First extended trip help

[wjmblm]

I will be retiring this August and my wife has decided that she would like to see some of the United States. This will be our first long extended trip. Most of our trips have been within 200 miles of our home.
We will be leaving from our home on the central coast of California. We would like to stay a couple of days in each of these cities (Phoenix, San Antonio, New Orleans) ending up at Fort Wildness at WDW.
On the return trip home we would like to visit some civil war sites. We will be stopping by Carlsbad, Roswell (never know they might show up), Albuquerque then on home.
We are looking for suggestions, pointers, etc. for this trip. Places we should stop and see, etc. I am also looking from some type of cost for this trip. This is where I am hoping the more expressed travels can give me some help. We will be driving a 37 ft motorhome that gets 7 mpg. The cost of lodging, food, etc. would be greatly appreciated. I know this is a lot to all to ask but would help us in making our plans.
Thanks for any and all information,
William & Belinda Moore

PS: My wife wanted me to ask the ladies for any suggestions on her surviving this trip!

[bigred1cav]

It's gonna be hot!!! Aug in the south is why ac was invented. It is miserably hot. Take to the mountains, see Blue Ridge and try to stay less hot. Biltmore at Asheville is a nice day.

Florida? Rain every day at 2pm then the sweltering humidity will rise and knock you out. Run to mall. That's what the locals do. If you stay on a coat you'll get some relief from a sea breeze. Inland you'll just suffer.

My suggestion is go to Maine avoid the south until you're November trip back home. The great lakes hold 20% of the world's fresh water and any of the states bordering those are hot but bearable in Aug. Some fine harvest festivals and other events. WVa has some really funny ones: Road Kill festival is one Ramps is another.

How long do you have? My wife and I are thinking of a year or so out next year, 12/13 - 11/14 or so. Want to do the west then cut south and visit Grand Canyon.

Our 2000 Pace Arrow gets about 9 mpg consistently, on flat land 10/12 mpg at 55 mph. I set auto pilot at 55 and stay on it. I see no reason to go faster if I need to be there sooner I will leave earlier.

Be sure to check your tires I through a shoe in Pa couple years ago. Lot of tread just bad tire, old and on inside rear couldn't see it well. Kills a trip 6/8 hours down time waiting for tire truck to put new tire on.

wjmblm wrote:
I will be retiring this August and my wife has decided that she would like to see some of the United States. This will be our first long extended trip. Most of our trips have been within 200 miles of our home.
We will be leaving from our home on the central coast of California. We would like to stay a couple of days in each of these cities (Phoenix, San Antonio, New Orleans) ending up at Fort Wildness at WDW.
On the return trip home we would like to visit some civil war sites. We will be stopping by Carlsbad, Roswell (never know they might show up), Albuquerque then on home.
We are looking for suggestions, pointers, etc. for this trip. Places we should stop and see, etc. I am also looking from some type of cost for this trip. This is where I am hoping the more expressed travels can give me some help. We will be driving a 37 ft motorhome that gets 7 mpg. The cost of lodging, food, etc. would be greatly appreciated. I know this is a lot to all to ask but would help us in making our plans.
Thanks for any and all information,
William & Belinda Moore

PS: My wife wanted me to ask the ladies for any suggestions on her surviving this trip!

[bigred1cav]

wannavolunteerFT wrote:
Come through south Georgia and visit Andersonville. Andersonville is site of notorius Confederate POW camp. Now the National Park Historic site is also home to Natl Cemetery and National POW Museum. The town has historic village with period buildings and in October is the Historic Fair with rein-actors all over, including several "battles". Nice event with lots going on hosted by small town civic organizations.

Near to Andersonville is Columbus, Ga. Columbus was home to Confederate Iron Works and now home to Confederate Naval Museum. Westville (in Lumpkin, GA - between Andersonville & Columbus) is home to recreated 1890's village.. with period cooking, blacksmithing, spinning, weaving, etc.. Nice day trip.


If you visit Columbus going to the Ft Benning SChool For Boys is a must. Look on web and find when they are jumping it is a sight you will remember forever.
Several Georgia State parks nearby for a place to stay. There is also a city owned park in Andersonville, nothing fancy, just a spot to park under the trees.

[dcason]

Food costs will pretty much be what you spend at home plus maybe some more dinners out?
Gas: make a general itinerary and double it.
Entrance fees: a few hundred dollars at least

Some more research as to gas prices www.gasbuddy.com to get an idea of pricing throughout the USA.

Donna
our blog:
http://roadsidechronicles.blogspot.com/

[wannavolunteerF]

Come through south Georgia and visit Andersonville. Andersonville is site of notorius Confederate POW camp. Now the National Park Historic site is also home to Natl Cemetery and National POW Museum. The town has historic village with period buildings and in October is the Historic Fair with rein-actors all over, including several "battles". Nice event with lots going on hosted by small town civic organizations.

