USA
 

hi...

I am planning a month vacation at USA.I want to visit New York, New jesry, Disney world at Florida , Washington DC & Pennsylvania. Pl. help me to plan a good & well timed itinerary.
This is my 1st visit to USA so pl. make sure that we get the best of time.

for my Italy trip fodor's was a great help.

thank you!

~~~Anuja

What month? Do you want to fly to Florida and work your way north or fly to New York and work your way south to Florida?
I would suggest taking one of the "Silver" service Amtrak trains between Florida and Washington DC rather than renting a car one way and driving on I-95.

Given how unreliable Amtrak is - except for the NE corridor - I would train from NYC to Philly to DC and fly to Orlando. Or the reverse - depending on the time of year. Not sure what yuo want to see in PA - just Philly - or countryside too - for which you would need to rent a car.

Just checked the On-time performance of Amtrak: 84.4% on the Silver service/Palmetto and 89.3% on the Northeast corridor for the past 12 months.
The two times I was more than an hour late on a trip between Washington and Florida one was on an airplane where we had to get off after boarding and fly on another plane. The late train had a grade crossing collision. The trains move overnight and unless I have a connection to make, being an hour or even two hours late makes no difference to me.

How much time do you plan to spend here?
NYC can easily be 4 days, Washington DC 3, and Disney - well, you could spend a week there!

Plus you will have to allow for travel days between.

I'm from PA and flattered you want to come here, but NYC and DC are the big places you want to see if your time is limited.

What sort of sites interest you?

...except that in Pennsylvania Anuja could see a little of the natural beauty more then any of the other locals. The City's are awesome and Orlando is an experience, but without a little country side you're missing dessert.

Glad you won't be making the mistake of one little British boy we were standing in line with once in Orlando. He said he loved the United States because it was so warm. Turned out the only place his family had ever gone in the USA was Orlando! We held our laughter in check while we tactfully informed him that much of the US was not as warm as Florida. I'm not sure he ever believed us.

Anuja, have fun planning your trip. That is half the fun and you have an entire month? Other than Disney World you should consider what is of most interest, i.e., historical sights, scenery, sea coasts, national parks, city life, fun places (like DW). On Fodors you will find many saying yes, go here or go there. What would you think if I said I have a month to explore England or Italy or Spain, help me plan a trip?
Bill in Boston

Why New Jersey? I understand DC, Philly, NYC, even Bawstin (despite the residents).

Wouldn't take Amtrak anywhere other than the Northeast corridor. That 89% on-time rating may be great in the US, it would have heads rolling in Japan (shinkansen average lateness per YEAR = 36 seconds per route).

OK, BigRuss, I wondered the same about Joisy. Agree on train. But who do you know you don't like in Bawstin...maybe your Irish/Italian mother in law? :-(

oh, yes, New Jersey. Nothin' beats it. Bestest state in the union. A hella of a place; lots of fun. A visit to the U.S. aint worth while without visiting old Jersey. No sir. Have fun chillin' in Jersey. Make sure to come back here and post a review about it.

Okay - so Jersey isn't what most of us who live stateside think of as the ultimate destination - but everyone has their reasons for wanting to see things. Its Mecca for a Springsteen fan!

thank you all.I will be staying at Edison in New Jersey.looking forward to have fun :) I will keep all posted when I am there.

Ok,to answer your question, how about something like this, moving north to south.

NYC one week. Too many things to mention here.

Edison NJ three nights. (I'm guessing you're staying with relatives -- we have a saying that fish and visitors start to smell after three days, so after that it's time to move on.)

Philadelphia 4 nights. Some history, some nice museums and corners to visit.


Washington DC 5 nights. Our Nation's Capitol. Lots of museums and monuments.

Optional: cut a few nights from Philly or DC or both, and tour the scenic Virginia countryside, or else visit the ocean in Delaware or Maryland.)

Note the distance DC to Disney is MUCH longer than NYC to DC. If you're driving, plan on needing 2 or 3 nights to cover that distance.)

Disney World 5 nights.