The Journey at a Glance
From 31 March to 30 June 2026, our family travelled approximately 20,000 kilometres across Canada and the United States. We drove more than 4,000 kilometres through Alberta and the Canadian Rockies before beginning a 16,000-kilometre journey across the United States.
This article brings the entire journey together—from cities and national parks to scenic roads, unexpected changes and the experiences we shared as a family. Over time, each major destination will have its own detailed story linked from here.
- Travellers: Our family of four
- Travel dates: 31 March–28 June 2026
- Duration: Three months
- Countries: Canada and the United States
- Total distance: Approximately 20,000 km
- Canada: More than 4,000 km
- United States: More than 16,000 km
- Canadian base: Calgary, Alberta
- U.S. starting point: San Francisco Bay Area, California
- U.S. final stop: Northern Virginia
- Main themes: Family travel, national parks, scenic roads, cities, history, wildlife and everyday life on a long road trip
Our route and dates
| Stop | State/Province | Dates | Nights |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary | Alberta | 31 March–2 May | 32 |
| San Francisco Bay Area | California | 2–7 May | 5 |
| Sanger/Fresno | California | 7–10 May | 3 |
| Los Angeles | California | 10–14 May | 4 |
| Las Vegas | Nevada | 14–16 May | 2 |
| Flagstaff | Arizona | 16–21 May | 5 |
| Moab | Utah | 21–26 May | 5 |
| Denver area | Colorado | 26 May–1 June | 6 |
| Albuquerque | New Mexico | 1–6 June | 5 |
| Carlsbad | New Mexico | 6–7 June | 1 |
| Austin | Texas | 7–13 June | 6 |
| Oklahoma City area | Oklahoma | 13–14 June | 1 |
| Kansas City area | Missouri | 14–18 June | 4 |
| Nashville area | Tennessee | 18–23 June | 5 |
| Northern Virginia | Virginia | 23–28 June | 5 |
We spent our final days in Northern Virginia preparing to leave and departed from Washington Dulles International Airport for Dhaka on 28 June.
Part One: More than 4,000 km through Alberta and the Canadian Rockies
Calgary was our home base from 31 March to 2 May—a total of 32 nights. From there, we explored Alberta through repeated drives rather than moving from hotel to hotel every few days. This gave us time to experience the region at a slower pace and revisit the Rockies more than once.
Our drives took us through Calgary, Edmonton, Drumheller, Canmore, Kananaskis, Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper, with another journey west to Golden in British Columbia. By the end of the Canadian part of the trip, we had driven more than 4,000 kilometres.
Calgary: our Canadian base
Calgary was more than the place where we stayed. It was where we settled into the rhythm of a long family journey. We explored downtown, drove around the city, spent time beside the Bow River, visited Nose Hill Park and went to the Calgary Zoo. The city also gave us convenient access to some of the most remarkable landscapes in Canada.
Unlike a short holiday, staying for a month allowed us to experience ordinary days too—grocery runs, quiet evenings, changing weather and the repeated excitement of leaving the city toward the mountains.
Drumheller and the Royal Tyrrell Museum
The landscape changed dramatically on our drive to Drumheller. Instead of mountain peaks and forests, we entered Alberta’s badlands. The Royal Tyrrell Museum made the journey especially worthwhile. Its dinosaur fossils and scientific exhibits gave this day a completely different character from our other Canadian drives.
Banff, Lake Louise, Canmore and Kananaskis
We drove from Calgary toward Banff five or six times. That repetition became one of the advantages of using Calgary as a base: the Canadian Rockies did not have to fit into a single rushed day.
We explored many of Banff’s popular places and lakes, although Moraine Lake was one important place we did not visit. We also spent time around Canmore and Kananaskis. Each drive brought different light, weather and views, even when the road was familiar.
Lake Louise was one of the anchors of these mountain journeys, but the roads between destinations were often as memorable as the destinations themselves.
Jasper and the Icefields route
Our two-night stay in Jasper was one of the highlights of the Canadian chapter. We travelled the famous mountain route between Lake Louise and Jasper in both directions and explored many of Jasper’s popular places.
Wildlife made this section especially memorable. We saw many animals, including two black bears. Seeing bears in the landscape—not in a zoo or behind a screen—gave the girls a memory that stayed with them throughout the rest of the trip.
