Cheap attractions

My friend and i are planning a road trip in June. We will be going from Missouri to Rhode Island, where my uncle lives. We have already started planning. I have two things i would like to know. In the states we are traveling through(illinois,indianna,ohio,Pennslyvania,New York, and Rhode Island) what are some good tourist sites to see. My second question is my parent are a little concerned avout the trip is there any facts that might reassure them or any sites that they could visit to help them. Thanks

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Originally Posted by Rachel17

My second question is my parent are a little concerned avout the trip is there any facts that might reassure them or any sites that they could visit to help them. Thanks

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Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum -- Two columns that you can print out or e-mail for your folks.... Teenage RoadTrip! and Six Tips for a Safe Roadtrip.

Mark

It looks like Mark has answered your second question, so let me take a stab at your first. I would say the highlights of your trip might include some of the following:

Cataract Falls south of Cloverdale, IN.
The museum at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Octagon Mounds just west of Newark, OH
Falling Water south of Donegal, PA
Old Bedford Village in the city of the same name (PA)
Hershey Park in PA
Caves in PA: Indian Echo Caverns and Crystal Cave
Mystic Seaport in Mystic, CN

On a separate note, I will point out that the direct route will take you right through the heart of New York City and that some can find this daunting, to say the least. If you would rather avoid this, there are ways around it, but what to do about getting through or by NYC is something that you should consider beforehand.

AZBuck

Me and a friend are going to Rhode Island we know niether of our cars could make the trip. because our cars are pieces of crap. Where is the best place to get a rental car. We need one that allows unlimited milage and is cheap. Please help us out.

According to your other post, you are both minors. I do not believe you can even rent a car. Renting a car means that you sign a contract with the rental company and minors can not enter into contracts. Also, drivers under age 25 have to pay significant extra fees so it can get very expensive. If you put the same money you would pay to rent a car into getting one of your vehicles fixed enough to be road-ready, that might be a better option.

What about if my dad rented the car and we drove it? About how much is the extra fees for underage people?

Sorry to say, until you are 18, renting a car will be impossible. It doesn't matter if your dad or anyone else rents the car in their name, since you'd have to get authorization to drive it. I do not know of any car rental agency that will allow anyone under 18 to drive their cars. In fact, most will not even do business with a driver under 21. If you were to attempt to drive a rental car without permission, your insurance would become void and you'd most certainly be stuck paying cash for any and all damages in an accident.

You are going to have to look at other options to make your dream come true. If your dad would be willing to rent a car, perhaps you could borrow his personal car, and pay for the cost of a rental which he could use while you were on your trip?

My grandpa told me that going through New York would be a bad idea. He also said there is a way that goes around New York taking you thrpough the Bronx. He said it was less safe but that it was an easier drive. I would really like ideas of how best to get around new york. I know i am not a expirenced enough driver to handle that traffic

There are actually several ways to get past New York between the south/west and north/east. The most direct is just to stay on I-95 between the New Jersey Turnpike and the New England Thruway. However, this involves multiple toll roads and some of the narrowest lanes and shortest merges I know of, and is not for the faint of heart. Another way through New York that minimizes tolls is to cross the George Washington Bridge (tolls collected eastbound only), take the Admiral Deegan / New York State Thruway (I-87) north to the Cross County Parkway in Yonkers; take that eastbound to the Hutchinson River Parkway north from Mount Vernon and finally connect in the White Plains area to the Merritt Parkway, or via I-684 north to I-84 east; or via I-287 south to I-95 north. While that route saves on tolls, it is still a tight and heavily travelled set of roads, particularly the Hutchinson River Parkway, which is fairly narrow, twisty, and has short (to nonexistent) sight lines at some entrances. I would only use it in the wee hours of the morning when I used to travel regularly between Maine and Delaware.

Probably better suited to the driver who is a less experienced urban road warrior, is to go around New York City. New York does have a beltway of sorts in I-287 which follows the fringes of the metropolitan area on the west and north sides. There are connections with I-95, I-78 and I-80 from the south and west; NY-17, I-87 and the Taconic State Parkway to the north; and I-684, the Merritt Parkway and I-95 to the east. I-287 can be quite heavily travelled at times, but it is typically multi-laned (3+), does avoid the City, and only requires that you find two interchanges.

