JeffBarin

My wife and I are planning a 6 day car trip from Philadelphia to Savannah GA this June. We want to take the most scenic route, and ideas of interesting places to stop at. Also looking for hotel recommendations. What would be the most fun way for us to do this?

suewoo

Mountains or coast?

JeffBarin

they are both interesting options so we would like to explore both.

suewoo

During one six day trip?

Ackislander

US 17 from Fredericksburg, Va to Savannah is often recommended here, sometimes by me, because it goes through a great many interesting places, many of which, like Charleston, need visits of their own. It bypasses others, Myrtle Beach, that are best avoided. There is relatively little truck traffic.

It also has the advantage of not being I 95.

PaulRabe

> ideas of interesting places to stop at.

We'll need a little more information.

Something I would find interesting may, quite possibly, be completely boring to you. Unless YOU can define the term for yourself, then all I -- or anyone else -- can do is tell you things we find interesting.

> looking for hotel recommendations

Style? Amenities? Budget? (BTW, "not too expensive" is NOT an answer)

suewoo

I would go down 81 just to avoid DC and I 95 but you might want to visit DC. Where are you from?

Like Paul said, we need help to help you.

SAnParis2

Both Wilmington & Charleston are right on your way as well as more out of the way places such as, well, both Beauforts (1 in NC & 1 in SC, spelled the same but pronounced much differently) & a bevy of islands.But, you only have 6 days, a good portion of which will be spent driving, since I believe that is somewhere in the neighborhood of 700+ miles in the best of circumstances...

JeffBarin

My wife and I are from Minnesota and vacation in Hilton Head every summer. We were thinking of flying to Philadelphia and taking 6 days to drive to Hilton Head. We have heard that the coastal route to Charleston is magnificent. We could drive about 200- 250 miles per day leaving us time to take in special sights along the way, and also be able to spend an evening and morning in each city we end up in at the end of the day.I believe the distance from Philadelphia to Charleston is about 700 miles so we have time to make this a 5 day trip leaving one day/night in Charleston I realize this part of the country offers numerous historical sights that we are interested in, as well as just beautiful sightseeing. We have never traveled in this part of the country other than spending time in Charleston before going to Hilton Head. We would like to make Charleston our last stop before we head off to HH. We have been to Wash. DC and Williamsburg so we wouldn't need to include that in our trip. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

weimarer

Take the Blue Ridge Parkway. June (mid-late June, really) is prime time for the rhododendrum bloom, which grow profusely in many areas of the southern Appalachians. Also the bright orange flame azalea bushes, mountain laurel. Roan Mountain on the TN/NC border SW of Boone, the Craggy Gardens right on the BRP north of Asheville. If you hit either of these at peak bloom (mid-late June) it's quite literally one of the natural wonders of the world.

JeffBarin

can you give us some suggestions if we were to start in Roanoke and spend 2 days taking the Blue Ridge Parkway to Charleston as to where we should stop overnight, and some of the scenic stops we should make during our 2 days?
thanks

weimarer

Well, from Roanake, you could stop first night in Banner Elk. The Best Western Mountain Lodge gets good reviews, although I have no personal experience with it. There are several good restaurants in town. The tapas-style place (begins with a Z) is good. Banner Elk is about a 45 minute drive to get to the top of Roan Mountain, which I can't recommend enough (even if the rhododendrum are not in bloom). If you are up for a bit of hiking, the App Trail heading north from the parking area at Carver Gap is spectacular. The main attraction (the 'Gardens') are a bit higher up on Roan Mtn itself. They are typically out in late June, the bushes along the AT a week or so earlier.

Here is a Forest Service PDF of it. (It is on National Forest land).
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_...rdb5366102.pdf

Another spot to hike-again, it'll take about 45 minutes or so from Banner Elk-is the Table Rock hike. It is not that far as the crow flies, but you need to go about 7 miles down a gravel/dirt forest road (perfectly fine for a passenger car, not difficult, although the last mile goes very steeply up a smoothly paved road to the parking/picnic area). The trail goes up to the Table Rock with fantastic views looking down into Linville Gorge, an impressive canyon you cannot see from the BRP.

Banner Elk is also right near Grandfather Mountain, which does charge a hefty fee for entrance, but is worth a visit. They have a nice little mini-zoo up there with black bears, a mountain lion, and some very entertaining otters.

The second night could be at the Switzerland Inn, which is right next to the BRP. A second option right near there is the Alpine Inn. Both are nice places that have 'rooms with a view'. They are in the general vicinity of both Craggy Gardens and Mount Mitchell.

JeffBarin

this sounds awesome, and beautiful. A friend has suggested we take the coastal route from Virginia to Charleston and I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas as to what we should see, and where we should stop. Thanks for all your great ideas.