any americans that can help me please?

hi, i'm michael, i'm 24 from the U.K. i need some info and help from people in the states. i'm afraid i'm not getting the info i need.

basically i want to do a tour of the states but all the holiday shops here want to do is sell me package holidays and expensives doo daas which is not what i want!

i plan to spend between 80-90 days touring (visa-free) during the summer visiting and staying in various cities in different states. i plan to meet people, make friends, get to know the city and economy, check out jobs, as i'm thinking of living there. its really checking out the places to see which would be the best place for me.

i plan to take an economy flight to new york, with an open ended ticket, so if i finish my tour early or start running out of money, i can head on back to new york and home. i'll need a good reliable hire car or pickup capable of doing a tour of the states.

in each city i plan to stay at a motel, up to 3 -6 days depending on what's going on, ie: concerts, car shows if any, events. so i'm looking for average prices of motels.

the cities i'm going to see, in order are:

bangor
chicago
minneapolis
seatle
san francisco
los angeles
pheonix
roswell
new orleans
miami
alanta
washington dc
new york

then head on home.

can someone give me an idea of mileage i'll be doing from city to city. probably have to add a bit for other places i'll visit along the way

financing. i got money but what is the average costs of living for a young adult a week. that includes food and toiletries, plus entertainment costs like movies, ten pin bowling sort of stuff. its so i can work out a better plan to make sure i get the most out of this trip.

i'll get a company to arrange my flights and car, but everything else, i'll be on my own. yes, i'll be on my own. sadly theres no-one special in my life at the moment but i guess this is a one man thing, something i'd like to do myself.

everyone who helps, i'll make sure we meet up and i'll buy you a beer or two!:flash:

Well, if you were to be stopping in Salt Lake City, I could give you some ideas, and help you with a hotel room, via some connections. But it doesnt look like we are on your list. :cool: Hopefully someone from those areas will pipe up.

Sounds like a fun trip! I took a motorcycle trip from NC to CA and back in 1987. Stopped in Augusta, GA for the Masters. Then New Orleans for a week, a week in El Paso, TX and on to LA, San Diego, and headed back East. It took 8 weeks from start to finish and I didn't budget very well! I started out partying like hell, eating in nice restaurants and staying in nice hotels and ended up eating soup out of a can and sleeping on picnic tables at rest areas.

I realize that doesn't really answer your question, I just felt like sharing!:sun:

Some of the cities on your list are pretty expensive! If Iwere planning a trip like that, I probably budget $100.00 per day for a room, meals, gas and entertainment. You could probably get by on less. And you could CERTAINLY spend more!! Just all in what you want!

My bro did a tour of the states useing one way rental car deliverys. Basicly companies wanting a car delivered to another city let him take it for free. All he had to do was pay for the gas.

Just an idea you might want to check out.

okay i'll try to help you out a bit!

i rented a van last september 300 bux unlimited mileage, for about a week
gas is about...1.35 a gallon of hi-test(93) that's all i put in my cars....
if you can live on mcdonalds and taco bell you can eat for about 5 bux a meal
i stayed in a motel off of I-95 around savannah last september for about 35-40 bux a night
movies 6-7 bux, 4.50 for a matinee here
bowling? last time i went it was 3 bux for shoes, 3 bux per game
hope that helps...I know this isnt all correct for every place here....lakeland is kinda hole in the wall for being between 2 of the largest cities in Florida(Tampa/Orlando)
let me know if you get a chance to pass thru here! Shawn(shadowboy) and myself wouldn't mind meeting a fellow AFer!

down here in miami its pretty cheap to get by. it shouldnt cost you more then $65.00 a day

San Fransisco isn't going to be cheap for hotels, unless you go outside of the city about 30 minutes, which is actually a really nice area. L.A. can vary soooo much depending on where you are. If you are in a crappy area of town (there are plenty) then you can get a cheap motel, but venture into a more upclass area and you are going to be paying a LOT of money, places like that vary a lot. Basically all big cities have their nice, expensive areas and their crummier, cheap areas. I suggest you find a travel agent or get in contact with a towns visitor's center (well, something that can give you info) and find out good areas to visit, good CHEAP places to stay, and activities to attend. If you just shoot from the hip and hope to find everything by chance, you may end up in places you don't want to be.

you're skipping texas??!?!?!!?!?

That's what I'm saying. Texs is a country all in it's own.

dude, i was gonna say the same thing?!?!?! wzup with that Mr. British man?? if you've done any kind of extensive research on where you want to live in the states, you better stop by Dallas, Houston, Austin or San Antonio bro....your missin out

i will be visiting other places, the places that i mentioned were my main stops. along the way i shall see other places so don't worry if i haven't mentioned your town/city!;)

i've got a maxinum of 90 days so i'll try and see as much as i can. the cities i've mentioned are ones i know more about so thats probably why i'm keen to make a stop there.

keep sending me your info as they really do help. are there any rentals that do older cars? i quite fancy a '89 camero rs iroc!

what about the one way rentals? is there a time limit on these vehicles or what? any info greatly apprehiated!
:)

i thought roswell was in texas!

roswell is in New Mexico which is next to Texas.

i must have a dodgy map then cos my map shows roswell inside the texas border. i'll be driving thru texas anyway so where should i visit in texas?

i'm looking forward to minnesota,california, maine cos i've seen good stuff on the net. also keen to see the art deco houses on the beaches in miami.

