California & The Wild West
16 day Guided Motorcycle Tour – from £4699
With flights from £5349
Choose your ride and explore the solitary deserts, vibrant cities, breathtaking canyons and stunning Pacific coastline of South West USA. A round trip from L.A.
Highlights:
- Ride along parts of the original ‘Historic Route 66’
- Gaze into the depths of the mighty Grand Canyon
- Visit Yosemite, Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks
- Spend time in Las Vegas, L.A. and San Francisco
- Ride along California’s stunning Highway 1
Your Itinerary
Expand AllYou can customise your holiday by adding extra nights or activities before or after your motorcycle tour. Just let us know what you would like to do.
Today your Wild West journey begins! Please make your way to your Los Angeles airport hotel. There you will get to meet your fellow riders and Tour Leaders. Your guides will outline the entire tour in an orientation meeting, covering topics like safe group riding practices, weather, time-management. Afterwards you have time on your own to explore L.A.’s night life in Hollywood or Santa Monica or just get a goodnight sleep and get ready for the first day’s ride tomorrow!
Your chosen Los Angeles airport hotel
Day 2 – Palm Springs
After your welcome breakfast, the moment has come – you will be transferred to the depot in Los Angeles to pick up your bike. After a short orientation, you will be on your way to ride the winding mountain road down to Lake Elsinore. After lunch, the cool air will bathe you as you wind your way up to more mountainous roads into the San Bernardino National Forest, skirting the slopes of San Jacinto Mountain. Your descent into Palm Springs is spectacular and you will enjoy your first night on the road among the Palm Trees and the nightlife that make up this iconic town.
Your chosen Palm Springs hotel
Day 3 – Laughlin
Today you will take a loop through Joshua Tree National Park, an extraordinary park full of bizarre desert trees and fantastic rock formations. From here, descend into Twenty-Nine Palms and drop into the vastness of the Mojave Desert before your trip gets legendary appeal and you enter Historic Route 66 at the famous Roys in Amboy. You will stay on Route 66 for the rest of the day as you cross the desert into Nevada to arrive in Laughlin, where you will spend the night.
Your chosen Laughlin hotel
Day 4 – Grand Canyon
Continue your ride on legendary Route 66 into Arizona, stop for wild animals in Oatman and ride further on to Kingman, which is considered to be ‘The heart of Historic Route 66’, as it’s situated in the middle of the longest remaining stretch of the old ‘Mother Road’. From Kingman, you head for Seligman, another one of the longest surviving stretches of Route 66, which heads off in a northern loop through the Hualapai Indian Reservation. After a lunch stop in Seligman, continue your ride towards the majestic Grand Canyon; be prepared for one of the greatest sights man has ever seen!
Your chosen Grand Canyon hotel
Day 5 – Monument Valley
This morning is your chance to go on an unbelievable helicopter flight over the Grand Canyon to get some fantastic views (weather dependent). Then cruise along the South Rim for a few miles and leave Grand Canyon National Park at the East entrance. Now it’s off to the incredible Monument Valley. This is Navajo Country here, a classic Wild West landscape of stark sandstone buttes and forbidding pinnacles of rock, poking from an endless expanse of drifting red sands. Only when you arrive at Monument Valley will you come to realise how much your perception of the West has in fact been shaped by this one spot. Such scenery does exist elsewhere, of course, but nowhere is it so perfectly distilled. This evening you will be given the option to descend into the Valley itself and let Navajo Guides treat you to stories of life in the heart of this spiritual wonderland.
Your chosen Monument Valley hotel
Day 6 – Bryce Canyon
From Kayenta you will ride up to sleepy Mexican Hat, briefly a frenzied gold-mining camp, which takes its name from a riverside sandstone hoodoo – it actually looks like a south-of-the-border sombrero. You ride on past the Valley of the Gods, where much of the movie ‘Thelma and Louise’ was filmed and cross the Colorado River where it pours into Lake Powell. Lake Powell has 1960 miles of shoreline, which is more than the entire Pacific Coast and 96 water-filled side canyons. Ride along the southern tip of Capitol Reef National Park, across aspen-covered peaks, along the buff-coloured sandstones of the Devil’s Backbone, through the Escalante Wilderness and finally to Bryce Canyon, where you will overnight. This is a day you’ll never forget!
