Summer 2025- Palm Springs, Phoenix, or Vegas

[Inhislove]

Hello TUG! I would love some input- we have a graduating senior who would like to experience the western part of the US, including a national park. What are your thoughts on airports and car rental prices for next July in these spots.

Which national parks would you recommend from each place? (Thinking Grand Canyon for Vegas, etc) Which have you visited?

Thanks

 

[VacationForever]

July will be extremely hot in all of these places. Palm Springs is very far away from Grand Canyon. Try a different month like September or early May. Grand Canyon can be done from Vegas or Phoenix. If you stay a week at St. George, Utah, about 2 hours from Vegas, you can visit Bryce Canyon (not to be missed) and many other Canyon state parks and Zion National Park etc. Do not visit in July. Be warned! It is also monsoon season and can experience flash flooding at many of these national parks.

 

[DeniseM]

NO WAY! All of those places are hotter than Hades in the summer - seriously, they are having temps in the 120º range this summer! I recommend Yosemite, or Yellowstone, with nearby Grand Teton Park. In the summer, you want to go to higher elevations for tolerable temps. Lake Tahoe is also lovely in the summer.

 

[TolmiePeak]

I'm with Denise. These are 3 of the worst places in the country to visit in July. All of those "but it is dry heat" comments are complete nonsense when it is 115 degrees.

 

[BingoBangoBongo]

Before negating your choices, I’ll ask what is it that draws you to those three? We’re pretty pace aggressive on our vacations and those three choices in the summer would literally burn me out. I don’t like heat, dry or wet. I noticed you’re in FL so you likely have a different tolerance. About 15 years ago we did a great tour thru Jackson Hole, Yellowstone and Glacier. A lot of driving, but saw a lot and don’t regret one minute of it.

 

[Cornell]

HARD NO. Just put these locations on a weather app and start looking at temperatures during the summer. The heat is so oppressive that you will be forced to get out in the very earliest part of the morning -- like sunrise. I doubt a teen wants anything to do with that.

 

[Janann]

Try a different month like September or early May.

This is a trip for a graduating senior, so those dates won't work if the student is finishing school (early May) and starting college (September).

My only suggestion is to try to convince the graduate that the California mountains are wonderful. You could fly into Reno, NV or Sacramento, CA and drive through plenty of national parks and forests with reasonable temps.

 

[TolmiePeak]

Fly into Calgary and go to Banff / Lake Louise.

 

[Inhislove]

This is a trip for a graduating senior, so those dates won't work if the student is finishing school (early May) and starting college (September).

My only suggestion is to try to convince the graduate that the California mountains are wonderful. You could fly into Reno, NV or Sacramento, CA and drive through plenty of national parks and forests with reasonable temps.

She likes this idea!

 

[Inhislove]

Thank you all for the clear feedback!

 

[Inhislove]

Before negating your choices, I’ll ask what is it that draws you to those three? We’re pretty pace aggressive on our vacations and those three choices in the summer would literally burn me out. I don’t like heat, dry or wet. I noticed you’re in FL so you likely have a different tolerance. About 15 years ago we did a great tour thru Jackson Hole, Yellowstone and Glacier. A lot of driving, but saw a lot and don’t regret one minute of it.

I’d love to hear more about the route you took! We plan to have 8 people, so part of the draw is options to cheaply rent beautiful luxury houses that sleep 10 through a family member’s job. Y’all revealed why that time of year is open!

 

[Cornell]

She likes this idea!

I went to Truckee a few years ago and maybe one of the best vacations I've ever taken. Gorgeous scenery. Lots to do. Fun "Truckee Thursdays".

 

[klpca]

If timeshare availability was part of your decision making process, then consider the Lake Tahoe area. There are a lot of timeshares there - with an ongoing search you will get something.

If you want to go to a national park, Lassen isn't terribly far - 3.5 hours (although it would be a long day), but honestly there is enough natural beauty at Lake Tahoe to make a case for staying right there. There is also a lot of hiking nearby.

