.
It is worth knowing this in advance as it could be disturbing for children to see.
The most striking of all the parks is Yellowstone, because of the geysers, the nearby town of Jackson is really lovely.
But that puts you in the wrong part of the US if you want to visit California.
The Grand Canyon is incredible also and fits in beautifully with your itinerary.
North America Travel and Trail Finders are very knowledgeable and helpful.
I think your trip sounds great and I hope you all have an amazing time.

I got back on Sunday night after an 18 day trip starting in Vegas then San Diego LA, San Francisco up the coast to Vancouver.

I can confirm San Francisco looks very rundown and there were a lot of homeless off their heads lying on pavements, just awful to see as an adult I can only imagine how upsetting it would be for children. Fortunately we were on a hop on hop off bus and didn't risk getting off it in the downtown area, plus we avoided all the human poo and syringes on the pavements.