"I'd like to see the Redwoods but that might be a bit far."

There are some fairly impressive stands of redwoods close to San Francisco, just north of the Golden Gate around Mt Tam ~ is it the John Muir National Forest, or something like that? I've never been farther north to the larger and more famous redwood sites, but I found the rather more modest Marin County forest worthy of my attention.

In regard to Las Vegas ~ be sure not to lose your vacation money before your vacation really begins!