Two-week holiday in Colorado

A stopover is a fine idea, and the logical place is Hawaii. If you're planning to spend two weeks in Colorado and another in California you won't have too much time to spare from your three-week break but a couple of nights in Waikiki sounds just the tonic. A stopover should cost you substantially less than an upgrade, and Qantas Holidays should have some hotel options.

You'll probably land in Los Angeles and there are many flights from there to Denver International Airport, Colorado's main gateway. Colorado is tailor made for active holidays in the great outdoors but admiring the scenery is inspiring enough if that's your preference.

Among the highlights, at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, rock spires that have been sculpted by wind and water over the eons erupt dramatically, set against a backdrop of peaks that are dusted with snow. 

The San Juan Skyway is a 380-kilometre circuit drive and one of the most beautiful scenic drives in America, taking you over mountain passes, through historic mining camps, wildflower meadows, forests, snowcapped peaks and waterfalls, and summer is the perfect time to drive it. 

Another scenic drive, Trail Ridge Road traverses Rocky Mountain National Park to cross the Continental Divide, with expansive panoramas and stops where you can take short hikes.

The red-rock canyons and sandstone monoliths of Colorado National Monument close to Grand Junction in the state's west are best seen on the 40-kilometre Rim Rock Drive, which also has short walking trails.