Atlanta to Los Angeles
 

Hey all! Some friends recommended this site, told me that there are a lot of great folks here that can offer some great advice. I was hoping to get some on a road trip I am trying to plan for next month.

A friend and I are thinking of driving from Atlanta to Los Angeles sometime around mid-December. Currently, we are slightly flexible in the total duration but are thinking somewhere around 9/10 days. We're both in our late 20s and can go a decent stretch of road if needed, but wouldn't want every day to be jam packed with just driving.

We are hoping to include these stops along the way - New Orleans (maybe 2 nights here) --> Austin, TX --> Roswell, NM ---> The Grand Canyon ---> Los Angeles.

There is a lot of road between some of those locations so if you guys can think of some good places to add on to it (or alternates even) any advice would be much appreciated.

This is going to be our 'last hurrah' before I relocate to the west coast so we are looking to have a lot of fun along the way and take our time (when we want/need to). Any road side attractions, detours for fun stuff (I heard of a cool meteor site in AZ somewhere that could be fun) or advice on where best we could hook up on Route 66 for a little while would be great. I do not believe we are going to book hotels/motels for most of it so we can keep a very loose schedule (except for New Orleans I believe) so hopefully we will have the freedom to do a lot of stuff along the way.

This will be the first time I have done anything like this so any additional tips would be very appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Without going too far off the path:

Between Austin and Roswell, a stop at Carlsbad Caverns NP, and before or after a stop at White Sands NP.

If you go north from there, you could hit I 40, where there are lots of opportunities to stop along the way, like el Morro/Inscription rock and Acoma Pueblo in NM, Petrified forest/Painted Desert, Meteor Crater, Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, Sunset Crater, Canyon de Chelley, in AZ all a little north or south of I 40 before you turn up to Grand Canyon.

From there you could stop at Hoover Dam, Vegas, Death Valley.

If you do more than a couple of National Parks, pick up a NP pass at the first one, it is $80 and is good for a year and admits you into all the parks. If you are over 62 it is $10 and is good for a lifetime.

Pick up a couple of the magazines that give discount coupons for lodging, like Room Saver, they give small maps that show where places are even if there isn't a coupon you can use. RoomSaver also has a web site with locations of some of the places along the route that you can download coupons for.

Have a great trip.

Thanks for the reply. Room Saver is a great tip! I had heard some good stuff about Carlsbad. That might be the perfect extra stop.

We were thinking of skipping Vegas (since it's on the back end and we'll be pretty tired) so I assume that takes Hoover out of the logical mix. I'm not too sure about Death Valley but I will take a look at that.

The Painted Desert would be amazing I think, but for some reason I was thinking that was further north then we were heading. I'll take a look at the map again cause that would be a place I would love to see, just didn't think it would fit in this trip.

Thanks again for the tips! I appreciate the help!

The meteor site you are referring to is the Barringer Meteor Crater

www.meteorcrater.com

It is privately owned, and admission is $15 per person. It's a pretty impressive site, no doubt about it.

Parts of the Painted Desert can be seen at Petrified Forest National Park. If you're going to Grand Canyon along I-40 then it would be a waste to NOT visit Petrified Forest.

Carlsbad Caverns and White Sand are definitely worth a stop.

Here is a suggestion for a quick food stop in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, about two hours before you get to New Orleans:

www.theshedbbq.com

The Shed BBQ (and blues), it's right off I-10, practically at the bottom of the exit ramp. It's a lot more fun than any fast food chain, and it's across the street from a gas station. It's been featured on the food network a few times and it's become so popular that it's expanded into new locations in other states, but this is the original.

Instead of Austin, you may take a more southernly route via San Antonio (a most beautiful city, and a bit warmer than Austin) and even with a side trip to Big Bend National Park (which is very agreeable in December).

I am with everybody else when it comes to White Sands - IMO one of the most unique places in the U.S. (and a quick and easy to visit). From White Sands, you may take the route via Tucson (lots to see in the area, e.g. Saguaro National Park). Again, the weather in Southern Arizona will be lovely in December.

If you choose to take the northern route (in order to see the Grand Canyon where you might encounter snow), do not miss Acoma Pueblo and Monument Valley.

if youre going to the Grand Canyon, go thru Lake Powell--there are a few really nice hotels there,but the main thing is to visit South Antelope Canyon.Its a slot canyon, that you walk thru--its about 100ft deep and 1/4 mile long.If your a foto person, the affect of the canyon on light is incredible--untouched pics come out like theyve been PhotoShoped--unique experinece.One of the hotels has a 1st class dinner cruise on a paddle wheeler,but sounds like youre too young for that.If you take a direct route to Vegas,youll drive on the North side of the canyon, but stop at Bryson and Zion Natinal Parks--both are great spots.From Zion to Vegas is 3 hour drive. You might post on other forums as well, eg Arizona,Utah,New Mexico to get their inout

PS sorry, i didnt see youve already posted on sveral sites

Thanks again for all of this info. It is very helpful.

We had been debating about going to Vegas but I think we may skip over it in favor of some other things we haven't experienced yet (and to alleviate the temptation near the end of the trip!). But it seems like if we head in that direction there is a lot of stuff we can do to keep us off the craps tables. Does anyone know if we would be better off hitting the south of the Grand Canyon (near Flagstaff I assume) or work our way around the east side to hit the northern area?

White Sands does look amazing. I think that, as well as the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert could easily be added in with our time table.

And BBQ joints are always a must! Thanks for the tip, Cheryl.

You guys are all very kind to offer some advice.

I love Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest and the Grand Canyon. As much as I love the North Rim, it wouldn't be a good idea on your cross-country trip and it won't be open in Mid-December.

If you want a taste of the Route 66 days and are up for a unique place to stay, check out the Wigwam Hotel -
http://www.galerie-kokopelli.com/wigwam/

I'd change the route a bit and head south through Sedona. If you like Frank Lloyd Wright at all, go see his winter home at Taleisin West in Scottsdale. Then head west again. Another fan of White Sands here too.

Do you have to return to Atlanta? or are you "getting there".

Fortunately no need to return... once I'm there, I'm there for a while!

I would second some of the places mentioned: Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands, Acoma Pueblo - all in New Mexico; and Canyon de Chelly, Monument Valley , Antelope Canyon in Arizona.

Additionally, I'd like to recommend a couple of museums:

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson:
http://www.desertmuseum.org/

and the Heard Museum in Phoenix:
http://www.heard.org/

If you visit these museums, you'll not be just driving the desert, you'll have a much more in depth understanding of the desert and the peoples of this land.

Enjoy! Sounds like a fantastic trip!

i second going thru Sedona--its a special place--agree North rim that time of year would be tricky--we stayed at a really neat,upper end place in Sedona, Ill look it up, but I think it was something like EncHantement Lodge--its right up against the canyon, and the restaurant/bar has terrific views--even if youdont stay there,have a meal or drink.Check the weather as you get closer to the Grand Canyon, you dont want to be there if its snowing,not much to see really,its all covered in snow,unless you like snow