Spontaneous US Roadtrip?

1) It depends on how you want to travel. If you want to travel in luxury and stay at Hilton's all the time and eat at nice restaurants, you will need a lot of money. Some places are more expensive than others, so for example, if you were to go to Las Vegas, it’s worth it to spend the extra money to stay at a nice place instead of staying at a motel in a seedy part of town. Stay at cheap places when traveling in-between destinations, and stay at nice places when you arrive at your destination. I find that to be a good balance. You could also bring your camping equipment and stop at campsites. Also, if you’re going to be visiting a lot of National Parks, buy a National Parks pass.

2) There's nothing wrong with that, you would be saving the expense of staying at a hotel, so that's a good thing. If you do that, make sure you're parked in a safe area, especially if you‘re in major city. At night, always park your car in an area that has lot’s of street lights. Service centers along the freeway are also safe places to park for the night. Wal-Marts allow truckers to park overnight in their parking lot, so I'm sure you could do that too.

3) It depends on where you're going and what you want to see, but I personally think ... Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon, St. Louis Gateway Arch, Chicago, NYC and Washington DC are great places to visit. A drive through the Colorado Rockies and the eastern Appalachians is also a must see.

4) If you want to take it all in, you'll need at least 2 months without being rushed. Obviously you won’t be able to see every place, but 2 months will allow you to visit the places you want to visit and be able to take it all in without rushing.

5) Bring your camera! Take pictures of everything that interests you and then when you're done, put it all together in one photo album.

6) Park your car in safe areas and you will be fine, and make sure you always lock your car when you’re not inside it. Always have two sets of keys in case you loose one. Before you leave, have your car serviced. Have your engine, battery, and tires checked. Make sure you have an extra tire in case you loose a tire, as well as a tire pressure gauge. Don’t wait until the last minute to gas up. Make sure you have one of those car emergency kits that you keep in the back, just in case. I’m sure you already have one, but if you don’t, a cell phone is important to have when traveling long distances alone.

Also, don't use maps (the old fold out ones) for your directions, use the print out MapQuest or Google/Yahoo maps for directions. It's a lot easier than using a map, but have a map with you just in case you need or want it. And of course, don't pick up hitchikers, especially out in the Appalachia region =)

Hopefully this helps. Good luck.

When I was an undergraduate, I did a few trips to the mainland, but not a road trip with my own car. Here's some of my answers:

1) How much money would I need to save up in order to do a full US roadtrip? I remember paying for two roundtrip tickets since I didn't have a car to road trip in.

3) Are there certain places I HAVE to stop by at? That are places I "can't miss" because it's too awesome? You have to get the 1000 Places to See Before You Die book. I've always wanted to stay at Lizzie Borden's B&B in MA.

5) Are there any essentials I need to bring? More than one form of ID and the book that I listed above.

I'm going on a road trip this November but because of the weather I'll only be doing the bottom of the country. So far I'm up to around 1000 in expenses but that includes a rental car and a few hotel stays. So I think budget is more about how long you plan to be on the road trip. Meaning do you want to take as long as possible, or just take a lot in, in a short amount of time. I'm only going to be on the trip for 10 days. So my advice is to figure out how long you want to spend on the road and what you feel you HAVE to see. From that you can plan a route.

I'm from the continental US so there are plenty of states that hold no interest for me. So, my travel person put together a map based on my interests in the warm weather.

You could absolutely sleep in your car, they have welcome centers entering and leaving every state. They have designated sleep areas. Also, many people suggest taking Route 66 if you just want to see everything the country has to offer and especially since it will be summer. It basically goes through the middle of the country.

I definitely suggest bringing a friend since you haven't driven more that a couple dozen miles. It can get pretty lonely in the places where there' nothing to do or see.

1. Well, gas was expensive but it has gone down to about $2.13 a gallon which is great. You probably need $50 a day and you could have a good time. Do the math, figure where you wanna go and see how many miles it is, you can use mapquest.com to do that and it would give you accurate directions.

2. I would not sleep in your car, especially in New York. It wouldn't be comfortable to do that anyways, you want to have a good time and be able to relax in a nice cumfy bed ya know? Plus, the hotels are a part of the journey too!

3. I live in Cincinnati, Ohio and I can't think of any really awesome totally wonderful places to go around here, I don't want to waste your time. It's not pretty this time of the year and it's cold at night time.

4. A month is plenty of time.

I would definitely just be more careful in New York because pick pockets really are out there but the place itself is awesome and busy and full of life. I used to live in New York and I am telling you I knew some people that picked pockets and they did it like it was an art. They know when someone's not from around there, don't ever put your wallet in your back pocket and put a chain on it. You might think I am being dramatic but it is very real and I just wanted to let you know because the people who aren't careful are the ones it happens to. I don't want you to be pennyless in New York. I love going on long drives and smoking herb. I guess that is the good thing about Ohio, it does have some really long nostalgic hidden roads. Oh, I just remembered we do have a village called Munchkin Land - it is a small village with miniature houses, the roofs come up to my chest. It is a retirement community for circus sideshow midgets who want to escape the tormenting stares of the public. It is said that they retreated to this village in an attempt to escape the life that they had known in the traveling circus. It's a community of midgets attempting to hide from the public eye. People drive through there but if you get out and try to mess with them or talk to them they will group together and throw rocks at you and your car, trust me I know a lot of people that this has happened to and they messed their car up really bad. It is a private village and they don't like visitors because it's usually high school kids looking for some trouble. It is still fun to drive by though.

Here is a short answer...........................

Don't do it alone!!!

You are planning on much too much.... you can not put a price tag on it because of the adventures you will have.

This is something you should do by area.and you have many to choose from...you have a long life .ahead of you...Take your time and enjoy the travel.

There is so much to see...you should not do this while thinking about expenses. It will be expensive so plan on it!!!

Remember............you are already in one of the most beautiful parts of the country...I hope you have already explored the Pacific Nortwest !!!

JOIN the AAA !!!!!