Munich to EWR - what's next?
 

Hi everybody, I booked a flight Munich to EWR in late November (300€). I did also rent a car for two weeks, so basically I want to go shopping (cotton clothing etc.? Where?) I didn't make any further plans up to now. Would be willing to drive down to Texas or the west coast, whatever? Any suggestions? Distance is not an issue, bad waether could be a problem? ;-)

So you are flying from Germany to Newark and want to spend two weeks shopping....and are willing to drive to Texas or the West Coast for those amazing bargains. That's crazy ~ there is plenty of great shopping in the Northeast.

You can start your shopping at
JERSEY GARDENS, not too far from EWR.

You could easily spend a day at FRANLIN MILLS MALL near Philadelphia.

You are daft. You can't possibly drive from New Jersey to California and back. It would take 12 days total. You wouldn't be able to stop and shop as you would have to drive 8 hours per day and only stop to sleep at night.

I have driven coast to coast twice, sweetie darling.

The Great and Powerful Thingorjus

PS It is the FRANKLIN MILLS MALL, not Franlin. There are only 3 goods stores there--Off 5th, Last Call for Needless Markup, and the Bally store. All the rest is dreck.

Thanks, I'll start at JERSEY GARDENS. :-). I'm sure I could do the west- east trip in 6 days total. I managed central Sask. to southern Texas in 3 days, so how far could it be :-).

Basically I'll arrive with "no clothing at all" and are willing to leave only with my two new suitcases.

I don't get it. Do you want to shop or do you want to visit Texans and/or the west coast?

Seems to me that if you want to shop - you'll find everything you could possible need in the New England area. If you really want to see Texas (again) or the west coast - I would save the time and fly - that way you could enjoy yourself rather than spend all that time in a car.

Hi Logos,

You helped me with a trip to Germany (specifically the Furstenfeldbruk part) last year. Hope you have a great time in the U.S. Just remember, Texas is about the size of Germany, so don't "bite off more than you can chew" when it comes to driving.

Hi jayne1973, no I don't really NEED to go to Texas or drive longer distances.

I would want to do some shopping on the east cost, maybe find a place there that's no too cold and at the sea (suggestion?) and do at least some driving maybe two days about 800km each maximum, in my rented "gas guzzler" on roads without to much traffic, just for the fun of it. Any chance? Thanks!

Well, maybe you should look at the North or South Carolina coasts. Don't know what the weather is like in late November, but the beaches are much nicer than most of the Texas ones (need to get way down south in Texas to get the good beaches).

Hope you have a good trip!

Seems like you're quite flexible with your itinerary.

I'll drive down the coast. From Newark, the NJ coast is quite nice. You'll pass through Atlantic City to get to Cape May and there's a ferry to take you across the Delaware Bay to Lewes. Continue south along the Delmavar Peninsula and cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel system to Virginia Beach. Continue south to the outer banks of North Carolina.

This is a pretty slow drive and can take your 2-3 days if you want to do it leisurely. When you get tired of it, go west and pick up I-95 and go back north or go somewhere else.

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The mountains are also not too far from Newark. The Catskills in southern New York state and the Poconos in eastern PA are just hours from Newark. You can also follow I-81 in PA through WV to VA to the Shenandoah Valley, Skyline Drive, and Appalachians in WV and so on.

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Or drive south to Florida, with stops at Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA.

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And so on...

Just depends on what you really want to do.

Hi logos-

I am a big fan of outlet mall shopping. Here is a start:

http://www.premiumoutlets.com/centers/

I lived in Boston for 8 years before I moved to Switzerland last July and I would go to one of the outlets at least once a month (mainly the Wrentham one and the Clinton Crossings one while driving to Long Island to see the parents).

I find that the outlets are more user friendly.

Here is another good link:
http://www.mallseeker.com/westbrook-outlets.aspx

I find that the Westbrook location is better than the Clinton Crossings one (it has an Old Navy outlet which I adore). The Westbrook outlet mall is just further up interstate I-95 North heading to Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

I would think with those 3 alone, you'd find more than enough for 2 pieces of luggage. I have not been to the outlet malls in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, but I am sure I will get ther eone day. ;)

If you do decide to go to the outlest malls, they do usually have some sort of coupon book that you can buy for about $5. You can get the booklet for free if you have AAA (a US auto club) or a Continental Airlines Onepass card (not all malls accept it). That way you can at least save some money since you plan on spending a lot!

Have Fun!

>quite flexible with your itinerary.
Yes, I don't have one right now. :-) Is going west to Ohio an option, or may it become "boring" with not much to see?
From there south and back to the coast going north to EWR again? I don't want to do too much driving on those slower mountain roads. And maybe they're rainy/snowy too?

