Heading back towards San Francisco

Stage 2

Family Tour to America

It had been a dream for a couple of years to take the family to the United States and do a Road Trip while all the kids were of an age to enjoy it. Turns out the Grandparents thought it was a great idea too and so we had 8 people of various ages join the adventure.

It started with a direct flight with Air New Zealand - Auckland to San Francisco. The time difference was such that early to bed the first night of arrival and everyone was fighting fit to go the next morning. Our accommodation in San Francisco was at the Fishermans Wharf HI Hostel. We too up a dorm of 4 bunk beds with our group and found it relatively comfortable. The hostel is walking distance to Fishermans Wharf and also handy to a Safeway. Definitely a great spot if you don't mind shared facilities.

Another great option we found was the San Francisco Go Pass. Purchase this before you arrive and you have a pass that allows you access to 30+ attractions.  With a little bit of planning we maxed out on this and got all around some super attractions.

A little bit left field was a visit to the Wells Fargo Flagship Museum where we learned about the banking services offered during the gold rush.

While in the area it makes sense to catch a Cable Car if you fancy and visit the Museum for highlights of the machinery they makes it all work.

Cable Car Museum

 A must do when in San Francisco is to get out on the harbour via any of the many cruises that go around the bay, under the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz Island. Fishermans Wharf is the departure point for an array of different boat tours that will take you out for a couple of hours or half a day.






If you fancy a bike ride you can hire bikes from various areas around town and head around the Harbour  towards Golden Gate Bridge. It is quite a sedate ride, passing marinas, stately homes and park land. There are rules for riding over the bridge depending on which day it is and this is guaranteed to be one of the highlights of your day.

We separated our group after the cycle across the bridge as some wanted to carry on to Sausilito, a quaint sea side village while others returned to Fishermans Wharf.







The afternoon took the family to Golden Gate Park by bus and then through to California Academy of Science. You could easily spend a day here as it is home to a planetarium, aquarium, natural history museum and education programs. We learned so much about wildlife  both on land and in the water.

The four story living rainforest was inspiring with live plants, butterflies and insects abounding. From the top you could look down at the amazing coral reef ecosystem with tropical fish, stingrays and an array of fish, all of which we later walked across via boardwalks and also looked up at from the basement level. Museum times and further information can be found here.

Rainforest

Check out the coral ecosystem

The Exploratorium : Museum of Science, Art and Human Perception is located at Pier 15, a half hour walk from Fishermans Wharf. We could have spent the day here and it is an exceptional place to let the kids go and participate in experiential activities.

"Step inside a tornado, turn upside down in a curved mirror, walk on a fog bridge, and explore more than 650 hands-on exhibits. You'll find all of this plus unique programs, discussions, and events; a cafe and restaurant; two stores (one with an Art-O-Mat machine); and more at our beautiful bayside location."

Madame Tussauds

To plan your visit click here. Fishermans Wharf is a tourist heaven with shopping, food and entertainment. With planning you can save some of your San Francisco Go Pass activities for the evenings when the following attractions are still open until late; families love Ripleys Believe it or Not, The San Francisco Dungeon (personal recommendation 8+) and Madame Tussauds.




After 4 days in San Fran we collected our 12 seater Ford Series and hit the Coastal Highway Route 1. The drive takes you out of the city through San Jose towards the Pacific Ocean. We stopped at Monterey to visit 'Dennis the Menace' playground. A welcome respite for lunch and to let off some energy the playground has a great variety of equipment for all ages. Our journey took us through Carmel by the Sea, Big Sur and on to San Simeon. Just before San Simeon and 1.5 miles south of Point Piedras Blancas you will notice signs for the Elephant Seal Vista Point. This is well worth a stop to check out these large, lazy creatures as they grizzle at each other and wallow in the sandy beach. Access is free and wheelchair friendly with abundant parking.

Our next day saw a couple of hours driving to the quaint town of Solvang. This town was founded in 1911 by a group of Danes and so has a delightful Danish village feel to it. We stayed at the King Frederik Motel and the family was happy with space and a swimming pool.

This area is renowned for it's local produce including olives and wines and there are a number of restaurants, bars and shops where you can enjoy these flavours.

Solvang - quaint streets 

Nobody said that driving on the opposite side of the road and through LA traffic with 7 lanes was going to be easy but we made it to Anaheim and our next stop off.
Our accommodation was at Radisson, Buena Park where we stayed before some 10 years ago. Although a little older we like this place because it has spacious rooms with separate bedroom (good when you are sleeping 4 to a room), good price including breakfast, complimentary shuttle to Disneyland and also, just next door is Medieval Times!

For a reasonable charge you get an evening of entertainment including fanfare, knights competing against each other in a tournament and also a meal that is basic and fun. No cutlery required, your kids will love this place where they can yell and shout their support to their knight for the night.

Our group chose different plans for our time in LA. For the older set one day at Disneyland was adequate and then the second day was spent exploring LA with a Hop On Hop Off bus tour that left from the hotel.
For the younger set Day 2 was spent at California Theme Park where the variety of roller coasters kept the kids happy beyond belief. If you don't want to break the bank on food  in Disneyland a wee suggestion is to pop out at lunch time as just out the front entrance you will find McDonalds, Ihop and Denny's. Nothing a like a recharge family meal and then back into it.

We decided on a sedate drive to Las Vegas with a stopover so that we could enjoy the local areas so on Day 9 headed north east towards Victorville where we stopped into the Route 66 Museum. A quaint and friendly place we checked out all the old 'stuff', got up to date on the history of Route 66 and then found that well known and sometimes revered Highway. I recalled that Billy Connolly had done the trip and after some googling found the coolest place known as Elmers Bottle Tree Ranch. 

This place is incredible! The story goes that Elmer and his Dad scoured the desert over many years and collecting junk and what not put together these amazing structures. The most amazing thing are the sounds, it is deathly quiet except for the wind blowing and sending all of the windmill machines spinning, chimes are ringing and the odd tumble weed rolls by.