Your chosen Bryce Canyon hotel
Day 7 – Las Vegas
This morning there will be time to visit the amazing Bryce Canyon before you continue to Zion National Park. Besides seeing the most beautiful rock formations found anywhere on earth, you are in for a gorgeous ride here – the switchbacks of Zion! Compared to Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, Zion exudes a stronger sense of nature. From Zion it is only a short ride into the neon and gambling oasis of Las Vegas.
Your chosen Las Vegas hotel
Day 8 – Las Vegas
This day is for relaxing, gambling, exploring or whatever your heart desires. Keep in mind you will have an early start on the following day!
Your chosen Las Vegas hotel
Day 9 – Mammoth Lakes
From Las Vegas, head west and your ride will take you across Death Valley – one of the hottest places on earth! It’s almost entirely devoid of shade and its sculpted rock layers form deeply shadowed, eroded crevices at the foot of sharply silhouetted hills, their exotic mineral content turning ancient mudflats into rainbows of sunlit iridescence. After riding a series of mountain curves, you’ll arrive below sea level and find yourself right in the basin of Death Valley. From here, continue west, riding amazing roads that wind up and out of the Valley and onto the foothills of the magnificent Sierra Nevada Mountains. Today you will have ridden from the lowest point in the United States, over 100’ below sea level, to the ski town of Mammoth Lakes at over 7000 feet.
Your chosen Mammoth Lakes hotel
Day 10 – Yosemite
Leaving Mammoth Lakes you continue your trip a little further north and then take the infamous Tioga Pass to cross Yosemite National Park. As you ride through the winding granite canyons…muscle flexing turns are rampant for the first several miles and the road demands attention as you enter the mother of all National Parks. Yosemite conjures up thousands of images and raises expectations to dizzying heights and when you are there it is just as beautiful and sublime as you’d expect. You will later ride over to El Portal, where you overnight.
Your chosen Yosemite hotel
Day 11 – San Francisco
Head west today towards San Francisco. Leaving Yosemite National Park, you will descend through California Gold Rush country, passing through small mining towns such as Groveland, before descending the winding roads of Old Priest Grade. Leaving Gold Rush country behind, set your sights on the coastal regions of Marin County, an unabashed introduction to Californian self-indulgence: a pleasure zone of conspicuous luxury and abundant natural beauty, with sunshine, sandy beaches, high mountains and thick redwood forests, Marin County has often ranked the wealthiest county in the US. From here, you will catch your first glimpse of this city’s most famous landmark – the Golden Gate – and travel along one of San Francisco’s great bridges to enter the city! You’ll make your way to the heart of the city to spend the next two days exploring all that San Francisco has to offer.
Your chosen San Francisco hotel
Day 12 – San Francisco
This day is at leisure to enjoy the unique flavour and character of San Francisco. San Francisco has a European flair and lots of opportunities for sightseeing. Feel free to take a city bus tour, grab a ride on a Cable Car, or stroll around North Beach, Chinatown and Union Square. Whatever your pleasure, be sure to soak up the culture, art, architecture and of course the iconic views that make up this amazing city.
Your chosen San Francisco
Day 13 – Monterey
Today you head south on the legendary Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy 1) which hugs the rugged California coast of the Pacific Ocean – the beginning of one of the best motorcycle rides in the world! For the next couple of days, the coastline is simply spectacular and there are plenty of opportunities for great photo stops. Breathtaking views of the coves and inlets of the Pacific are yours en route to the seaside town of Monterey and its famous ‘Cannery Row’. Monterey is home to the world-famous Laguna Seca Automobile and Motorcycle Racetrack and the spectacular ‘Aquarium of the Sea’.
