US help.

[charcoal3256]

Not really. You've just picked three big cities and two industrial wastelands. Depends where in Ohio you are, but I wouldn't hold out too much hope.



This will work in NY/DC/Boston, but not in Ohio or Detroit. You'll need to rent cars there.


DC-NY-Boston (look at a map so you don't have to backtrack) has the Acela train service connecting it, and it's perfectly nice. Ohio and Detroit you'll be better off flying to and from, though.

Thanks for the advice. Still looking into the option of renting a car if need be to travel to area where the more scenic areas are.

erm, v not true. esp for nyc. I can't say for the other cities as I don't live there. nyc does have a lot more to offer other than just shopping n the usual tourist spots like times square.

hiking within nyc parks
Hiking Trails : NYC Parks

hiking within central park. have you seen how big that is?
Central Park Hikes - New York City *- BerkshireHiking.Com

n if he's willing to travel outside nyc, there are even more spots for hiking.
New York Hiking and Backpacking Trips | Backpacker Magazine | Backpacker Magazine
Hiking and biking day trips from New York City
Hiking in New York - Best Hikes, Guides, and Trail Maps | EveryTrail

Will look into the parks, looks not too bad.

Where is your conference in Detroit? downtown U can get buy with public transport.
Ohio since your GF is there maybe she can give u more help on how to get place A to B.

State to State, NYC to DC can take train. Boston flying is better.
Not checking out Niagara?
Detroit nothing much to do there.. if U are into American Automotive then check out Ford at Dearborn. Best middle eastern food.
across the bridge U can go Windsor visit some nice winery if U not going to Niagara. Its a smaller region producing some great tasting ice wines CHEAP!
try Erie Shore Vineyard.

Outside NYC, U will need to drive. NY state U can visit 1000 island (VISIT THE 1000 ISLANDS)
There are alot of things to do and see outside NYC.

Michigan - if U drive can check out sleeping bear dune. try those dune ride.
ie
Saugatuck Dune Rides
Silver Lake Buggy Rentals - Home

when U mention Hiking, what kind? just short day hikes or long over nite hikes?

The conference in detroit is at Cobo Center, so will probably book an accomodation nearby it.
Niagara fall is also in the consideration, since its pretty near. Was looking at some travel forums and they suggest the Canadian side of niagara fall is better, so will look into it.

At the moment the plan will be detroit - niagara - boston - new york - phili - washington - ohio. May omit one of the city to do a road trip to either Charlottesville area or New England area. Any other areas of interest worth visiitng? How's the road conditions like in US, have a driving license however haven been driving for quite some time.

For hikes, looking at probably short day hike at the moment

 

[Telur17]

Will look into the parks, looks not too bad.

within the cities, think no need to rent a car. the public transportation is generally v good.

another place to consider is the high line. not a standard nature trek but v nice walk.

Maps | Friends of the High Line

 

[patryn33]

The conference in detroit is at Cobo Center, so will probably book an accomodation nearby it.
Niagara fall is also in the consideration, since its pretty near. Was looking at some travel forums and they suggest the Canadian side of niagara fall is better, so will look into it.

At the moment the plan will be detroit - niagara - boston - new york - phili - washington - ohio. May omit one of the city to do a road trip to either Charlottesville area or New England area. Any other areas of interest worth visiitng? How's the road conditions like in US, have a driving license however haven been driving for quite some time.

For hikes, looking at probably short day hike at the moment

Canadian side of the Niagara is better but 1-2hr will do the trick, then head to the different wineries there. take some tour to educate and grab some cheap ice wines they can be 1/3 of the prices in DFS SG.
ie
Château des Charmes Wines | Château des Charmes
Peller Estates Winery
Inniskillin
Pillitteri Estates Winery Niagara Wine Country Tours & Tasting

U cannot throw away Detroit or Ohio (visiting GF).
Charlottesville, VA U will have to travel south kinda out of the way form the places U wanna visit.

from DC to Boston, U can hit Phily, NYC, New Haven.
New Haven, Boston all part of New England.

if u wanna do national park and day hike try acadia national park.
or closer to boston look at Cape Cod.. popular distination

if U're GF is at Ohio state or Case Western Reserve from there on the Turnpike alot of cops no speeding, its a easy drive just that it is toll roads. Ohio side that cash or Credit. Detroit roads are generally bad lot of pot holes. U don't want to drive in cities like NYC, Boston, Phily etc... alot of 1 way street. hard to find parking. traffic is nasty, U are better off on public transport

 

[xtwis7]

Florida for Disney World and Universal. Great place to be in during summer especially if you have teen kids.

