Trip with both East and West Coasters
 

Hi, I'm trying to plan a 30th birthday trip for August 20-23.
It's a surprise trip for the birthday boy, who is based in California. His best friends are based in Philly. We will likely have 5 people from Cali and 6 people from Philly/Boston area going on the trip and we're hoping to find somewhere "half-way" that doesn't require extra spending by one group over the other.

The problem; half-way is New Orleans or Austin (in terms of desirable places to visit), and those are hot as heck at that time of year. I'm considering Mexico; Tulum is a possibility, but I wanted to find out if anyone has any great ideas of lesser known but awesome locations that would be easy and affordable for both sides to get to.
Thank you!

I would say Chicago, but you will have the same heat issue.

Pretty much all of the U.S. is hot in August. The exceptions will not be very located anywhere near the middle. I might suggest either Las Vegas or Orlando, both of which tend to be cheap and easy flights from most U.S. cities, but they will also be hot.

Re: Middle of the US + August = Hot: This is a very good point. Darn August birthdays.

Has anyone been to New Orleans in August and found it bearable? Or is it just not worth it? We'd love to go there, as the live music, culinary and drinking scene is what we're after, but I don't want people to suffer.

Mexico is a great idea. But it's real hot there too in August!

At almost 8000 feet, Granby Colorado will not be too hot in August. http://granbychamber.com/
It's just a few minutes from Rocky Mountain National Park.

Somewhere on the Great Lakes, maybe, if you go with the Chicago area. Access to water/beaches always makes things better. Probably still hot, but not as hot as New Orleans. I wouldn't go anywhere in the south in August, but it's the humidity that kills me usually.

Northern Idaho, western Washington, and British Columbia are all glorious in August. I think it will depend on ease of flying into somewhere- Seattle might be something consider if you haven't been there. Denver as well. Not sure if the plane tickets would be affordable, although they would probably be pretty close to flights to Austin. I agree with Tomfuller about the mountains, but it's a hassle to reach places like that sometimes, especially if you don't want to rent a car.

Colorado. Fly to Denver and go to RMNP.

I would pick Denver or Chicago (on the lakefront) if you want something close to the middle. Minneapolis could be good as well. Otherwise Seattle or Portland if the east coast people can find reasonable flights. No way would I send them to Austin or New Orleans in August.

You're all trying to get loaded and party, right? So go to NOLA, but drink water, not just stuff with the Russian word for "water" in it.

But if you're not trying to party and have other goals in mind, perhaps detailing what they are would help with recommendations.

I live in Seattle. It's plenty hot here in August (sometimes) too.

I think Colorado is a great idea and the air fare from the East is usually not too bad.

went to new orleans in september. it was hot but not unbearable and a great place to go for such a short trip. wouldn't need a rental car.
seattle came to mind
if you wanted to consider canada, banff or vancouver would be good choices temperature wise but, you guys are going to waste alot of your time flying.
temp wise, san fran would be a good choice and no rental cars required.

I've lived in California, in the Midwest, and in Philly. In all three places, August is hot & uncomfortable. The north Pacific Coast is quite nice in August, but hardly "fair" to East Coast residents.

The only ways to escape this fact are to (1) go REALLY far north (I'm talking Alaska), (2) get right on the shore (in the middle of the country, a place like Door County would do this, but even five miles inland would accomplish nothing), or (3) get up in the mountains.


I thus recommend the mountains near Denver. Centrally located, lots of airline connections, beautiful scenery, and near to places with an urban vibe. The only problem is that August is the height of tourist season, so you'd have to make firm reservations months in advance.

Check out the area around Boulder -- college towns sometimes have extra lodging space when schools are not in session.