The journey between Banff and Jasper deserves its own story. Glaciers, mountain valleys, lakes, wildlife and roadside viewpoints turn the road itself into the experience.
Edmonton and Golden
We travelled to Edmonton twice—once with an overnight stay and once as a day trip. We also made a day trip from Calgary to Golden, British Columbia. These longer drives expanded the journey beyond the most familiar Calgary–Banff route and helped push our Canadian driving distance beyond 4,000 kilometres.
Part Two: More than 16,000 km across the United States
On 2 May, we flew from Calgary to the San Francisco Bay Area and began the American road trip. From 2 May to 28 June, we moved from the Pacific coast through California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Tennessee before reaching Virginia.
The road was never just a connection between overnight stops. Highway 1, Historic Route 66, the roads through Monument Valley, the drive into Moab, Colorado’s mountain routes and the long eastward journey were central parts of the experience.
San Francisco and California’s Pacific coast
Our U.S. journey began with a five-night stay in Oakland from 2 to 7 May, across the bay from San Francisco. We explored San Francisco several times, drove across the Golden Gate Bridge, visited Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39, and experienced the city’s famous hills and architecture.
One modern experience stood apart from the traditional sights: riding in a Waymo self-driving car. For our daughter one of our daughters, it felt completely futuristic and earned an immediate 5/5.
Pier 39 was lively, with shops and views across the bay. The sea lions were memorable too, although not in a way everyone enjoyed—one of our daughters’ verdict was direct: she did not like them at all.
The drive south along California Highway 1 was one of the great scenic drives of the whole trip. We travelled through Santa Cruz, Monterey and Carmel-by-the-Sea, stopped at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve and continued into the Big Sur area. The coast, cliffs, ocean and bridges made this a journey where we wanted to stop repeatedly.
Sanger and three national parks
From 7 to 10 May, we stayed in Sanger near Fresno. I did not expect Sanger itself to become one of the places I liked most, but its wide roads, farms and surrounding fruit groves gave it a relaxed character. Orange, lemon, peach and grape farms were part of the landscape, and the location gave us access to three major national parks.
Yosemite became one of our family favourites. Waterfalls, mountain roads, forests and a rainbow near the falls all became part of our memories. one of our daughters also remembers the fast-moving creeks, the high elevation and another bear sighting.
We visited Sequoia and Kings Canyon on the same day. At Sequoia, the scale of the giant trees—especially General Sherman—was the main experience. Our Kings Canyon visit was shorter and focused mainly on the drive and a viewpoint, but it added another national park to an already full California chapter.
Los Angeles, Malibu and Joshua Tree
From 10 to 14 May, we stayed in San Gabriel while exploring the Los Angeles area. We drove through Hollywood and Beverly Hills, saw the Hollywood Sign and visited Griffith Observatory. The observatory’s city view and planetarium show were more memorable to us than the sign itself. We did not spot any celebrities—a small but honest detail in a city so closely associated with them.
Malibu, particularly El Matador, offered a different side of the region. Joshua Tree National Park felt even further removed from the city. Its rock formations, open desert and unusual trees made it feel like another world.
Death Valley, Las Vegas and Zion
We left Los Angeles for Las Vegas on 14 May and travelled through Death Valley along the way. It became a very long driving day—roughly 800 kilometres—and the temperature reached around 110°F. The extreme heat was part of the experience, but so were the vast open landscapes that made Death Valley unlike anywhere else we visited.
In Las Vegas, we stayed at the Excalibur Hotel and saw the Strip and the Sphere from outside. The city was visually impressive, although our memories of this stop are closely connected to the natural places around it.
Zion National Park became another family favourite. Its towering canyon walls and the road through the park made it one of the strongest landscapes of the journey.
Historic Route 66 and our Flagstaff base
The journey from Las Vegas to Flagstaff was not simply a transfer day. We stopped near Lake Mead, visited the Powerhouse Visitor Center in Kingman and drove approximately 150 kilometres along Historic Route 66. Hackberry General Store and Delgadillo’s Snow Cap gave us a glimpse of the road’s older character before we reached Flagstaff.
