6 Month Road Trip Across The States From Uk - Help!!!!

Hi! I'm 22 years old and planning on taking the road trip of a lifetime across the US with my boyfriend who is 23 and will turn 24 in July. We're hoping to spend 6 Months in total travelling (we have no idea of the route as of yet) but hoping to go to as many states as possible. Planning on leaving the UK around July-ish.

Just wondering really if anyone can help with transportation ideas. We were thinking of buying a car as rental would work out pretty expensive for that long! Been looking at the adventures on wheels website where you have the option of having the car bought back at the end but is there anything else anyone recommends?

Also are there any regulations or rules about driving in certain areas? for example i heard you couldn't drive into New York City or something?!

Sorry if a similar thread has been posted already, i did search!

Thank you for reading and any suggestions you may have :o)

Welcome to RoadTrip America!

Have you had any dealings with the US embassy regarding your visas yet?

What are your interests? Have you been to the US previously? If so what did you enjoy the most? You could do a seriously good trip in that time and we would be happy to point out a few 'must see' locations along the way.

Are you planning on doing a complete loop of the country?

well you can drive into new york. you just really don't want to. very crowded, congested, difficult. great city to visit though. the public transportation is good.

driving regs are pretty simalar across the country.

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Originally Posted by cherylnix

Just wondering really if anyone can help with transportation ideas. We were thinking of buying a car as rental would work out pretty expensive for that long! Been looking at the adventures on wheels website where you have the option of having the car bought back at the end but is there anything else anyone recommends?

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Hi Cheryl,
My boyfriend and I are from the UK and are planning a similar trip, but only four months in our case. We did consider buying a car, but, being a bit car-ignorant, decided to bite the bullet and fork out for the security of rental. According to the Adventures on Wheels website you need to have a US address and driving licence for their buy-back offer. But, also, being under 25 you may have problems hiring a car as well. (We're in our 40s, so one of the few advantages of age is that we avoid this problem!)


We're planning to do a loop of the USA starting and finishing in New York and basically driving round the edge, maybe popping into Canada (Vancouver) at Washington. To save money we'll be camping for about 2/3 of the time, probably sleeping in the car (but in a campsite) rather than bothering with a tent. We're hiring a minivan, but does anyone have any opinions on whether any particular model is more suitable for sleeping in than others?

Would also be interested in any thoughts on our route, or any hints and trips for the kind of trip we're planning. I've been lurking for a while now, and have picked up a lot of great information!

Apologies if it's against forum etiquette to hijack a thread with my own questions - I thought that as we're planning similar sort of trips it might be appropriate, but am more than happy to start my own thread.

Welcome to the RTA Forum BIA!

I think renting a car will end up being a pretty smart decision in your case, and certainly a much easier decision to make when you are over 25.

Personally, I would recommend "bothering" with a tent. You can get a cheap one for about $50 and it will give you a place to go to be out of the car. While sleeping in a car or minivan would certainly be a decent option at times, just having a place to be that's not the same place where you've spent all day while driving is a bit of a stress reliever in its own right. Plus, as Judy often mentions, setting up a tent is also a great way to stretch and get moving after spending the day inside a car.

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Also are there any regulations or rules about driving in certain areas? for example i heard you couldn't drive into New York City or something?!

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Sometimes there are some strange rumors that get posted, and I've got to admit, I've never heard of someone saying you can't drive in NYC. If there is anything to back that one up, I'd like to hear it. The only thing even similar I can think of is sometimes you are only allowed to drive in the state you rent, although that's not usually a problem if you are a foreign visitor and its a requirement that typically can be waived.

As was mentioned, you might not choose to drive in NYC, because it is a bit of a challenge and there are plenty of good public transit options that can take you into the city without a car.

As far as buying vs. renting goes, considering your timetable of 6 months and your age being under 25, buying a car could make sense if you've got the money up front to buy a roadtrip worthy car. The process is not without some hurdles, however. This thread is one of the discussions on the forum that goes through some of the red tape.

Thank you for all of your replies, and no of course I dont mind anyone asking other questions on here. If it helps you then its all good! :o)

In regards to visa, I know it something i need to do but not really sure where to start!
I have been to Texas a few years ago and to Florida 3 times. September 2007 being the last time. I went with my boyfriend for 2 weeks and we hired a Dodge Avenger, which was so nice. We didn't realise that being under 25 we had to pay a surcharge of $28 a day extra. Which was quite annoying but still didn't ruin our fun! :o) Thats why we thought buying one would be less hassle.

I have family in a couple of states that i have never met, I'm hoping to get into contact with them soon so as maybe I could stay with them on my way through. Would this be easier in terms of buying a car? Would it be possible to use their address, obviously if they're fine with it!

