I Need Some Input

My friend approached me with the idea of going on a roadtrip this summer. We'll be 21 and this will be our last chance to go before graduating college, starting our lives or grad school. Anyway... We live in Cincinnati and she wants to go cross country to SanFran. We've never been on an extended roadtrip before. I'm thinking of taking US-50. Shes more comcerned about what we'll do when we get there but I'm focusing on the trip. She seems to be slacking on the trip, so I'm taking over the planning.

About how long will that take... I know it depends on how long we drive during the day, but roughly how long?

Are there any certain points of interest, fun towns to visit etc.

I'm completely open to ideas!

Any advice is appreciated!

We aren't really sure how much money we'll have, but we'll get how ever much we need... but think Budget! lol

And we are interested in seeing small town America, but with some interesting cultural things and maybe some nightlife (we will be by then 21 afterall ^_~)

thank you!

Please help!

Greetings, frenzycat, and welcome to the forum!

If you take I-70 until you can hook-up with US-50 in Salina, UT, your trip would be about 2400 miles and about 38 hours of driving (minimum). That 38 hours does not include time for gas stops, stretch breaks, bathroom pitstops, food, etc. so time for all of that will add to your overall driving time. I would suggest budgeting a good 48 hours on the road.

Remember, this is just figures for one way so you could have to double that. You might consider going I-80 most of the way for one leg of your trip and the I-70/US-50 route for the other leg just to mix it up and see some different scenery. Your miles/driving hours will also be about 2400 miles/38 hours (minimum). It's just far more fun to always drive new roads as much as possible, in my opinion.

Hopefully somebody else can help you a bit more with nightlife ideas. I'm not too-too much into that so I have no ideas there. And you'll be driving through many interesting small towns along that route that would be fun to explore for awhile. A couple of my favorites are Fruita and Glennwood Springs, CO.

My apologies if this option is covered elsewhere on the site, but a lot of people traveling on a make-or-break budget are using accomodation-sharing services like www.couchsurfing.com. There are others around, like SERVAS.

I would just mention this because you are not traveling alone and CS has a way for its members to be vouched for in advance. In addition to having a place to crash, the hosts often seem very willing to show you the local sights.
You can use a search filter to look for members in certain age ranges, for other singles or for families to stay with. From a safetly standpoint, maybe it is good to have a series of hosts anticipating your arrival and knowing your intended route.