From 16 to 21 May, our Flagstaff accommodation became one of the family’s favourite stays. The girls described it as a loft, but to us it felt more like a villa-style cottage. Until then, our Calgary duplex had been the favourite; Flagstaff changed that ranking.
Flagstaff became our base for Bearizona, Sedona, the Grand Canyon and three national monuments.
Bearizona and Sedona
Bearizona was a self-drive wildlife park where we could see bears and other animals from our own car. Being so close to them made it both easy for the family and genuinely interesting.
Sedona was one of Arizona’s strongest surprises. The town is surrounded by red-rock formations, and the drive through the area was as rewarding as the individual viewpoints. Bell Rock, the Chapel of the Holy Cross and the descent through Oak Creek Canyon all stood out.
Grand Canyon and the Flagstaff monuments
We entered Grand Canyon National Park through the South Entrance and visited the viewpoints that were accessible by car. Moran Point and Desert View Watchtower were our favourites. No photograph can fully reproduce the scale of the canyon, but we took many anyway.
The next part of our Flagstaff exploration connected nature with human history. We visited Sunset Crater Volcano, Walnut Canyon and Wupatki National Monument. Sunset Crater was our first close experience of a volcanic landscape. The drive down toward Wupatki, through the Coconino National Forest with distant painted landscapes on the horizon, was one of the most beautiful drives in the region.
Monument Valley and the road to Moab
The drive from Flagstaff to Moab was filled with scenery. We stopped at the Little Colorado River Gorge, although we did not feel the $20 entry offered enough value after our other canyon experiences. Later came Monument Valley, the Forrest Gump Point viewpoint and Wilson Arch.
This day reminded us that honest travel writing should include both reactions: the places that exceed expectations and those that do not feel worthwhile for a particular family.
Arches, Canyonlands and the roads around Moab
Our five-night stay in Moab, from 21 to 26 May, gave us several days to explore instead of rushing through one park. We returned to Arches National Park more than once and completed two hikes. Its huge natural arches and red-rock formations made it one of one of our daughters’ favourite parks—she rated it 5.5 out of 5.
We also visited Canyonlands National Park and a nearby state park. On another day, we drove the Potash scenic route beside the Colorado River. Moab’s greatest strength was not one isolated viewpoint; it was the concentration of extraordinary landscapes in every direction.
Colorado: mountains, wildlife and Denver
From 26 May to 1 June, we stayed in Centennial while exploring the Denver area. Our Colorado experiences included Garden of the Gods, Rocky Mountain National Park, Idaho Springs and downtown Denver.
Rocky Mountain National Park was the highlight. We saw many elk and deer, and the combination of mountain roads and wildlife returned us to some of the feelings we had experienced in the Canadian Rockies—although the landscape had its own character. Downtown Denver also made a strong impression and became one of one of our daughters’ favourite city experiences.
New Mexico: old cities, volcanic landscapes, white dunes and a vast cave
Albuquerque was our base for exploring New Mexico from 1 to 6 June. Santa Fe stood out for its distinctive architecture and historic atmosphere. Valles Caldera introduced us to another enormous volcanic landscape.
Farther south, White Sands National Park replaced red rock and mountain forest with waves of bright gypsum dunes. It was extremely hot, but visually unlike any other park on the journey.
We continued to Carlsbad, New Mexico, for the night of 6 June. Carlsbad Caverns was another major change in scale and setting. After weeks of looking outward across mountains, deserts and canyons, we travelled underground into the Big Room. Its enormous chambers made it one of the most remarkable natural places of the road trip.
Texas: Austin, Houston, space and strawberries
From 7 to 13 June, Austin was both a family stop and an important personal destination connected to my U.S. business plans. We used it as a base while also travelling to Houston and driving through Dallas.
At Space Center Houston, we explored the story and technology of human spaceflight. The ticket felt expensive to us, but the visit was still valuable, especially for the girls. Houston itself also left a positive impression.
One smaller experience became just as memorable: strawberry picking at Jenschke Orchards. one of our daughters called them the best strawberries. She also received her first camera during the Texas chapter, an important detail for a journey already filled with photographs.
Oklahoma to Kansas City—and the biggest event of the trip
After Austin, we spent the night of 13 June in the Oklahoma City area and continued to the Kansas City area, where we stayed from 14 to 18 June. The main reason for this part of the route was the FIFA World Cup match between Argentina and Algeria on 16 June 2026.
