Australian couple touring US from August to October 2006. Advice pls.

[AuroraOz]

My husband and I will fly into San Fran early August 2006 for approx. 3 months. I would appreciate advice regarding the best way to see the US. Probably leaving San Fran. touring to New York. What are the 'must see' places en route. Hire or buy a used car? Catch a train - we have no idea. Can't really do tours because I have MS and need to sleep later. I am ambulatory but tire easily.We'd like to travel down the East coast and perhaps cruise South America off Florida Keys before heading to Vegas, returning to San Fran. We would like to see as much as possible. Thank you.

[RoadTripper 101]

Hi,

I am fairly new to the site but I have traveled cross country many times and have explored the east coast extensively.

I feel the best way to see the US is by car and have enjoyed visiting our National Parks and historic sites. I have also recently taken a fall cruise from NY to New England and Canada. It was great. I know it's not the cruise you described, but it is a beautiful time to visit the area and a nice break after traveling across the country. Alaska is also a wonderful place to visit by cruise and many leave from San Francisco. I did cruise to Alaska and it was breathtaking.

The best way for me to try to give you ideas is by you telling more about your interests.

Hope you have a great time in the US and planning for it.

Diana

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

Three months is very ample time to see much of the best of America, and since you have plenty of time to plan, I'm going to suggest that you use that time to do a bit of homework and do something like the kind of travel that my wife and I find the most relaxing and rewarding. What we like to do is to rent a house or cottage that is centrally located in an area we want to explore and then do day trips from there. On a weekly basis, and with some effort searching the web, my wife can generally find gorgeous places that are not all that much more than renting a motel room each night. Plus they have many additional benefits. They are typically quieter than hotels and motels. Your pace is your own. We usually stock the kitchen and eat 2 meals a day "at home" and only have a light lunch out, which helps defray the added cost of the rental. And you're not constantly packing and unpacking. You would just move to a new house every week or two. The web sites that we have had the best luck with in finding such accommodations are VRBO and Vacation Rentals, but there are at least half a dozen other sites, so be sure to poke around a bit.

Unfortunately, intercity bus and train service in the States is not what it could be, and so your only real option is to travel by car. There have been a number of discussions on the forums as to whether it is better to rent or buy and resell. So use our search function to find some of those and read the arguments on either side and see which option better fits your needs. Normally, I would just recommend renting, but you're going to be here long enough that buying/selling becomes a real option.

OK - so what are some of the 'must sees'? As I noted above, I think you'd be best served by seeing areas from a series of home bases, and some of the areas I think you should look at first are:

Lake Tahoe and Yosemite
Yellowstone
South Dakota
Upper Great Lakes
New England
New York - Washington Corridor
Carolina Shore
Miami and the Keys
Lower Mississippi Valley
Desert Southwest
Grand Canyon and Southwestern Utah
Las Vegas
Monterey and Big Sur

And that's already more than you'll probably have time for, but will make a good starting point for your researching into what you might want to see. So see what of this appeals and what you can do without and come on back for specific recommendations as you firm up your plans or have more questions. We're more than happy to help out.

AZBuck

[AuroraOz]

Thanks to those who have given me advice. John from Melbourne, hi and thanks for your email. Is it cheaper to rent a car once we arrive in the US or organise from Australia? Has anyone had a positive experience with a US based car rental company? So far I've organised what to do/see in San Fran. I am looking forward to doing a cruise to Barbados. If anyone has a recommendation, I'd be grateful. Any general advice appreciated. Thanks