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USA in 3 months!!!!
Hi,
Myself & my friend are thinking of touring America for 3 months and were wondering if anyone had any suggestions as to where to start & see??? We are from Ireland so were thinking New York was a good starting point but after that we're not sure where to go. Can anyone help us please???? Also we didn't want to drive so would the Greyhound be the best way to get from State to State??? Looking forward to hearing from you all. Thanks, Viv & Jill |
Wow, a 3 month journey. The USA has many places and variety of things to see, but is very large area for traveling. It would depend on your interests and how active you are as to what one might suggest. You might want to list what sort of things you would like to do and you might get more suggestions. Do you wish to hike, see nature, shop, visit museums, etc? Do you want to concentrate your visit to one area of the USA, say the Eastern or Western or Southern or Northern areas?
Traveling by bus might be ok, but in general bus trips are very long. Maybe a combination of bus and train travel. I would check out both methods of travel to the destinations that you wish to visit once determined. Another, suggestion might be to find some tour companies in the areas you wish to visit that would provide the highlights of areas and offer an all inclusive tour with meals, transportation, etc. If you are young and active, you probably would prefer to do it on your own versus tour. -Granny Joan |
That sounds like a great trip. I'd recommend train travel over bus travel where train travel is a viable alternative (i.e., the East Coast).
I don't mean to be critical, but doing it by car would be so much easier and more flexible - you could see so many more places on your own schedule. You could even set it up so that in the larger cities, you are using public transportation. Are you not really capable of that much driving, or would you simply prefer not to do it? Hmmm... three months. I might start by making a list of 30 places I'd like to see. Three months gives you 3 days in each of those places, and you can extend your time in some areas (NYC) and shorten it in others, or add some day-long stops. I'd simply work my way from NYC up to Maine, down the coast to Florida to New Orleans up to Memphis and Chicago, maybe some time in Texas, to Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and up the Pacific Coast. |
That's a huge block of time to explore a huge country! As GrannyJoan said, you could plan a trip a lot of ways, depending on whether you're mainly interested in exploring America's cities, and all their museums, art, music, shopping, etc., or whether you're more interested in seeing the great diversity of natural features in America, and doing a lot of hiking and camping and so forth. Frankly, in three months, you could do plenty of both. And you could probably write a book along the way and sell it to defray the costs of your travels!
I would second kgh8m's thought. I've never been to Ireland, but in general, public transportation systems in the US are not nearly as well developed as they are in Western Europe. Particularly in the more sparsely populated parts of the country, of which there are many. If you can arrange to drive, you'll be able to see far more, and have a more comfortable trip, too. We look forward to providing more tips once you give us some guidelines about the kinds of things you'd like to see! |
Go the LonelyPlanet website talkboards for more extensive information about USA travel. www.lonelyplanet.com
Transportation is a huge expense in the USA, and public transpo is awful. Greyhound is considered the lowest of the low in terms of choices. There are few buses, the schedule is inconvenient, they don't go to many popular places, their stations are in dodgy parts of town, and their clientele has often been recently released from prison. There are not many hostels in the USA and they are not generally near Greyhound stations. Consider doing several smaller tours through Green Tortoise out of San Francisco. www.Greentortoise.com A cheap budget for USA is $70 a day, per person. Cheap budget. Factor that into your 90 day stay. Can you afford $12,600 + airfare? |
Unfortunately public transit across the US is very poor - except for flying. Trains don;t go many places and - except for the NE corridor (Boston to Washington DC) are infrequent and very slow/often delayed. Greyhound bus rides are often interminable (the US is huge) and bus stations are usually in the very wrong end of town (and in many places out west there are no stations, just signs by the roadside.
