Atlanta-Nashville-Louisville-Cincinnati
 

Thinking of doing road trip Dec 24 - Jan 2. My wife has a goal to visit every state in U.S. We've already done many. How does this sound for a 10 day trip to check off Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio.
Atlanta-Nashville-Louisville-Cincinnati. What kind of weather can we expect? What are the highlights to see? How can we make this interesting? Which of those cities to devote more or less time to? Is there a better place to go in any of those states?

I would be hesitant to do that trip by road that time of year. These places can all get ice and snow - although it's not super likely - but they are NOT prepared to keep roads clean and if there is any snow things just stop.

One trip to Cincy to see a client we landed and there was perhaps an inch of snow - but with another inch coming. The taxis had all left the airport and we got the last shuttle back to town - since they were going to be cancelled due to impassible roads. (And yes, the roads were awful - since the government simply wasn't prepared to sand or salt the roads.

So you can plan it - but be prepared to hole up in a motel is their is any icy precip.

I'm not much help on Louisville and no help on Cincinnati.

On Atlanta and Nashville, regarding weather, your highest probability for both is chilly with rain or sun. There is a chance you'll get snow or ice. <i>Usually</i> that's not an issue, but it could be. No one knows. If more than 1/2" or snow or a glaze of ice happens, the cities and the interstates between them will be treacherous until it melts. The South gets that weather so infrequently that it doesn't make sense to spend the money to maintain as many plows, etc, as would be needed to clear the entire city quickly, and we don't learn how to drive in snow (or buy snow tires), so most everyone holes up at home if they can till things calm down.

As I said, that is unlikely, but possible. More likely: highs anywhere in the 30s-50s.

As far as how to spend your time, it depends on your interests. Generally I'd say Atlanta and Nashville are both worth 2-3 days each depending on your schedule and what you want to do, but if there's something you're particularly interested in in one, spend more time there. Chattanooga, halfway in between, is also worth a stop. As for whether there's a "better" place - again, hard to know without knowing what exactly you're interested in.

The Ohio River Valley can be a complete mess at that time of year - rainy, freezing rain, sleet, slushy, icy, and anywhere in between. I wouldn't go to Cincy or Louval then. (P.S. the right way to pronounce the capital of Kentucky is not "Louievill" nor "Lou-uh-vul"; it's Frankfort). Nashville should be a bit better, Atlanta more so.

As for your other questions:

<What are the highlights to see?> I dunno, research it. Much about Coca-Cola and Civil Rights in Atlanta based on being the HQ of one and a central part of the other; Nashville is still the country music capital of the world; Kentucky has bourbon and lots of it but it's not quite distillery-visiting season then; Cincinnati has . . . not a clue other than the nastiest spaghetti dish I've seen.

<Is there a better place to go in any of those states?>

Depends on what you like. Cleveland has the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and some other notable attractions but it's also a frigid pit during the winter. Memphis has the blues and the Elvis stuff, but it's a bit of a dump.

Louisville and/or Lexington are your best bets for Kentucky in the winter. The Corvette Museum is just outside Bowling Green.

I think you can cover all of those cities over 10 days. I live in KY and travel through either the Cincinnati or Louisville areas every year during that time frame to visit my sister and her family in Indianapolis. I can only think of one year in the last 9 when we've had a weather issue that made us jump in the car and leave on Christmas evening, but that was to get ahead of a blizzard headed for Indiana. It can happen, but I don't think I would let it stop me from planning a trip. As far as what to do in each city, you haven't really said what your interests are. Nashville and Louisville both have excellent food scenes. Depending on the number of days you allot to Louisville, you could do a section of the Bourbon Trail. To me, a trip to Nashville is not complete without a visit to the Opry, even if you're not a country music fan.

Actually, all the distilleries on the Bourbon trail will be open for business and tours and still be "dressed" for the holidays.Some even have special holiday dinners.
Listen to the weather forecast. Sure, it could snow but usually does not. There are salt/sand and snow plows in both the Louisville and Cincinnati area. We do have the occasional ice storm that indeed does shut everything down until it warms up, but the likelihood of that happening that particular week is probably slim.
If you just want to check off KY, a quick trip to Bowling Green and the Corvette Museum would meet that requirement and only be about an hour from Nashville.

<<Actually, all the distilleries on the Bourbon trail will be open for business and tours and still be "dressed" for the holidays.Some even have special holiday dinners.>>

That's neat.

I think of distillery visiting season as autumn when the bourbon trail is reputedly at its best.