Posts by Patrist

Hi!

Yeah, the route wasn’t exactly pristine white. We just did a round trip and that was it. Plus, since we had a snail-paced car, we couldn’t exactly speed anywhere either 😉

Back from the USA, here’s the actual itinerary we followed:

Day 1 - Friday, August 29: Brussels - SLC via Atlanta with KLM. Arrived in SLC at 8 PM - picked up the car (SUBARU Outback AWD) - got to the hotel at 10 PM (Hyatt Regency). Day 2 - Saturday, August 30: Tour of SLC - Antelope Island - night in SLC (Hyatt Regency) Day 3 - Sunday, August 31: Drive to Yellowstone via Idaho Falls - night at Canyon Lodge Day 4 - Monday, September 1: Yellowstone - night at Canyon Lodge Day 5 - Tuesday, September 2: Yellowstone - night at Canyon Lodge Day 6 - Wednesday, September 3: Yellowstone - night at Canyon Lodge Day 7 - Thursday, September 4: Yellowstone - night at Canyon Lodge Day 8 - Friday, September 5: Grand Teton - night in Jackson (The Lodge at Jackson Hole) Day 9 - Saturday, September 6: Grand Teton - evening: Jackson Rodeo - night in Jackson (The Lodge at Jackson Hole) Day 10 - Sunday, September 7: Drive to Vernal - night in Vernal (The Hitching Post) Day 11 - Monday, September 8: Dinosaur - drive to Moab - night in Moab (SpringHill Suites by Marriott) Day 12 - Tuesday, September 9: Arches - night in Moab (SpringHill Suites by Marriott) Day 13 - Wednesday, September 10: Arches - night in Moab (SpringHill Suites by Marriott) Day 14 - Thursday, September 11: Canyonlands - night in Moab (SpringHill Suites by Marriott) Day 15 - Friday, September 12: Drive to SLC - night in SLC (Méridien) Day 16 - Saturday, September 13: Bonneville - night in SLC (Méridien) Day 17 - Sunday, September 14: Departure from SLC - night (on the plane) Day 18 - Monday, September 15: Arrival in Brussels via Amsterdam

We also made sure to take some relaxed moments at the hotel pools (for those who might think our stays in SLC were too long...) or on the hotel terraces to simply enjoy being together. Our trip wasn’t about rushing to see everything—after all, as the saying goes, "grasp all, lose all," and besides, it’ll just make us want to go back!

thanks!

That’s so kind of you, thanks!

For the car, it’ll probably be an SUV—😊 great tip!

Well, that's an efficient and constructive answer! Thanks a lot!

You're right, I'm not really grasping the distances. That's why I'm reaching out to the team.

Hello,

It’s not that I’m ignoring the advice—it’s just that I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed because the topography of the places is actually giving me trouble.

First off, no, I haven’t booked any flight tickets or a car yet.

The only thing that really matters to me is the stay in Yellowstone, so I keep reworking the road trip to try and align it with my companions’ wishes (spending relaxed time and taking breaks), friends’ "tips," what I read, and your advice.

My road trip has changed again. It’s still just a plan—nothing’s set in stone, everything’s adjustable except for Yellowstone (and even then, if there’s still space, the reservations could be moved).

Here’s my latest itinerary: there’s a lot of driving, so I’m letting it sit for now and I’m open to your thoughts.

Day 1 - Friday, August 29: Brussels to SLC, arriving early afternoon. Day 2 - Saturday, August 30: Drive from SLC to Monument Valley - overnight in MV Day 3 - Sunday, August 31: Monument Valley - overnight in MV Day 4 - Monday, September 1: Monument Valley - drive to Moab - overnight in Moab Day 5 - Tuesday, September 2: Arches - overnight in Moab Day 6 - Wednesday, September 3: Arches - overnight in Moab Day 7 - Thursday, September 4: Drive to SLC - overnight in SLC Day 8 - Friday, September 5: Drive from SLC to Jackson - overnight in Jackson Day 9 - Saturday, September 6: Grand Teton - evening: Rodeo (tickets reserved) - overnight in Jackson Day 10 - Sunday, September 7: Grand Teton day - then move on to Yellowstone - overnight in Yellowstone Day 11 - Monday, September 8: Yellowstone - overnight in Yellowstone (reserved) Day 12 - Tuesday, September 9: Yellowstone - overnight in Yellowstone (reserved) Day 13 - Wednesday, September 10: Yellowstone - overnight in Yellowstone (reserved) Day 14 - Thursday, September 11: Yellowstone - overnight in Yellowstone (reserved) Day 16 - Saturday, September 13: SLC Day 15 - Friday, September 12: Yellowstone to SLC Day 17 - Sunday, September 14: Departure from SLC Day 18: Monday, September 15: Arrival in Brussels

Haha, excellent!

Well, no, I’m not doing Canyonlands. Or Arches, for that matter...

but nothing’s set in stone yet. Since I don’t have the flight tickets yet, anything’s still possible.

