2.5 Weeks in the US - National Parks (October 2014)

Our preparation and journey

We were very exited to return to the US to visit a number of national parks as well as Las Vegas and San Francisco. We made sure our passports and ESTA applications were in order and then we just had to wait for the day that our plane would take off.

Our journey went from Brussels over New York and Denver to Salt Lake City where we picked up our car from Avis. The category was higher than the one ordered but we did not question it because it already happened before. We were not asked anything, we just received the key and we had to sign a document with the price in USD (similar to the one in EUR that we paid in advance). When we got home, we found out that they had charged us for an upgrade while we had not asked it! Fortunately for us, we had booked the car through a tour operator and they managed to get our money back. Well, it was an experience that as of then, we remembered every time we picked up a car for a road trip!

At the Denver airport, I saw a ‘Tornado Shelter’ sign. This was the first time ever that I saw such an indication and I was hoping we wouldn’t need it. I had already seen directions like ‘hurricane escape way’ on my previous travels. At first, I couldn’t imagine how it would be used. Now I know :-). After seeing these signs, you start to wonder what you would do if something like this happened during your vacation. In Belgium we are not used to such extreme weather conditions (at least for now) so we are not organised for it.

On our way to the National Parks

We spent our first night in Salt Lake City, in the Fairfield Inn & Suites. The Inn was located a relatively short drive from the airport and was perfect for our short stay. A little tired of the long journey, we went to bed early.

We decided to purchase an ‘America the beautiful pass’ (currently 80 USD). This pass covers 4 adults in one vehicle and all the national parks that we intended to visit. The only ones that were not included were those managed by the Navajo Indians (the Antelope Canyon en Monument Valley).