NE Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, CA in 5 days

[imported_Lisa]

My fiance and I want to drive from NE Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, CA in five days. Possible/ any tips? best route?

[Mark Sedenquist]

Lisa,

I don't know your starting location, but assuming a launch from around Scranton, it would take about 40 hours of driving to reach Los Angeles. Distance, (with no side-trips is ~2800 miles). If you factor in stops for fuel (human and vehicle) and the inevitable delays of road construction and stop and go of rush hours in various cities you should figure a minimum of 55 actual driving hours to cover this distance.

That means that you will need to average 11 hours of driving each day -- even if you take the most direct -- fastest routes. One of the best (free) mapping sites is www.mapblast.com and I suggest you review it to see the most direct route. In general you would follow I-70, I-44, I-40, I-15 to the I-105.

If you double up some of your travel hours (drive 13-16 hours in one day) you could take some side trips along the way. One that you might consider would be to go north on US-191 and explore some of the 4-Corners area -- Monument Valley, Canyon De Chelly, Grand Canyon, maybe even up to Zion and Bryce national parks before zinging down thru Las Vegas on I-15.

On the other hand, the interstate route travels through some gorgeous country and it make make more sense to stay on the fast track and spend a few more hours each day sleeping...

Have fun!

Mark