"Almost Cross Country" Road Trip - itinerary help
 

Is the following itinerary do-able in 16 days in the fall?<BR><BR>Atlanta to Grand Canyon with day stops in Miss, TX, OK (family), NM along the way<BR>Grand Canyon and area 3-4 days<BR>Grand Canyon to Denver via Durango & Colorado Springs<BR>Denver to Amish Country - either Ohio or Pennsylvania (yet to be decided)<BR>Amish Country back to Atlanta <BR><BR>Hubby wants to try to squeeze in Mexico; I want to see Philadelphia if we go to Lancaster - realistically I see both Mexico and Lancaster/Philadelphia out of the picture on this trip.<BR><BR>Can anyone advise?<BR><BR>Thanks!

Wow! SOunds like if this is Tuesday, this must be Belgium. That's a lot to squeeze in in 16 days. You have to take driving time into account as well and things that will pop up that you might want to stop and see. You didn't say how many days with family in OK either.<BR><BR>Did you ever think of dividing it up. Do the western part this year and the eastern part next year?<BR><BR>I'll be bashed for this but I personally think Amish country in Ohio is a tourist trap. I live in the area and it has lost it's shine. Everything now is for the pursuit of making the big bucks.<BR>

It's do-able only in the sense that two humans could drive that amount in sixteen days. However, it's not SENSIBLE in that two people should not attempt to see that much over that much mileage in that short of time. It's simply too much.<BR><BR>Go Atlanta to the Grand Canyon, then return via the Rockies and the midwest. There's no use trying to "see" Mexico, as all you'll have time to do is drive across the border and visit some border towns of absolutely no interest. Philadelphia is also out of the question.<BR><BR>As the previous poster stated, there's no particular reason to visit Amish country UNLESS you're willing to spend some time to slow down and actually check the fine crafts for sale in the area. The Amish are not a zoo, a freak show, a museum, or a group of tour guides. They are simply people who choose to live differently from most of us. Others have taken advantage of tourists' willingness to visit the areas where they live, and created vast empires of shopping and glitz. These are the very antithesis of what the Amish believe in, and can be obtained at quite a few places in the U.S. The only unique things you'll find in an Amish area are small shops selling authentic Amish crafts, which can be of high quality. But these take a while to find; and you won't find them in the hectic pace you're planning.

Teri,<BR>I was with you until the Denver to Ohio/Pennsylania entry. That's at least a 3-4 day drive with no time to enjoy. I agree with the poster who suggested breaking the trip up into west one year and east the next. There's so much to explore out west--why don't you head north from Denver and visit Wyoming and Montana instead with maybe a sidetrip to the Black Hills? I honestly think you'd be happier. We attempted a three week drive from Nebraska to the east coast and down to Florida once--it wore us out and parts were a blur. To attempt what you're describing sounds about the same in less time.

This is an ambitious trip to say the least. I hate to dampen your enthusiasm, but it is simply too much to do on a 16 day trip. Your itinerary will leave you exhausted and with nothing to show for your vacation except miles on your car.<BR><BR>I suggest that you cut your itinerary to about 1/3 of what you have and enjoy yourselves.<BR><BR>If Amish country is a "must" consider the Amana colonies in Iowa.<BR><BR>Have fun.

Paul, I live an hour away from the "Amish" area of Sugar Creek. Go sometime and look at the Amish crafts with their made in Taiwan stickers on them.<BR><BR>Back in the 80's this area was a treasure and a joy to visit. You could get some tremendous bargains on handmade items and baked goods. Now it is a tourist mecca, traffic is horrendous and the place is over run with tour buses. For people who shun the modern ways their current lifestyle seems to be a contradiction.