Thanks! This is very helpful to me. This trips seems overwhelming because I would like to do what you did and see multiple things and the state is very large. I'd also like to add seeing some redwoods (although probably not at the redwood state park since that's too far north), SF and San Diego to the trip as I don't think we will be back since we are also from the east coast. I can stay inside the park but only in tents without bathrooms.
Did you feel like three days was enough time? I find it difficult to budget how much time we will need to see things inside the park. I'd like to do some shorter hikes, see some of the waterfalls, Mariposa Grove, rock formations and general scenery.
Did you feel like you were able to see most things in DL in 3 days and the Sequoias in 1 day?
Logistically, did you fly into/out of two different airports and if so, was it drastically more expensive to rent a car and not take it back to where you rented it from? I've read reports that it was a ton more expensive to pick up and drop off a rental at different locations.
If you don't mind, I'll give you a full rundown of our trip. But first, a few answers.
We flew into John Wayne Airport with DL as our first part of the trip. We flew out of Fresno. I found the car rental to be not that much more expensive - but I was patient and I stalked it for a while online. And I always used the car rental direct website.
For Yosemite, 3 days is "enough" in the same way that 3 days is enough at DL. You will see a lot and have a really good feel for the place, but you will also have pages of a guidebook left unexplored. You are helped by the fact that your plans are shorter hikes, the grove, waterfalls and just sight-seeing. That was our priority as well (except for the grove since we had just been to Sequoia), and it was just right for our family. Our "big" hike was Sentinel Dome, which is only a 2.5 mile round trip. You should check out yosemitehikes.com for great reviews and good ideas. But be warned everything takes a little longer than it looks on a map.
So, after three awesome days at DL (we are now hooked on DL, but will still probably see WDW more often because we are only 500 miles away), we had a late breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen at DLH and then drove to Three Rivers about 3 miles from Sequoia. We rented a VRBO and had a great night's stay. The next morning, we drove up the mountain (from dry, hot scrub-oaks to the cool forest of Giants in about an hour) to see the General Sherman Tree and to walk the forest. It was so peaceful and beautiful. We planned to climb Moro Rock, but we were a little late leaving the house, and we needed to drive on to Yosemite. This was my BIGGEST MISTAKE. We only had a half day in Sequoia, and the drive up to the western entrance of Yosemite that night was a killer. I wish we had stayed a whole day in Sequoia and spent the night again in Three Rivers before driving on to Yosemite. But we made it somehow.
We checked in at 1am at Rush Creek Lodge, so we slept in on our first Yosemite day. We had lunch at the resort and then drove in to the valley. Thank heavens it was a less-crowded week day. Traffic was easy and there was easy parking. We spent that day wandering Cook's Meadow, seeing Tunnel View and Bridelvail Falls. The weather was perfect (60s and breezy), and the sun setting in the valley was so awesome with the color changes in the granite walls. Wow. Your plan to visit in June is ideal!
Day 2 of Yosemite, we drove past the valley to the road to Glacier Point. On the way, we hiked Sentinel Dome (amazing and moderately easy hike) and then spent an hour or so at Glacier Point. To give you a feel for how to plan your days...that simple 2 part plan took the whole day. So, be careful about planning too much. Even so, it was amazing.
Day 3 of Yosemite, we spent the day in the valley again. We had intended to go on the Tioga Road to see some of the alpine lakes, but apparently, this past winter was the largest snow-pack on record. We were there the last week of June, and the road was not open yet. So on our last day, we watched rock climbers on El Capitan with binoculars, we walked another meadow, and we finally walked the paved path to Yosemite Falls. Yes, it is a more crowded walk, but it is stunning to stand at the bottom of those falls. Wow.
On our drive to Fresno the next day, it was a Saturday. We had to leave very early for our flight (in the car by 5:45am). Our shortest route was back through the valley, and by 7am, there was a steady stream of cars heading in as we were heading out. So, if you do a weekend, be ready to arrive early.
My final thoughts: Work on a realistic itinerary for Yosemite, with a couple of things per day, but not 5 or 6. Don't worry too much about staying off site, especially if you can get a place like Rush Creek that is very close to an entrance. Be flexible about your itinerary. The whole place is absolutely amazing, so if you don't get to see one of your options, your backup plan will still be better than a day somewhere else. And finally, don't try to see Sequoia AND DRIVE TO YOSEMITE on the same day. Sigh. Live and learn.
Have fun planning! I'll try to post some pictures to your thread when I'm not at work.