For one of our daughters, no normal rating was enough. Her score was “1000/5.” The stadium, the crowd and the chance to watch Argentina at a World Cup made it one of the clearest highlights of the entire journey.
Our accommodation was far less successful, but that contrast almost strengthens the memory: an ordinary stay surrounding an extraordinary day.
East toward Nashville
On the drive from Kansas City to Nashville, we saw the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. It marked another stage in our movement east.
From 18 to 23 June, we stayed near Nashville, away from the centre in a peaceful house surrounded by nature. It was our favourite full-house stay, with a large open backyard, deer nearby and fireflies after dark. After weeks of national parks, highways and city stops, the quiet setting gave us space to slow down.
We also explored Nashville and enjoyed the energy of the city. The contrast between its music-filled centre and our calm rural accommodation made this stop distinctive.
Virginia: the final chapter
Our final recorded base was in Fairfax, Northern Virginia, from 23 to 28 June. By then, we had crossed the country and accumulated more than 16,000 kilometres of U.S. driving.
The last days were slower: resting, shopping, preparing for the flight and letting the scale of the journey settle in. Our basement accommodation near Leesburg became another family favourite. Virginia was not the dramatic ending of a film; it was a calm landing after two months on American roads.
On 28 June, we departed from Washington Dulles International Airport for Dhaka, our home.
What changed from our original plan
Our daily itinerary was ambitious. It included more stops than a family could comfortably complete while also managing long driving days, rest, weather and changing interests. Some planned activities were replaced, some were skipped and some unplanned experiences became favourites.
That flexibility improved the trip. Bearizona, repeated visits to Arches, strawberry picking, our favourite accommodations and many roadside stops mattered because we were willing to adjust.
In the destination guides linked from this article, we will separate three things clearly:
- What we personally visited
- What we planned but could not complete
- What we would recommend to another family now
What a 20,000 km family road trip taught us
The road itself is part of the destination
Some of our best memories came from Highway 1, Historic Route 66, the Icefields route, Monument Valley, the road into Moab and the drives through forests and mountain passes. A long road trip should leave room for viewpoints and unexpected stops.
A comfortable base can change the experience
Calgary, Flagstaff and the house near Nashville showed us how much accommodation affects family energy. A place with room to rest can matter more than being in the centre of a city.
Not everyone has to love the same place
Our ratings were never identical. A famous landmark might feel ordinary to one person, while a farm, a self-driving taxi or a quiet backyard becomes another person’s favourite memory. We want the detailed articles to preserve those different reactions.
Plans should guide a family, not control it
The itinerary helped us organize a complex journey, but flexibility made it enjoyable. On a trip this long, rest is not wasted time and changing a plan is not failure.
Photographs need their own story
We returned with a very large visual record. This pillar article will eventually include around 30 to 50 carefully selected photographs—not as one long gallery, but placed where each image helps tell the story. The individual destination articles will carry the deeper photo collections.
Where the detailed stories will live
This article is the central map of our journey. Future stories will be grouped under:
- Canada: Calgary, Drumheller, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper, Edmonton and Golden
- California: San Francisco, Highway 1, Big Sur, Sanger, Yosemite, Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Los Angeles, Malibu and Joshua Tree
- Desert Southwest: Death Valley, Zion, Route 66, Sedona, Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Arches and Canyonlands
- Rockies and New Mexico: Denver, Rocky Mountain National Park, Santa Fe, Valles Caldera, White Sands and Carlsbad Caverns
- Texas to Virginia: Austin, Houston, Kansas City, the World Cup, Nashville and Northern Virginia
Each new article will link back here, and this page will link out to every completed guide.
The journey continues in the writing
We finished the driving on 28 June, but the work of recording the journey has only started.
There are thousands of photographs to review, small family memories to recover and practical details to verify. Some places need complete guides. Others may become short stories about a road, a stay, an animal sighting or an unexpected stop.
This first draft gives the journey its shape: more than 4,000 kilometres in Canada, more than 16,000 kilometres in the United States, and one family travelling from the Canadian Rockies to the Pacific coast and across America to Virginia.
We will keep building it from here.