 

[klpca]

Here are links to a couple of podcasts by Matt & Karen Smith, a couple who has visited all of the National Parks. Their podcast is my current favorite right now. I highly recommend it!

Podcast - Glacier/Grand Teton/Yellowstone NP Loop

Podcast - Northern CA/Southern OR NP Loop

 

[dioxide45]

Don't let these party poopers dissuade you from the desert in the summer. We have gone to Palm Desert and Phoenix every summer for the past three years. We live in Florida where it is both hot and humid. The desert is just hot and no humidity. It really is different. You will do fine and you won't melt. There are lots of people at the resort and the resort pools are still lively. We went to the Grand Canyon in the summer. We've done Sedona. We drove through Joshua Tree. You just have to pace yourself and don't plan on doing any hiking. There are other things to do. It isn't as bad as people make it out to sound.

 

[Seaport104]

Hello TUG! I would love some input- we have a graduating senior who would like to experience the western part of the US, including a national park. What are your thoughts on airports and car rental prices for next July in these spots.

Which national parks would you recommend from each place? (Thinking Grand Canyon for Vegas, etc) Which have you visited?

Thanks

First hand, recent personal experience with Vegas in July. We just came back from Vegas where they had record breaking 118 degree heat! We were crazy enough to do the Grand Canyon since I somehow convince my family at 103 by Grand Canyon is not terrible since up there's 15 degrees cooler! Needless to say the only group picture we took while on tour was in the bus LOL!

118 degrees was certainly an experience, it felt like a sauna and if there was any wind, it felt like there was a human blow dryer on me! Experience checked off my list and no redo's on this one! LOL!!

 

[b2bailey]

I lived in Palm Springs area a few years ago. Recently there was a day I received several texts from friends and family members saying :
Record high temp in Palm Springs = 124 degrees! Aren't you glad you moved?

 

[klpca]

Btw our friends in Phoenix just came home from vacation. Their pool water was 97 degrees. That's a nope for me.

 

[BingoBangoBongo]

I’d love to hear more about the route you took! We plan to have 8 people, so part of the draw is options to cheaply rent beautiful luxury houses that sleep 10 through a family member’s job. Y’all revealed why that time of year is open!

Started a conversation with you that has the trip details.

 

[Armada]

If you want to go to Banff/Lake Louise, definitely consider going to the Calgary Stampede at the beginning of July. Be aware that Jasper National Park is a disaster in progress due to wildfires. According to the Alberta Premiere, 30-50% of the buildings in the town of Jasper have been damaged.

Personally, I would consider flying into Missoula or Bozeman MT or possibly Jackson, WY. From Bozeman, it is about 300 miles to Glacier, NP, 110 miles to Yellowstone NP and 180 miles to Grand Teton NP. These parks should all have moderate to cool temperatures in the summer. These destinations are all relatively expensive to fly to in the summer. It would be a good time to use airline miles. A couple of tips on airline award travel. Don't try to book airline awards round trip. There is no benefit to it. Book them as one ways. This allows you to more easily change flights if better pricing/times become available and allows you to mix dollars and miles. Don't have many miles?, it is easy to obtain them with credit cards. American currently has a deal with Barclays where you get 70k American miles with the first purchase on a new card.

If you are planning on staying in the national parks for next July, the best time to book hotels was yesterday!! Seriously. These book up very far in advance. Also be aware that the hotels inside the national parks generally provide poor value for the money. Their main benefit is their location. For Yellowstone, their are several timeshares in West Yellowstone. Grand Teton NP is about 20 minutes from downtown Jackson, WY. Kalispell and Whitefish are close to the west side of Glacier NP. St Mary is close to the east side.

Another possible destination is Rocky Mountain NP west of Denver. There are plenty of timeshares to the southwest of the park and regular hotels to the east.

