I know variations of this have been asked in the past but here goes:We are in the initial stages of planning a cross country trip from NC to CA and back. Something we've always wanted to do. We have a few points on the list thus far : Nashville, (we may pick up a family member in Tampa), Tempe (to visit family), Grand Canyon, Redwood forest CA, Yosemite, etc. I know that's pretty generic and light itinerary but like I said we are in the initial stages and we plan to add a few more stops. Son is 13 so most of this is for his benefit. Although we seek out more natural landmarks than entertainment ones. In generic terms, how long should we give ourselves for a trip of this nature? I have a job so I can't more than 2 - maybe 3 weeks. Some have said you need that and more, but was thinking on the lines of 2 weeks. I'd rather not travel more than 6 hrs a day, and at least a day rest at destinations. Is this feasible? 6 hours a day at 60 mph = 360 miles. The 2800 coast to coast would take 7 days each way. So the drive alone would take 2 weeks. I originally thought planning a trip like this would be easy , but it's not. Balancing length of travel days, places you want to see and enough time to see them while on a tighter schedule is not as easy as I thought. Likewise we don't have much freedom on time of year either as we would need to take advantage of the summer school break. Any advise on overall planning or must have sites to see would be helpful.

Personally, I'd skip California. That state is an entire 3 week vacation itself. We go from Ohio to Texas, Arizona, Colorado and everything in between in about 3 weeks. Try to stay off the interstates, stick to the state highways. You'll have no problems with fuel and rest areas plus you'll see so much more of the country this way. Small and mid sized American towns are worth the detour. Depending on your route I'd say you should find the four corners, drive across Colorado on route 160, see the Iowa Freedom Rock, while your in Iowa stop at the I-80 truck stop in Walcott IA, supposed to be the largest truck stop in the US. Plus there are many road side attractions to see along the way. Have a safe and fun trip

Effy,Just to help you plan, I have found that we average about 50 mph when travelling. Sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. But with construction, traffic, fuel stops, etc., the 50 mph is usually a good guide (for Interstate & Highway travel). You only want to travel 6 hours per day, so that's about 300 miles per day. Using those numbers, you have about a 9 day trip to get to California directly, and then another 9 days back. In other words, 2 1/2 weeks just traveling, and that doesn't include a detour to Tampa, which would probably add another 2 days or so. Two or three months...sure. Two or three weeks? I think you need to reassess your goals and travel plans. I understand about planning around the summer school vacation schedule. Is this because you or your spouse is a teacher, or because you will be travelling with children? (On edit: Oops, just reread that your 13 y.o. son wil be with you. If he's a video game fiend, than he'll be happy as long as he has games. :) ) With younger children, you'll probably want to take even more frequent breaks along the way, and I'd plan a "down day" every two days to get them out of the RV for a spell. It just makes the entire trip more enjoyable. I've been trying to plan a similar trip with our family within a 6 week window and it's tough, and we're not including Florida or any East Coast points in the trip. We are a bit further north & east, of course. Recently wifey has been getting time driving the rig and the kids are old enough to be navigators, so we're hoping to be able to spend 12-18 or more hours on the road on some days. That will probably make it doable. But limiting yourself to about 300 miles per day won't even get you through of some states in a day! Not like up north here were we can see 6 states in a 300 mile round trip...almost! LOL :)Good Luck,~Rick

2 week is 14 days.On an average, you (Might) travel 50 miles an hour (really! I'm not kidding).6 hours a day driving time??? well, here's the math:6 hours a day (times) 50 miles a day (times) 14 days equals 4200 miles.So from Winston-Salem, NC to Los Angeles, CA (According to Bing Maps) is 2440.1 miles. Actual driving time: 36.15 hours. You could drive the distance round trip in 12 days averaging 50 mph. BUT ... you'll be exhausted and when you get to the points of interest, you won't be able to spend time there. Oh you can buzz by at 50 mph and say that you saw it. But what do you want ... to just see it, or to "experience" it. Get out, meet the local people, learn the local culture, customs, history. If you really want to make this an experience, you need more time, or a shorter distance. If you could travel one day, park and visit the next day, and third day travel to the next spot, park the 4th day to explore again, you will find the trip much more enjoyable and meaningful.So the question is, are go going for the drive, just so say you did it, or are you going so you can actually enjoy it and really get something out of it. If the second choice, you need more time!

