millzey

Hello all,
Im planning on taking Route 50(east to west) across the states in March 09. I was wondering if anyone has any useful tips or suggestions on what to go out of my way to see.

A few things which i would like to know are;

1. If i go sightseeing would a month be enough to get from coast to coast?
2. How much money should i realistically consider taking with me?
3. Will i need any visas or paperwork?
4. Is accommodation easy to come across on the road or should i pre-book?
5. Has anyone come across any websites with travellers blogs of this trip?

Cheers for taking the time to read this post.

Englishmum

Are you in the UK? If a British passport holder then you just need a visa waiver form - from the airport when you check in and/or onboard - which is usually allowing admittance for up to 90 days.

I suggest you go to WH Smith, Waterstone's or Amazon.co.uk and buy a book called "Road Trip USA" which will give many tips and routes. I have a copy but I'm not at home and can't remember the author!

zargof

I also have this book, and the author is Jamie Jensen. This book does include US50 as one of the routes, and tells you a lot of different places to see and stay. I would recommend this book also.

Regarding if a month is long enough, well US 50 is just over 3000 miles, so a month would mean an average of 100 miles a day, so not too onerus. However, US 50 is called "The Lonliest Road" for a reason, frankly there are big stretches where there is nothing of interest, and you'll just want to keep driving. I've not done the trip myself, but I'm sure it will be fun. A word of warning though, you say you will be going in March and US 50 crosses tornado alley in tornado season, just something to bear in mind.

My wife and I did a road trip all around the lower 48 this summer for a couple of months and it was awesome!

Giantaxe

I took a month when I did this on my first US trip. If I did it again - which I'd really like to - I'd probably take longer. It really depends what you're interested in seeing.

Er, none with you. Use ATMs. If you're asking how much to budget, how long is a piece of string?

No need to pre-book anything in March. Plus having the flexibility of staying at places on the fly really makes things easier and more interesting, imo.

Folinskyinla

Hi:

I've always wanted to do a coast-to-coast road trip and have never done it. I do think that the going on the "US" routes is much more interesting than the "I" routes. However, there may parts of the US you want to get through as quick as possible. You should also consider WHAT you want to see. Also, in early March, you may still have parts of the country experiencing winter weather [For example, the Seattle to Las Vegas route might best be via Los Angeles.].

The only part of US 50 I've ever driven is Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe. The town of Placerville was an old Goldrush Settlement of the name of "Hangtown." If you are there, do look into having a "Hangtown Fry" for breakfeast or lunch. It is an omelette made famous during the Gold Rush. It may be bad for you, but having one in Placerville is perfectly appropriate. You may NOT want to take US 50 through Nevada. If you want to take an old US highway, perhaps hook up with the renmants of US-66 through the Colorado Plateau in Northern Arizona -- Grand Canyon is something else -- and I happen to like Flagstaff AZ.

I concur on the ATM's. Also, credit cards come in quite handy. Many hotels, motels, campgrounds PREFER credit cards. I remember one court appearance in San Francisco where the nearest motel [a Best Western] took my credit card no problem, but I saw then REFUSE to take cash from some other people.

Credit cards and ATM's also get the bank exchange rates -- even with the surcharges, you come out ahead. Also remember that it may not be all that easy to exchange foreign currency in the US.

I have found traveling with a laptop to be useful. There is a lot of free wireless about, and it is growing. But you might want get a T-mobile account -- if memory serves me correct, they are the provider in Starbucks -- which seem to have inundated the entire country. With a laptop and a cell phone it is possible to make reservations at what you think will be your final destination of the day.

I note that many self-serve gasoline pumps ask for the zip code [the US postal code] as a security measure. I don't know how they treat foreign cards.

zargof

Some of them will work if you enter "00000", but some will not. However, you can always go inside talk to the attendant and they will let you prepay instead.

Z

AdobePinon

DO bring at least one credit card - I'd bring two so you can still use one when the first gets blocked for not using it in the UK. Be aware that UK debit cards are not always reliable here. Shops/banks often have processing agreements with third parties that don't deal with non-US cards, even if they have the right logo. Depends who you bank with - all I can tell you is that I know I can use a Lloyds debit card in a Bank of America ATM, but other ATMs tend to be a crap shoot.

NC Penguin

I did a search using "interstate 50", "across" and "usa" and found this:
http://www.route50.com/

If I were you, I'd research on the local foods that are unique to the state/area you'll be driving and eat such foods.

If you're going to stop at any major cities along the way, I'd check that there aren't any big events (conventions/trade shows, etc.) taking place around the date you'll be arriving. That way, you may want to book some accommodation in advance. Many hotel/accommodation chains allow you to cancel without penalty if you do it greater than 24 hours before check in.

tonrob

The big go/no go can be the one-way car rental. Depending on the company, the exact start and end points (and by that I mean any one of the number of offices each of the companies has in any city), the dates and which way the wind is blowing, one-way fees can range from nothing at all to thousands of dollars (literally much, much more than the base rate for the car itself).

