Traveling USA for a month

Boxergirl83

Hey, I need advice I'm am going to be travelling to NY to meet my friend after she finishes Camp America and we will travel around the US for a month! Any advice or tips would be gratefully received! Costs, places to visit etc thank you in advance 😁

stevie11

I think a little more info is required ie. when are you going, are you renting a car or making use of coach, trains, flights etc? What do you like to do?

A month is a good time to travel and see the surrounding states/cities of NY, eg Boston, New England States, Washington DC, Philedelphia, Toronto, Montreal, Niagara Falls to name a few. Further afield there is Chicago or down to Florida. All depends which area you want to focus on.

Teahfc

What time if year also?

John259

As well as the big cities, try to visit a few small towns and at least one of the national parks.

If you'll be driving then don't just stick to the interstate highways, try a few minor roads as well.

This map shows the mountain ranges and other major geographical features:
http://www.freeworldmaps.net/united-states/us-mountain-ranges-map.jpg

This map shows where most of the national parks are:
http://www.terragalleria.com/parks/info/parks-map.gif

dondo

I did 2 summers in 95 and 96 working in a camp in Maine and in 95 spent a month travelling around afterwards. I got an Amtrak rail pass which was a great way to get around-trains are comfy travel through some great scenery (as well as some boring stuff!) and is much quicker than the bus- that said the train doesn't go everywhere.

I had a 30 day pass which when I travelled offered a discount for overseas travellers as well as students (I had finished uni but still had valid student ID thankfully). This gave unlimited travel but looking at what they offer now you are limited with 12 segments i.e. 12 journeys in 30 days.

https://www.amtrak.com/take-the-trains-across-america-with-usa-rail-pass

I managed to do Boston-Washington DC-Florida-New Orleans-Gran Canyon-LA-San Francisco-Chicago-Washington DC-New York on my pass

Costs wise- well it was 20 years plus that I was there so can't really comment on how much things will cost but for accommodation I stayed in some nice hostels (even one really bargain hotel that was great in SF) and some absolute dives- depends on what your budget is, whether you are happy in dorm rooms etc.. Generally I found the official (HI USA) ones were of a better standard but the independent ones had a bit more of a party atmosphere. I know loads can be done online but I would recommend buying a guide book like the rough guide as I found it invaluable.

My favourite places were Boston, New York and San Francisco. I had planned to stop in Denver which is a regret.