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Best transportation solution for trip across America.

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  • 19-11-2013 5:09pm
    #1
    Brussels Sprout
    Registered Users Posts: 7,219 ✭✭✭


    Next May myself and 5 friends will be driving from Las Vegas to New York. We have roughly 11 days to make this journey (not ideal I know but we're flying from Europe and are spending a weekend in both LV and NY at either end of the road trip so we dont' have massive amounts of extra time for this).

    At this stage we have our flights booked and now we're discussing what the best way of getting across the country is. Ideas so far:
    • Rent 2 cars for the the trip (Have been quoted $1150 per car from Hertz for this)
    • Rent one larger vehicle. It'd need to be able to carry 6 adult males plus 6 suitcases/rucksacks. Hertz have a Dodge Caravan for a little bit more than the car price. Apparently it seats 7 plus 3 large suitcases + 2 smaller ones. Could we fit into this comfortably?
    • Buy 2 wrecks and hope that they make it across the country
    • Rent a car in Vegas-spend a few days visiting neighbouring states, then fly to the east coast and do the same there
    • Get some form of public transport across the country

    Would would people recommend? Would love to hear especially form people who've done this sort of trip before.


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    #2
    Ponster
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 10,912 Mod ✭✭✭✭Ponster


    Rent a car in Vegas-spend a few days visiting neighbouring states, then fly to the east coast and do the same there

    I'd go for that option. In 2002 2 friends and I drove from NYC to Boston and then on to Buffalo. We flew from Buffalo to Nashville; Drove to Dallas and flew to Vegas. The US is huge and large parts of it are pretty boring when you're driving for endless hours through flat, flat lands. I'd work out a possible budget and see how many flights you can take. perhaps drive from Vegas to Denver, fly to Atlanta and drive up to NYC?


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    #3
    InTheTrees
    Registered Users Posts: 9,900 ✭✭✭InTheTrees


    Just throwing it out there but LV isnt very far from the Pacific so why not make it a real coast to coast trip by starting in LA?


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    #4
    Brussels Sprout
    Registered Users Posts: 7,219 ✭✭✭Brussels Sprout


    InTheTrees wrote: »
    Just throwing it out there but LV isnt very far from the Pacific so why not make it a real coast to coast trip by starting in LA?

    The flights are booked and we're somewhat limited in time


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    #5
    pgmcpq
    Registered Users Posts: 1,852 ✭✭✭pgmcpq


    Brussels Sprout wrote: »
    ry
    • Rent a car in Vegas-spend a few days visiting neighbouring states, then fly to the east coast and do the same there

    Agree with Ponster above.

    You do not want to be in the desert in Nevada trying to get a tow with your wreck !

    Also when you get to NY (and I assume you mean the city) you are not likely to need a car and parking is expensive .... very expensive in Manhattan. So option 3 but without the car in NYC.


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    #6
    ProudDUB
    Registered Users Posts: 11,569 ✭✭✭✭ProudDUB


    Does the $1150 figure for renting two cars and taking them cross country include insurance? That seems a very low figure. American drivers can add on their own insurance to their rental cars, so quoted rates often do not include insurance. I'd double check that if I were you. If it is legit, I'd do that over getting one bigger car. Six of you in the one car for 11 days sound like hell on wheels, unless you have experience of going on very long road trips together and you know for sure that you will all get along for that amount of time.

    Two cars mean more of you can share the driving and trust me, on a trip that long, you'll want more than one or two people doing all the driving. It also means that you can get away from each other for a while. You also have more freedom for you to split up into two different groups and doing different things along the way, if you want too. Which can only lead to a more peaceful trip.

    All that being said, if it were me, I'd go with the flying option. Is there a specific reason that you want to drive? Is one of you hung up on the romance of a long road trip in the American heartland? Are there specific things you want to do, and places that you all want to visit along the way? If there are, then go for it.

    If there aren't, fly. You'll avoid a lot of driving thru A LOT of, well... I don't want to call them boring states, coz if I do, the folks on here who live in them, will get pissed off at me. Let's just say that there is a reason why the coastal states generally draw more tourists than the Plains states do. There is just more to see and do in them. (Please don't get mad of me, residents of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas etc etc :o )

    Don't buy a couple of bangers and chance your arm. It will be a nightmare if they break down. Even if you luck out and get you a car that doesn't break down, you'll waste far too much time looking for the cars, getting them taxed and insured and then disposing of them, to make it worth your while. If you were going to be in the US for a few months, it could be a good idea. But it would be a waste of time and money, if you are only going to need them for 11 days.


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