Hi all! I was wondering if you could give me any feedback on a trip I will be taking with my husband in about a month. Disclaimer: yes, I know there's a global pandemic going on (it's kind of the cause of the trip-- my father passed due to COVID last month, and there's a lot of sentimental shit and semi-fragile items in his house in NoVA that I need to get to my house in Orange County, CA that I do not want to use a moving company/storage PODS/shipped).

https://goo.gl/maps/dS8sGjdffnUYWbeC7

We decided to rent a minivan for the storage space, driveability, and cost (instead of a cargo van/moving truck/towing a trailer). We will be leaving on Thu 7/30 and hoping to arrive in OC by Sun 8/9. We would like to visit a few national parks and stay in safe towns/cities so my stuff doesn't get jacked overnight. We obviously won't be looking for any nightlife, cool bars/restaurants (unless we're getting takeout), etc. We'll be wearing masks, social distancing whenever possible, drenched in sanitizer, and wearing gloves head-to-toe. Any suggestions on my suggested route would be greatly appreciated!

Day 1 (Thu 7/30):

• Pick up rental car in the AM, load 'er up, head out (realistically) by noon
• Drive 8ish hours and spend the night near Great Smoky Mountains park

Day 2 (Fri 7/31):

• Spend 1/2 day in the park, drive to Nashville (4 hours) or should we aim for Memphis (7 hours)?
• Spend the night in Nashville/Memphis

Day 3 (Sat 8/1):

• Drive toward Ozark National Park (8 hours from Nashville, 5ish from Memphis).
  
• Stay the night in a spot near the park

Day 4 (Sun 8/2):

• Take a 1/2 day in the park, drive to Oklahoma City (5ish hours).
• Stay the night in Oklahoma City.

Day 5 (Mon 8/3):

• Get outta Oklahoma City bright and early (unless there's stuff to see/do that I'm missing), and drive to Santa Fe (9 hours).
  
• Spend the night in Santa Fe.

Day 6 (Tue 8/4):

• Drive to Moab (7 hours).
  
• Spend the night near/in the park.

Day 7 (Wed 8/5):

• Spend the day in Moab and Arches.
  
• Spend the night at the same spot as last night.

Day 8 (Thu 8/6):

• Drive through Monument Valley/toward Grand Canyon south entrance (2 1/2 hours to Monument Valley, another 3 hours to Grand Canyon).
  • Can we even do this right now? I have been reading that the Navajo Nation is closed due to COVID and I def don't want to risk my health/endanger my family. Could we just drive through Monument Valley and stay near the south entrance overnight?
    

Day 9 (Fri 8/7):

• Explore the Grand Canyon, drive to Vegas.
  
• Stay in a friend's home overnight. (5 hours)

Day 10 (Sat 8/8):

• Either head home, stay another night in Vegas, or add this extra day of padding somewhere earlier in the trip.

Day 11 (Sun 8/9):

• Head home! Arrive in OC by early afternoon.

Any suggestions/tweaks? I'm kind of worried about the stretch between Ozark & Moab because it'll be a lot of driving hours without anything "cool" to stop and enjoy in between. Also, I freaking love food and think that local flavors are one of the best ways to experience a destination, so I'm kind of bummed I'll be missing out on some great diners/bars/etc.-- if there's anything that's a must-eat (and is open for take out), let me know!

Things I would like to do for sure:

• Moab/Arches
• Monument Valley/ Grand Canyon
• Just cool parks to see in general from east to west

Things I've never seen but look like good stops, but open to alternatives:

• Great Smoky Mtns
• Ozark Nat'l Forest

Just stops for sleeping (open to better options):

• Nashville/Memphis
• Oklahoma City
• Santa Fe
• Vegas

Sorry for all of the text, and thanks in advance for any suggestions/feedback!