New Orleans to Miami

[Travel101]

I am currently planning our 3rd roadtrip in USA (from Australia - Sep/Oct 2016) One section of the trip is from New Orleans to Miami. Looking at the map, I was wondering what the road that hugs the coast is like (90) - from New Orleans to Mobile. We intend to try and hug the coast as much as possible and visit Pensacola Beach, Panama City Beach, Apalachicola and Tallahassee. Still tossing up between taking the western coast (19) down towards Tampa or the inland (75), then pick up the (275) heading to Sarasota. I would appreciate any opinions. Thanks

[Lifemagician]

Hi, and Welcome to the Great American Roadtrip Forum.

Yup! I have driven 90 from NOLA to Tallahassee. And in October you might just see what I stumbled upon - Cruisin the Coast. It kept me in the area longer than I had planned. I'm not sure if the 2016 dates are out yet.

From Tallahassee Alt US27 and US27 to Ocala is a lovely drive at almost interstate speeds, but much more scenic and passing through some small town America. From Ocala to Ormond Beach route 40 is a lovely scenic route and then down the coast you could swap between US1 and A1A, the latter which is the closest to the beach. This will also take you past the Kennedy Space Centre.

If you prefer to head to the beach from Talahassee rout 90 to Jacksonville (or therabouts) is a great drive and then head down the coast on the beforementioned routes.

If this is part of a larger trip, it would help greatly is you could let us know what the rest of the trip consists of, how much time you have, etc.

I might see you on the road, I am likely to be in FL at around the same time next year. You don't say where you live, but if you are a member of your local automobile club, be sure to take your membership with you. It will give you access to maps and tourism information from the AAA all across the country. But then, you probably know that since this is not your first trip.

Lifey

[Travel101]

Thank you for the information. We are from Townsville in North Queensland, and yes we used our RACQ cards on previous trips - got us 10% at some of the places we stayed. We will probably fly into New York in mid September and spend a week in the area. We will then pick up a car and head to Front Royal and drive the Blue Ridge Parkway to Roanoke, then to Ashville, Chattanooga, Nashville, Memphis, Fort Worth, Vicksburg, Jackson and New Orleans. We will then drive from New Orleans to Miami (I will go back to the maps and look at the option you mentioned). We want to spend a bit of time in Miami and Key West, then probably fly back to New York. Looking at six weeks.

The last trip I organised from my lounge room (using Google maps and a Rand McNally Road Atlas, Trip Advisor and Booking.com)was amazing. We flew into LA, then to Vegas, picked up a car and went through Fire Canyon, Zion to Page, onto Monument Valley, up to Moab, to Aspen, through Independance Pass down to Santa Fe, to Amarillo, Dallas, New Orleans, Lake Charles, San Antonio, El Paso, Tucson, San Diego, then up through Palm Springs, Joshua Tree and back to Vegas. Here in Australia we don't celebrate Halloween like in USA, but believe it or not, my planning had as driving into New Orleans on Halloween. Wow. The other bonus was Memorial Day in San Diego - once again we had no idea of the ceremony involved in honouring the services. Made for a great day at the Chargers vs Broncos game. I am looking forward to the serendipity moments on our trip next year.

[Lifemagician]

You sound quite the adventurous spirit. Thanks for the brief synopsis of your previous trips. I'm not surprised you are planning your third trip. It gets addictive, doesn't it? Next year will be my eigth trip. [One day I will get to Townsville.]

Nothing like having the Rand McNally handy. You certainly sound like you know what you are doing. Sincerely hope you have clear weather on the BRP. It's been heavy fog each time I have attempted it. No fun! Last year I was up in the New England States on Memorial Day, and came across memorial ceremonies in a couple of small towns. It is great experiencing this with the locals.

I too have used my RACV card for discounts, and get fresh maps each trip. I get a new Rand McNally each year as well. The latter becomes the souvenir of my route, as I mark where I have travelled.

When it comes to FL, where my older daughter lives, I much prefer the east coast to the west. There are very few places where you can actually drive along the coast on the west. On the east coast, A1A gives much more access to the beach.

With your experience in planning and roadtripping, it would be great if you could share your trip with us in our RoadTrip Field Report forum. We love members to share trips with us and see their photos. And who knows how many serendipity moments you can add to the collective knowledge base on this website.

Enjoy the planning.

Lifey