Cross country balto-lax
 

Hi! Im driving w my son cross country to college the week of new years (12/29-1/1). Our car is in good shape but an economy 4cyl. The last leg of our trip will be new years. Whats the best route to avoid snow/ice and have a cool place to spend new years the last night? Well have about 4 days. Would love to end up in Vegas the last night but would also love to visit New Orleans so were torn! A little nervous about rte 40 (snow/mtns) but also rte 10 wed spend too much time in boring parts of texas and cant find a cool place for new years! We really want to make this a fun and memorable trip and want to see cool places along the way, without the stress of snow and ice or boring middle of nowhere places. Any help please!!

Probably too soon to tell. But you can certainly aim for LV. I don't think you can do NOLA for new years and get to LAX.
Just choose your route and watch the weather channel the week before.
You could start across on Route 70 to Denver and then head southish from there.

>>I don't think you can do NOLA for new years and get to LAX.<<

I took it to mean the OP wanted to visit NOLA on the way, then be in Vegas on 12/31 - not that they wanted to be in NOLA on 12/31.

In any case, hotels in NOLA and Vegas will be really expensive. NOLA has the Sugar Bowl on 1/1 so will be super busy with college football fans, and Vegas on NYE will be crazy.

What's your budget for hotels?

I drove Pittsburgh-->Seattle with my 23yo son. What a wonderful time to spend together! He is now living in Denver and although DEN is lovely, I would avoid it during the time you are driving. They have had snow two days this week and the mountains got up to a foot of the white stuff. Look for the basic southern route that avoids the Rockies until summer. When we drove in very late May, there was still snow in the upper elevations.

We documented our trip and visited friends along the way. Hotel points got us through some places where we didn't know anyone. Our rule was to eat or drink locally at least once a day and to see a "sight" once a day. An end of the day a beer or wine was welcome most evenings. It gave us something to do (go to bar) at the day's end to unwind. We couldn't drag our feet because of his work requirements, but we had a great time! Have fun on your trip!

ADDED: You need to be in LA on the first and only have four days, so don't worry about those boring TX parts. The days are long any way you slice them. How about getting close as possible to your destination for NYE?

If you just keep track of the weather, start west and then bear south if the weather looks bad.
I'd guess Balto to Denver is 24 hours driving. OP doesn't say whether they are going to share driving to maximize time for NYE. Once you get past the Mississippi there isn't a lot of interesting stuff in ANY of those stacked up states!! But you sure can make time. And don't forget about time change also--gaining a couple of hours along the way.

>>If you just keep track of the weather, start west and then bear south if the weather looks bad. <<

Agreed. There is no need to avoid driving through the mountains in winter simply because it snows some times. Watch the weather and go around it if needed. From Denver to Utah is 5 hours or so on the interstate, it's pretty easy during daylight with clear weather. And beautiful....

For the record, I think most interstate routes are fairly boring, it's not just restricted to Texas or past the Mississippi. But no matter which state or route you pick, you can find something to stop at each day. Just depends on what you find interesting.

If you are going to do the trip in 4 days the only two options that make sense are I-70 or I-40.

To be in Vegas for NYE with ideal weather conditions.

If I-70: Baltimore to St. Louis about 12 + hours, St. Louis to Denver about the same, Denver to Vegas 8 or so and Vegas to LA 5 ish.

If I-40: Baltimore to Memphis about 14 hours, Memphis to Albuquerque about the same and Albuquerque to Vegas about 9 and Vegas to LA 5.

With two drivers you might be able to do more each day, but do you have a plan B for the possibility of bad conditions?

If you could add a few days, you could visit some really neat places near the hwy on either route.

Do look for lodging asap if the plan is to be in Vegas for NYE.