Great flight price logos! As other posters have pointed out, there is plenty of great shopping on the east coast. Obviously, the farther south you go, the warmer it will be.

You can cover a lot in two weeks. Your post reminds me of the time my husband's Bavarian cousin was doing his U.S. driving tour. He called us from Florida and said -- "See you tomorrow." We live in Southern California, and just laughed at him. But guess who was at our doorstep the next evening? He and his buddy drove it in a day and 1/2!

Welcome to the U.S. and happy shopping!

Thanks freeman! :-) Sounds very interesting, I'll check out those links. Yes I'm planning to spend some money, since I'm no longer willing to pay 19% VAT on low quality clothing sold at outrageous prices at home! :-)

Ohio? Well, it's unlikely you'll see major snow storms in late November through the Appalachians. You can easily take I-80 or the Pennsylvania Turnpike over. But really, that's not much there to see once in Ohio.

You can stop in Pittsburgh, visit Falling Waters, etc.

Basically, there are stuff to see everywhere to go. Really depends on your interest (besides shopping).

Just so you're aware in November you won;t find beach weather anywhere except South Florida - at least a thousand miles from where you're landing.

The weather is the mid Atlantic states will be fairly similar to Munich. There are a bunch of discount malls ranging from mid/upscale (Woodbury Commons about an hour north of NC) to mid range (several in the Secaucus/meadowlands areas) and some near Philly mentioned above.

You're likely to find mostly winter/holiday clothes on sale - with the left overs of summer things .

I think you need to decide what you want to do besides shopping (and if that's only discount malls) before people can make a lot of recos.

Unless you do nothing but drive, in two weeks you'll never even make it to Texas and back - never mind California - the US is BIG.

logos-- I would love to help you but don't know enough about the East Coast to offer much good advice. If you go south to Florida, you might get some fabulous weather. We were there in November year before last and temps were in the 70s and 80s during the day. We met some British friends there, and they went crazy over the outlet mall.

Have fun and please report back!

If you're flying in/out of Newark, definitely hit the Jersey Gardens mall just across the expressway from the airport. (Same exit as one of our massive IKEA stores.) Google it for a list of stores; I usually have great luck at their Gap Outlet (cotton :) ), and the H&M is pretty good there, too, though you probably don't need our version!

Another terrific outlet shopping experience in the area is Woodbury Commons, north of NYC on the edge of the Catskills area. Easy to get to from NJ without going into NYC. Google that one, too - a mind-boggling number of shops!

Good luck with your decisions! What a great, fun thing to do!

Thanks, I've been to Florida, but I really didn't like it at all, except for the panhandle. Most other parts were imho "sterile" and hard to bear. Rural Alabama and Louisiana were quite fascinating as well as Tenessee is for the music! I want to do some shopping but wouldn't want to stay in places that look anything like southern Florida. :-). It's frightning to me to see people lock themselves away in their living quaters like they're afraid of their environment. Right now shopping in New Jersey, then going as far south as North Carolina then west and north again sounds like a good idea.

Thanks, ggreen! Jersey Gardens it'll be. I didn't realize that it was so close to the airport!

>Woodbury Commons
Looks VERY interesting!

Uh-oh, you've got the outlet bug... ;)

As sorry a statement as it is, a great thing about going to these big malls with a car is that you don't have to lug your purchases around with you all day! Use the car as a convenient drop-off point. Though beware those hopeful drivers who see you headed to your car and think they'll get your parking spot...

Oh yeah, and keep in mind that late November gets into mega-shopping here in the US. Just plan ahead, and pace yourself! ;)

Greetings from Texas. I picked up so much stuff on my way from EWR, the car is "full". I´ll never get it home. Is there a special lightweight suitcase I could buy? I can take 2 with a weight of 23kilos each. Don´t want to waste to much weight on packaging. I still havn´t been to those 2 malls mentioned above.

Texas is great btw. I should have come here in the first place. Still a week to go until I have to be back in Newark. Easy driving.

It is already late November, so if you haven't left yet, I'll offer my 2 cents.

Sounds like you want to drive and want to shop and maybe visit somewhere with decent weather/beaches.

If trying to plan a similar itinerary for myself at this time of year, I'd spend the first week to 9 days in the mid atlantic area. As others have mentioned, there are a surplus of shopping opportunities both outlet (Woodbury Commons, Secaucus, Flemington, Franklin Mills) on the NY - PHL corridor. There are also a few upscale malls - Short Hills, King of Prussia - not to mention shopping in Manhattan.