Your chosen Monterey hotel
Day 14 – Pismo Beach
You continue your ride on scenic Hwy 1, along the edge of the cliffs of the Big Sur Coast – 90 undeveloped miles of rocky cliffs form a sublime landscape where redwood groves line river canyons and the Santa Lucia Mountains rise out of the blue-green Pacific. You’ll cross bridges situated on gorges high above the raging Pacific surf, see artichoke fields perched precariously along rocky cliffs, stop for coffee and lunch, cruise past San Simeon, stop to see the Elephant Seal Rookery, wind through Cambria and Morro Bay and finally arrive at Pismo Beach.
Your chosen Pismo Beach hotel
Day 15 – Los Angeles
Today, with the Pacific Ocean to your right and the coastal mountains to your left, you will be taking Hwy 101 and heading towards Los Angeles. You begin your ride passing through the vineyards that make up so many great California wines! After a stop for a coffee, get back on Hwy 101 and cruise through Santa Barbara and hug the coastline straight into Malibu. Santa Monica is LA’s oldest and biggest resort – once a wild beachfront playground, it’s now a self-consciously liberal and healthy community. From here you will ride over to Hawthorne to return your motorcycles and transfer back to your hotel for a a ‘farewell’ dinner.
Your chosen Los Angeles hotel
Day 16 – Farewell from Los Angeles
Today your exciting trip will conclude here in Los Angeles. You can add an extra night or two in L.A. if you wish to spend more time enjoying the sights. Otherwise it’s off to the airport to catch your scheduled flight home.
Your Itinerary
You can customise your holiday by adding extra nights or activities before or after your motorcycle tour. Just let us know what you would like to do.
Day 1
| Welcome to Los Angeles
Today your Wild West journey begins! Please make your way to your Los Angeles airport hotel. There you will get to meet your fellow riders and Tour Leaders. Your guides will outline the entire tour in an orientation meeting, covering topics like safe group riding practices, weather, time-management. Afterwards you have time on your own to explore L.A.’s night life in Hollywood or Santa Monica or just get a goodnight sleep and get ready for the first day’s ride tomorrow!
Your chosen Los Angeles airport hotel
Day 2
| Palm Springs
After your welcome breakfast, the moment has come – you will be transferred to the depot in Los Angeles to pick up your bike. After a short orientation, you will be on your way to ride the winding mountain road down to Lake Elsinore. After lunch, the cool air will bathe you as you wind your way up to more mountainous roads into the San Bernardino National Forest, skirting the slopes of San Jacinto Mountain. Your descent into Palm Springs is spectacular and you will enjoy your first night on the road among the Palm Trees and the nightlife that make up this iconic town.
Your chosen Palm Springs hotel
Day 3
| Laughlin
Today you will take a loop through Joshua Tree National Park, an extraordinary park full of bizarre desert trees and fantastic rock formations. From here, descend into Twenty-Nine Palms and drop into the vastness of the Mojave Desert before your trip gets legendary appeal and you enter Historic Route 66 at the famous Roys in Amboy. You will stay on Route 66 for the rest of the day as you cross the desert into Nevada to arrive in Laughlin, where you will spend the night.
Your chosen Laughlin hotel
Day 4
| Grand Canyon
Continue your ride on legendary Route 66 into Arizona, stop for wild animals in Oatman and ride further on to Kingman, which is considered to be ‘The heart of Historic Route 66’, as it’s situated in the middle of the longest remaining stretch of the old ‘Mother Road’. From Kingman, you head for Seligman, another one of the longest surviving stretches of Route 66, which heads off in a northern loop through the Hualapai Indian Reservation. After a lunch stop in Seligman, continue your ride towards the majestic Grand Canyon; be prepared for one of the greatest sights man has ever seen!