My suggestions for travel would depend on what you want to see. To see major cities you're best off using train in the northesat and flying between them for the rest of the country. To see countryside - and many parks out west - driving is really your only option. So - without knowing your interests - and when you're coming (our weather is generally very extreme versus Ireland - much hotter in the summer and much colder in the winter) it's hard to make a specific itinerary. I would make New York, DC and San FRancisco defniites. Most europeans seem to want to see Florida - but it's not something to do in the summer. But- many of the huge national parks in the west are at lesat partly closed in the winter due to heavy snows (some roads close for the entire winter). To get more specific advice - I would do some reading and come back with a list of must sees - and people can help you organzie them into a trip. Also - you're best off weatherwise in the spring or the fall - since almost all of the country is pleasant then. |
What time of year are you going? What do you want to do? Cities, national parks, both? What's your style of travel - trying to cover as many states & sites as possible or taking your time in a few locations and get to know them well? Budget? Youth hostels or 4 star luxury hotels?
No Greyhound not the best way, other posters comments are to be heeded. Get a map of the US & a guidebook at your local library. Each of you pick a few destinations which are must-sees. Then come back and post some more specific questions. The US is a BIG counntry. |
Investigate getting a car. You are going to want one. It is not possible to see U.S.A. by bus and train as it is in Europe. I agree with the Lonely Planet suggestion. Without a car you might do NYC, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Chicago, New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle, Victoria, Vancouver, but not Miami, Los Angeles, our great National Parks, and many other places you will want to visit. |
You should also buy some guidebooks.
You should check out Fodors, as they sponsor this board. However, you should also consider purchasing Lonely Planet USA as is has more budget-minded options, and is more geared to your type of travel. |
Las Vegas and Portland, Oregon, are two more places you can enjoy without a car. There are probably others that don't come to mind. |
Viv,
Reconsider driving. I would investigate a combination of train/car. Of course use the train to get between major cities on the east (ESPECIALLY the east) coast and possibly to also get between major cities on the west coast (look at amtrak.com for routes). For the vast expanse in the middle of the US, you REALLY need to drive, it will be essential for the smaller towns and national parks. Aside from largest cities, driving in the Central US is as easy or easier than in Ireland since our roads tend to be wide, straight, and very well maintained. |
There are plenty of destinations you can enjoy without a car, it's getting between them that will be a challenge. And, as has been stated, if you want to spend time in more of the natural wonders of the US, you'll want a car.
Great places where you wouldn't need a car....NYC, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington DC, Chicago, San Francisco, Portland, Las Vegas, Seattle. Except for the eastern corridor, and possibly going Seattle Portland San Francisco by train, you would be wise to fly between those destinations. If you want to go to the Grand Canyon, visit the many wonders of Colorado, visit Yellowstone, Bryce Canyons, Zion, or even LA, you'll want a car when you get there. That said, I do believe there was a trip report on here somewhere from someone who took a bus across the US. And maybe you are young enough you don't mind the drive, the costs fit your budget, etc. Only you can say! |
We find our UK/Ireland friends love the Southwest US because it is SO different from anything in your areas. Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico have loads of things to see and do...the scenery in those four states is really spectacular. SOuthern California is nice, Seattle area is also. But, in my thinking, getting out of the big cities is the best....Doing those four states and working up to Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, into western Canada, gorgeous moutainous scenery....We've been to Ireland/UK many times and we like to stay out of the big cities, that is why I suggest doing the countryside, national parks and, as others have said, buying/renting a car would be ideal.
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Here are some destinations that I would call "must-sees" in the US:
NYC Philadelphia Disney World Miami Painted Desert Grand Canyon Rocky Mountain area Las Vegas San Diego San Francisco I'm missing about a thousand others, I'm sure. But basically, if I were you, I would choose the destinations you most want to visit here, and then start up another post asking for logistical help. Three months is plenty of time, so you may have more flexibility than the usual traveler! |
You could fly into Boston, tour this wonderful city, and then tour New England from there (with a car): the east coast of Massachusetts (short distances from Boston), then Vermont, New Hampshire.
Then, train (Acela) Boston to NY - about 3 1/2 hours. Stay in NYC for a week. From NYC - see others' posts. |
You can do the East coast by train or bus. Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Martha's Vineyard/Nantucket are easily done by public transport. You can then fly to the west coast and do a driving loop of southwest national parks, Yellowstone, California.
Also, I haven't personally used it but this site is something to consider if you really don't want to drive. http://www.gotobus.com/tours/ |
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