I would also suggest not picking up a rental car on a weekend day. Last summer, my wife and I flew into Denver in late June on a Saturday. The cupboard was almost bare. Had a reservation with Hertz (am President's club), had to wait for 45 minutes for a vehicle. Ended up driving a Jeep Compass for a month and it was a piece of crap. Other rental agencies were totally out of cars. Some of their buses were dropping their customers at the Hertz rental center!

For that trip, we visited Scotts Bluff, Black Hills of SD (including Mt Rushmore and Custer State Park), Minuteman Missile Sites, Badlands NP, Cody WY(7/4 Stampede), Yellowstone NP, Grand Teton NP, Jackson WY, Rocky Mtn NP and Breckenridge. Finally go to see the Red Rocks amphitheater near Denver; unfortunately not for a show.

Currently planning a trip for next summer. At the moment, itinerary looks like Western MT including Glacier NP>Waterton NP>Calgary (Stampede)>Banff(honeymooned here)>Jasper (we hope)>Kamloops>Victoria BC>Olympic NP>Rainier NP>Washington wine country>Jackson WY>Steamboat Springs, CO>Laramie, WY.

If you have questions, let me know.

Attaching a picture of the Grand Tetons.

 

[Tucsonadventurer]

Don't let these party poopers dissuade you from the desert in the summer. We have gone to Palm Desert and Phoenix every summer for the past three years. We live in Florida where it is both hot and humid. The desert is just hot and no humidity. It really is different. You will do fine and you won't melt. There are lots of people at the resort and the resort pools are still lively. We went to the Grand Canyon in the summer. We've done Sedona. We drove through Joshua Tree. You just have to pace yourself and don't plan on doing any hiking. There are other things to do. It isn't as bad as people make it out to sound.

I'm in Tucson and we can't wait to leave. We've been gone all summer except for these 3 1/2 weeks and it is as bad as folks say. Tucson is cooler than Phoenix. It's gorgeous here but limited in outdoor activities in the heat of the day. We have to be out the door by 6 am to get in a hike or bike ride and be done by 8:30.

 

[easyrider]

Hello TUG! I would love some input- we have a graduating senior who would like to experience the western part of the US, including a national park. What are your thoughts on airports and car rental prices for next July in these spots.

Which national parks would you recommend from each place? (Thinking Grand Canyon for Vegas, etc) Which have you visited?

Thanks

It would be low season so you could probably score a nice unit or two. Like others have mentioned, it's going to be very hot during the day. You might consider night hikes if you are thinking of hiking the Grand Canyon or Zion. The cool thing about night hikes is the star filled sky or a big moon.

You can night hike all three of the areas you mentioned. There are also meteor showers in July that can be a lot of fun.

Las Vegas has the benefit of many air conditioned activities, nice pools and easy drives to night hikes.

Bill

 

[rickandcindy23]

Yellowstone is a treasure. I would look for a WorldMark West Yellowstone rental for next summer. Mild temperatures, especially in June.

 

[CO skier]

+1 for the Glacier National Park in June or July. -1,000 for the desert Southwest in July or August. Quite a few people died there this summer due to the heat, and it makes for some miserably hot conditions during the day for any visitor.

Rocky Mountain National Park is an excellent choice all summer long (although it will have the crowds like any other National Park in the summer). Cheap flights and a relatively easy drive from/to Denver International Airport. The timeshares in Estes Park, CO are minutes from the Park entrance, and Estes Park is a fun half-day to walk and shop. Driving Trail Ridge Road to the summit above treeline (elevation 12,183 ft. above sea level) is like a day trip to the Alaska tundra. Bring warm jackets!

10-day weather forecast for Las Vegas, NV and Estes Park, CO. The forecast "lows" in Las Vegas are higher than the forecast "highs" in Estes Park for all 10 days. Any questions?

Wherever you decide to go, check the National Park for any required timed-entry permits and mark your calendar to obtain them when they first become available.