So maybe we make drive time variable in order to meet the next destination. maybe it's 8-10 hrs, one day at destination etc. The last thing I want to do is rush and not see what we want to see, but at the same time I don't want to spend 12 hours in the saddle every day either.

As an example for us next year we're leaving western New York going to Mass, and then down to Tampa Fl. It'll take us 2 1/2 months to do this trip. IF you hammer it hard straight to Ca. you might have 3-4 days to spend out there and then HAMMER IT HARD to get back home on a 2 week vacation. Realistic on a 2 week vacation at most I might consider exploring New England, or other places EAST of the Mississippi.

Planning Cross country trip | Good Sam Community

32 Replies

tegu69
Explorer
Feb 05, 2017
NC, possibly to Tampa, then Nashville ? If I had to pay for a plane ticket myself for the family member to meet somewhere, it would probably be cheaper and save you some time for the rest of the trip. Plenty to see around GC and Utah as others have said.
dgminer
Explorer
Feb 05, 2017
Last year we did California to the Smoky mts and back, took a total of 6 weeks and we felt rushed at times. Did a lot of 300+ mile days, this year looking to do Utah, Yellowstone and back, 7 week no more than 200 miles a day with a lot of stops its better not to try to pack too much into a trip, you want to have fun
aviator
Explorer
Feb 05, 2017
Effy,

We purchased our first RV in 1968. We have driven to and from Alaska five times. Crossed the country many times. We are in our thirteenth year of fulltime. I know time is of the essence, but believe me your family will enjoy the trip if it is not rushed. I would not attempt this in less than six weeks. Get the 13 year old into the planning effort, he should enjoy travel for many more years. Thirteen years old is too young to not be in family activities. You want this to be memorable in a happy way not the other.
two_travelers
Explorer
Feb 03, 2017
Agree with others who have posted that 2 -3 weeks is not enough. You'll spend the whole time driving and not seeing anything. We did an around the US trip and took 3 months and covered 8,000 miles. It's a great big country with lots to see. 50mph average is a good number.
Skyfarmer
Explorer
Feb 03, 2017
Drive all night on interstates if you want to make it to Cali. After Grand Canyon, go up to Moab, Utah and see Arches/Canyonlands, then down to Bryce and Zion. Then over to Yosemite. You'll be exhausted though. On your way back stop in Memphis to see Graceland if you're an Elvis fan! I understand the "avoid the interstate" thing, but on your timeline, nothing like setting the cruise and just driving.
msmith1199
Explorer II
Jan 31, 2017
I'm a driver and there is nothing I love more than to be out on the road in my motorhome. But having said that, there is very little chance I'd plan a cross-county and back trip to be done in two weeks. I once went from California to Oshkosh Wisconsin and back and we did that in two weeks. But even then we left California on a Thursday after work and pulled into Oshkosh on Sunday around noon doing nothing but driving and sleeping all the way. We went to the airshow for a few days and then over the next week and a couple of days worked our way back to California through South Dakota and Wyoming.

If I wanted to go coast to coast and actually see things along the way, I wouldn't do it unless I had at least four weeks, probably more. If I only had two weeks and I wanted to actually stop and see things, versus seeing things out of the front windshield, I probably would stay within 1000 miles of my start point. Probably make a big circle.
Busskipper
Explorer
Jan 31, 2017
Effy wrote:
Thanks everyone for the well thought out suggestions............... Time to head West as I have only been to AZ once on business and my son has never been at all and really wants to see the grand canyon and parts of UT. (I would love to bike slick rock).

Again I wanted to sincerely thank everyone for your responses. Nothing snide or critical just a bunch of well thought out and helpful comments.

Having done what you are trying to do and Owning- Running my own Business - I was always in the same predicament (N0 Time in the Summer) but we made enough trips by Plane or RV that one son now lives in Colorado - so it can be done - Son's first trip to the Grand Canyon was to the North Rim on the way to LA for his College Junior internship - June 1, 1999 6" of snow on the Red Rocks of the Grand Canyon - just BEAUTIFUL - I still remember it like it was yesterday.