Your chosen Grand Canyon hotel
Day 5
| Monument Valley
This morning is your chance to go on an unbelievable helicopter flight over the Grand Canyon to get some fantastic views (weather dependent). Then cruise along the South Rim for a few miles and leave Grand Canyon National Park at the East entrance. Now it’s off to the incredible Monument Valley. This is Navajo Country here, a classic Wild West landscape of stark sandstone buttes and forbidding pinnacles of rock, poking from an endless expanse of drifting red sands. Only when you arrive at Monument Valley will you come to realise how much your perception of the West has in fact been shaped by this one spot. Such scenery does exist elsewhere, of course, but nowhere is it so perfectly distilled. This evening you will be given the option to descend into the Valley itself and let Navajo Guides treat you to stories of life in the heart of this spiritual wonderland.
Your chosen Monument Valley hotel
Day 6
| Bryce Canyon
From Kayenta you will ride up to sleepy Mexican Hat, briefly a frenzied gold-mining camp, which takes its name from a riverside sandstone hoodoo – it actually looks like a south-of-the-border sombrero. You ride on past the Valley of the Gods, where much of the movie ‘Thelma and Louise’ was filmed and cross the Colorado River where it pours into Lake Powell. Lake Powell has 1960 miles of shoreline, which is more than the entire Pacific Coast and 96 water-filled side canyons. Ride along the southern tip of Capitol Reef National Park, across aspen-covered peaks, along the buff-coloured sandstones of the Devil’s Backbone, through the Escalante Wilderness and finally to Bryce Canyon, where you will overnight. This is a day you’ll never forget!
Your chosen Bryce Canyon hotel
Day 7
| Las Vegas
This morning there will be time to visit the amazing Bryce Canyon before you continue to Zion National Park. Besides seeing the most beautiful rock formations found anywhere on earth, you are in for a gorgeous ride here – the switchbacks of Zion! Compared to Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, Zion exudes a stronger sense of nature. From Zion it is only a short ride into the neon and gambling oasis of Las Vegas.
Your chosen Las Vegas hotel
Day 8
| Las Vegas
This day is for relaxing, gambling, exploring or whatever your heart desires. Keep in mind you will have an early start on the following day!
Your chosen Las Vegas hotel
Day 9
| Mammoth Lakes
From Las Vegas, head west and your ride will take you across Death Valley – one of the hottest places on earth! It’s almost entirely devoid of shade and its sculpted rock layers form deeply shadowed, eroded crevices at the foot of sharply silhouetted hills, their exotic mineral content turning ancient mudflats into rainbows of sunlit iridescence. After riding a series of mountain curves, you’ll arrive below sea level and find yourself right in the basin of Death Valley. From here, continue west, riding amazing roads that wind up and out of the Valley and onto the foothills of the magnificent Sierra Nevada Mountains. Today you will have ridden from the lowest point in the United States, over 100’ below sea level, to the ski town of Mammoth Lakes at over 7000 feet.
Your chosen Mammoth Lakes hotel
Day 10
| Yosemite
Leaving Mammoth Lakes you continue your trip a little further north and then take the infamous Tioga Pass to cross Yosemite National Park. As you ride through the winding granite canyons…muscle flexing turns are rampant for the first several miles and the road demands attention as you enter the mother of all National Parks. Yosemite conjures up thousands of images and raises expectations to dizzying heights and when you are there it is just as beautiful and sublime as you’d expect. You will later ride over to El Portal, where you overnight.
Your chosen Yosemite hotel
Day 11
| San Francisco
Head west today towards San Francisco. Leaving Yosemite National Park, you will descend through California Gold Rush country, passing through small mining towns such as Groveland, before descending the winding roads of Old Priest Grade. Leaving Gold Rush country behind, set your sights on the coastal regions of Marin County, an unabashed introduction to Californian self-indulgence: a pleasure zone of conspicuous luxury and abundant natural beauty, with sunshine, sandy beaches, high mountains and thick redwood forests, Marin County has often ranked the wealthiest county in the US. From here, you will catch your first glimpse of this city’s most famous landmark – the Golden Gate – and travel along one of San Francisco’s great bridges to enter the city! You’ll make your way to the heart of the city to spend the next two days exploring all that San Francisco has to offer.
