Good friend is coming to America to tour with their family. Children are 7 and 13. Asked for my input and unfortunately I am very little help here.

They are starting in Vegas for 3 days

Would like to visit 2 or 3 National Parks loosely between Vegas to Los Angeles

I suggested:
Hoover Dam
Bryce Canyon
Zion
Maybe Sequoia National Park??

They would like to hike in Bryce Canyon and Zion. Any tips on where to Park and what trails to take?

Tips on things to do, kid friendly in Los Angeles for 2-4 days

Tips on things to do, kid friendly in San Francisco for 2-4 days
Any other worthy stops along the way

This trip starts in a few weeks, so I advised heat will be an issue already.

I would consider Joshua Tree NP.

ForeverAg said:

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This trip starts in a few weeks, so I advised heat will be an issue already.

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Whatever they do in the desert, start early!!!!

For Vegas, I like the Hoover Damn idea. I'd also do a Cirque show. Mystere is great for kids. I'd also have them go out to Red Rocks park. You can get a rock climbing guide there for some cool easy climbs. Or just scramble around Calico Hills. Valley of Fire State Park is cool too. If they can, do a flight seeing trip to Grand Canyon since that isn't on their list and is very cool to see.

Zion and Bryce are the other direction from CA, but worth it. For Bryce, park at Sunset Point and hike down Wall Street to the Queens Garden trail and come back up at Sunrise point. Or vice versa. Then drive to the lookout points and down to the end of the road to see the Bristlecone pines.

For Zion, a great bang for your buck (so to speak) is the Canyon Overlook Trail. Parking can be tough so get there early. If the youngest is adventurous, then hike the Narrows. I didn't take my son at that age, though. Maybe check Zion Adventure Company and see if canyoneering would be good for them. A half day in Lambs Knoll is fun, but it depends on the 7 year old.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon are great. Easy trails and ginormous trees.

Have they thought about Yosemite? I'd maybe drive the east side of the Sierra and over into Yosemite, then down to Sequoia. they could probably drive thru Death Valley for a bit too and hit Badwater Basin. Inyo Forest for ancient bristlecones, Mammoth, Devils Postpile, climbing in Bishop. I may do that over Utah since it's heading west.

I haven't spent much time in LA and quit going to SF years ago so I'm not much help on those spots with kids other than the classics (Alcatraz, golden Gate, Exploratorium, etc).

The horseback rides at Bryce are fantastic. Get up close to bristlecone pines, ride in and out of slot canyons, lots of history including Butch Cassidy. Overall a great time. And kids would love it.

For the LA part, Griffith Observatory, Getty Museum and a short drive to Anaheim....Disneyland.

Red Rock Canyon

Is Lake Tahoe a possibility? I don't know what country they're from but, there's really nothing like it anywhere that I've been.

For SF, one of my favorite places to go in the world is Marin Headlands. There are a few old 16 inch coastal artillery emplacements where the kids can run around. That's also where you get the pictures of the city framed between the GG Bridge.

You can walk across the Golden Gate Bridge and on the SF side, underneath it is Fort Point and that's an interesting National Park to visit.

In LA, I recommend Universal Studios over Disney. Did both in June 2023 and Universal was more family oriented, Disney was gaiety everywhere and adult Disney freaks.

There are some attractions in Griffith Park in LA that might be fun for kids that age. There's a train ride and a museum.

A drive along Mulholland Drive and seeing the Hollywood sign is usually a hit. You can pair that with a lunch at In'N'Out Burger in Studio City. If you're lucky, you can even see a homeless person rage on tourists.

In Nevada, Hoover Dam is worth the trip. Driving to California in The 15, the world's tallest thermometer in Baker is pretty hilarious. And the massive solar farm in California, near Primm, NV, is a must see.

In Vegas, I recommend going to Meow Wolf. Wife and I were there last year and enjoyed it. I think kids would enjoy it even more. And it was a deal where you could spend as much time in there as you wanted to.

Depending how many activities they're looking to do in Vegas, my kids enjoyed the aquarium at Mandalay Bay.

Something they could do without the kids, is shoot a machine gun, or any gun. A lot of foreigners love that. Also, a lot of foreigners love hitting the outlet malls in Vegas to buy their favourite brands at discounted US prices.

If they have the option to drive PCH between LA and SF, I recommend that. But even the drive through the Central Valley is interesting.