Couple of things to keep in mind - HOT - in the summer in Utah - Hotter in Arizona - (Hiking up in the Grand Canyon at 100 degrees + is unforgettable - but not memorable) - So look at including a little time at altitude to Cool Off. (San Juan's of Colorado stand out) Problem is there is just so much to see and so little time, so figure out how to stretch the time at the areas/locations you choose.

What does the Family enjoy when on these trips? Hikes? Bikes? Fishing? Swimming? Sitting? --- picking the right locations and weather for the Favorite activities will be critical to success.

With your toad you might be able to do some Mild 4x4 trails - Alpine Loop - and others in the area - name dropping Ouray - Telluride - Mesa Verde - Trout Lake - Silverton - Durango - Black Canyon of the Gunnison - Gunnison - Crested Butte - Buena Vista - Twin Lakes - .......................................... Utah - CGNP - Page - Lake Powell - Antelope Canyon - North Rim - Zion - Rt 12 -Kodachrome - Bryce - Goblins -.......................... I think you get the idea.

Continue the Quest for the Great RV Trip and keep us posted,
mike_brez
Explorer
Jan 31, 2017
Effy wrote:
I get it folks and I questioned the feasibility of this trip as we were talking about it as a family. I would love to allocate 3 mos but at this time I can't. At the same time I know my 13 yr old won't want to travel with us to see redwoods or the grand canyon much longer. Have to see if I can squeeze 3 weeks but my work is very demanding and it will be tough. That will also use up almost all my paid vacation for the year. But I get it.

Effy your kid(s) may surprise you. I have two boys 22&25. My older one lives and works in Vt near the Canadian border. If we are out camping and he has time off he meets us to camp with us. While we was living home he always had the choice of staying home or coming with us and he always wanted to go.
We were on a tight schedule two years ago and I wanted to see Tennessee. I did a marathon run from Ct to Pigeon Forge Tennessee non stop.
Effy
Explorer II
Jan 31, 2017
Thanks everyone for the well thought out suggestions. You have given me a lot to think about. I agree CA is probably out for this trip. Working the way I do we usually take "destination" trips so it's a mad rush, get there and stay put. So this is different in that we want to enjoy the trip as much as the destinations. I like the AZ,UT,CO circuit. We used to live in MD so we've pretty much exhausted the Smithsonian, Battlefields, caverns and mountains and beaches in the PA,MD,WV,VA area. Time to head West as I have only been to AZ once on business and my son has never been at all and really wants to see the grand canyon and parts of UT. (I would love to bike slick rock).

I am dying to go to No CA but I agree that perhaps CA, OR and WA are saved for another trip.

Again I wanted to sincerely thank everyone for your responses. Nothing snide or critical just a bunch of well thought out and helpful comments.
OutdoorPhotogra
Explorer
Jan 31, 2017
I've made three one-way cross country trips in conjunction with work relocations. All were coast to coast and I've taken the southern, middle, and northern routes. I had 2-3 weeks for one way trips. I agree your plan isn't doable but I think you realize that by now. I read the entire thread because I hate when folks post without reading other's suggestions. I was going to offer a similiar plan to busskipper.

Drive hard for two and a half days (including leaving after work) and then see AZ/CO/UT. From the Grand Canyon, you are at least another 14 hours to the Redwoods. Catch Grand Canyon, Four Corners, maybe time for Arches, pick and choose in CO.

Part of my rationale is you likely have seen or can see the Eastern States on another trip. Get to the West and enjoy a new part of the country. In the two cross-countries that I was towing and camping, I found two days hard driving was fine but then I needed a break. We did some half days of driving with tourism and 3-4 days at our National Park destinations. Some will say you can't do something like Yellowstone in 4 days but while working, it beats not going at all.

Have the family list ten destinations in a three state area and then compare lists. Maybe you can visit everyone's top choice and then negotiate from there. I think a day or two at the Grand Canyon is sufficient compared to Yosemite that needs 2-3 minimum (not this trip) and Yellowstone/Grand Teton where 4 is probably a minimum.

If you can get the search feature to work, there is a a lot of info on here from folk's planning posts and trip logs.