Kiwis planning US road trip..Round trip LA, Minneapolis - help and advice required!

[e21kiwi]

Today is the first time I have had a detailed look at a US road map and OMG how big is this country!!
We have 24 days starting and ending in LA with a stop off required in Minneapolis.
The plan was to rent a car in LA and drive direct to Minneapolis, then meander back to LA via some other route - possibly Seattle, then down the coast to LA.
A lot of people I have talked to here in New Zealand reckon that its too much driving.
Any thoughts, suggestions?

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

Sure is a big place ! A round trip to include Seattle would be around 4750 miles plus detours and certainly doable if you are prepared to drive 3-4 hours a day on average. Each day parked up you will need to add that drive time between other day's.

With the help of that map and the RTA pages I would do a little research and see what things appeal to you and start to put some dots on the map to build an outline route.

To get to Minneapolis direct would be close to a 4 day drive, travelling for approx 9 hours a day with time for short breaks for food, bathroom, filling with gas and a quick stretch of the legs. I wouldn't be in to much of a rush to get there though as you could take different routes and see more of what the country has to offer. We usually recommend driving for no more than 9 or 10 hours a day on multi day trips and in that time you could cover 500-600 miles without sight seeing.

Once you have got some dots on the map and a few ideas together let us know and we can help fill in the gaps.

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

Its certainly is a lot of driving, but that is because it is a big country. However, 24 day is also a pretty fair amount of time too. The trip driving direct is about 2000 miles (each way), which you can do quite comfortably in 4 days. Obviously, detouring to other routes, sightseeing, and your time in Minneapolis will all take away from that, but basically, you've got 16 days to enjoy yourself.

Personally, I'd take your time, traveling at a moderate pace each way so you get a chance to get a big sample. For example, on the way east, I'd probably swing through places like Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, and few more of the National Parks in Utah and Colorado.

Then the otherway you could go through the Black Hills of South Dakota, Yellowstone, over to the Pacific Northwest, and work your way back south to LA.

Of course, that's just a very broad outline, but with the entire western US at your disposal, you've got a lot of great things to pick from. I'd spend a little more time going over that map and just start looking at all of the places you can go and research to find out which things would be most interesting to you.

[e21kiwi]

Thanks for the replies. The other option is to fly to Minneapolis and then do a one way rental back to LA. I have been checking the companies and the the one-way rental is quite pricey. Is it just a case of shop around for the best deal or can you get special deals.

[Southwest Dave]

Is it just a case of shop around for the best deal or can you get special deals.

"Best deals" between companies can change all the time and become a "special deal" but it is a case of shopping around to see what becomes available. I often revisit the same sites to see if any specials have been put up for grabs and make notes for comparison's, you soon learn to spot a good deal when you see one.

[aunty stephy]

I'd fly it one-way and then drive back. You can get very good rates on allegiant.com, southwest.com, or from fly.com.

And I'd recommend a stop in the following national parks: Yellowstone, Mesa Verde, Yosemite, King Canyon, as well as the Hoover Dam (stay in Boulder City, NV!) and San Diego or Santa Barbara in California.

[aunty stephy]

also -- look for "low fair calendars' on these discount flyers. These show the different prices based on the day you'd fly.