Another option would be to fly with United and do: Day 1: Brussels - Chicago Day 2-3-4: Chicago Day 5: Chicago - Jackson (domestic flight) - settle in Grand Teton Day 6-7: Grand Teton / Yellowstone Day 8-9: break in Jackson Day 10: return to Yellowstone Day 11-12-13-14: Yellowstone Day 15: head down to SLC Day 16: SLC - Brussels flight (United)

After your comments, I took another look at my itinerary. After much deliberation (which I’ll spare you the details of to save you from convulsing), I’ve now settled on this:

D1 - Saturday, August 30: Brussels-SLC via Amsterdam with KLM D2 - Sunday, August 31: SLC D3 - Monday, September 1: SLC D4 - Tuesday, September 2: SLC - Grand Teton - night booked D5 - Wednesday, September 3: Grand Teton - night booked D6 - Thursday, September 4: Grand Teton - Jackson D7 - Friday, September 5: Jackson D8 - Saturday, September 6: Jackson - evening: Rodeo (tickets booked) D9 - Sunday, September 7: Jackson - Yellowstone - night booked at Lake Yellowstone D10 - Monday, September 8: Yellowstone - night booked at Canyon Lodge D11 - Tuesday, September 9: Yellowstone - night booked at Canyon Lodge D12 - Wednesday, September 10: Yellowstone - night booked at Old Faithful Snow D13 - Thursday, September 11: Yellowstone - night booked at Old Faithful Snow D14 - Friday, September 12: Yellowstone - SLC D15 - Saturday, September 13: departure from SLC D17 - Sunday, September 14: arrival in Brussels

I’ve shortened the trip by one day, leaving on Saturday instead of Friday. I’m skipping Arches, which we’ll do (hopefully) next time. In SLC, we’ll spend a day exploring the city on foot, plus a hike around the lake and Antelope Island, among other things. I’m sticking with my plan for Grand Teton - Jackson - Yellowstone. I get that it might seem illogical, but staying two or three nights in Jackson before heading to Yellowstone works for us. The main goal of the trip is to spend time together since we don’t see each other much during the year. We haven’t finalized activities around Jackson yet. For now, I have a reservation in Grand Teton, near the entrance to Yellowstone. In the end, yes, we’ll be doing some back-and-forth, but it’s on a gorgeous route where we probably won’t see the same thing twice.

Since nothing’s set in stone, I could still tweak my plans. So don’t hesitate to share your thoughts! 😊

Thanks!

Hi Yves,

My itinerary isn’t set in stone yet. Since I’ve put 2025 on hold, I’m focusing on my USA trip for September 2025 (which is coming together slowly 😕) before planning Namibia.

I should get to it in the next three or four weeks at the latest. I’m afraid that’ll probably be too late for you, though.

Happy planning! !

Hi there,

Thanks for your feedback! Moab isn’t set in stone yet, and in my plan, it’s 3 nights—two full days to see Arches. I totally agree that Moab to Grand Teton is crazy—that’s actually why I haven’t booked Moab yet 😉

Why two nights in Jackson? Just to take a break, really. Chill out before hitting more long hiking days.

Thanks for your feedback!

I’m revisiting my itinerary with your suggestions in mind.

Moab wasn’t part of the original plan. It was an idea if we arrive in the U.S. on Friday, August 29th, since I’d rather not start the trip with a "long" stay in SLC...

Hello fellow travel forum members,

This time, it's real, concrete stuff.

We’ll be going on a road trip in September this year (if all goes well, yes, I know it’s a bit superstitious, but I can’t help it, especially with the current family circumstances).

There’ll be four of us: my husband, our two grown kids (20 and 24), and me.

The flights aren’t booked yet because I’m still hesitating over the dates (it’s down to a day or two). They should be finalized by the end of this week or sometime next week.

J1 - Friday, August 29: Brussels-SLC via Amsterdam with KLM (I’d love your opinions on this airline since I’ve never flown with them before) – arrival scheduled for early afternoon. J2 - Saturday, August 30: SLC-Moab J3 - Sunday, August 31: Arches – we’ll see if we can get tickets; otherwise, we’ll wake up at dawn (entries possible without a reservation before 7 am) J4 - Monday, September 1: Arches J5 - Tuesday, September 2: Moab - Grand Teton – night booked J6 - Wednesday, September 3: Grand Teton – night booked J7 - Thursday, September 4: Grand Teton - Jackson J8 - Friday, September 5: Jackson J9 - Saturday, September 6: Jackson – evening: Rodeo (tickets booked) J10 - Sunday, September 7: Jackson - Yellowstone – night booked at Lake Yellowstone J11 - Monday, September 8: Yellowstone – night booked at Canyon Lodge J12 - Tuesday, September 9: Yellowstone – night booked at Canyon Lodge J13 - Wednesday, September 10: Yellowstone – night booked at Old Faithful Snow J14 - Thursday, September 11: Yellowstone – night booked at Old Faithful Snow J15 - Friday, September 12: Yellowstone - SLC J16 - Saturday, September 13: departure from SLC J17 - Sunday, September 14: arrival in Brussels

As I mentioned in the intro, the departure and return dates aren’t set in stone yet. Normally, we’d leave on August 29, which would mean visiting Moab and Arches. Otherwise, we’d leave on August 30 and stay in SLC. Around SLC, we’d explore the area, but I’ll admit I’m a bit stuck on what to do there.