 

[RoLanTo]

Some questions need help
which pre-paid card with data is good to use along francisco to LA to LV?
The AT&T gophone 60USD package, if install the sim on samsung phone, can i tether and share the data with my ipad?

driving along PCH.. u guys pay cash or use Singapore creditcard to pump petrol? sorry for noob questions

 

[Shiny Things]

Some questions need help
which pre-paid card with data is good to use along francisco to LA to LV?

AT&T has better coverage, but they probably won't sell it to you, the tightasses. T-Mobile is easier to get hooked up with, but their coverage is a bit dismal.

The AT&T gophone 60USD package, if install the sim on samsung phone, can i tether and share the data with my ipad?

Officially the GoPhone plans don't support tethering, but you might be able to jury-rig something. They won't send drones around to nuke you or anything.

driving along PCH.. u guys pay cash or use Singapore creditcard to pump petrol? sorry for noob questions

Singapore credit cards will work fine, though you might need to pay inside rather than at the pump.

Florida for Disney World and Universal. Great place to be in during summer especially if you have teen kids.

Mmm... I dunno, I disagree with this. Florida in winter and spring is the best time to go: Orlando in summer will be stinking hot, humid, and p!ssing down rain.

Wait, that's Singapore as well. Never mind.

(Seriously though - do Orlando in winter. Summer and autumn are hurricane season too, so you don't want to have that looming over your head.)

 

[rankief]

Hi all,
Im thinking of doing heli ride to grand canyon from vegas. Will be there in april.
Any recommendation to get good price?

 

[Shiny Things]

Hi all,
Im thinking of doing heli ride to grand canyon from vegas. Will be there in april.
Any recommendation to get good price?

Sniff around on things like SmarterVegas.com - they might have coupon codes - or ask the concierge at your hotel if they can hook you up. Concierges are da bomb, they know all the cool things to do, and they can basically get you anything your little heart desires (except hookers and blow, because those are illegal).

 

[rankief]

Sniff around on things like SmarterVegas.com - they might have coupon codes - or ask the concierge at your hotel if they can hook you up. Concierges are da bomb, they know all the cool things to do, and they can basically get you anything your little heart desires (except hookers and blow, because those are illegal).

Great! Thanks for reply.

How about car rental recommendation for pick up from vegas, return at LA?

Also should i get rent their GPS?

I would prefer to use my mobile google map, thinkin it will be better to find a data sim card, put it into my huawei mobile wifi. Is this going to work?

Any maps to share for self-drive to death valley??
Am planning to stay till pretty 8/9Pm for stargazing. Is it safe to drive back to vegas at night?


Sorry for the list of qns.

 

[urban_closet]

These guys - Xanterra.com - run the lodging for a bunch of national parks, including Yellowstone, Death Valley, and Grand Canyon.

These guys - YosemitePark.com - run the lodging for Yosemite.

This is fantastic dude. Using it for Yosemite. Don't see much to stay @ in Death Valley though. Thinking of giving it a miss for a night's stay and instead heading on to Sequoia

 

[Shiny Things]

On a totally unrelated note, this Mental Floss piece is pretty great (and alarmingly accurate, except for the bit about sticking to the speed limit): 10 travel tips for Japanese people traveling to America.

