An European planning a road trip

[vme]

hello everybody,

I'm plannning a road trip to US from the east coast to the west coast end of august (the actual date are august 25 or 28 till 21 september) from New York to San Francisco.
I read and explore a few forum but I didn't expect it was that hard to set up...
I intend to take the US-50 road ..because one waypoint I have to stop by to see friends is in Independence (MO)

So what do you think about that ? any ideas ? any advices?

For information, I'm alone to do this trip ...

thanks

byebye

Vincent

[Mark Sedenquist]

I'm plannning a road trip to US from the east coast to the west coast end of august (the actual date are august 25 or 28 till 21 september) from New York to San Francisco.

Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum! A month to explore the heartland of America on US-50 sounds intriguing. What kinds of questions do you have and what are you finding "hard to set up"?

Mark

[vme]

hello Mark,

Thanks a lot for your interest and also for the welcome note...
First of all , I have a question ...why do you find that intriguing ? :-)

Well I find it hard to set up...in the way ... for example I don't know where to start to get a rental car , I 've visited most of the car rental sites and found the price really high ... isn't there a place where there are good deals ?
As for the places to stay ... I know I'll drive on the US 50 "which sounds intriguing" ... is there a related site with the hotels or bed & breakfast on this road ? I think I'm going to order the book "Road trip USA" by Jamie Jensen's... maybe I'll find a good start in it ...

bye

vincent

[Mark Sedenquist]

Well I find it hard to set up...in the way ... for example I don't know where to start to get a rental car , I 've visited most of the car rental sites and found the price really high ... isn't there a place where there are good deals ?

if you look in the Gear Up section on this Forum, you will find several ideas for finding lower-cost rentals than are normally found in the traditional markets.Here is a recent thread with a good discussion about this issue as well. You can also find lots of information about saving money in the Discount RoadTrip section and in this article about "Cheap RoadTrips".

As for the places to stay ... I know I'll drive on the US 50 "which sounds intriguing" ... is there a related site with the hotels or bed & breakfast on this road ? I think I'm going to order the book "Road trip USA" by Jamie Jensen's... maybe I'll find a good start in it ..

Jamie's book is a classic, but I wouldn't use it for current info like lodging choices -- it is several years out of date. We review and analyze all new roadtrip guide books. Without much doubt the best one for your purposes would probably be the new one from "Let's Go" because they just drove most of the route in the last 18 months.

Happy Planning!

Mark

[duncman]

Well I find it hard to set up...in the way ... for example I don't know where to start to get a rental car , I 've visited most of the car rental sites and found the price really high ... isn't there a place where there are good deals?

for Car hire, look for Belgian websites that offer special deals.
I booked a hire car on a UK website , it was much cheaper than booking via US companies directly.
I used www.dollar.co.uk/ they were way cheaper than Dollar usa.

you have to pay in advance , and there is a $500 one way drop off fee.

[vme]

Thanks Mark, but I'm still intrigued by your quote " which sounds intriguing" (about the choice of the US50) can you give me any explanations ?

vincent

[Quebec Gen]

Hi Vincent,
Here's a website to help you find attractions along US50 and plan your trip.

I only drove US 50 from Salina, UT to Lake Tahoe but it was an awesome drive all the way. On that stretch the towns are very scarce so I suggest you fill up on gas in Salina or in Delta before you make the trekk to Nevada. You can stop by Little Sahara Recreation Area and explore Lake Sevier, a dry lake that looks like a mirage in the horizon. In Ely, stop by historical Hotel Nevada to gamble and ask about the numerous celebrities who stayed there. A few miles east of Austin, follow these directions to get to Spencer Mineral Hot Springs and have an avocado burger at the International Cafe. East of Fallon, explore the dunes of Sand Mountain and have your picture taken in front of the Middlegate Shoe Tree.

Have fun!
Geneviève

[etoiles]

We rented a car recently and found a MUCH better deal on this website http://www.hotwire.com than any other one we checked out.

Good luck with your plans!