1

Amtrak the US train system is a joke. If you are in LA fly to Vegas (Southwest Airlines). Rent a car in Vegas and drive to see the Grand Canyon. Since you are under 25 you'll pay more. Fly from Vegas to San Diego,(same airline) where you won't need a car. From SD fly to Denver if you wish.

2

Welcome to the TT Most years one can ski Just North of Flagstaff off the highway 180 to the South Rim Making a" hail Mary" to Colorado foolish... Here a winter tire equipped car and driving skills will be required. Rail and AMTRAK/CALTRAN buses will serve for your proposal...Reservations may well be needed for transport and lodging Christmas week...YOUR interests(undisclosed here) should determine stops made along the way...carracar

3

Several airlines fly from LAX and other area airports to Las Vegas, not just Southwest. Worth checking all (Southwest won't appear on Expedia, etc. so you need to check it separately). Saying the train system is a joke isn't informative; for some routes it's a relaxing alternative to the hassles of plane travel, but there is no train from L.A. to Vegas. There is one from L.A. to Flagstaff. From LA to Vegas you'd take an Amtrak bus. But, like with Greyhound, it takes several hours over a boring route, so flying is indeed best. You can take tours to the Grand Canyon (best overnight, and go to the actual park not the "West Rim"). You may not get enough snow in many places for skiing in early December, and if you do, transportation can be tough. Your subject line (LA to Vancouver) doesn't match your text. IF you are also going to Vancouver, you can ski in northern California, Oregon, Washington or British Columbia. The Coast Starlight is a relaxing way to go there, but will take a long time and likely cost yo more than a flight. Lots of airlines fly to those places.

4

Here is one idea:

LA
Amtrak Train to San Diego
Fly to Las Vegas
Bus to Grand Canyon
Bus to back to Las Vegas
Bus to Zion National Park
Bus to Salt Lake City (ski)
Amtrak Train to San Fransisco
Amtrak Train back to LA

5

You should ensure there is a bus before you recommend people taking it.
(Btw, no, there isn't one.)

6

Here is a bus service that will take you from Las Vegas to Zion for $66, or you can take Greyhound from Las Vegas to St. George, and then use the Bundu Bus to get from St. George to Zion.

You can also use them to go straight from Grand Canyon to Zion.

7

For travelling up and down the west coast between San diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland oregon, Seattle Washington and Vancouver British columbia there is the AMTRAK train service. Also, regional airplines sometimes run specials (i.e. Allegiance).

For the Las Vegas leg I'd consider a round trip flight out of Los Angeles. Probably cheaper than renting a car a driving it. You can book a tour for the Grand Canyon from Las vegas.

Skiing? Well, the Rocky Mountain west outside of Denver has some great skiing, BUT - you don't need to go so far off of your route for great skiing. Probably the best skiing in the United States is outside of Salt Lake City Utah with a variety of sites and powder snow from expensive Park City to some family oriented and far less exepnsive places up Cottonwood Canyon outside of Salt Lake. Or, there is Mammoth Lakes outside of Los Angeles, OR, there are many ski areas outside of San Francisco and throughout the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, OR, throughout the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and Washington State outside of Portland Oregon and Seattle Washington, OR, you could take the AMTRAK to Vancouver British Columbia, then then another train from Vancouver to Whistler Mountain, probably the most extensive ski area in North America.

You could fly L.A. to Las Vegas. Then Las Vegas to Salt lake City (skiing). Then Salt Lake City back to L.A. Rent a car in L.A. for travel around southern California. One thing going for you on that itinerary is that Salt Lake City is a hub airport for some major airlines which should help keep airfare costs down somewhat.

8

First, it appears you have to connect in St. George regardless. I don't see a direct route.
Second, once you're there, then what? The shuttle doesn't run that time of year.

9

I don't see why whether it is a direct route, or involves a brief stoppover in St. George, is terribly relevent to the issue of whether you can take a bus from Las Vegas to Zion. The bottom line is that if the OP wants to get from Las Vegas to Zion on bus, it's possible, and I'm not sure many people would spur the option simply because you pass through St. George, which is on the direct route between Vegas and Zion. After all, most bus journeys do involve brief stops.

You wouldn't visit Zion without a car when the shuttle isn't running. That is a reasonble choice to make. But, that doesn't stop others from doing it. You can rent bikes here in Springdale, and peddle your way down the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive, stopping at the sights, or at a trail head for a hike.

10

Hey, did you work out any plans? I'm doing a similar trip.