 

[Shiny Things]

This is fantastic dude. Using it for Yosemite. Don't see much to stay @ in Death Valley though. Thinking of giving it a miss for a night's stay and instead heading on to Sequoia

Nah, Sequoia will be just as bad, and there's really not a lot on the road between Death Valley and Sequoia (Bakersfield's a bit of a sh!thole, don't stay there if you can avoid it). And it's a six-hour drive from Furnace Creek (in Death Valley) to Sequoia, so you don't want to do that at the end of a long day of Death Valleying.

What dates are you looking in Death Valley? Make sure you check the Furnace Creek Ranch and the Furnace Creek Resort; if there's no accommodation at either of those, then I guess you can check Bakersfield.

 

[Shiny Things]

How about car rental recommendation for pick up from vegas, return at LA?

Hertz or Avis. Get a Ford Mustang. (All of the really hot stuff - Corvettes, Porsches, etc - can't be rented one-way.)

Also should i get rent their GPS?

I would prefer to use my mobile google map, thinkin it will be better to find a data sim card, put it into my huawei mobile wifi. Is this going to work?

Google Maps will work, but there's big dead patches on your route which will have no mobile reception. Spend the $50 or so to get the Navigon GPS app for your iDevice or Android - it has full offline maps and it's pretty good. And it's cheaper than the crappy-ass GPS clunkers you get from the rental-car companies.

Any maps to share for self-drive to death valley??

Here you go.

Am planning to stay till pretty 8/9Pm for stargazing. Is it safe to drive back to vegas at night?

It's safe, but... it's going to be a giant pain in the ass. If you leave Furnace Creek at nine, you'll be driving for two hours along winding, hilly desert roads with nothing to see but the stars and the road in front of you, and god help you if you're low on gas.

Better to stay in Furnace Creek for a night. See below re: the Furnace Creek Ranch and Furnace Creek Resort.

(That said, if you're going in summer, all this advice is off - if you're going to be there between June and August, just skip Death Valley entirely.)

 

[rankief]

It's safe, but... it's going to be a giant pain in the ass. If you leave Furnace Creek at nine, you'll be driving for two hours along winding, hilly desert roads with nothing to see but the stars and the road in front of you, and god help you if you're low on gas.

Better to stay in Furnace Creek for a night. See below re: the Furnace Creek Ranch and Furnace Creek Resort.

(That said, if you're going in summer, all this advice is off - if you're going to be there between June and August, just skip Death Valley entirely.)

I will be going in end april.
i will be leaving for LA the next day, was thinking if it will be better to leave death valley and head towards LA (maybe stop by somewhere for a night), instead of going back to Vegas.

Any idea? is there be a good a nice and cheap place to sleep over between death valley and LA. (not planning to spend a night at furnace creek)

thanks!

 

[urban_closet]

Nah, Sequoia will be just as bad, and there's really not a lot on the road between Death Valley and Sequoia (Bakersfield's a bit of a sh!thole, don't stay there if you can avoid it). And it's a six-hour drive from Furnace Creek (in Death Valley) to Sequoia, so you don't want to do that at the end of a long day of Death Valleying.

What dates are you looking in Death Valley? Make sure you check the Furnace Creek Ranch and the Furnace Creek Resort; if there's no accommodation at either of those, then I guess you can check Bakersfield.

I'm looking to drive through Death Valley, and instead make my pit stop @ Mammoth Lakes.

2N @ Mammoth Lakes, drive up and around Yosemite Park then continue on to Napa Valley.

Is that feasible?

 

[stonedx]

after reading through the forum and getting so much help from all you guys and esp shiny thing.

Can someone do a quick check on my plan.

I will be renting a car throughout my whole trip.

Day 1 - Morning flight reached LA. Staying near west hollywood. Head down to Walk of Fame for a walk. Night: Beverly Hills, F&E

Day 2 - hollywood sign, farmers market and walt disney concert hall

Day 3 - Venice Beach / Santa Monica Pier / Getty. Start drive to yosemite with stopover at Fresno.

Day 4 - From fresno to Yosemite. Staying overnight at yosemite

Day 5 - From Yosemite embark on the journey to Las Vegas with stopover at bishop. I willl be using the Tioga road and the route recommended by shiny thing (ROUTE: CA-120-E (the Tioga Pass, E for Eastbound), to US-395-S (southbound) to CA-168-E to NV-266-E to US-95-S to Las Vegas.) Stopover at Bishop for the night.