roswell is definitely not in Texas. you should definitely go to San Antonio. it is Texas' biggest tourist city, and i live there:) check out the Alamo, the Riverwalk, and tons more. Dallas, Austin, and Houston are cool too. you could take a 90 day trip to Texas alone!!

ok, i've sorted out the money side, converting and stuff. so here goes.

i want to spend between 80 -90 days touring.

my budget is $3000, (thats $1000 for 30 days,) is that going to take care of accomodation, food and travelling?

my flight will cost $480 but i may be able to get it less nearer the time. i can't fix any dates as in march i shall be in france and spain for 3 months, possibly longer, then head home to england for a week or two before setting off to the states.

anyone know any web sites for one way rentals and coach prices. i am looking on the web myself but i'm more likely to get a better response from people who's actually used these services.

my offer of a beer is still on!

i'd like to stay for more than 90 days but its visa free, any longer i gotta aply for a vistor or working visa. (btw i'm a panel beater!!):D

whoa! only $1000 for 30 days :eek: :eek:

that's gunna be tough, when we went to New York last year, we spent that much in about 3 days

Hotels in New York are REALLY expensive...

whoa! only $1000 for 30 days

I was thinkin the same thing! You may want to search for Hostels and
YMCA's and consider traveling by Greyhound. Not saying it can't be done on your budget... just that it won't be easy to do!!
Last hotel room I had in NY city was $150.00 per night and it was
SMALL!!!

well the $1000 in english money is reasonable living costs here, so i thought it may be same, possibly cheaper. but from what you're telling me it seems that may not be the case.

i do plan to use motels, and bed and breakfasts (if you have those) not hotels, and i'd rather stay away from ymca's, damm those village people. bad image!!

although i'll visit cities, i'll shall most probably stay in much smaller places outside of the city. this is all i'm trying to find out. i may have to reduce it to about 60 days if i have to.

anybody got a spare room for a night or two for a fellow af user?:D

also where can i find monster trucks?:D :D :D

well I have a couch :)

and the monster truck show came thru here last weekend...I almost went....good crashes!

I think Bigfoot resides in St.Louis Missouri...at least thats where I saw it oh...12 years ago :D

couches are fine!

anyone got a listing of car shows, custom, hot rods, pro/street etc for the summer season?

would it be cheaper to by meself a cheapo pickup or van and use that as transport. camp out in the back?:p

i will be attending some VeeDub events...and some other Import events...Im not big into the hot-rod scene....


and it prolly would be cheeper to get a van and live outta it....

would be uncomfortable too if you ask me..........

i can handle it. maybe it is an option i could consider. what else do i need ie: forms of id, to obtain insurance over there? if i get a cheap van or something i want to be legal:p

again, i'm searching but the best info is gonna come from you guys!:)

it might be cheaper to buy a runabout and get insured than getting a brand new rental motor. :confused:

Im not sure of the insurance thing....

a freind of mine just moved here from England, she married another good freind of mine and bought a car, she's the only one of the 2 that drove at that time, also she rented a car while she visited him for a few weeks once...though, I'm not sure of the in's and out's of how that came about.

I know for sure you can rent a vehicle but the buying thing Im not so sure about....maybe call a government office over here? I'm guessing on that of course.

Check out the Petersen Automotive Museum in L.A. :) Right now they have a Shelby exhibit, featuring one of the Daytona Cobras. :eek:

Look here for car shows:
http://www.carshownews.com/

Let me know when you'll be in SoCal; I may be able to get you into a major theme park for free, if you're interested. ;)

i dont know too much info on prices and all, but a few suggestions for you, you should definatly visit boston, its such a beautiful city, and also when down in miami you might be able to save some money by staying in ft. lauderdale. only a 20-30 minute drive to miami, and theres lots of great things to see here too.

i shall be visiting boston on my way to bangor, maine. i will see other places, just theres a lotta places to mention!! so don't worry if your town/city isn't mentioned.

Originally posted by mentalmickey
i shall be visiting boston on my way to bangor, maine. i will see other places, just theres a lotta places to mention!! so don't worry if your town/city isn't mentioned.


Like I said before. If you have any plans of hitting Utah, I can help you out. Food, lodging, transportation, etc.

great, whereabouts in utah are you? i'll put you on my list in big letters!!:wave:

got my first tourist guide and leaflets today for california.

my budget has been set at $3000. i have a maximum of 90 days so i'll start off with that and if i start running out of money i can always cut the trip short.

to save money i'll backpack some states, and if i can do a couple of one way rentals, i'll do that too if i can. can anyone tell me how many bags can i take on a greyhound or the coaches. i don't want to turn up with a load of bags only to find they won't let me on! i'll just have a big rusksac and a big holdall. if i buy any stuff, i'll have to send it back to the UK so i don't have to lugg it around.

what does the law say about hitching lifts? i'll try and avoid this if i can but just want to know if its safe or legal, that sort of stuff, if i have to.

how much are the launderettes? i'll need to wash me clothes. which states do people legally carry guns? i'll need to know as they make me feel uneasy.:(

i have more questions but i'm at a blank now, when i remember i'll write them down so i don't forget next time.

oh, if i'm backpacking is there any places i should avoid, (ie from being mugged.) i'm using up all my finances/savings (what's left of it) for this trip of a lifetime and want it to be a good holiday.

again, if anyone could put me up for a nite or two, or simply meet up for a beer or two, or have a game of ten pin bowling, a lift, a rock concert or the movies. it'll be far better than being on my own!:)