Near to Andersonville is Columbus, Ga. Columbus was home to Confederate Iron Works and now home to Confederate Naval Museum. Westville (in Lumpkin, GA - between Andersonville & Columbus) is home to recreated 1890's village.. with period cooking, blacksmithing, spinning, weaving, etc.. Nice day trip.

Several Georgia State parks nearby for a place to stay. There is also a city owned park in Andersonville, nothing fancy, just a spot to park under the trees.

[The_Dunks]

I second the mention of Kartchner Caverns. We also enjoyed a side trip to Tombstone. If you are going thru the Williams area, Grand Canyon of course,but also we were amazed by a visit to Walnut Canyon, all in AZ.

[WDP]

This couple and their web site has helped us to set up 2 cross country trips in the last 4 years. Lolo'3 14 summers. Take a look.

WDP

[Kidsgone]

Congratulations on your retirement! What a trip you have planned! We started RVing in 2010 when my husband retired. On our first long trip, I (not we) tried to plan everything down to the minute...quickly learned to throw plans out the window. We knew where we wanted to end up, when we wanted to be home and anything in between was a surprise. One day we drove 50 miles because we found something interesting and stopped ... for a few days. Its an adventure and thats how we like it. We are planning an extended trip this year and will only make reservations to our first destination in Colorado, from then on, its really not planned (time wise).
Now, to answer your wifes concern...well, does she have a hobby? Read? Is she a good navigator? Trip planner? Seems like I always have something to do during our travels, especially looking for interesting places on the internet/forum. Do you travel with internet access like a Sprint hotspot or other wifi? Do you take turns driving? But most importantly...do you have a good nap pillow?
I too, always search RVPARKREVIEWS.COM every time we plan a overnight or extended stay. We are retired military and often stay at military famcamps when we can.
We were in Charleston, SC last week. Don't forget this hotspot for Civil War history too...Fort Sumter is where the first shot rang out that started the war...BTW, its worth the boat ride to the Fort...had a great time.
Keep in touch with this forum on your travels...there is always someone that has been where you're going and has some good insight to the area.
If you're a foody...look on the Diners,Drive ins and Dives website for local food in areas your in. We have run into many travelers that do this...and we have on several occasions and its always been fun..and flavorful!
Enjoy your retirement and your adventures...keep us posted
Andi

[3_dog_nights]

I've read all of the answers and am confused. You're coming to the east coast and want to see some Civil War sites, but nobody is mentioning Virginia...
what am I missing? If you have the time, are interested in the history and don't detour to Virginia you will be kicking yourself for years to come.
or planning your second trip soon.....oh...I see,... clever~

[RoadLife]

Wow. A couple of days in San Antonio? A couple of days in New Orleans? You might just find yourself captured with these cities and feel the need to explore more. The best itinerary is one that "goes with the flow".

Are you in a rush with a deadline? The best part of RVing, IMHO, is the ability to change directions or sit in place on a whim.

Neat Civil war areas to visit are Vicksburg and Natchez Mississippi, Chickamauga in North Georgia near Tennessee, Kennesaw Georgia for the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History. This museum houses the famous train the General of the Great Locomotive Chase of 1862 Fame. (In high school I worked on the project that brought The General back to Kennesaw.) Closer to Marietta is the Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield Park, where fierce fighting occurred with Shermans army marching towards Atlanta. Of course there's Richmond (Va), Appamatox (Va), Gettysburg (Pa) Fredericksburg (Va) and Shiloh (Tn) among others.

In San Antonio you are pretty close to Fredericksburg in the Hill Country. Highly recommend a visit, especially if you like wine - lots of Texas Wineries in the Hill Country. Most have tasting rooms on the Main Street of Fredericksburg. 🙂 The also have the Nimitz museum of the Pacific War. First Class.

New Orleans is a lovely town with so much history. A few days is a must. I haven't been back since Katrina. Having been as close as Slidell the week after the hurricane, the stench of the toxic soup from that far away put me off. I'm not sure how long it would take for the toxicity to go away. But that's just me.

[2gypsies1]

You're asking for a whole country's worth of ideas which is difficult to put in a short post. However, you seem to be zeroing on big cities. That's fine if those are the kinds of places you enjoy. However, with an RV it's so nice to go to national parks, state parks and stay in beautiful quiet surroundings perhaps with a lake or stream nearby. You can always drive into the big cities but do consider staying out of the cities. We use public parks all the time.

As for your wife's concerns - there shouldn't be any. You'll love it once you get going. Costs: other than fuel (estimate how many miles you intend to go x mpg) and campsites (cheaper than motels), your day-to-day living should be about the same as when you're at home. We go to restaurants occasionally, not every day. Buy groceries like you would for home and cook the same way as you always do. Bring your crockpot and start the meal in the morning and go siteseeing.Bring the BBQ and grill a quick meal.

