Chicago or Atlanta - opinions?

My friend and I want to go on a road trip this Memorial Day weekend. We are located in New England and we will either be driving west through Cleveland - Detroit - Chicago - Milwaukee OR south through Charlotte - Atlanta - Nashville. We are indecisive and want to know anyone and everyone's opinions on which trip we should go on! Both are roads equally untraveled and we just need a third party to decide for us.

**Keep in mind the dangerous/depressive factor of Detroit/Chicago is actually appealing to us, it doesn't not dissuade us, so please leave that out of your argument.

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If I were the one making this trip, there would be no question. I would head south rather than west for the simple reason that travel is meant to broaden one's horizons. For that very reason I tend not to travel to cities but rather through them. But your post seems to indicate that cities are the main focus of your travels. In fact you have mentioned nothing else you want to see or accomplish. The reason I tend to avoid cities is that they are all pretty much the same. This is especially true of the cities strung out along the Great Lakes. They all grew up around the same time for the same reasons and around the same set of industries. I realize that's a bit of an oversimplification, but having been to every city on your Great Lakes list, I'd say it's as true as most generalizations.

On the other hand, if you head south, you'll at least be getting a change in climate, history and scenery, as well as a bit of a cultural change in, at the very least, accents and a bit in the pace of life. You could also sample both a bit of the shore and the Appalachians by making the trip into a bit of a loop.

If there are other considerations or interests driving your trip, you should let people know so that your objectives, other than hitting a list of cities, can be taken into account.

AZBuck

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The big variable, and frankly the only thing that matters, is something you haven't told us yet: What are you looking to get out of this trip?

Both trips have tons of great things you could do, but the better choice for you will depend upon things like your specific interests. If you love mountains or civil war battlefields, then going south would be a great choice. If you love things like museums and roller coasters, then going to Chicago and Cleveland (Sandusky) would be ideal.

There are a couple variables that are more concrete. How much time do you have for this trip? The Chicago focused trip is quite a bit shorter, if your time is limited. Also, does everyone going on the trip have Passports? If this is a round-trip, then it would be a pretty natural loop to travel through Cleveland one way, and the other through Canada the other, but everyone would have to have passports. That's not really a factor if you head to Atlanta.

Of course, if you've got a lot of time, you could really do a loop with all of the destinations you've talked about - going down to Atlanta and Nashville, then back up to Chicago and Detroit on your way home, or vice versa.