Travel & Holidays Travelling Overland in the US

Discussion in 'Living Room' started by Lacrim, 21st Sep, 2018.

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  1. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    Just wanting to know...has anyone driven across to NYC from LAX (coast to coast)? Is it adviseable, dangerous??

    Am planning to do this next July via Vegas, Yellowstone, Wyoming, Colorado, have lunch with Buffet in Omaha ;), then Chicago, then Boston (maybe) then NYC.

    OR I could opt for the northerly route - go up via Oregon to seattle, then Montana, N Dakota, Wisconsin, Chicago, then Boston and NYC.

    After that will train it down to DC, hire a car again and drive to Florida for some theme parking (might even drive down to Key West).

    Fly back to LAX and fly home.

    Have only 3.5 weeks to do all this.

    Am I nuts?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: 21st Sep, 2018
  2. geoffw

    geoffw Moderator Staff Member

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    Fwiw I think that you're trying g to see too much in one go, and by trying to see everything you'll end up seeing very little.

    My daughter went to Burning man, then toured the Southwest - Vegas, Bryce Canyon, Monument Valley, Grand Canyon, and San Francisco. She spent 2 ½ weeks in a van with friends, that was a good pace. She originally had a flight to NY on the itinerary but decided that was too much to fit in.

    One of those trips in your time would be really pushing it. Two is too much IMO.

    You'll also be travelling in peak season, so it will be more crowded, with less accommodation and more traffic.

    Try to cut back drastically, and leave the other parts for another trip. You want to have time to enjoy it, not just drive past with a camera rolling.
     
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  3. Car tart

    Car tart Well-Known Member

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    1. Speeds are much higher in the USA. Most motor ways are 75mph.
    2. They can’t fine you if you don’t have a US drivers license or address.
    3. Fuel and car rentals are cheap. My last was a brand new Volvo S90 T6. The most awesome luxury sedan I have experienced, and $32usd a day.
    4 travel insurance should cover all your excesses so don’t sign up for any excesses,as this is how they make their money. Ie flat tyre insurance is $8.00 per day. Don’t sign up for prepaid tolls at $10 a day. There aren’t any where you’re going.
    5. Roads are magnificent and use trip advisor for the best food “ experiences in each town
    I have travelled over 40,000kms in my 5 trips but would not do yours as it is too much driving for very little time. Do LA- Vegas in 1.5 weeks and then fly to Chicago drive to NYC for the two weeks.
    But if you want a great time the trip that Geoff w mentioned in 3.5 weeks and ny- Boston next 3 week trip.
     
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  4. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    We did California extensively last trip...so the east Coast is the focal point plus surrounds.

    But am starting to rethink the timing bc the theme parks are chockers that time of year, not to mention Star Wars land opening in Disneyworld Summer 2019....and we need to squeeze a few days in the theme parks.

    I suppose we could go in Dec/January 2020 instead. But then the weather will impact the road trip side of things.
     
  5. Car tart

    Car tart Well-Known Member

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  6. Car tart

    Car tart Well-Known Member

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    I prefer winter, the lack of crowds make up for the weather. We did Dallas, Houston New Orleans, Nashville in 18 days last Christmas followed by a week each in SF, LA and Vegas
     
  7. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    Driving would be fine in the southern states. But doing a coast to coast drive in winter is fraught with a lot of uncertainty - icy roads etc. I don't want to be confronted with that problem in the middle of nowhere.
     
  8. euro73

    euro73 Well-Known Member Business Member

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    I've driven from Chicago to Seattle and up to canada - did it in 3 days
    I've also driven from LA to El Paso, Texas and crossed into Mexico. Did that in 2 days

    Used a free car service called autodriveaway - https://autodriveaway.com/

    Basically, you deliver a car that the owner has paid to have tramsported across the country somewhere. You might get a nice car. You might not. All you pay for is your meals, your fuel and your accommodation along the way. You deliver the car with a full tank.

    if you're travelling in July its summer - so you have no winter conditions to worry about

    It's a big country- not just in size ( its really not much different to Australia) but in density. There arent many cities bigger than Sydney or Melbourne , but there are lots of smaller cities on all the interstates. And each state is almost a different culture to the last one. So in my experience at least - fewer places and longer stays in each was the preferred way to go.

    If you wanted to take in maximum amount of the country as possible, this route from LA to Chicago involves @ 3344 Miles ( 5350KM) and @ 50 hours of driving time

    LA - Vegas - Salt Lake City - Yellowstone - Denver - Omaha - Kansas City - St Louis - Nashville - Chicago

    10 cities. Allowing for 2 days in LA, Vegas Yellowstone, Omaha and Chicago and 1 day in the other places and driving time you would do this trip in @ 20 days I'd say . Then fly from Chicago to NY for 2 days. NY to Boston for 2 days, then LA and home.