Also, if you wanted to stretch the route, you could go as far south as Washington DC (Tysons Corner, Potomac Mills outlets). There are excellent Hopper and Turner exhibitions through January at the National Gallery, so you could add a bit of sightseeing and culture to your visit.

For the latter part of your trip and warmer weather, I'd look to central/south Florida. (Plenty of shopping malls, decent outlets around Orlando and an easy drive to Miami or the Keys). However, I'd investigate flying from EWR or PHL to Florida. Given the cost of the rental, gas and your time, this may be a cheaper option! You can always rent another car in Florida.

Happy travels!

Logos999,

Duh, it wasn't till after I posted that I realized you'd already made it to Texas - well done you!

If you're near a TJ Maxx or Marhsall's store, check them out for a Samsonite Airlite or a American Tourister iLite suitcase. Even lighter would be a sturdy duffle, and I've found both LL Bean and REI products are pretty reliable. I still can't believe you did the drive from NJ to Texas. Happy travels home!

I´m a little scared of possible snow during the next days. Tomorrow I want to drive from Dallas north through Oklahoma and stay somewhere in Kansas for the night. I could also go back east first, but I´d prefer the "nortern" route, simply because I havn´t been there before. Generally, from what I´ve seen in Texas, it´s so much nicher here than it was in Florida two years ago. But I havn`t seen thebeaches. Would I have a problem, finding the suitcases you mentioned in Oklahoma (City)? I just packed the one suitcase I´ve brought from home and couldn´t fit in half of what I´ve bought. I was looking for one of those $299 notebooks at "best buy" on black friday, but it seems you have to be standing at 5am in front of the store. When I was there, there weren´t any left. Btw, why do they always take you shopping cart away, when you just trying on some pants in the fitting room. It happened 3 times to me, and I had to start all over again :D

Hi logos,

Welcome to Texas -- glad you are enjoying it. Dallas is definitely a shopping haven. If you are going up Interstate 35 to Oklahoma, there's an Indian casino called Winstar right across the border that is kind of fun.

Should be a great day for traveling. Have fun!

<i>but it seems you have to be standing at 5am in front of the store.</i>

Actually, my friend's son went and the line had started to form at 1 a.m for the 5 a.m. opening!

I'm back, thanks for the Jersey Gardens tip. I could get a last few &quot;missing&quot; things there. With 48 kilos in clothing and 4 pairs of shoes this should last for a while. I may be looking &quot;american&quot; in my new chinese clothing, but who cares :D. German customs didn't say a thing, no problemo. But please american visitors, when you pass customs in Munich, don't stand but walk (slowly) looking unsuspicious. A bunch of Americans where blocking the exit, looking for customs inspection, which they just passed, leaving myself standing behind them; still visible to the customs guys.

It's just like shoplifting, got it?

Well, I drove 4150 miles in 15 days, the car was cr*p (Chrysler), but I've seen a lot incl. New York during those days. Driving in NY City is no problem, just so expensive to get in and park the car :-(.

logos999- You are a crazy nut!

&quot;Looking American in my Chinese clothes&quot; - too funny!

logos999, I'm sooo glad I finally got to read your on the road play-by-play, and glad you had a successful and fun trip!!

&quot;It's just like shoplifting, got it?&quot; Got it!! I have had more than a few customs situations myself, most recently when returning from China... LOL.

Thanks for the good read - it has to be one of the best reports I've ever read. :D

How are your Chinese American purchases holding up??

The Chinese produce good quality, really nice, and so much cheaper than in China itself. The Earth shoes are the best I've ever had at about a third of the local price here. Sweaters, T-Shirts, pants, all good quality! And unbelievable cheap. The spare chinese philips shaver I bought is reduced to 79&euro; (from 99&euro;) at the shop over here. It was $30 in the US. But electonics generally, (except for the ICrap) are more expensive in the US. Best buy were SO expensive too, it was hard to believe anybody whould buy something there and since they didn't have my $299 notebook, when I showed up, they can keep their other ... too.
Not worth buying anything there.

One third of my old clothes went to the dustbin in the last few days, freeing space for my new acquisitions. Maybe I can get one of those 100&euro; roundtrip flights to Mexico sometime in the near future. Texas isn't far, and I think I could get some more, before the Chinese stop selling their stuff so much below costs.
The beaches around M&eacute;rida (Yucat&aacute;n) are great, so I've been told. And I can handle their food so much better (actually quite tasty), than what I was fed with in the US :D.

Btw, not one single person complained about me looking &quot;American&quot; so far. That's sooooo unexpected :D