Finally, there is my favorite way around New York City. Although it is a fair bit longer and does require some navigational skills, it is quite scenic and relaxing. You would start out (from the southwest) by taking I-287 north. At Suffern, NY exit onto NY-17 north to the town of Sloatsburg. Keep a careful look out for a right turn onto Seven Lakes Drive to and through Harriman State Park. Cross the Hudson on the Bear Mountain Bridge and continue on US-202 north towards Peekskill until you come to the Bear Mountain State Parkway which will take you around Peekskill and reconnect you with US-202. You would then follow US-202 to Somers, NY and finally use NY-116 and NY-22 to join up with I-684 which will take you north to hook up with I-84 eastbound into New England.

AZBuck

Buck has got some great routes for bypassing the heart of NYC, however, I'd approach it slightly differently, I'd avoid the NY metro area all together.

Once you get to eastern PA, take I-81 north to Scranton. From there you can take I-84 all the way to Connecticut. It would add a few more miles, but you would avoid the NYC area altogether.

I do have to also agree with Buck about his favorite route being very scenic. I haven't driven the whole thing, but I've used the Bear Mt. Bridge to get to Peakskill, and that is some very pretty country to drive through.

As long as we are gathering up possible ways through and around New York, let me say that I have used Michael's alternative and whole-heartedly recommend it for those who really don't want to experience traffic in or near New York. Between say Harrisburg, PA and Hartford, CT, such a routing adds only 20 miles (out of around 300) to a route through the New York City metro area.

But for those who are seeking a truly scenic alternative, there is one modification that can be made. Just east of Harrisburg, leave I-81 on I-78 to the Allenton-Bethlehem area of Pennsylvania. There use US-22 and then either PA-512 or PA-33 north to connect with US-209 through the Delaware Water Gap, at the northern end of which you join I-84 and continue eastward. This will add time, but not too many miles, since many of these roads are two-lane rather than freeway, but worth the consideration if you're looking for a quiet drive between New England and points southwest.

AZBuck

Thanks so much you guys Rock!!!!!

At the moment, I like to avoid NYC by taking I-287. I'm not a big fan of I-84 (I used to be - maybe I'll try it again someday).

I do admit that the Bear Mtn Bridge area (near West Point) is very beautiful and worth the trip.

I would avoid I-95 until well into CT - this is an extraordinarily heavily travelled corridor, sometimes US-1 in the area actually moves faster (hard to believe but true). Timing will be the key issue when getting through this area. If you are coming through on the weekend, you will have far better luck than if you get there on a weekday morning or afternoon.

We look forward to seeing more posts!

On a trip from St. louis to Rhode Island, what would be some fun things to do that are not to far off the highway. Maybe some summer tourist attractions. Fun places too stop for a night. We want to make this trip as fun as possible. We will be going in Late July or Early August if that makes a difference.

...and what kind of things do you consider fun? Are you looking for goofy, kitschy stuff? Or historic stuff? Or hiking and outdoor activities? Or theme parks? Or what?

Help us help you.

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Originally Posted by Rachel17

On a trip from St. louis to Rhode Island, what would be some fun things to do that are not to far off the highway?

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I think I already did that in this post earlier in the thread. Did you have something else, specifically, that you were looking for?

AZBuck

Thought I'd lop this on the end of this thread as it seems like a good place. As I had replied in this thread, you can make a left after the Bear Mountain Bridge and head up route 9D straight to I-84, or a few alternatives off of that road. I use this way to get home on my commute when I-87 north is in "crunch" mode, usually Friday evenings when everyone seems to be headed to upstate NY. Another really nice way to go, and one I've never seen posted, is to get to the top of the Palisades Parkway and instead of exiting the traffic circle at Bear Mountain Bridge, go a little further around and head up 9W. This is a beautiful road that I'll sometimes take home just for the diversion and goes directly past the entrance to West Point and over Storm King Mountain, which has some incredible views of the Hudson Valley. There's a couple a areas you can safely pull over and take some nice pix. From there, you'd just stay on 9W north through Newburgh (a few traffic lights at this point) until you get to the entrance to I-84 east.

Mike

I just came back from a trip to Rhode Island and I would like to suggest the mansions in Newport. They were amazing to look at, cheap to tour and the rest of the scenery and drive through and around Newport was absolutely beautiful. It was very foggy the first few days I was there and the mansions (originally owned by families such as the Rockefellers and Vanderbilts) made me feel like I was in a different era somewhere in Europe. When things cleared up, we drove along the water (or you could bike ride, which lots of people were doing) and see huge houses jutting out on rocks and from cliffs. Gorgeous drive!
I personally dont see anything wrong with driving through NYC, but I grew up right here and my husband is originally from the Bronx. Unless you are used to driving like a maniac, I would take an alternate route.

Good luck and I hope you have lots of fun!