HiWell we have done it. We have bought a fifth wheeler and a Toyota Tundra and in April next year my wife and I begin the first of three 6 month tours of the USA.We would be grateful for any advice re campgrounds and what passes to buy for campground discounts. Also what sites are mandatory. We will start in New Hampshire and want to see NY, Washington, Florida Keys , New Orleans . Also on the list are of course the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone. Your advices re must sees most welcome. We are interested in the Civil war, Oregon trail We are experienced motorhomers and are just finishing a three year stint through Europe in our Mercedes Sprinter. If anyone requires any information on Europe - happy to help.Our rig will be stored in NH during the Northern winter as we scuttle back to NZLook forward to hearing from forum membersPeter

Hi Peter,When you get to Oregon or Washington please give us a call. (360.520.5631 cell#). We would be happy to assist you seeing the sights in the Pacific Northwest!Be safe,Keith

You will want the $80 Annual Interagency Pass which lets you enter any national parks for no additional cost and gives a 50% discount on federal campgrounds:NPS PassYou can buy it at the first park that you visit or order it ahead of time using that link.Most federal campgrounds (nation parks(NPS), national forests, bureau of land management(BLM) and other federal agencies) run their reservation systems thru this website:Recreation.govThe one major exception is the Yosemite Park reservation system which is run on a lottery system five months in advance of the date you want to camp during. Unless you are in country five months early your chances probably drop significantly. Even if you are here the odds are poor. For any other major parks the sooner you make reservations the more likely you are to get them. Yellowstone for example.Washington DC gets to be very hot during the summer, so I suggest trying to get there are early in your vacation as possible. I doubt you will be acclimated to summer temperatures in DC which can hit 30-35 deg C. The most recommended campground is Cherry Hill in Maryland. And then ride public transportation into DC from there. You do not want to drive your vehicle into DC and that advise applies to any other major city in the US. Boston and New York City for example. Once you get out of the NE many of the big cities do not have public transport so you will have no choice but to drive into the city centers. Do not pull your fifth wheel into those city centers off of the Interstate highway system. Find somewhere on the outskirts to camp.Probably the best general route for you to follow would be I-95 south into Florida and then I-75 north to I-10 and follow that west to New Mexico where you'll probably want to get on other roads at that point.As for National Battle Fields. Gettysburg is the best one available. There are many others all thru the south. For the Revolutionary War, Minute Man National Historical Park in Concord Massachusetts is the one to see. There are other parks of that period scattered around the northeastern states.There are thousands of places to see in the US so we need a better idea of what you are looking for before detailed recommendations can be given. I'd get a good guide to US National Parks and read that to give you a better idea. I think you'll have some difficulty getting used to the shear size of the US. It takes most of a week to drive from Florida to California for example. And that is without a lot of sightseeing during the trip.

get the app: truckerpath for your smart phone/tablet when you get here, it will prove to be most helpful to you with truck stops, rest areas, and all things related to travel on the road throughout the USA. You can pre order a campground directory from 'Campingworld.com' now and peruse it at your leisure before you arrive and start you travels.

You'll be doing yourself a disservice if you don't spend some time up here with your Commonwealth partners, lots to see and do north of the 49th.Tim & Jo

Wow Thank you all so far. We are currently in Spain and it is 35C and our van, does not have a/c except when we are moving. So used to the heat as much as we can!!!!Maybe we will have to take 5 years.!!!Thanks againPeter

Kiwis visiting USA | Good Sam Community

thomas201
Explorer
Sep 09, 2015
For the Civil War, do you want to see the battlefields, or do want to see the re-enactments? The internet is your best friend, I would add Arlington as a must see part of the Civil War. Hundreds of small battles and skirmishes fought close to the Mason Dixon line.

As others have said, find a campground, then make daytrips until you see all of the interesting things in an area. Always talk to the park rangers and volunteers, they will give you clues to the best things to see, and where to go next. Many of them have transferred from one park to another.

welcome and enjoy, plus please visit Maine, one of my favorites.
bigdon68
Explorer
Sep 03, 2015
You may want to visit Harpers Ferry, WV. The KOA is a great place to stay. Fantastic Civil War history with Antietam Battlefield nearby. If you ever happen to be near Antietam on the first Saturday in December you absolutely have to go see their Memorial Illumination. AntietamThey place a candle on the battlefield for each soldier killed, wounded or missing. There are over 23,000 candles. It is absolutely unbelievable !!
Enjoy the USA. We do.

bigdon68
Maryland
Senior_Kiwi
Explorer
Sep 03, 2015
Hi

We live on the Coromandel Peninsula about 20km north of Whitianga. Loved Canada and spent two nice holidays skiing BC .
Senior_Kiwi
Explorer
Sep 03, 2015
shepstone wrote:
Senior Kiwi wrote:
Hi

Well we have done it. We have bought a fifth wheeler and a Toyota Tundra and in April next year my wife and I begin the first of three 6 month tours of the USA.

