Day 2
Sunday 12/10/08 – San Francisco to Lake Tahoe (275 miles)
| In the morning
we’ll hand out the pre loaded sat nav units and two way radios for each car and make sure you’ve all you need for the incredible adventure which lies ahead. |
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Once in the hot seat of your Corvette, we’ll head north and take you over one of the most famous land marks in California, the staggering Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco – what a way to start the day!
It’s then time to drive around San Pablo Bay and head east. This is an appropriately easy drive to get you acquainted with the 400 horses under your
right!
By late morning we’ll change direction, get off the main route and head towards the much more interesting and challenging roads found in the Sierra Nevada
Mountains.
Our lunch stop is in a real throw-back American town where it’s impossible to travel up its main street and not see a collection of old Harley Davidson motorcycles lined up in anticipation of some scenic mountain riding.
The afternoon route will really give you the opportunity to enjoy your “new” car as we snake through the spectacular scenery of the “Sierra’s” before tracing the shores at 6,000 feet around the world famous Lake Tahoe. The route section around Lake Tahoe is truly spectacular and includes the amazing Emerald Bay. You’ll have the opportunity to see this area again (and you’ll want to!) if you go on the short optional drive the following day.
Our extremely nice 4* resort club hotel, which we’ll be staying in for 2 evenings, is located in Heavenly Village next to one of the fastest gondolas in the U.S. and is in the perfect spot to explore this playground for the rich and famous commonly known as the “California Alps”. We’re also a five minute walk from the Nevada state line where you can try your hand in some of the most glamorous Casinos outside of Las Vegas.
For our 2 nights here, we’ve upgraded the rooms so you’ll enjoy a large bedroom with a separate living, dining and kitchen area. The hotel facilities also include valet parking, a gym and large outdoor heated swimming pool with hot tubs
Day 3
Monday 13/10/08 (75 miles) – Lake Tahoe
REST DAY with OPTIONAL DRIVE
|
If you “readjusted” your bank
balance late into the night in one
or more of the many Nevada
casinos the previous
evening,
you’ll no doubt appreciate a bit
of a lie in today.
However, we have lined up a
short drive for those who want
to see more of the area. |
The route takes in what California proudly boasts as one of the country’s most scenic drives so we’d suggest you join us for this late morning start then still have time do enjoy the area after we return to our hotel by mid afternoon taking in a scenic lunch stop en route.
There are many activities around Lake Tahoe such as scenic gondola rides, helicopter tours, river rafting, parasailing, pedal boats, canoeing, waterskiing, jet skiing, kayaking and boat cruises.
Day 4
Tuesday 14/10/08 (255 miles) – Lake Tahoe to Yosemite National Park
Today is sure to be a driving experience you will never forget!
Utilising a magnificent “pass” to lead us away from the south shores of Lake Tahoe, you’ll really appreciate being in a sports car as we wind our way through miles of stunning mountain terrain. |
|
Later we’ll take in the unusually intriguing views near Mono Lake and the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada’s before descending to our very remote scenic lunch stop.
After lunch, we’ll use some excellent roads to guide us to one of America’s greatest natural treasures, Yosemite National Park. We’ll enter the park at 10,000 feet (that’s 1,000 higher than the Stelvio Pass in Northern Italy!) and enjoy some spectacular views including those at Tuolumne Meadows at almost 9,000 feet.
We’ll enjoy 100 incredible miles on the way to our hotel on the borders of the Yosemite National Park. Our imposing 4* Park hotel will be your retreat for the next 2 nights.
Sitting 1 mile above sea level within its own 35 acre natural reserve, it enjoys excellent facilities including valet parking, a restaurant, bar and grill, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, indoor and outdoor whirlpools, sauna, steam rooms and a gym.
Day 5
Wednesday 15/10/08 (100 miles) REST DAY with OPTIONAL DRIVE
 |
A rest day which if you choose
can involve no driving at all
leaving you free to relax in the
hotel or visit the experience
centre to choose from the many
activities available including
horseback riding, hiking and
even guided rock climbing -
needless to say, we aren’t the
guides for that! |
However, if you are itching to get back in that sports car, then there is a fantastic drive that we highly recommend. It involves going off the main route to utilise an excellent sequence on undulating and good quality roads, but not even the excitement of these challenging ribbons of tarmac will prepare you for the awesome views awaiting us.
Make sure your camera is fully charged as you’re sure to take lots of photos here as the views stretching across the valley are staggering. Use one of the telescopes provided in this well facilitated area and you’ll no doubt see hikers and climbers making their way up different parts of the mighty “Half Dome”.
Later we’ll go to one of our favourite spots in Yosemite Valley for lunch before making our way back to our 4* resort hotel for a second night.
Day 6
Thursday 16/10/08 (140 miles) – Yosemite to Sequoia National Park
| The morning route from the hotel can only be described as a rollercoaster ride being endless snaking turns on very well maintained roads making for a mountain descent that will remain in your memory for a long time to come. |
|
Once out of this mountain area we’ll use some really remote roads we’ve found to guide us to our next mountain segment. Although still in the High Sierras, we’ll explore roads which although gifted with many scenic backdrops, are much less known of by tourists so you can expect to see even less traffic than experienced to date.