It's so hard to look stuff up on the internet, so I find these forums so useful! So i really do appreciate anything you have to tell me! I'm just so excited to go, been wanting to do it for a long time now and my boyfriend was a little unsure at first but now he can't wait too, which make me want to go even more!! THANK YOU!!!

I suspect that the 'you can't drive into New York City' has come about from 'it's not worth driving in New York City' -- though I am desperately looking forward to the day that I drive through the centre of the city lol

The visa thing is a huge deal. I was planning my own 4.5 month trip from Florida to Alaska but, after taking advice, decided to can the idea. I'm now looking to fly to Canada first and spend more time there than planned. The application process for the visa was just too much hassle for me personally (I'm gonna apply under the Visa Waiver scheme on arrival) but don't let that put you off - you have a couple more months to get it sorted than I had. I would suggest that you get on the case as soon as possible - and certainly well before you actually book anything - as the process can take quite some time and there's no assurance that you will actually be granted a visa. Start reading this page on the website of the Embassy of the United States in London for an outline of what's involved.

driving in NY can actually be fun if you do it after midnight. i'm not joking. you just want to avoid the bad areas , which is not as hard as some people might think. crossing the george washington bridge, driving up broadway or the west side highway, etc. are all very cool late at night when there is no, or at least, much less traffic.

I have driven large vehicles in both Montreal and NYC and I love driving there! For the most part, only professional drivers ply their skills therein and both are fun, fun cities to drive in.

Mark

Cheers guys!
Does anyone know what i need to do about car insurance and also what type of travel insurance i will need?
Thanks!! :o)

Insurance certainly can be confusing. This thread really does a great job of explaining the different types of car insurance offerings that you'll commonly see when renting a car.

Also rememeber that your insurance provider in the UK might also provide coverage to your rental car under your exisiting policies. Its certainly worth checking with them to see what they recommend.

It depends on whether you are renting or buying. Presuming you are renting, you should look for LDW/CDW (usually comes as standard when you book on a .co.uk rather than .com site) but this will leave an excess (or deductible) to pay if you have a bump or the car goes walkies. Rather than buying the (usually vastly overpriced 'Super CDW' insurance offered by the insurance company) you could check out Insurance4CarHire.com who offer a secondary insurance at a very good price. I have used them myself in the past and the only reason that I don't have a policy with them now is that I have booked my recent rentals through Travel Supermarket whose prices include full cover. You could put the car on its roof and not have to pay a single penny. On longer rentals though it is well worth looking at all options and considering taking out an insurance yourself.

If you are buying a car... I am not sure if anyone has yet found a company that offers a policy to non-US residents. I know that Berglunds Insurance has been mentioned a few times but I have yet to hear of anyone who has contacted them and used their service. If anyone has I would be very pleased to hear of the outcome. Additionally, and perhaps more problematic, without a US address you will be unable to register the car in your name. So, unless you have relatives or friends who could register it in their name and 'lend' it to you... you may be far better off to rent. This thread offers some idea of the troubles you'll face.

Thank you, all your suggestions have been really helpful!

Does anyone know roughly, without the cost of buying/hiring a car, how much a 6 month trip like this would cost? Including things like motels/accommodation, food, fuel cost etc?

Hi,

I posted a thread on here a while ago about road tripping across North America for 6 months with my boyfriend.
I found everyone’s comments really useful, so thank you for that.

I am a 22year old female British citizen with a UK address.

I am now trying to work out a strategy for a car. Does anyone know the best way to go about it. I have looked into Adventures on Wheels and have sent them an email asking for advice on what to do in terms of leasing, renting or buying a car with or with out buy-back guarantee. Ideally I’d like to buy a car and sell it once we’re finished as I think this would work out cheaper than renting one.

Does anyone have any suggestions or had any experience in this?

All suggestions and tips welcome! :o)

We've already given you a number of thoughts and links about the challenges of purchasing a car as a non-resident of the US. I suggest you go back and read some of the links that have already been posted, or do a search of the forum as the subject has come up fairly frequently.

A Buyback company like Adventures on Wheels could be a good options, and we've had at least a few forum users use their services.

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Originally Posted by Midwest Michael

Welcome to the RTA Forum BIA!

I think renting a car will end up being a pretty smart decision in your case, and certainly a much easier decision to make when you are over 25.

Personally, I would recommend "bothering" with a tent. You can get a cheap one for about $50 and it will give you a place to go to be out of the car. While sleeping in a car or minivan would certainly be a decent option at times, just having a place to be that's not the same place where you've spent all day while driving is a bit of a stress reliever in its own right. Plus, as Judy often mentions, setting up a tent is also a great way to stretch and get moving after spending the day inside a car.

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That's a good point, Michael. We'll certainly bear that in mind. Of course, it will involve learning to put up a tent! - neither of us have much outdoors-y experience - but the whole trip's going to be a huge learning experience anyway.

