From Toronto To California

Hi All,
Before I start, I just want to say that this forum is Awesome!!!
my Husband and I are planning our 2 weeks vacation to the states.
We would be leaving from Toronto on the last week of July, and returning 2 weeks later. We are excited about travelling to california, and ofcourse en-route enjoying Chicago and Nevada. My husband would like to see if you think it is possible (and wise) to visit Texas (his brother lives there) and then head north back to Toronto. I know easier said then done..right? But hope you can provide feedback here.
We are nervous about the heat and driving continiously for 2 weeks, and not enoying the states in between. But do keep in mind, we have taken many enojable road trips, mainly to Quebec City. Your opinion will help us greatly.

I have visited Hotels.com, and they seem to have reasonable prices for hotels like Comfort Inn. So I would make reservations for the major cities, and walk into a hotel in the smaller states, when we feel we need a break. We would like to enjoy this trip, as it is the Honeymoon we never took 5 years ago, at the same we would like to make it cost effecient also.
Can you tell me your opinion about our plans. Thank You.
Mariya

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Originally Posted by 5Years

Before I start, I just want to say that this forum is Awesome!!!

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Thanks and Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum!

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my Husband and I are planning our 2 weeks vacation to the states.We would be leaving from Toronto on the last week of July, and returning 2 weeks later. We are excited about travelling to california, and ofcourse en-route enjoying Chicago and Nevada.

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You are really pushing the time envelope to simply reach California in a week's travel and I really don't think you have time to slip into Texas on this trip, but it really depends upon where in Texas he lives and how much time you want to spend on the road.

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We are nervous about the heat and driving continiously for 2 weeks, and not enoying the states in between.

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The heat is manageable, drink plenty of water, take breaks, read these tips.

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I have visited Hotels.com, and they seem to have reasonable prices for hotels like Comfort Inn. So I would make reservations for the major cities, and walk into a hotel in the smaller states, when we feel we need a break

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You might wish to reverse some of that philosophy -- it will be easier to find rooms available motels in larger cities and along interstate highways than in the smaller towns because of the nature of summer league athletics. I have mostly seen this in the western states, but it can be darn near impossible to find open motel rooms in the small regional towns mid-week because kids from ranches and farms willl be using them for swim meets, soccer, etc. It is not uncommon for many of these smaller towns to be completely booked for most of the summer during the week.

That being said, I really enjoy traveling without reservations. Here are some more ideas about the nature of needing reservations.

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We would like to enjoy this trip, as it is the Honeymoon we never took 5 years ago, at the same we would like to make it cost effecient also.

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Where are you going in California and Nevada? It will take you four days of hard driving to reach LA (for example) and four days back to Toronto, so where else are you planning on going. It will be a great vacation, but since you want to enjoy the effects of a second honeymoon, you should build in some "lazy" days if you can.

Happy Planning!

Mark

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

I'm going to assume that you're talking about making the stop in Texas in addition to your proposed journey to Chicago, Nevada and California. In addition, I'm going to assume that you mean Las Vegas (NV), Los Angeles (CA) and Houston (TX). In that case, your proposed route is over 5700 miles and you are going to have to spend a minimum of 10 to 11 full days on the road. To be honest, while that kind of trip appeals to me and a few others, I would NOT consider it a honeymoon type of RoadTrip. Eliminating the Texas side trip only saves you about 700 miles, so clearly it's the Nevada/California portions of this trip that are driving the mileage up. So, if you really want to take some time to enjoy the states in between, then I'd have to caution you to seriously think about scaling back on your westward terminus, or find an extra week or so for the trip. That being said, I think you can make an excellent trip seeing Chicago, the Mississippi River Valley, Houston (or wherever in Texas), the Appalachians, and back to Toronto for a grand total of 'only' 3350 miles that might be a much more enjoyable, and romantic, pace.

AZBuck

Thank you for the reply.
So if we were to omit Austin,Texas, would this trip be more manageable? A friend suggested flying out from Buffalo to California, renting a car from there, and then driving east towards Nevada, and returning the vehicle in Buffalo, and driving back to Toronto in our own vehicle, which we left in Buffalo.