Day 6 - reached LV in the afternoon. F&E.

Day 7 - LV strip etc. + some shopping

Day 8 - Grand Canyon. Stay near Grand Canyon South rim cos want to go antelope the next morning.

Day 9 - Antelope and then back to LV.

Day 10 - Flight back to singapore.

Some question: do I need a 4 wheel drive for the route to grand canyon / antelope canyon. Anyone with experience to antelope / grand canyon care to share? I still haven really decide on my grand canyon south rim yet.

Thanks!

 

[Shiny Things]

I will be going in end april.
i will be leaving for LA the next day, was thinking if it will be better to leave death valley and head towards LA (maybe stop by somewhere for a night), instead of going back to Vegas.

Any idea? is there be a good a nice and cheap place to sleep over between death valley and LA. (not planning to spend a night at furnace creek)

thanks!

You should seriously consider spending the night at Furnace Creek. You're right that you don't want to go back to Vegas (that's doubling back), but there's really nowhere nice to stay between there and LA.

Look at the map: Furnace Creek to Los Angeles is three hundred miles of nothingness. Stay in Furnace Creek and you'll have had an experience that you'll never forget (plus you'll be able to go out and star-gaze all night).

If you absolutely can't take no for an answer, take the south road out of Death Valley and push on three hours to Barstow. It's a bit of a hole, and it's in the middle of nowhere, and there's nothing to do, but it's the only sensible stop between Furnace Creek and LA.

 

[Shiny Things]

I'm looking to drive through Death Valley, and instead make my pit stop @ Mammoth Lakes.

2N @ Mammoth Lakes, drive up and around Yosemite Park then continue on to Napa Valley.

Is that feasible?

I'd do two nights in Yosemite rather than Mammoth Lakes. Don't forget you can't do this route until the Tioga Pass opens (which will be sometime between mid-May and early June).

 

[Shiny Things]

Day 4 - From fresno to Yosemite. Staying overnight at yosemite

Day 5 - From Yosemite embark on the journey to Las Vegas with stopover at bishop. I willl be using the Tioga road and the route recommended by shiny thing (ROUTE: CA-120-E (the Tioga Pass, E for Eastbound), to US-395-S (southbound) to CA-168-E to NV-266-E to US-95-S to Las Vegas.) Stopover at Bishop for the night.

Mentioned this already in previous posts, but this will only work when the Tioga Pass is open (so after mid-May). If that doesn't work, you'll need to head south to Bakersfield, spend the night there, and then keep going to LA.

Day 9 - Antelope and then back to LV.

This is going to be a very tough day's drive. Antelope Canyon is two hours east of Grand Canyon Village - the wrong way from Las Vegas - so when you're done you'll have to drive six hours back to get to Las Vegas. Eight hours of the day in the car isn't going to leave you much time for Antelope Canyon.

Some question: do I need a 4 wheel drive for the route to grand canyon / antelope canyon. Anyone with experience to antelope / grand canyon care to share?

You need a tour guide - you can't visit Antelope Canyon by yourself any more. In fact I'd delete Antelope from your itinerary - just head back from GCV to Las Vegas on day 9.

You don't need a 4WD for any of the rest of it. Get yourself a Mustang.

 

[patryn33]

Some question: do I need a 4 wheel drive for the route to grand canyon / antelope canyon. Anyone with experience to antelope / grand canyon care to share? I still haven really decide on my grand canyon south rim yet.

Thanks!

No need 4 wheel drive, if I doing a lot of shopping get a bigger car. 2 ppl at least mid size, 4 ppl consider mini van or full size SUV. Single get a corvette it's drives better than a mustang but they are more costly for a good reason.

The 2 families I recommend to go antelope last yr enjoyed it.
It's pretty but not as impressive compared to Grand Canyon. Compare to Niagara it's better. U flew over 16 hrs and drove so much I would just visit. Ppl into photography love the spot.