First Road Trip San Jose, CA to Austin, TX

The route seems OK, however the time frame seems way too aggressive. The first leg will be at least 7.5 hours with no stops. More like 8.5 or 9 hours with stops and traffic. We usually only drive about 4-5 hours per day and we don't have children with us. Indio to Tucson is 5.5 hours with no stops. El Paso to Austin will be a 10 or 12 hour trip with stops. We also don't like to get to the next stop after dark. Campground offices are closed and very difficult to park a rig in the dark. With children I'd also make reservations at the campgrounds. Also if the children are going to play, I would stop overnight at that place, not get back in the vehicle to go to another stop for the night. (except maybe White Sands to El Paso which is a short drive). Once you nail down the stops we can help with campgrounds. Have a safe trip!

I agree.. Day one is going to be brutal. Considering you have metropolis's on both ends you could hit serious traffic.
I think I would look at something like SJU to maybe Bakersfield or Victorville area.

Day 2 Quartzsite to Tucson (unless you have to hit PHX) only because it's an easy run into PHX or Tucson.

Not sure about day 3, but I can assure you that El Paso to Austin is going to be even more brutal. It's as far from Los Angeles to El Paso as it is from El Paso to San Antonio, and you're still 100 miles short of Austin at that point (and that traffic can suck the entire way between the two at times). Even though the speed limit is 80, it's a L O N G way. IMO I would find something maybe 1/2 way from El Paso to SAT, stay there and do a final banzai run up to Austin.

I've done this run in 3 days, but not with kids on board.

PS- I don't know anything about this, but the SIL who was stationed in El Paso for several years says to keep off the border when camping or even hotels. Always trust a local..

The farthest I drove this summer was a bit over 700 miles to Colorado Springs. We left about 5:30 Am and got in about 8ish. Made for a long day, but with the DVD player and the I-Pads, the kids (3 boys) didn't gripe at all.

Our youngest son (4 1/2) is a road warrior, and has always been able to handle 10+ hour drives. The only time he got cranky was when we were coming back from Charleston and we were on the 2nd day of the drive. The last 100 miles, he was a little testy.

I might suggest altering your day 3 schedule to stop at Balmorhea State Park in Texas. They have a 2 acre spring fed swimming pool.

Thanks so much for the replies. It has helped me a lot. I agree that El Paso may be too close to the border for my husband's liking. And thanks for the Balmorhea State Park suggestion. That looks perfect for my family. My daughter LOVES the water and looks like a great stopping point for us. Going to do another trip planner with everyone's suggestions. Thanks again!

Leave early, 152, 5, 210, 10. Midday LA only, never rush hour and 55 MPH in CA. You can roll at 75 MPH in AZ. Is your rig, tires, etc ready for that speed? Avoid Phoenix and Tucson rush hours.

If you're traveling when warm/hot hows the engine cooling and A/C? If overheating occurs on grade do you know what to do?

Overheating on grades: Slow down, gear down, AC off, lights etc off unless night, heater on full heat. If necessary stop and use fast idle.

We will leave early. We drive down to Disneyland a few times a year, so we know how bad that rush hour traffic can be. Our RV is brand new (Thor Axis 2014). We're traveling next month, so I don't believe heat will be an issue. I will make sure to relay those questions to my husband :-) Thanks for the tips.

If you are really stressed for time the trip works. However, we just returned from San Jose to Los Angeles, a long boring 5+ hour drive. At least 2 more hours to Indio. Personally, I'd try San Jose to the Magic Mountain area of Valencia. Travel Village RV park or Castaic RV park. Then another long day to Blythe, there is a very nice Blythe KOA on the river. Then Tucson. I haven't been there for years. Next stop would be Deming NM. Stop at Tombstone. Haven't made it to Austin yet, but hope to get there this summer, or next. We did spend a couple of nights in Juarez in a nice park, but we were very uncomfortable with the neighborhood even though we were in a caravan. I'd plan on just driving through quickly...JMHO.
Have a great and successful trip.

OK you have a plan. Sure hope that this trip is successful and helps DD.