For the return, we’d leave SLC on Saturday, September 13, or Sunday, September 14. Our youngest starts classes on Monday, September 15, but he doesn’t mind starting a day later.

Some things are already booked and paid for and can’t be changed (or only with difficulty), so please keep that in mind in your comments. 😕

I’d love to hear about your experiences with a few questions:

* Is it too ambitious to include Arches in the road trip? Especially since the drives are long, particularly the Moab-Grand Teton stretch.

* What do you recommend doing around SLC?

* Same for Jackson. We’ve decided to spend two full days there to take a break between the national parks.

* For the return, I was wondering if spending a day in SLC before heading back to Europe might be a good idea.

Thanks so much in advance for your advice!

Patricia

Hi,

In the end, we left it too late. Since the trip couldn’t happen according to our plans, it’s been postponed to 2026.

Thanks for your really encouraging replies.

Hello,

We got back from Bangkok on January 11th. In the end, we didn’t leave the city, promising ourselves we’d return to Thailand another time since we loved getting around Bangkok so much.

We spent 9 wonderful days there and left feeling like we’d only seen half of it. We’ll definitely be going back!

This time, for various reasons, we could only get away for 10 days, but our next trip will be longer and will end with a few days in Bangkok.

I wanted to share my thoughts after this trip and can only recommend focusing on just one destination for a short stay. That way, you can really soak it in and not feel like you’re constantly rushing against the clock.

Happy trip planning to everyone!

Hi there! 🙂

Once again, I’m back looking for advice

So, here’s the thing: in September, I’m planning a trip to Africa. There’ll be four of us—my husband, my 24-year-old daughter, my 20-year-old son, and me.

I’ve had this idea in my head for a while, but now it’s starting to feel real. The tricky part is that I’m on team "I organize my trip without an agency and handle things on the spot." But here’s the catch—my husband, who’s usually up for anything, doesn’t want to hear about a do-it-yourself trip. From what I’ve gathered, only Namibia allows that if I’m not mistaken. But if it’s possible in Tanzania (or maybe Kenya), I think I could convince him.

Anyway, here’s my first double question—more will probably follow! Can you travel without an agency in Tanzania? If not, which agency would you recommend, given that I live in Belgium?

Thanks so much in advance for your help!

Thanks! 🙂

Thanks for your replies.

@Jordan: So you’d recommend two destinations over just Bangkok?

@Attila: I’d seen all that, but it seems like a lot of rushing around and not really seeing anything.

@Songsam: For the flights, I must’ve misread. Thanks for the correction.

@Earthquake: The logic isn’t just about numbers—the original trip was planned for Bangkok. Chiang Mai is just an option.

Hello everyone,

My husband and I are planning a trip to Thailand from January 2 to 10. Departure from Brussels on January 1 – arriving in Bangkok at 6:00 AM on January 2. Departure from Bangkok on January 11 at 2:00 AM, arriving in Brussels at 1:25 PM the same day. For professional and personal reasons, we can’t extend the trip.

I don’t plan on just lounging on a beach in Phuket, so with 9 days on the ground, I know it’s short... But having done this before in Hong Kong and Shanghai, I know it’s doable, refreshing, and enjoyable. We did it with the kids and included a 2- or 3-day stay at Disneyland in each city. Basically, we spent 5-6 days in each city.

Anyway, I’m reaching out because I’ve heard and read so many conflicting opinions that my head is spinning.

Following the saying, "don’t bite off more than you can chew," I’m assuming I should keep it simple. So I’m torn between just Bangkok or Bangkok and Chiang Mai.

If I go with the second option, I’m debating whether to head straight to Chiang Mai on the day we arrive (but given the flight times, we’d lose pretty much the whole day) or spend two days in Bangkok first, then go to Chiang Mai for 3-4 days, and return to Bangkok.

Thanks for your advice!

Ouch!

Je me rends compte que nous arriverons à Izmir le 7 août et à Istanbul le 8 août et que la fin du Ramadan est prévue pour ... le 7 ou le 8 août 🤪 et donc la fête de l'Aïd pour le 8 ou le 9 août......

Nous serons donc en Turque juste au "bon" moment....😇

Je crains surtout : trafic intense dans la capitale, Mosquée non accessible, etc....

Qu'en pensez-vous ???

Pat