The route takes in some really incredible roads and scenery before entering Kings Canyon National Park which we’ll slice through to continue the rollercoaster ride as we break into Sequoia National Park and enjoy yet another stunning stretch of roads to guide us to our hotel, regarded as the best in the area.
We’ll arrive here for lunch so you'll have the afternoon to either relax or we’d recommend venturing off on foot into the surrounding wilderness on one of the marked trail routes.On site is an excellent restaurant with towering windows to ensure you can always enjoy those stunning forest views. There is also a bar area and lounge.
As usual we’ve booked the accommodation on a B&B basis to give you as much choice as possible.
Day 7
Friday 17/10/07 (295 miles) – Sequoia National Park to Carmel
 |
After enjoying days in the high
Sierras, it's time to head west in
search of the Californian
coast.
The day starts off by driving on
roads you’re more likely to
associate with the Alps long
before you’d ever think you were
in America but stunning, twisty
and, all American they are!
|
70 miles later we’ll actually embark on roads that the U.S. is perhaps better known for – straights ones! But fortunately we’ll still have some very nice scenery to take in along the way as we work our way across State.
However, don’t get used to not using your steering wheel for too long as we’ll soon be approaching one of the most famous stretches of road in the world – the Pacific Coast Highway.
We’ve found a very picturesque beachfront restaurant as our lunch stop before embarking on our coastal drive.
The backdrop to this route will be a stark contrast to the terrain you’ve experienced over the past week. Hugging the cliffs of the Californian shoreline, we’ll travel 100 very memorable miles made infamous by their wealth of dramatic and beautiful cliff top ocean views.
After experiencing one of the most scenic drives you’ll ever likely to encounter, we’ll arrive at our very interesting 4* hotel nestled in the backstreets of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Owned by once Hollywood starlet Doris Day, this hotel is considered to be the nicest in Carmel.
All the rooms have been recently refurbished to a high standard and to ensure we make the most of your stay here, we’ve reserved upgraded, larger rooms. This will be your home for the next 3 nights. It has its own character bar and lounge which claims to sell the best burgers in town. We’ve reserved all three nights on a bed and breakfast basis.
There are many restaurants in Carmel so you will be spoilt for choice when you decide to venture away from the hotel.
Day 8
Saturday 18/10/08 – REST DAY with OPTIONAL Laguna Seca Race
| Why not keep the car parked up today so you can explore Carmel on foot. There’s plenty to see in this town where Clint Eastwood was once mayor. Take a walk along the beach and see some of the incredible ocean front homes. For shopaholics it doesn’t get much better than this. |
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There are hundreds of privately owned shops and boutiques, many high quality galleries and of course a great choice of restaurants and
bars.
If you decide to get in the car, you could venture into nearby Monterey for a visit to Cannery Row, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and of course the historic old town of
Monterey. You may also decide to drive and revisit the Big Sur coastline which we would have driven through the previous
day.
Laguna Seca OPTION
If you’d like to enjoy the day at Laguna Seca Raceway, today will see the last race of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) for the 2008 season. There are various races before the 4 hour main attraction starting at mid afternoon and ending early evening.
You can choose from either:
* General admission grandstand
seats.
* Shared VIP entry with no predetermined numbers
required.
* Exclusive VIP entrance with limited
numbers.
Note re VIP tickets – we will arrange your VIP entrance in advance but there is no need to decide which option you’d like at the time of booking this tour as we will contact you in the future when the VIP options are released by Laguna Seca Raceway.
Day 9
Sunday 19/10/08 REST DAY with OPTIONAL DRIVE (30 miles)
 |
Today’s agenda may be dictated
on whether you took in the race
on the previous day. If you did,
why not take in some of the sites
mentioned above on Day 8. |
Alternatively, if you want to get back in your car for some scenic driving, why not take our optional 30 mile drive along the Monterey Bay Peninsula, through Pebble Beach on the “17 mile drive” followed by a scenic drive along the beach front of Carmel-by-the-Sea.
Day 10
Monday 20/10/08 (130 miles)
| New for this year is an extra day to visit San Francisco. Our aim is to get there around lunch time which leaves us plenty of time in the morning to continue our scenic route along the Pacific Coast Highway to enjoy those coastal views and roads one more time – about 70 miles of them! |
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After the Corvettes are returned and you’re checked in at the hotel all you need to do is decide how to spend your afternoon and the following morning in one of America’s friendliest cities.
Our 4* hotel is located on Union Square so you’ll be right in the heart of the action as soon as you leave the lobby. There are many things to see and do including, cable car rides, Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz Island, Chinatown, double-decker bus tours, seaplane tours, Lombard Street, and of course the heart of the city itself.
Day 11
Tuesday 21/10/08 (0 drive miles)
 |
This is the day you won’t be
looking forward to – going home
and leaving sunny California
behind you. |
However, you will still have the morning to enjoy San Francisco before taking our pre arranged shuttle from the hotel to San Francisco International airport to catch our early evening flight back to Heathrow, London.
Day 12
Wednesday - 22/10/08 – Heathrow Arrival
Our overnight flight will arrive mid morning so it will be time to say our farewells after what will be one of the most amazing journeys of your life.
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If you were to only ever go on one driving holiday, this should be it. Staying in fantastic hotels, driving on stunning roads through some of the world’s most incredible locations all timed to coincide with a motor sports event held at one of the worlds most famous race tracks……. see you at Heathrow on the 11th October!
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