Hubby and I intend to travel (ex Brisbane) to the USA mid October 2017 and would probably like to be away between 3 and 4 weeks.
He wants to go to Las Vegas, I absolutely have to go to NYC. We intend on using AirBNB and HomeAway wherever possible (after family members recently went over and had much success and hugs savings from using this type of accomodation booking). I have a max budget of $15K to cover everything.
We're early 40's
The rest is a blank canvas…. Hit me with your ideas…
I don't think 3-4 weeks is VERY short. 4 weeks is a long holiday for most.
Echo Disneyworld - it's amazing.
in the states = very short. It's MASSIVE.
You don't have to do the entire country in one go.
Vegas is 3 days MAX. NYC could be a couple weeks. Fly via San Fran and spend 5 days there = 3 weeks.
Given that USA and Australia are so similar on the surface, I particularly enjoyed the differences..
School bus races @ the nascar circuit, gun culture, history of slave trade @ civil war in South Carolina, going into a "mountain" range (similar to the Blue Mountains) on the 4th of July, breakfast pizza, getting measured up for a shirt, a haircut at a barber with a bar, regional food etc. I drew the line at deep fried butter on a stick.
At the end of the day, a lot of what america has to offer can be found here (if only on a smaller scale). So I think it's worthwhile spending the effort to experience what can't.
speaking of scale
last time i was at Texas
pulled up to a large building…wow this shopping center is huge!! my cousin said that was the cinema
Everything's bigger in Texas!
If in Las Vegas definitely go to the Grand Canyon (preferably south rim).
If you're into nature things there's also lots of other national parks between Vegas and Salt Lake City which are worth a look.
sport
nba games, start late october
gridiron
hockey
go to alabama and watch this http://www.raceawayhospitality.com/event/10/23/2016/Talladeg…, is awesome
parks in utah/arizona etc
zeon
antelope caves
grand canyon
death valley
go to colorado and get stoned
why not drive west to east, and fly back
Its Zion
And if you are going there go a little further to Bryce Canyon, which is very impressive
What this guy said
How early can I book Bris>LAX return flights ?
Is there a better time of year to buy them?
October 2017 flights will probably start appearing around December 2016 or a bit later.
can always fly cheap to hawaii, and domestic to lax if ur adventourous
I would add
v8 Camaro hire car from Vegas to LA and stop at the outlets on the way. Nb luggage size of boot
Consider going up to Boston in the train for a night. See reds play at Fenwick park
Javiers for Mexican in Vegas. Tao for modern Asian.
Zion national park and horse riding
Hire city bikes in nyc
Ride Central Park
See usual Soho, little Italy. Brooklyn bridge. Stanton ferry
amtrak to boston from new york is pretty reasonable too.
We did Amtrack from New York to DC and it was worth it!
good hey, yeh i think its the only good priced part of amtrak.
Zion/Bryce Canyon are amazing but if you have never been to any National Parks then Yosemite and Yellowstone/Grand Teton should come first IMO.
Agree, go to Grand Canyon first.
After Bryce Canyon the Grand Canyon isnt as Grand (& the GC is worth visiting)
Am I the only one that worries 15k isn't enough for 3 weeks let alone 4?
the AUD sucks right now, and doesn't look like getting better, I've never used AirBNB etc, so maybe they're super cheap compared to regular hotels?
I did 3 weeks in 2013 (granted with two kids and my wife) we spent 23k (aud was at around .94) 3 night Vegas rooms comped (myvegas)
we did 4 week road trip in 2014 which cost 28k (aud was around .83) with 5 night Vegas rooms comped (myvegas)
we're doing another 3 week trip in March budgeted for 23k again, we are by no means flashy in where we stay or eat (plenty of burgers)
and being a member of this site means I sure as shi7 researched the hell out of prices including those Qantas Price error tickets from July.
I would personally budget 20k
yeh id imagine it adds up quick, all i tried to do was stay in super 8 hotels out of the cities, you can get rooms for 100 AUD a night with breakfast. i stayed in chelsea hostel in new york, was 150 a night, and pretty ordinary room, but a top spot.
once your out of California and north eastern states petrol gets pretty cheap, southern states of use are dirt cheap, so maybe go to some of them. Petrol in alabama was 1.65 a gallon.
i personally find vegas a horrid place, just consumes money and unless you love gambling its not that special, but thats my opinion.
Thank you everyone for your replies. If I knuckle down and save a bit more over the next 12 mths, hopefully I can extend the $15K budget a bit. Fingers crossed :)
My mum and teenage daughter spent 5 weeks over there late last year and used HomeAway for accomodation in NYC, Orlando and Williams (Arizona). We researched each property very thoroughly, ensuring that it was good value, secure (2 females aged 70 and 13 so personal security was very important)and had good reviews.
The NYC apartment was approx $230.00USD per night as was a couple of blocks east of Times Square. It was very well appointed, clean and comfortale for their 5 days stay.