That way we can enjoy the road trip part (as we will be driving back) and at the same time saving time and enery during the trip.

Hey, We are also travelling to California,
But we are going like this:
Toronto>Chicago>Iowa>Wyoming>Nevada(Las Vegas)>California>New Mexico> Texas>back up to Toronto. What do your think? Is this possible in 2 weeks????

I'm nervous about the lenght and the lack of time we might be able to spend in each state.

[Editor's Note: I moved this post from a thread that was last active in 2005, to keep the "conversation" going forward in a useful manner]

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Originally Posted by 5Years

So if we were to omit Austin,Texas, would this trip be more manageable? A friend suggested flying out from Buffalo to California, renting a car from there, and then driving east towards Nevada, and returning the vehicle in Buffalo, and driving back to Toronto in our own vehicle, which we left in Buffalo

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This sounds like a good idea. That way you can afford to mosey a little on your way home. Instead of trying to "speed run" both ways.

Mark

OK, how does this sound?
Toronto>Chicago>California (San Francisco)>Toronto.
What route would I be best taking? Is there a book or website you can suggest? Thank you!

Plan B sounds a lot like your original Plan A, which is to drive all the way from Toronto to San Francisco and back. That is over 5000 miles of driving, which is pushing it for two weeks, especially if this is supposed to be a relaxed, honeymoon type of RoadTrip. Your alternate plan of driving to Buffalo, flying to San Francisco, and then driving back sounds much more enjoyable, albeit with a price tag. In addition to the plane fare, the cost of a one-way rental is going to be in the $(US)1000-1100 range. As they say, time is money, and you are going to have to choose how to apportion your temporal and monetary resources to produce the trip that is most appealing to you.

AZBuck

Hi,
Why would you want to do CA? It is only because of SF? If you are driving so long and far upto CA, there are a lot more places that you could see here itself. (If you have been to the other places, then you can drop me here)
You can just fly into CA(LA/SFO/SJC), rent a car, see around(you can include Vegas also) and then fly back. Would save you a lot on your rental "drop off" charges. Personally, I would prefer to spend that money on your actual travel. For July, you could still pick up some last minute deals. If you are flying in from the east coast, try jetblue.

Or if you are looking for your existing plan, flying one way would definitely save you time.

have fun planning
cool

Hey you guys, We are still confused... We have changed plans, and still don't know if this trip will be all that we have been expecting from it.

What are some of the MUST do's in Nevada & California.
A few things about the 2 of us: we are not gamblers, although, I would love to go inside of a few beautiful casino's. we like sight seeing. we enjoy scenic drives very much. driving by the lakes is nice (ocean in California I guess). Do you know of a nice Farry..say 2-3 hours long, which will take us to a nice Island for a day?
Hope I didn't bomard you guys. I see i'm not the only one :) THank you, you guys are doing a great job!
Maria

Well, I'm certainly confused.

Which option have you decided on? Are you driving out and back, or are you flying and driving back, or are you just flying and driving around?

If you are looking for islands, you could try the Channel Islands a National Park in Southern California. I can't really think of many other island options.

Reno and Vegas both have plenty of casinos to walk around in. And there are a million possible scenic drives in the two states. It depends upon where you are heading and how much time you have.

Catalina Island is popular but I haven't been there so I can't comment.

Personally, I could spend the whole 2 weeks in the Los Angeles/Southern Cal area. Between all the fun parks (Disneyland, Magic Mountain, Universal, Knott's Berry Farm), the other funky things to check out like Hollywood, Rodeo Drive, Graumann's Chinese Theater, and touristy things like getting maps to tour the homes of the stars, cruise around Beverly Hills, etc. Then the beaches....wow! A hop up the coast to the beautiful city of Santa Barbara. A day or two at Hearst Castle.

Yup, definitely 2 weeks just in the greater LA area would be fine with me.

I think a nice vacation would be to just leave your car in Toronto, fly from Toronto to LA, enjoy California, and fly home. Easy, fun, lots to do.

I think you're making this too difficult, Just my humble opinion.