Since you seem to be leaving after August you'll hit the 'snowbird' season for all winter. That will be good for you because you'll find a lot of adults in the park with like objectives - having fun. If you're that type of person, strike up a conversation with some and get their interests. If you find something similar, suggest perhaps going on a hike together or visiting a certain place together or going out to eat. Many folks do this and we have acquired long-term friendships which started out this way. 'Snowbirders' do this kind of thing. 🙂

It might help, once you have a route narrowed down, to do some individual posts on this forum on specific areas to get more ideas - not the whole country.

To give you a few starters, you mentioned Phoenix. The whole area has some wonderful regional parks to stay at, such as Usuary, McDowell Mountain, Cave Creek, Lake Pleasant. Google 'Phoenix Regional Parks'. They are gorgeous complete with nice easy hiking trails and all are very close to tour the big city. They're much better than the huge RV parks of row after row of sites you'll find in Phoenix. Lost Dutchman State Park on the far eastern side At Apache Jct, AZ is terrific, too. The city is huge so pick a park on the western side and one on the eastern side to explore different areas.

Tucson is another nice 'little' city compared to Phoenix. Catalina State Park is a winner as is Gilbert Ray Campground in Tucson Mtn. Park! Continuing on I-10 eastward, go to Kartchner Caverns State Park near Benson, AZ and tour the awesome caverns. I won't get into state by state here but Big Bend Nat'l Park in Texas would have the perfect time of November for you to visit with the bright yellow cottonwood leaves against the brilliant blue sky for you to admire.Stay at Rio Grande Village campground - either dry camping (our favorite) or full-hookups. Passing through Alabama, get off the interstate and go down to Gulf Shores State Park in Gulf Shores. It has large campsites, close to the beach and town with lots to do in the area. It's unique in that 'snowbirders' can stay the whole winter if they'd like. Usually state parks have a 2-week limit. We spent a few seasons there and really enjoyed it.

One last thing, don't stay on the interstates. Get off and continue your way along the secondary roads. You'll find more scenic views and less traffic by doing so. You've got lots of time now so don't hurry. Have a great time planning - that's half the fun of the trip! Happy retirement!!!

[hitchup]

We hit Roswell during their UFO Festival last summer on our way from San Antonio to Albuquerque. We didn't bring our 5er as we only had a few days to visit with DH's brother on the 4th of July and he had a room for us.

They had the main streets blocked off and we had to detour, but it was okay, since our motel was on the north side of town. We ate well at Cattle Baron Restaurant and got our T-shirts when we filled up with fuel, but otherwise didn't want to wait in line or try to find a parking place for the dually. On the return trip, festival was over, and we only stopped at McD's for breakfast and didn't have a problem parking. We spent more time at the West of the Pecos Museum in Pecos, TX than siteseeing in Roswell.

From their website: "This year the UFO Festival is scheduled for July 5-7, 2013. But plan to stay the whole week from June 28 through the Festival because Roswell has a lot going on that week."

The route was good from Fort Stockton to Albuquerque. Mostly 2 lanes, but then it changed to 4 and was smooth sailing.

[louiskathy]

I wanted to see Roswell.... and we almost skipped Carlsbad Caverns. Instead we skipped Roswell and got tickets for the 1-1/2 hour tour through Kings Palace in Carlsbad. Out of a six month trip... I'd put Carlsbad Caverns as one of the top three places. Make reservations for the tour.

There's an Escapees campground between Roswell and Carlsbad. We almost skipped that and opted to stay over closer to the caverns. Instead we changed our mind and stayed at the SKP's cg. Loved it. Loved the people. Felt like we'd come home to someplace we'd never been before. Stayed two nights.

On the 2nd night I commented how nice it was that everyone put lights under their rigs... to make it easier to see at night. But I was told that it's to keep the pack rats from getting into the wiring and doing serious damage at night. I'd never heard of such a thing. (So Pack some rope lights along. They can be strung up in the awning or laid down on the ground either under the rig or around it...even as a walkway.

Don't make an iron clad itinerary with a time table that will wear you out. AND keep an eye out for weather. Sometimes you can hold up or speed up to keep a storm front from getting a direct hit.

This is the weather / trip planner that should help you a bit.
Weather Underground
http://www.wunderground.com/roadtrip/

As far as surviving the trip...
Don't get in a huff or a hurry.
Be sure to tell your wife how beautiful she is and
Thank the Lord for her every now and then.... out loud while holding her hand.

[Jim_Shoe]

Here's a couple of tips you might find useful.
Figure out the states you'll be in and even passing thru. Before leaving on your trip, do a google search on "(state name) tourism" for each one. Most states are proud of what they have to offer tourists. Also, when I enter a new state, I stop at the first rest stop. Most have a room full of free maps and brochures on things to see and do. Also a good time to stretch your legs and maybe hit the restrooms.
Remember that Google is your friend when traveling.

[mwool]

Museum in Roswell was interesting but not sure you need a full day in the area. However a day or so lets you start to meet some of the locals in restaurants and hear their stories.