The Orlando townhouse was outstanding value at $80USD per night. 3 bed/3 bath in a gated resort styled community. It was very clean and modern too and close to Disneyworld.
The Williams, Arizona house was a cute little cottage only a couple of blocks away from the main street of Williams (route 66). The house was incredibly well equipt right down to the owner stocking the fridge for them and I think this one was less than $150USD per night too.
As long as the accomodation is clean and comfortable, I'm not worried about it being too flash.
and I'm very comfortable with staying in this type of accomodation as opposed to hotels.
Niagra Falls is a MUST if you go to New York! I lived in New York for 6months and have been to LA several times. New York City is crazy expensive and will take a big chunk of your budget but is amazing, upstate New York is stunning, a very different State to what most people think. Woodbury Commons (New York) is brilliant like someone else mentioned, its huge so you'll need at least a day there. There are also similar outlets in Vegas (no tax) and in LA on the freeway near disneyland. I think Disneyland (LA) is 100 x better than Disneyworld but everyone has their preference. Disneyworld is just spaced out a lot more.
Vegas is awesome and can easily do it under a week even a few days. All resorts are open to anyone so you can check out all the attractions in each one for free. Vegas is very very cheap 5* for $50 a night and if you're gambling you will be offered free food and drinks. Make sure you check if there are any events (fights etc)on when you're planning to visit. The prices sky rocket and I mean 10x the price if not more and it gets crazy busy. Go midweek, still plenty happening minus the crowds. Betty Sue's diner on the way to Vegas from LA is awesome, in an old military base in the middle of the desert. Best food and like stepping back in time to the 50's.
We hire a car when we go, and compared to Australia car rental is very cheap. They also rent Motor homes cheap if you want a real adventure and parking is often free if not cheap. Most vegas resorts have Motorhome parking onsite. You can gets fights to LA for $1000 and then look at domestic flights to NY, they're often cheaper. I did see flights advertised to NY for $1300 a few days ago and Ive never seen them that cheap. Sorry not sure who it was through. You can do the US on a shoestring or live like a king. Accommodation is the big killer in the US everything else is dirt cheap. In LA considering staying downtown (purely business district but 1/4 of the price) Santa Monica etc will cost a fortune.Its often cheaper to eat out than it is to buy fresh groceries. If you do, collect coupons, you can literally walk out with the store GIVING YOU money if you do it right!
In terms of accomodation in NYC and in order to save a few $$, would I be better off looking at accomodation in Brooklyn etc as opposed to Manhatten ?
Thanks for your tips on everything else.
try chelsea hostel
I think its Peggy Sue's Diner between LA and Vegas.
But yes its totally worth a stop!
I have been to the States twice now. Both holidays were 4-5 weeks. I would definitly recommend Disneyland. We got the Southern California Adventure Pass which was really good value.
NYC in October is great, the leave in Central Park are amazing and the weather is usually good too. You can book tickets to climb to the top of the Statue of liberty - we really enjoyed doing this. Book about 4 months in advance as it sells out super quick. On our second trip to NYC, we used a company called Free Tours By Foot which we really enjoyed. Its a brillant way to see the city.
If I could recommend somewhere to visit it would be either Washington DC or Boston. They are both amazing cities which I would visit again in a heart beat. DC is such an easy city to get around - the Metro is fantastic. The history is amazing and the best part about DC is that most of the points of interest are free! Boston also has amazing history but the food is to die for! The only thing about Boston I didn't like was the public transport. It is a fairly compact city so it doesn't take too long to walk anywhere.
On our second trip, we learnt about a magical airline called Southwest. If you are flying domestically, fly Southwest! Cheap prices and free baggage! The only thing that was weird about them is that you are assigned a group instead of a seat number so when your group boards you can sit anywhere you like.
Try and drive to as many places as you can. We absolutley loved driving. You get to see so much of the country that way!
talledga raceway in alabama for nascar,
nba late october
nfl
amtrak boston to washington stoppin in new york is pretty cheap.
At this stage it looks like we'll aim for very late Oct/early Nov next year. We've got a few hoops to jump thru first as hubby may not be eligible for the VWP (but that's a wholllllle other story)
How easy is it to 'wing it' in terms of accomodation. Are the Motel 6 chain of hotels ok?
Thats when we went and there was heaps of accomodation. Just be mindful of big events - like the NYC marathon is at the end of October so accomodation will be very expensive.
I highly recommend watching an NBA or Ice Hockey game. So much fun! We purposely didn't see any sports while in NYC as its triple the price of other cities
can you lengthen your trip, 3-4 weeks in the States is VERY short.
maybe use some of the 15k to buy leave from work, borrow tent etc from family so you can cheapen some of the accommodation?
We were surprised how much we liked Epcot/Disneyland in Florida (in our 40s). Cruising in Alaska was awesome. Mesa Verde was really interesting.
and weed is legal is some states now should you be so inclined. Colorado seems to be the pick for weed tourism vs awesome scenery, things to do
surprisingly we liked Seattle too.