It's because of this factor that I ended up doing a (huge) loop rather than a coast-to-coast when I did my road trip. This had many advantages in the end as the differences between northern and southern states (landscape, culture, food etc.) are at least as interesting as the variances between east and west.

Would suggest getting online and checking out as many car rental companies (large and small) as Google will find you.

As for accommodations - there is an almost infinite variety available at all price and quality levels. Much of it is demand-based so the same room at the same hotel will cost more or less depending on the date(s) you stay - this is hugely important and worth remembering when you're surfing the net looking up prices. Changing the date by one day can sometimes double (or halve) the cost.

As already said - check out cancellation policies. It's very common to be able to cancel up to - say - 6pm on day of arrival without your credit card being charged. There's no problem with having multiple bookings per day at different locations as long as you manage them correctly (the laptop idea would be a huge bonus here). AA membership in the UK gives access to AAA member discounts in the US which can often shave 10% or so off accommodation costs in addition to discounts on some attractions. The only accommodation I'd consider booking in advance would be in places like National Parks where limited supply leads to higher prices as well as places sometimes being sold out months in advance.

If you gave us some idea about your proposed budget for accommodation, food etc. this might spur some more feedback.

mayhemuk

Open a Nationwide Flex Account now!!! It negates a good numbe of the extra fees for ATM withdrawals!
(Sorry assuming you're from the UK)
I did Seattle to Orlando via a rickety route and the overall trip was great. Though some of the driving in the southern states was boring due to the highway being treelined for miles through swamp land!!! So make sure your iPod is sorted ;-)

Folinskyinla

Hi:

I concur with most of the things in this post. One might want to consider some type of BIG loop -- if you are up to 6,000 mile trip. I mentioned the "I" and the "US" routes. From what I understand, US 50 is the longest still existing US route. Many parts of the old "US" system have been integrated and superceded by the Interstate system. That is one of the reasons US 50 stops at Sacramento. The route from Sacramento to the Bay Area has been replaced by I-80. Quite often, the Interstates are boring, but not always.

BTW, the convention in the US is that odd numbered roads are generally north/south and even numbered are east/west. In the interstate system, the one and two digit numbers are the true Interstates while the three digit are either spurs, joining road, or urban work work around. [For example I-405 is a bybass of I-5 in Southern California and also in Portland OR].

AAA is damn good idea. In fact, I recommend stopping at the AAA office you can find. You would want to get maps for the entire trip and their "Tour Books." These are FREE. The maps are excellent and Tour Books have a pretty good list of places to stay and places to eat [although I don't think they are good for figuring out interesting places to see -- we are in the stages of planning a road trip within Alaska this summer]. I recall that my Automobile Club of Southern California card was of great assistance in using the resources of the RAC in the UK.

Juswus

[QUOTE=millzey;5895695]

4. Is accommodation easy to come across on the road or should i pre-book?
QUOTE]

I work in a hotel, and I can tell you that we get sold out at the oddest times, and we are only in a small town!. So generally you are ok to just go and find somewhere when you get there...BUT...bear in mind there is a small chance you might not get anything...in which case... I think everyone's slept in a car at least one

If you are anywhere near a college at certain times, hotels are all full, and if there is any festival or special event going on in that town.

Having said all that, I would probably just go! I don't think March is when anything like Spring Break happens, and it's not graduation time.


and btw...I'm totally jealous!!! Good luck! Have tons o' fun!!!!

Manc

Personally,

I'd do I-70 then I-15 down to Vegas then onwards to LA.

but that's just me.

millzey

Hey,
id just like to say thanks for the great responce from every one!! Never thought about hurricane season, longer winter weather, credit cards getting blocked and the possibility of doing a big curve rather than coast to coast. lol!!

From what ive been reading i think there is a lot more to america than from what i first thought. Once i have read the "Road Trip USA" book i think will make my mind up on landmarks i want to visit, but keep an open mind on the route i take.

After speaking to friends who have been over there for long periods of time i think now i will apply for a holiday visa which lets me work for 9 months so i can spend more time and get to know the people better.

Another wee question though, has anyone ever done a trip with TrekAmerica?? from what ive read on there website it sounds like a good idea to take a tour with them at somepoint.

Once again thanks for the advice given!!

ugacrew

I'd like to add to the rule of Interstates in regards to the signage. If you look above the main sign you'll see smaller rectangle with the exit number. In the picture below on the left you'll see 'Exit 105A'. Notice that it's on the left side. That indicates what side of the road your exit is on. That way you won't miss your exit and end up going around the world to correct your mistake.



Also pay attention to the exit numbers themselves. They are a key indicator of how many miles left in the current state that you are in how many miles you've gone or have left to go.

There is the exception to Interstate exits that are numbered. You'll find in California that they aren't numbered. They'll most likely have a name and that's it.


Definitely go with AAA. You can get great discounts along the way. See if your job offers a discount. Otherwise it's worth the $50 enrollment fee. It will pay for itself during your roadtrip.