USA 2009 - The Southwest
Tour facts
Hotel review
Date of the tour: End October - Mid November 2009
Start and end point: Salt Lake City
Flight: Nuremberg - Frankfurt - Chicago - Salt Lake City (United/Lufthansa)
Car: Booked IFAR (Midsize SUV) with Alamo through the travel agency - we got a GMC Acadia
Duration of the tour: 20 days
*****
****
***
**
*
Very good, everything fit here
Good, we felt comfortable
Complies with the standard
Very simple but clean
Never again
Tour details
| Day | Activity of the day | Comments on the day | Accommodation | - |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Day 1 |
Travel to Salt lake City |
Due to a flight delay, we missed our connecting flight to Salt lake City in Chicago. But luckily there was still a flight later in the evening. |
Marriott Downtown, Salt lake City/Utah**** |
– |
|
2.-4-Tag |
The three days Salt lake City were due to a business stay, otherwise one day in the city would have been enough for us. |
Marriott Downtown, Salt lake City/Utah**** |
- |
|
|
Day 4 |
Pick up car and drive from Salt Lake City to Springdale. |
Quite a long drive, but we want to get to red stone country as soon as possible. |
Best Western Zion Park Inn, Springdale/Utah**** |
- |
|
Day 5 |
Had I known what to expect, I probably would not have done the hike. So it was super exhausting, but one of the greatest hikes we've ever done in the Southwest. |
Best Western Zion Park Inn, Springdale/Utah**** |
- |
|
|
Day 6 |
Zion NP – Northgate Peak Trail, Scenic Drive (damals durft man noch mit dem eigenen Auto fahren) |
Best Western Ruby´s Inn, Bryce City/Utah*** |
- |
|
|
Day 7 |
Today is our first real dirt road experience with an SUV in the US and it was fun. |
Best Western Ruby´s Inn, Bryce City/Utah*** |
- |
|
|
Day 8 |
Super nice day, the Hole in the Rock Road shakes us very hard because of extreme washboard. |
Best Western Ruby´s Inn, Bryce City/Utah*** |
- |
|
|
Day 9 |
Without having visited Bryce Canyon, we just couldn't go on. That's why we were in the park all day today. |
Best Western Ruby´s Inn, Bryce City/Utah*** |
- |
|
|
Day 10 |
Burr Trail, Moki Dugway, Monument Valley (vorbeigefahren) sehr sehr lange Fahrt durch eine wahnsinnig schöne Landschaft. |
Holiday Inn, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
|
|
Day 11 |
First attempt no success. On the drive to the Wahweap Hoodoos we get stuck at a wash and walk from there. Unfortunately we have no GPS and therefore no idea how long the way actually is. It will be about 12.5mi... |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
|
|
Day 12 |
Second attempt no success. Super nice, long day. We are lucky that the North Rim is still open. |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
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|
Day 13 |
Two great canyons make up for the frustration at the Wave Permit draw. |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
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|
Day 14 |
Super beautiful canyons and we can enjoy them without crowds, unfortunately that is not possible anymore now. |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
|
|
15. Tag |
Paria Ranger Station Wave Permit Verlosung Nr.5 – Waschtag in Page |
We didn't believe in it anymore, but on the 5th try we actually win wave permits for tomorrow. |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
|
Day 16 |
An absolute highlight of the vacation. Not only the Wave is great, but the whole hike. |
Best Western Plus Lake Powell, Page/Arizona*** |
- |
|
|
Day 17 |
Grand Canyon NP, Hoover Dam, Stroll the Strip in Las Vegas. |
Paris, Las Vegas/Nevada**** |
- |
|
|
Day 18 |
Stroll through Las Vegas, evening we watch a show. "O" is really an experience. |
Paris, Las Vegas/Nevada**** |
- |
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|
Day 19 |
Drive from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City |
Driving day with a small detour to Kolob Canyon/Zion NP. Unfortunately, the weather is rather modest... |
Best Western, Salt lake City/Utah*** |
- |
|
Day 20 |
Return flight |
– |
– |
- |