From Texas to DC and back

[zarablue]

This Christmas, my mom and I (much more fun than it sounds) will be taking a roadtrip to the southern east coast. This is not our first roadtrip; last Christmas we traveled from San Antonio to the southern west coast, stopping along the way in Lubbock, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Hollywood, and El Paso among others. It was great fun, but I wish that we would have had a better plan as far as how long we would stay in each place because I feel like we wasted some time in the beginning that we could have used to explore more places towards the end. For instance, it would have been really neat to have driven on Highway 1 along the coast in California, but we spent too much time in Las Vegas even though at the time I was not 18 (I am now) and could not really go into the casinos. For this trip we have about 9-11 days, from December 23 to January 2 and I want to make the most of it. I know that I would like to spend more than 1 day visiting Washington DC as I am sure there will be more than enough there to fill our entire trip, but other than that I am a bit clueless as to where else to visit and stay. We are starting and ending in San Antonio, and the itinerary is pretty much up to me. I don't need to have everday mapped out, but a general plan of action is always good. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

As Edith Piaf would say (or sing). The fact is that on your last RoadTrip, you had a great time with your mother and learned a bit more about the best way for the two of you to travel. Sounds like a good trip to me. If your main objective is to see the southern East Coast, then you should probably head for somewhere around Savannah or Charleston, and then slowly work your way up the Grand Strand, the Outer Banks, and perhaps the Delmarva Peninsula. All of those offer plenty to do even in the winter, as well as some great shoreline. You should probably have a look at what you'd like to see in those locales, and have a very general idea of a time line. Something like 2 days to the coast, 4 days working your way north, 2 days exploring Washington, and 3 days getting home (11 days total). With those two items (a timeline and some specific objectives) you'd be set up for the kind of trip it sounds like you're looking for.

AZBuck