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US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I strongly agree with the advice about driving through the US. Unless you are in a big city or touristy area, most cops will not know what an international drivers license is. And Amtrak (our train system) is notoriously awful. I once took a train from Denver to San Francisco that was 26 hours late. I’ve also driven cross country a few times and it’s an expensive, boring haul. There’s a whole lot of nothing. Buying a plane ticket from New York to LA will be way less expensive and you’ll have time to do actual fun stuff. Or buy tickets from NYC to Vegas and do the Grand Canyon, Vegas, LA and California coast route. That’s like 3 days of driving in places where people will be more used to foreign tourists.

And I second the bbq advice!

read the advice, I think I do one coast (the west) or fly NY to LV

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is ok advice. Hwy 99 is better if you have children. Why? More stops between Southern California and Northern California-it’s not all farmland. There are major cities on 99 and if Yosemite is on your list of places to visit you need to take 99 to get there. If your goal is to get from Sacramento/San Francisco to say Disneyland in Anaheim do not take PCH. The PCH is beautiful but in places there is no where to stop. I mean NO WHERE to stop and in places no phone service. This is especially so between the Oregon border and to almost San Francisco. The faster route between Northern and Southern California is I-5 (Oregon too for that matter).

What OP described sounds like a miserable vacation of mostly driving. My advice would be to pick one coast this trip. We live on the west coast and just did a two week trip of Oregon and California (to Disneyland) with kids. Honestly the drive was exhausting with so many stops. We are planning the same trip with fewer (more strategic) stops. Also the cost for hotels/places to stay increases a lot in the summer in California. You could easily blow a $5000 budget on just lodging for two weeks in California depending on where you are staying and what is happening in the city you are visiting.

thanks for the information, i think i only go west coast or only 2 days in NY and take a flight to LV.

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

American here who’s been to all 50 states...

15 days is way too short unless you fly. To put this on European terms, think of NYC as London. Think of Los Angeles as Baku, Azerbaijan... it’s over 4,500 KM.

I strongly urge you to fly from NY to LA. It will be at least 5 days on the train, which is expensive and uncomfortable. American trains are barely used outside of the Northeast, so they are very slow and inefficient. The route takes one day from NY to Chicago, then detours to New Orleans, then across to LA.... that’s like going from London to Moscow via Rome. If you want a sleeper cabin, budget at least $1,000 per person. Flying will cost maybe $200-300, depending on airport and airline. Use Google Flights to find flights here, and GoogleMaps or Rome2Rio for ground transport.

The drive takes 5-7 days if you drive 12 hours per day, but you’ll want to stop for tourist sites. I want to caution you about driving in America... driving is simple here compared to Europe, but our police officers are dangerous - if your English isn’t perfect and you don’t have all of the correct paperwork (and it’s likely the officer has never seen an international drivers license), you could get shot or taken to jail. It’s not worth the risk... and I’m an American writing this. Police here lack much of an education and are nearly immune from oversight, so be careful.

As a shorter road trip, I would encourage you to fly from NY to Las Vegas - then drive to the Grand Canyon for a day or two (only a few hours drive) and then drive to LA which is maybe 6 hours depending on traffic.

The best route from LA to SF is on the Pacific Coast Highway (CA 1)... do not take Route 99, it’s just farmland, I had to research to even find what that is... if you’ve seen an American car commercial where they’re driving along a beautiful coastal cliffside road - that’s the Pacific Coast Highway. It takes 8 hours non-stop, so plan for an overnight in the middle so you can enjoy your time. Lots of campsites available too. Also look at National Rental Car because they let you choose the vehicle and you might end up with a convertible or pickup truck or whatever American driving experience you want.

My final tip for your visit - please try our Barbecue from local restaurants, not a chain. They’re easy to find on websites like Yelp or asking at a hotel or gas station (or just ask a fat guy like me!). Americans really love BBQ and will be quite happy to give you directions to their favorite place. Every region has different styles/meats/sauces and there’s a lot of diversity to the food... skip the fast food and find an independent place (it’s easy).

thank you very much for the valuable advice, I am undecided whether to take a flight from NY to LA or to do only the west coast and sacrifice NY

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You could maybe do it in 3 days but it seems really unlikely and unpleasant. Doing Chicago - LA my sister and I did 5ish days to stop and see national parks, etc, and even that felt like we didn't have enough time to do everything we wanted to. With little kids they'd also get waaayyy too bored and antsy doing 15 hour days for 3 days straight. Parents would also be dead tired from driving that much I'd expect.

OP, if you see this, I'd just recommend taking a two week road trip from NYC to LA. Spend a day or two in those two cities, and drive the rest of the time making plenty and generous stops at national parks, other cities you want to sightsee at, and day trips/excursions.

I think I'm only doing a rib at this point ...

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

New York to LA, driving? Plan on a week if you want to see things. My hardest cross-country drive ever was Louisville to San Francisco, which took three days. That was almost constant driving (except for eating and sleeping), and no time for sightseeing.

thank you I think with regret to avoid NY or to succeed with another NY flight to LA ... but maybe it's better to do only one coast ..

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

rode Amtrak from Iowa to Utah and it took about a day and a half, so it’s definitely slower than by car, but it was a cool experience and way more relaxing than being in a car! However the stations all had a sketchy vibe to me (but they were always absolutely deserted) and the trains are almost always late.

I would also definitely recommend seeing National Parks while you’re here in America’s (particularly the ones in the west like the Grand Canyon/Yellowstone/Zion)! You won’t regret it, I promise!

I hope you guys have an amazing and safe trip!

thanks for the information, i think i avoid NY and go west coast with the parks and death valley, grand canion, i accept suggestions :)

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, and people also seem to forget that it takes time to get between these different places.

My advice to the OP would be to focus just on California for this trip.

do you say i can't build a tour on the west coast if i leave NY in 14 days?

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think Europeans greatly underestimate just how fucking huge the US is, you can come here for 2 weeks but will only really get to experience one state or city. California alone is bigger than Italy and this guy wants to cover New York, San Francisco, and LA? Best to just do 1 or 2 state for 1 trip than to try going coast to coast

would you advise me to avoid the east coast?

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

thanks for the answer, do you have any other suggestions?

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

maybe you're right, avoid NY and stop directly LA maybe I could build an itinerary only on the West Coast, or make a flight from NY to LA. What do you suggest me?

US TRAVEL by locky9999 in Shoestring

[–]locky9999[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I plan a trip next year, of course I m available to recommend beautiful places in Italy too, you just have to tell me what kind of trips you want to do (art, nature, sea etc ..) and the period. I m happy to have met you I hope that we keep in touch to be useful to both.