So a cousin of mine is moving to Virginia from California and has offered to fly me out to California (and enjoy the warm weather for a few days) if I would be willing to accompany him on this long trip from Irvine, CA to Arlington, VA. I believe he would like to complete the trip in 4-5 days so most of our stops will be to rest. Not sure what vehicle he's driving back but suffice it to say it will just be the 2 of us.

I'm posting here to get some ideas of places that could ABSOLUTELY be worth seeing on a time budget. Like if this could be my first and last time going cross country (almost literally coast-to-coast) - what is worth most seeing in a conceivable route (we'll likely be taking the most time-efficient path across country if that helps).

Thanks :)