Cross Country Road Trip: NJ to AZ
 

I am going on a cross-country road trip with 2 of my friends and we need advice...and fast! We didn't decide on this trip until very last minute (it was an EXTREMELY spontaneous decision). We leave in 2 days (Friday, March 4th) and we don't have much planned at all! We are seeking advice on places to stop/see along the way (there and back). We have about 10 days to get there and back. The route we are planning to take there is heading south first and then west (but not all the way south). And then for our route back we plan to go a little more north and then east. We are very much interested in nature/ scenic views, outdoorsy stops, and anything cool to see without spending much money! So far, the only places we know we are stopping at to do things is the Blue Ridge Parkway in NC (on the way there), the grand canyon (when we get there), and Las Vegas (on our way back). We need all of the advice, tips, and suggestions we can get in 2 days! Help! :)

That is a ton of driving for so little times - unless you plan on making time by switching drivers and doing 10 or 12 hours per day. Don't see where you will have a lot of time to stop and do things along the way. (After my parents retired they did some similar trips and each took them a month or more - since they did stop to see things en route.)

If you don;t belong to AAA I would join and ask then to put together a route for you - based on potential weather (you can easily still be in snow if you head any distance north as well as in any mountains).

Do you even have a good set of maps yet? (GPS is fine for sort distances but if you run into a detour or a road closure it is useless since it just doens't show a large enough area.

What nytraveler said and always have food, water,etc in the car.

Let's say You head for the Blue Ridge Pky, via I-81 and spend a day or so along it, speed limit is mostly about 35 mph but 81 is parallel to it a lot of the way, so you can hop onto it when you need to make a little time.

Pick up I-40 and head west, there is a lot to see once you get to New Mexico and Arizona, so switch up drivers and keep going until you get there.

Spend a day or two at Grand Canyon then head north go through Monument Valley and head for Moab, visit Arches and Canyonlands for a couple of days.

Then head up to I -70 if it is open and head through the Colorado Rockies and back to New Jersey.

If you go all the way to the coast, you won't have much time for the "nature/outdoorsy, scenic views" that you say you want to see.

If you camp along the way it will cut costs.

That is more than 80 hours car time without breaks so in 'real life' about 10 hours in the car every day including a few brief rest breaks/fast food stops. So no time for much if any sightseeing.

How about a road trip along the eastern seaboard instead????

Oh -- and to clarify, my 80 hours only includes going as far west as the Grand Canyon/Vegas.

Can you get from NJ start to Asheville NC in the first 24 hours? Blue Ridge Parkway is a 45 MPH road and parts of it may still have snow (Check).
Get an oil change and have the other fluids and tires checked.
It is 1836 miles from Asheville NC to Flagstaff AZ on I-40.
Dividing that into 6 segments (3 drivers) will mean about 310 miles in 5 hours.
Spend a night in Flagstaff and then head for the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Leave at sunset (take lots of pictures).
Drive carefully south to Williams AZ and spend a night there.
Turn off I-40 at Kingman AZ onto US 93 which will take you high above Hoover Dam on the way to Las Vegas.
Spend at least 2 days in the LV area. See Valley of Fire and the Red Rocks.
Leaving LV, take I-15 north to Salt Lake City and take I-70 east from there.
The place to spend a few daylight hours and maybe a night would be Glenwood Springs. The Glenwood Canyon east of town along the Colorado River is spectacular.
If you get the chance, swim in the world's largest hot spring fed swimming pool in Glenwood Springs.
I-70 will bring you to St. Louis where you can see the Gateway Arch.