We would be grateful for any advice re campgrounds and what passes to buy for campground discounts. Also what sites are mandatory. We will start in New Hampshire and want to see NY, Washington, Florida Keys , New Orleans . Also on the list are of course the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone. Your advices re must sees most welcome. We are interested in the Civil war, Oregon trail

We are experienced motorhomers and are just finishing a three year stint through Europe in our Mercedes Sprinter. If anyone requires any information on Europe - happy to help.

Our rig will be stored in NH during the Northern winter as we scuttle back to NZ

Look forward to hearing from forum members

Peter

Whereabouts in NZ are you from ? I am from Rotorua myself but have been in Canada since the 70"s
blacktop
Explorer
Sep 03, 2015
Just curious, which model 5th wheel are you pulling? I'm guessing that a lot other member on this forum would also like to know. Any pictures?
I at one time had a 23ft Arctic fox 5th that I pulled with a Tundra. At 6500 lbs I was pretty near my max, but the truck pulled well through
both the US and Canadian rockies.
blacktop
Explorer
Sep 03, 2015
I can tell you a little about New York City, since I've lived there most of my life and even drove a yellow taxi there for awhile. The best way is to avoid the horrendous traffic and leave your truck behind. A handy campground to do this is; http://blackbearcampground.com/
It's an hour's drive north of the big city. But that would be in a perfect world.
It's far better to take the tour bus that leaves from the campground. Manhattan is truly wondrous, but go with a plan which I'm sure you would do for any other place you go. A neat way to get a feel for the city is to take the red open air buses that goes down Broadway from mid-town through Grenwich Village, China town and Wall Street to the South Ferry. You can hop on and off the bus route anywhere at will with a day pass. Discount tickets for the Broadway plays can be bought at 47th and Bdy at the kiosk.
shepstone
Explorer
Sep 02, 2015
Senior Kiwi wrote:
Hi

Well we have done it. We have bought a fifth wheeler and a Toyota Tundra and in April next year my wife and I begin the first of three 6 month tours of the USA.

We would be grateful for any advice re campgrounds and what passes to buy for campground discounts. Also what sites are mandatory. We will start in New Hampshire and want to see NY, Washington, Florida Keys , New Orleans . Also on the list are of course the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone. Your advices re must sees most welcome. We are interested in the Civil war, Oregon trail

We are experienced motorhomers and are just finishing a three year stint through Europe in our Mercedes Sprinter. If anyone requires any information on Europe - happy to help.

Our rig will be stored in NH during the Northern winter as we scuttle back to NZ

Look forward to hearing from forum members

Peter

Whereabouts in NZ are you from ? I am from Rotorua myself but have been in Canada since the 70"s
Ivylog
Explorer III
Sep 02, 2015
Here are my favorite sites for finding CGs that I have book marked in order:

http://www.uscampgrounds.info/ ... my favorite site for Public CGs.
http://www.allstays.com/Campgrounds/ ...For Private and Public... they have a APP
http://www.passportamerica.com/ ...50% off Private CGs but many with lots of restrictions.
http://www.casinocamper.com/rv-parking-locations free casinos..
http://freecampsites.net/ ... free or very little $$

Agree the SE is best seen when it's cooler... Fla is best in our winter.

Unless you have free storage in NH, it's a long way from there to the SW... 2500 miles. CA and the NW are 3000 miles ($500+ in gas one way). Flying from LA to Boston is more expensive than LA to say Phoenix.

Other than long stays in Fla in the winter we do not make reservations because the above sites make it possible to find plenty of places to stay without advanced reservations. Sounds like another great adventure.
Senior_Kiwi
Explorer
Sep 02, 2015
Hi

Many thanks for all the responses. We are digesting them and working on our schedule.

We have bought a small, light fifth wheeler so the tundra should handle it. If not we can change.

Thanks again

Peter
Veebyes
Explorer II
Aug 31, 2015
As a non US citizen the discount pickins are slim. You can get the National Parks entrance fee card, buy individual state annual passes which vary as to what you get & get the Passport America & Good Sam memberships. You can also get the various discount cards at grocery store chains & truck stop chains.

Have fun. We bought ours thinking that 3 years would satisfy that travel itch. That was in 2007. We are still at it over 150,000 miles & 1500 nights on the road later.

The US & Canada are huge places to see. Take the time to soak it all up.

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