Hi,

Not aware that you cannot drive into New York although as mentioned by previous poster whether you would want to is a different matter. Having walked the streets of New York I am not sure I would voluntarily drive through it! We drove around the outskirts July of last year from Martha's Vineyard to Wilmington across the George Washington Bridge and I noted in my diary "incredible traffic flows like we have not seen before" It was jampacked with every bridge and road full of traffic. BUT it kept moving very slowly (unlike the M25!). Once into New Jersey it eased greatly. Lets hear it for air conditioning!

Mike

Hello everyone. I have posted threads on here previously about my 6 month road trip I'm planning with my boyfriend for later in the year from the UK. Everything you have said has really helped a lot but now we're stuck for car ideas!

We've given up buying one and selling it once we're finished as it works out too much hassle for a trip we're supposed to be enjoying! We're now trying to find companies that lease cars and the best prices. we're finding it hard to look up companies using search engines like Google.

I have looked into autoteam.com and got a quote of around $4800, which isn't too bad but I'd still like to shop around a bit. If anyone has ahad any experience with this or knows of any companies please let me know!

Thanks!

I'm not really aware of too many companies that will do a 6th month lease. I think looking around at some of the buyback companies, like those that have been previously mentioned in this thread, would be your best bet to find this sort of service.

My concern is you are concentrating on transport but, as already mentioned, there is the visa question. Without one you will be strictly limited to only 90 days in the USA, not the 6 months you are looking at.

Don’t know the time frame to obtain a visa these days in the UK but a quick Google search suggests it can be about 3 months from start to finish. Starting from now is nearly to August.

Put your details into this wizard and it will tell you how you are fixed.

Thank you for reminding me! I knew I was forgetting something very important! And I now know why I forgot about it. I went to fill out a form before and It asked me for my address i will be staying at in the US. As I will be travelling around I don't have one, so does anyone know what I'm supposed to do there? I searched on their site but can't find the answer. it only suggests things for the visa waiver (less than 90 days).

Also though, with the car thing. does anyone know on here if it is possible to get a car with buy-back without a US address? I've sent emails to the companies but noone has got back to me! Cheers

Even on the Visa Waiver Program you are required to complete and produce I-94W Form (green form) to the authorities at the point of entry showing a USA address to include number, street, city and state.

I think the minimum here is at least one night at a pre booked hotel – this is what I’ve known other travellers do who are undertaking a self drive vacation.

And just to confirm below info is reproduced from London US Embassy website…

“The requirement that a traveler provide a U.S. address applies to all visitors to the United States whether they are traveling visa free under the Visa Waiver Program or are in possession of a valid visa.

We strongly recommend that you comply with this requirement and provide a U.S address. Should you arrive at the port of entry without any pre-booked accommodation, you will be required to pursue this matter with U.S. immigration.”

Bottom line – an address is needed to gain entry.

Sorry, can’t help with the car question.

Hello, me again!
Ok so I've been in contact with someone about what to do about the Visa and they are getting back to me.
Does anyone know if Adventures on Wheels are still operating? I can only get a quote on their site. when I try to contact them for a 6 month buy-back scheme I don't get a response!

I would think if the website is up, that they're still in business. But a lack of response after several tries would make me a bit skittish about what kind of customer service they provide.

However, members have used it and been pleased with their service.

How long did you give them to respond? Did you repeat your request? Did you try to contact them via phone, too? (Expensive for you, I'm sure, but might be worth a shot.)

With the exchange rate, we are seeing a huge increase in travelers from Europe to the US. I wonder if they have been slammed and are having trouble keeping up with the current demand?

I've been waiting at least a couple of months for a reply! So that’s what made me think they must’ve shut down. But I think you’re right if I can get a short term quote on their website they must still be running and it must be down to poor customer service. I will call them sometime soon I would imagine, its only because I wanted a rough price as still not sure on the route we’ll be taking and exact dates.

We’ve decided now that we will depart in about 12 months time. This will give us more time to save and plan and also it will be the summer months we are there for and so a lot more attractions will be open, better weather etc.

We’ve also decided that for the end of our trip we would like to have a few weeks in Hawaii. We think it would be a nice way to end our trip of a life time. So if anyone had any hints and tips about which Islands to see and the best way to get from each island and flight companies, car hire or transport round the islands etc. it would all be much appreciated!

We haven't had a ton of discussions here about Hawaii since most people don't really roadtrip there. :) But here's a discussion about it that might give you a few tips.

Most people fly an island-hopper between the islands although I'm sure there are some boats you can take between them and that would be very cool. I don't have any information about that though.

With a few weeks, you'll easily have time to see all of the islands.
It's hard to choose as they all offer something different and have a different feel, somewhat different topography, etc. so each is worth a visit.

I don't believe there's all that much difference between car hires. Go for price/type of vehicle. And you'll definitely want a car at each island.