bratsandbeer

I would not go to Texas, Louisianna or Mississippi in the summer. We had a great trip in that area for 2 weeks last May and the weather was perfect.

An area you may like would be the Pacific Northwest. Oregon, Washington, Idaho and perhaps into British Columbia. Vancouver and Vancouver Island where the flowers in June are beautiful.

Ocean Shores, Washington is a wonderful place to vacation. It is right along the Pacific Ocean - razor back clam digging etc. Seattle has great seafood, Pike Street Market etc.
http://www.experiencewa.com/
There is Mt Ranier, Mt St helens.
Portland Oregon would be nice to visit and the oregon shores are beautiful. Coeur d'Alene Idaho is a favorite vacation spot. It is beautiful country. http://www.coeurdalene.org/

NorthwestMale

New Orleans in the summer is going to be uncomfortable like you cannot even fathom.

Do reconsider.

Gretchen

Please do rule out Houston--a huge sprawling piece of concrete. Sorry, Houston.
San Antonio and the Hill Country is very interesting and worth a couple of days. Then head north to Dallas, and east for Louisiana and New Orleans. Yes, it may be uncomfortable (humid, hot), but so it goes when you travel. It is a part of the lore of a "place" and contributes to its ambience. And it is probably THE most distinctive city in the US for multiple cultural reasons.
Then if you want some beach, you could head up to the Gulf Coast at Biloxi or such. Or if you are flying out of Houston, go to the Texas gulf coast for a few days.

kkukura

For nicer beaches go south in Texas to Corpus Christi or South Padre, or go east of the Mississippi. I agree that other cities are more appealing to visit than Houston, but there are plenty of things to do in and around Houston. I, myself, prefer Houston to Dallas, but then I live here!

bkluvsNola

I'm trying to logistically figure out how you can get in everything you want to do. Houston may be an option, but you end up double backing quite a bit. I suggest a slightly different alternative, that probably would be worth checking out.

Day 1-2: Fly into DFW (Dallas-Fort Worth). I'm sure there's a direct flight from London Heathrow though I'm not 100% sure. While in Dallas, go to Arlington and catch a baseball game at the Ballpark in Arlington. It's a nice park and it will be an interesting experience. Then, spend the next day at the Fort Worth/stockyards area and you'll get a taste of "Cowboy culture".

Day 3-4:From there, drive south to Austin (3.5 to 4 hours) and spend a few nights there. See the bats at night (it's a great summer event - possibly even doing a bat cruise on Lady Bird Lake). In the day, stroll along Lady Bird Lake and take in the scenery (nature and people watching, lol). Or if it's really hot, go to Barton Springs to cool off in the cold spring fed pool. At night, find a restaurant to your liking in the downtown area and tour 6th Street and the 4th Street area to see the nightlife in Austin. If you want a more laid back experience, go out to Lake Travis and catch a sunset at the Oasis, a restaurant overlooking the lake.

Next day spend a fun day at Schlitterbahn if that's your thing. It's the best waterpark in the USA and it doesn't dissapoint. Alternatively, you could go tubing down the Guadalupe River or something like that. Think cool.

Day 5-6: Then head on into San Antonio. Spend 2 or so days there. Tour the Riverwalk, Sea World, and the Alamo.

From there, plan to drive to Houston and stay in the Clearlake area near NASA for a night. Tour NASA, it's really worth it.

Day 7-9: Next day drive nonstop to Lafayette, LA. Use that as your base for Cajun Country. Sights to see include Avery Island (Tabasco Factory and Jungle Gardens), St. Martinville, Vermilionville, and a swamp tour. Include a few plantations along River Road as well.

Day 10-12: New Orleans. Need another thread for that!

Day 13-15: Drive to Panhandle of Florida and relax and unwind. Take puddle jumper plane back from FL or Mobile to DFW and then back to Heathrow.

There are other possibilities, but a Houston base causes you to "loop" around unnecessarily. I'm sure others have different ideas nonetheless...

dfr4848

bk's suggestion makes some sense considering your interests and possible itinerary.

In terms of flights you've got several options. Usually in the summer there are 3 nonstops between London and DFW (AA and BA) and 5 nonstops between London and IAH (CO and BA). You might even check open jaw on BA and fly into DFW and leave from IAH. Regardless, you could fly from New Orleans or Florida back to DFW (on AA) or to IAH (on CO). I'd check flights into both cities and see if there's much of a price difference, then work on your options.

kkukura

I agree seeing a ball game in Arlington is great, but in July it will be extremely HOT! I waited until last September to go there for a game thinking it would be more plesant. No, I happened to go to Arlington the weekend the temperature still stayed in the high 90's and I got so sunburned (even with sun screen!). I would take in either one of the smaller fields (more breezes) or Minute Maid Park if you are interested in a ball game.

bkluvsNola

kkukura,

Usually the games in July are at night, so they should be fine. I think they only play day games there in April, May, early June, and in September.

That being said, The Round Rock Express has a great stadium, in well, Round Rock, TX (near Austin) and the games are also usually at night.

I would say that just going to Houston to see a ballgame is a bit overkill (they are probably not baseball fanatics, don't think they play baseball in the UK that much), so they should stick to Arlington or see the Round Rock Express near Austin since it's on the way of their itinerary. I think NASA is a far better representative of Houston than the Astros and they won't have time for both (NASA took me all day).

It will be a night game in July or August, I guarantee.

kkukura

That would be better. I just said the game in Houston if they were flying in or out of Houston and had the time. I prefer the minor league games myself and have been to them in Round Rock numerous times, as well as Corpus Christi and San Antonio. NASA is something that is representative of Houston. I have lived in Clear Lake where NASA is for most of my life so I do recommend seeing it, although they have been to the Fl site so they might not be interested in seeing it from my end. Well, as you, I, and many others have said, there is a lot to do in TX!

sal56

thank you everyone for all the advice - some fantastic thoughts on an itinary. But having read all the thoughts we have decided not to go in summer and will go in a couple of years time at Easter.

We are now looking at alternatives for 2010 - maybe north west Pacific.

Once again thank you everyone for the advice

spirobulldog

Fantastic places in the Pacific Northwest to visit and much better, IMO, than your previous plan. Summer is really the best time to visit. I would pick either Oregon or Washington State and go with one of those. We spent 12 days this past July in Oregon(did take one day to see the Redwoods in California)and it was a fantastic trip. This would be especially a good trip for kids. How adventurous are you and your kids? How much hiking do you like to do? This trip would be somewhat like your Yosemite trip(lots of scenery). You could easily through in Seattle or Portland for a bit of a city experience.

Vttraveler

I think you will be much happier visiting the south in the spring. For 2010 summer you could also think about New England

kkukura

One of my favorite vacations in the U.S. was a week camping throughout northern California and Oregon. Both are so beautiful! The northeast would also be another wonderful choice.

bkluvsNola

Since this is taqgged for Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, you probably would be best to pen a new topic with tags for Oregon and Washington. You would get better advice from local Pacific NW people.

sal56

Thanks - I will start a new topic as suggested.