    I dont see how you can really fit in Washington and Florida as well and have any quality to the trip... in order to fit all of your wish list in within a 3.5 week period you'd either have to drive city to city to city and barely see anything and barely sleep, or you'd have to fly at least some of the trip

    Your call of course, but sometimes less is more.

    Screen Shot 2018-09-26 at 8.12.19 pm.png
     
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  9. euro73

    euro73 Well-Known Member Business Member

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    This strips about 16 hours ( 2-3 days) of driving out of the example above

    Screen Shot 2018-09-26 at 8.20.56 pm.png
     
  10. euro73

    euro73 Well-Known Member Business Member

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    This strips an additional 4 hours driving time out

    Screen Shot 2018-09-26 at 8.22.47 pm.png
     
  11. ellejay

    ellejay Well-Known Member

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    No point in rushing through and seeing nothing but the inside of a car. Focus on a smaller area and take it all in.
     
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  12. Coastal

    Coastal Well-Known Member

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    Is it easy to drive on the right side in a big city like la?
     
  13. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    You get used to it. I remember for a few days/weeks after returning home to Oz after 3 weeks of intense driving over there I almost strayed onto oncoming traffic :eek:

    The trick is when you drive in the US is to constantly think to yourself 'Keep right'.
     
  14. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    We've decided to postpone the trip to Dec/Jan - we'll have 5 weeks minimum.

    Problem now is not the extent of driving but the safety. Encountered icy roads in Feb enroute to Phoenix once. Got nervous after slip sliding a little and turned around/went elsewhere! And this is in California/Arizona.

    What's Wyoming, Wisconsin, NY etc on the road going to be like in the thick of winter?? Pretty brutal. And if we break down in the middle of winter on some freeway, we're f-ed. Just don't know if I'm game.
     
  15. Dean Collins

    Dean Collins Well-Known Member

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    My suggestion if coming at this time of the year is still do it and fly into LA BUT take a one way flight from LA to SE and start in Seattle, drive south to LA/San Diego/Phoenix then south across Texas, Florida then north along the Carolinas. leave the Boston/NYC/Kentucky/Virginia for another time of the year/trip OR keep your route at the end "flexible" eg you could go north from Charlotte if there is no snow/unseasonably warm BUT plan on doing a loop back south from Charlotte/Virginia if the weather is bad eg Chattanooga,Nashville,Memphis etc then more Florida if freezing or maybe even back to LA to fly out back to Australia.

    I would not under any circumstances plan on driving through UT.WY,CO at that time of the year, even parts of North Texas get snow in winter.

    5 weeks isn't long eg think driving from Cairns to Perth.....only difference is many many many more towns eg heaps easier to find places to eat and stay and keep things flexible.
     
  16. euro73

    euro73 Well-Known Member Business Member

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    I've driven from Chicago to Seattle in Winter, through Blizzards. Chicago. North through Wisconsin, then across through Minnesota ,South Dakota , Wyoming and Montana to Washington State. But I'd spent a long time in Chicago by then and had become very used to driving in bad snow.

    The interstates are usually really well maintained. Salted daily and they have ploughs on them 2-3 times a day. But yes...if you get a bad blizzard all that goes out the window and you are literally going nowhere.

    But even if that doesnt happen, driving in snow for that distance and that amount of time is no fun at all...

    It's much easier to get around the US in April/May...or September/October. Avoid the Summer crowds, and avoid the winter blizzards

    Fun fact - Wyoming and Montana used to have no speed limit on interstates during daylight hours . Now its 75 or 80MPH

    And Mount Rushmore is smaller than you think it will be
     
  17. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    NYC has to be part of the trip...perhaps we'll just fly to NYC, catch the train down to Washington and maybe have a crack driving down to Florida via Savannah from there.

    3 weeks would be enough for that.
     
  18. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    Thanks for the feedback thus far guys.

    That would be my preference ie doing the trip in July or April but I can't /won't pull the kids out of school for 3 weeks (5 in total including school holidays). A couple of my kids are/will be in high school. Missing school for 3 weeks is just a bit too long to miss I think.

    So IF we did just NYC, Washington and Florida in one trip, and save the cross country for another time, question then is winter the optimal time to be in NYC - have the white Xmas and all?
     
  19. Cimbom

    Cimbom Well-Known Member

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    I think around September is the best time to visit NY. Around Xmas can get very cold. We were there in very early Jan this year and it got down to minus 10-15 degrees. Hotels are cheaper though (if you don't stay the week between Xmas and NYE where it will be quite pricey)
     
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  20. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    Was it unbearable/prevented you guys from having a good time?