Yosemite/Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Parks
Hey y'all- I already asked for some input on our big summer trip, but plans have changed with the wife's new job. We now have about 10 days (late June/early July) and want to visit the parks above...
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We stayed in El Portal CA to visit Yosemite, and in Three Rivers CA to visit Sequoia/Kings Canyon. Also did a couple days in/near Santa Cruz to visit the coean. One of our favorite trips to date!
Both NP areas were perfect for visiting the parks! Probably 10-15 minutes max away from the park entrances in both places.
We stayed at the Yosemite Cedar Lodge for Yosemite NP. Nice hotel, a little run down but there are only a few options close to Yosemite, and it worked well for us. I'd suggest getting the family suite w/ balcony. It was great to sit out there in the morning and evening looking right at the mountains! Note : Mariposa CA is about 20-25 minutes away, and has a grocery store and restaurants that are WAAAAAY better priced than anything near Yosemite. There are no grocery stores (the hotel has some groceries but the prices are insane) and only 2 restaurants (at hotels) in El Portal and near Yosemite, and the prices are insane. Do yourself a favor and drive to Mariposa and buy whatever groceries you need, and there are a lot of restaurant options at better prices as well. Also gas is way cheaper in Mariposa than the 1 station btwn El Portal and Yosemite.
We stayed at Comfort Inn & Suites in Three Rivers and loved it. Great pool and hot tub, free hot breakfast, and has quite a few restaurants close. We also went on a "family fun float" whitewater rafting trip while there w/ Mountain Descents are highly recommend that too! You can also rent a house boat on the Lake in Three Rivers, tho we didn't get to do that because they were already all booked.
Yosemite required 2-3 days to see everything and do some hikes, you could do Sequoia and KC in 1 day each if needed, which is what we did.
We then did 2 days in Santa Cruz CA which I HIGHLY recommend as well. There's an amusement park right on the ocean that the kids really enjoyed, as well as the pier and awesome shopping. We stayed in the Watsonville Holiday Inn here, since is way WAY cheaper than staying in Santa Cruz. 15-20 minute drive to Santa Cruz but saved quite a bit. Another very nice and clean hotel.
Best of luck planning, we had a blast!
Both NP areas were perfect for visiting the parks! Probably 10-15 minutes max away from the park entrances in both places.
We stayed at the Yosemite Cedar Lodge for Yosemite NP. Nice hotel, a little run down but there are only a few options close to Yosemite, and it worked well for us. I'd suggest getting the family suite w/ balcony. It was great to sit out there in the morning and evening looking right at the mountains! Note : Mariposa CA is about 20-25 minutes away, and has a grocery store and restaurants that are WAAAAAY better priced than anything near Yosemite. There are no grocery stores (the hotel has some groceries but the prices are insane) and only 2 restaurants (at hotels) in El Portal and near Yosemite, and the prices are insane. Do yourself a favor and drive to Mariposa and buy whatever groceries you need, and there are a lot of restaurant options at better prices as well. Also gas is way cheaper in Mariposa than the 1 station btwn El Portal and Yosemite.
We stayed at Comfort Inn & Suites in Three Rivers and loved it. Great pool and hot tub, free hot breakfast, and has quite a few restaurants close. We also went on a "family fun float" whitewater rafting trip while there w/ Mountain Descents are highly recommend that too! You can also rent a house boat on the Lake in Three Rivers, tho we didn't get to do that because they were already all booked.
Yosemite required 2-3 days to see everything and do some hikes, you could do Sequoia and KC in 1 day each if needed, which is what we did.
We then did 2 days in Santa Cruz CA which I HIGHLY recommend as well. There's an amusement park right on the ocean that the kids really enjoyed, as well as the pier and awesome shopping. We stayed in the Watsonville Holiday Inn here, since is way WAY cheaper than staying in Santa Cruz. 15-20 minute drive to Santa Cruz but saved quite a bit. Another very nice and clean hotel.
Best of luck planning, we had a blast!
