Well after reading part one and figuring out that taking a drive this summer with the family is a fun vacation, you now have to figure where to go.
Well here are some sites and a few tips to make the planning easier.
The biggest thing about planning a driving trip is the distances. Do you want to have short little legs on your trip of no m ore than 300 miles a day? Or do you just want to get there, so you do not mind driving for 12 hours or more. This is your first decision. Remember that with older Kids your going to need to keep the distances per day short or perhaps drive at night so they sleep all of the way. A good rule to follow, in my opinion is weigh your options. If you drive straight through, you avoid having to get hotels on the way up and back. You also get more time to enjoy your destination. But then again there might be many things you want to see in between. And if this is the case, then take your time. You are in total control, and you’re the one who knows your passengers best. So take some time and look at all of the factors we discussed (time, distance).
AAA. Back in the old days our Dad’s used to go to the local AAA office and they would make for their members this really cool set of maps called a “Trip Tik.” Well now in the information age this process has gone online. Go to www.AAA.com and go to the Trip Tik planner section. Yopu are able to turn on and off all of the features you want. From attractions, to AAA offices to Gas Stations, to Hotels. Also your able to plot your route and see how many miles/ how long it will take you between legs of your trip.
Map Quest. Another amazing site. This one is a little les friendly than AAA, but it gets the job done. It will give you precise directions to anywhere.
Garmin, or some other navigation system. You might want to invest in one of the newer navigation systems out there, or better yet, rent a car that has one in it already. This way you will never get lost (or almost never).
A little planning before you leave will save you a lot of headaches when you on the road. With Map Quest directions or a Nav System or a AAA Trip Tik in your hands you do not have to spend your time looking for that elusive highway, or that little street.
Oh, and do not forget a DVD player, or the Nintendo DS's for your drive. Trust me! :)
In Part Three we will take a look at Hotels and the best Places to book them.
Happy Earth Day.
We all by now should have seen the Classic "National Lampoon's Vacation." If you have not, well then there should be a Blockbuster or go to NetFlicks. It was a classic, real funny.
Driving. You might think I m crazy. Why would I want to take a driving trip with Gas at $4.00 almost. Well because, sometimes it is all about the journey that counts.
Think about it this. I took a driving trip one year from San Fransisco to Seattle. Up the Coast 8 days and it was amazing. Yes it was 1,500 miles after all was said and done. So lets look at that 1,500 miles.
Option A:
Father, Mother and Little Suzie (7 years old)
1,500 miles
A car that gets 20 miles to the gallon.
75 Gallons of gas needed.
$4.00 per gallon
= $300.00
or
$100 per person.
Option B:
Now lets say you get that Mini Van and take five people with you on this trip.
Father, Mother, Little Suzie, little Billy and Grandma.
1,500 miles
A car that gets 15 miles to the gallon.
100 Gallons of gas needed.
$4.00 per gallon
= $400.00
or
$80.00 per person.
Option C:
Same set-up as A but you rent that Hybrid Prius, or Escape that gets 60 miles to the gallon.
Father, Mother and Little Suzie (7 years old)
1,500 miles
A car that gets 20 miles to the gallon.
25 Gallons of gas needed.
$4.00 per gallon
= $100.00
or
$33.34 per person.
So you see gas does not cost all that much if you think about it. And $4.00 a gallon is the average now for San Fransisco. Go driving in a region that has lower gas prices and you cost goes even lower.
It all takes a little work before you go. Just a little planning. Go to Gas Buddy, and they will show you the best places on your drive to get gas.
Seriously, drive the PCH, the Pacific Coast Highway. Start in Los Angeles and make you way up to Monterey. Up these steep winding mountain roads, the views are breathtaking.
I live in Ft. Lauderdale so driving from down here to any other state taken a good 7 hours. But if you live in New york state lets say, 7 hours can get you to a lot of places. Like Niagra Falls, or Toronto, or Washington, DC. Plus your in control, you leave when you want to you stay where you want to.
Please do not let the media hype of huge gas prices get you down. Grb those keys andtake a driving Trip. You will love it.
In Part 2 I will explore some of the sites you can use to map your exploration of this amazing country we live in.
This edition of Spotlight on takes us to the mysterious Himalayan Mountains. Where our weary party of explorers treks on ignoring the locals warnings about the Yeti that guards the mountain.
TIP: There is a single Riders line for this ride. And it usually moves pretty quick. So if you do not mind your party being split up for the ride, then save a few minutes and hit the Single Riders line.
Usually I give you an account of the ride here, but this time I will not spoil it. This ride has a few surprises that you have to see to get the full effect.
Here are some interesting facts about the ride:
• The mountain is 199 feet tall. Why? All 200 foot tall structures in Florida need to have red blinking aircraft lights on them. And the Imangineers did not want to spoil the mountain like that.
• The ride is nearly a mile long.
• 1,800 tons of steel was used in the structure. That is about six time more than an office building of the same size.
• Artisans at work: Artists from Imagineering used hammers, chainsaws and blowtorches to "age" wood and buildings in the village, giving them the appearance of being longstanding parts of the landscape.
See this ride it is worth it.
Thank you for reading.
Angelo LoPresti
www.bonbontravel.com
It has been a rough week for me. And I have not updated my blog in a week and have to say sorry to you all.
I came down with a cold right after my wife and my daughter had the same thing. So there has been a lot of sleepless nights around my household.
But we are all better and you should see a new post from me sometime shortly.
If you want a good read why not try some of the blogs I love to go to very often.
2719 Hyperion, a great Disney Blog. When you see his images and read his descriptions it feels like your in the middle on the Magic Kingdom.
Epcot Central, another great Disney Blog. Here you can find ramblings of someone who liked Epcot the way it used to be. You might not agree with everything he says, but it is a good read anyway.
