Head west for the best welcome in America

Sep 5 2008 By Nick Hodgson

Tourist-friendly California is class act

I used to only think of California as imagined in the pages of John Steinbeck's famous novel, The Grapes Of Wrath.

In particular, I thought of the harsh welcome it offered to travellers fleeing their homeland 'dustbowl' to build a new life on West Coast USA.

Visit California today, however, and you find a place which goes out of its way to make visitors welcome. Until the pound began to slide against the dollar in midsummer, British visitors were getting a great deal on their spending money too.

It was almost midnight when we landed in Las Vegas, which possibly made it easier to collect our eco-friendly Toyota Prius.

Las Vegas - the self-styled city of entertainment - is rich in the sort of extremes that are typical of America as a whole.

The main drag or Strip is littered with massive casino hotels and our temporary home, the Excalibur, boasted thousands of rooms with hundreds of slot machines providing a constant backdrop of whirling lights and noise. In short, it was 24-hour-aday mayhem.

When you get up in morning, the scene seems little changed from the night before: people gambling on slot machines, playing roulette, blackjack and generally having fun.

With a hangover, the sight is slightly bewildering, but the sense of enjoyment in Vegas is unmistakable. For the energetic, there is the rollercoaster that runs round the New York New York hotel (which boasts an imitation New York skyline) and three rides at the top of the Stratosphere - a tower from which you get a great view of the city.

There's also a lion enclosure at the MGM Grand, a Shark Reef at the Mandalay Bay, flamingos at The Flamingo... everything and anything to get the spendthrift to open his wallet.

The drive from Vegas to LA took about four hours - straight down Interstate 15. I was expecting to enter a rather intense society, dominated by eco-freaks, joggers and psychiatrists, with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as cheerleader-in-chief.

Our hotel was the Standard Downtown in downtown LA. Of course, LA equals Hollywood and that was our next stop.

Surprisingly grotty given its glamorous reputation, it was nevertheless fascinating to see the names in stars on the Walk of Fame and the Hollywood sign perched on the hills.

Times have changed here but the Steinbeck influence remains strong: Cannery Row sprouts luxury hotels high on the Pacific coastline, while Schooner's Restaurant is an obvious focal point.

In Carmel Valley, hikers are in their element, and 40,000 acres of vines in Monterey County offer more than 30 tasting rooms for wine buffs who regard Cachagua Valley as an up-and-coming hotspot.

We stopped at a motel village called San Simeon and again at Carmel by the Sea, a charming town where the Pine Inn hotel is the essence of old-fashioned quaintness.

Our last stop was San Francisco, for me the highlight of the tour. For two reasons - first our tour of Alcatraz, which was fascinating, and secondly the stunning view of Golden Gate Bridge.

But perhaps my overriding impression of America will be of how friendly the people are and how quick they are to help you - or, perhaps more accurately, to serve you.

From the air hostess to the shop assistant to the waitress, all offer a ready, seemingly genuine smile, replying to your "thanks" with their trademark "You're welcome". Given that welcome, I can't wait to visit the States again.

Travel facts...

Nick Hodgson was a guest of Thomson America and Canada, which offers holidays throughout North America.

His eight night fly-drive tour of California starts at £1,049, including Delta Airlines flights into Las Vegas and ex-San Francisco, with room-only accommodation at Hotel Excalibur in Las Vegas, Standard Downtown in LA, Pine Inn Pacific Coast and Hotel Union Square in San Francisco.

For reservations: 0871 971 0541 and www.thomsonworldwide.co.uk/america