Your chosen San Francisco hotel
Day 12
| San Francisco
This day is at leisure to enjoy the unique flavour and character of San Francisco. San Francisco has a European flair and lots of opportunities for sightseeing. Feel free to take a city bus tour, grab a ride on a Cable Car, or stroll around North Beach, Chinatown and Union Square. Whatever your pleasure, be sure to soak up the culture, art, architecture and of course the iconic views that make up this amazing city.
Your chosen San Francisco
Day 13
| Monterey
Today you head south on the legendary Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy 1) which hugs the rugged California coast of the Pacific Ocean – the beginning of one of the best motorcycle rides in the world! For the next couple of days, the coastline is simply spectacular and there are plenty of opportunities for great photo stops. Breathtaking views of the coves and inlets of the Pacific are yours en route to the seaside town of Monterey and its famous ‘Cannery Row’. Monterey is home to the world-famous Laguna Seca Automobile and Motorcycle Racetrack and the spectacular ‘Aquarium of the Sea’.
Your chosen Monterey hotel
Day 14
| Pismo Beach
You continue your ride on scenic Hwy 1, along the edge of the cliffs of the Big Sur Coast – 90 undeveloped miles of rocky cliffs form a sublime landscape where redwood groves line river canyons and the Santa Lucia Mountains rise out of the blue-green Pacific. You’ll cross bridges situated on gorges high above the raging Pacific surf, see artichoke fields perched precariously along rocky cliffs, stop for coffee and lunch, cruise past San Simeon, stop to see the Elephant Seal Rookery, wind through Cambria and Morro Bay and finally arrive at Pismo Beach.
Your chosen Pismo Beach hotel
Day 15
| Los Angeles
Today, with the Pacific Ocean to your right and the coastal mountains to your left, you will be taking Hwy 101 and heading towards Los Angeles. You begin your ride passing through the vineyards that make up so many great California wines! After a stop for a coffee, get back on Hwy 101 and cruise through Santa Barbara and hug the coastline straight into Malibu. Santa Monica is LA’s oldest and biggest resort – once a wild beachfront playground, it’s now a self-consciously liberal and healthy community. From here you will ride over to Hawthorne to return your motorcycles and transfer back to your hotel for a a ‘farewell’ dinner.
Your chosen Los Angeles hotel
Day 16
| Farewell from Los Angeles
Today your exciting trip will conclude here in Los Angeles. You can add an extra night or two in L.A. if you wish to spend more time enjoying the sights. Otherwise it’s off to the airport to catch your scheduled flight home.
This Motorcycle Tour Includes
Departure Dates
2025-05-01
2025-05-08
2025-05-15
2025-05-22
2025-05-29
2025-06-12
2025-06-19
2025-07-10
2025-07-24
2025-07-31
2025-08-07
2025-08-21
2025-08-28
2025-09-04
2025-09-18
2025-09-25
2025-10-02
2025-10-09
Flights & More
Ask your FREEDOM Consultant to include Economy, Premium or Business Class flights for a complete ABTA and ATOL protected package.
They can also add extra nights and experiences in places you choose, to create the exact holiday you are looking for. Popular options include:
- Extra nights in Los Angeles before or after your tour
- Inclusive insurance and roadside assistance
Next Step
Please get in touch with our America Experts to start planning your holiday. You’ll have a single point of contact from your first enquiry through booking.
California & The Wild West
16 day Guided Motorcycle Tour – from £4699
With flights from £5349
All prices are per person based on two people sharing a motorcycle and a twin/double room, and include meals where shown. Please call Freedom Destinations to confirm departure dates and availability. Seasonal variations may apply.
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