Looking for some help with a road trip (Summer '07)

[calvin101]

I am so sorry that this is such a rubbish request, you probably get them all the time bu basically me and my friend live in the UK and want to travel when we finish Uni in 2007. We've started looking at the opportunities to do a road trip through America (maybe we've just watched too many chick flicks but it looks like something we really want to do).

There are helpful sites like this one but we have loads of questions...is there anyone who has either been in our situation or would be willing to answer a few questions?

We're going to buy some books on it in the summer as we really have no fixed idea on where to go, but we could do with some estimations of cost (we're thinking about 3-4 months on the road) and other stuff.

I really appreciate any help that anyone can offer, and we'll carry on chacking the site.

[AZBuck]

As got beat into me during my days in "Uni" - the only stupid question is the one you don't ask!

So, let's get the ball rolling with some initial order-of-magnitude guesses to your questions:

Yes - Everyone involved with this forum has been, is, or wants to be in your situation, and is willing to answer questions.

Cost estimations - The two of you can stay in comfortable motels and eat rather well for approximately $100/day. You can, of course, spend considerably less than that by camping rather than staying in motels, and by preparing your own meals rather than eating in restaurants, but let's put an upper limit on things first and pare down from there. Similarly you can rent a car that is adequate to your task for a little bit more than $100/week. If you're going to be travelling for 4 months, you'd have to be able to buy a car and then resell it at the end for less than about $1700 less than you paid for it. Possible, but a bit of a hassle. Keep in mind that if both of you are under 24 years old, there will also be a moderately hefty (maybe a few $100) surcharge on the rental. There are cheeper ways to travel (busses, trains), but they're not road trips are they?

What to do? Now that's the crux of the matter. Do you have any ideas about what you want to see here? What are your interests? Care to occasionally slip up north (Canada) where they acknowledge the Queen? The folks on this forum will tackle questions from the mundane to the philosophical with occassional forays into the sublime/ridiculous, just ask.

AZBuck

[vermilye]

Some general suggestions:

Choose your start/finish dates carefully. Some of the roads and National/State Parks in the West don't open until mid to late June. Check the US National Parks web sites & individual state road closings/openings (California, for example).

Following the Fall leaf color changes in the East can be beautiful, but timing is critical. When the time gets close, check The Foliage Network for best times.

Get off the interstates & drive as many Scenic Roads as possible. Some are listed at America's Byways (you can request a free map from their web site.) Or do a Google search "US Scenic Byways" & you will find many state sites... Other sources for back roads include Road Trip USA which lists some of the non interstate US Highways.

Depending on your interests, check Factory Tours USA or for quirky stops, Roadside America

You might check some of the personal travel web sites / blogs listed at Hitchitch. Although they are aimed at Recreational Vehicle travelers, members describe many of the interesting places across the US.

Of course, once you have some thoughts as to where & when, feel free to ask here for suggestions!

Jon's Travel & Photo Page

[calvin101]

Oh lordy, so much to think about! I really appreciate this, the cost is especially useful as I think it's likely that we'd have to work for months beforehand (I can earn up to about £2,000 a month over the summer so I want to try and put some into a seperate account and save it), obviously though we're going to have to try and have the money ready for when we finish Uni.

As for where we want to go...we don't exactly want to go to loads of touristy places (except Graceland - my friend loves Elvis). I'm going to buy one of the reccommend books from the site to get a bigger idea but we want to go to those big open highways where the sun is all orange and it's empty (told you, too many chick flicks!) but also want to go to the big places like New York, the Grand Canyon, etc.

We would both be about 21 so I guess we will have to cope with some extra charges. I think the best thing for me to do would be get hold of a book and make a definite list (it's all very well putting things down but we keep forgetting that they need to be in some kind of driveable order) then try and nail things down a bit.

The advice and links offered to far are very welcome though! Thank you.

[Mark Sedenquist]

I think the best thing for me to do would be get hold of a book and make a definite list (it's all very well putting things down but we keep forgetting that they need to be in some kind of driveable order) then try and nail things down a bit.

There are a bunch of good road trip guides reviewed on this site. But one, in particular, might be a good investment -- Drive USA

[cool]

As for where we want to go...we don't exactly want to go to loads of touristy places (except Graceland - my friend loves Elvis). I'm going to buy one of the reccommend books from the site to get a bigger idea but we want to go to those big open highways where the sun is all orange and it's empty (told you, too many chick flicks!) but also want to go to the big places like New York, the Grand Canyon, etc.

2 yrs is quite a time to plan for a 3-4 month vacation.
Have fun planning and executing it.