Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with travel and trip

SoCal Holiday Road Trip Tips?

Capostrophe — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:55:42 -0800

I'll be embarking on a two week road trip from just before Christmas until just after the new year. My plan is to drive south out of the SF Bay Area and spend most of my time in southern California, possibly with forays into Az, Nevada, and Mexico. My interests are nature, archaeology, and history, and I'm an avid photographer. Tell me about the places I shouldn't miss. I'm considering the obvious destinations: Death Valley, the Salton Sea, Pinnacles, and Joshua Tree. I also intend to spend some time in San Diego, visiting the zoo and wild animal park. Beyond that I'm eager to hear your suggestions about roads to drive, places to stay, places to stop, and places to skip.

Bonus points for forgotten little picturesque attractions, and double bonus points for practical tips on visiting Mexico for a few days.

Denver in a Day

disillusioned — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:41:52 -0800

Boulder? Denver? Help me day-trip to Colorado *THIS* Saturday! So I snatched up an interesting offer: Frontier Airlines had PHX->DEN same-day roundtrip for $59, inclusive. (No add'tl taxes or fees, available ONLY for this Saturday, and only for an hour, at that!)

We arrive in DEN at 9:24am and we depart at 9:20pm.

We *may* have a ride from the airport, but what's the cheapest way to downtown Denver (or Boulder) if not? Where's best to land if we want to get around the city relatively easily once we do, assuming no car?

What's there to see and do for fun eating on a Saturday? Which would you recommend to make the best use of our time? We probably need to be back at the airport by 8:15 at the latest, so take that into account. (No checked bags, clearly.)

I like photography, museums, good food, fun art, cool people, markets, fairs, weird off-the-beaten path stuff, and anything else going. I'll have my brother in tow, who's also down for pretty much anything.

Help plan my one-day itinerary, and understand that very little is a bust for us; it was a $60 thing, so why not, right?

Thanks!

And here's GI Jane at the gas station on the way to Seattle...

alona — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 05:05:45 -0800

Help me prepare for my trip! What are some fun/funny things we can do abroad, not location-specific but rather things that have to do with being on a trip? We'll be in SF, Seattle, Vancouver, Toronto, and NY (and mabye Montreal).
I'm thinking of things like taking an action figure with us and photographing it in various places and making it a photo album.

I realize this is really broad, and really general, but what are some fun things you did on your trips other than actual trip stuff?

Travelplan2.0

mr.marx — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 10:59:41 -0800

Looking for a website that helps me plan a 5-day vacation in detail. A lot of travel websites out there, but all of them seem focused on either a) booking and price hunting, or b) diaries.

I'd like to think there's a site that let's me add all the restaurants, sights, shops and events I find researching an upcoming trip (NYC if it matters) so I can make a day-by-day plan, complete with maps and notes.

Is there such a website? Or do you have any other suggestions on how I could plan our trip in an easy way?

Extra points for suggestions that let's me keep a mobile version of the schedule online.

Zipcar Update?

The Whelk — Thu, 28 May 2009 13:35:30 -0800

Daytrip Dreamin': I've read the previous question about Zipcars in NYC, but it's about a year old and I have some specific questions. I am considering joining, but have heard that the availability is not terrific. What's it like for a daytrips out of the city? Any big problems? Does it make sense if you're only planning to use it 2 or three times a year?

Trip insurance without medical coverage? General advice on trip insurance?

springo — Sat, 09 May 2009 16:35:12 -0800

Asking for the fiancée: is it possible to purchase trip insurance without medical coverage? Also: general advice about trip insurance for this situation is welcome (traveling several weeks in France & England, with expensive train connections). She says (she has a metafilter account but is using mine in case she gets desperate for other travel advice):

summary: leaves May 18, returns June 17, traveling in England and (mainly) France. Policy must allow cancellation "for any reason," which of course costs extra. Doesn't need health coverage. Wondering if she can get trip coverage for less than $91, if she could only find a policy that doesn't include medical.

details

I'm flying in to London/Heathrow, then plan to take a train to St. Pancras Station, then catch the Eurostar to Paris. The Eurostar is expensive. Pricing makes the non-flexible Eurostar tickets quite attractive -- but if my plane is late I'd be in trouble.

For what-if-I-miss-my-train reasons, as well as what-if-someone-gets-sick-and-I-have-to-stay-home reasons, trip insurance seems prudent. I estimate I'd need $1,500 covered for plane + train tickets. I also want to be able to cancel "for any reason".

Every single trip insurance plan I've looked at includes medical emergency coverage, but I have that through employer-based insurance. The quote I'm currently looking at is $91 (for $1,500 worth of coverage).

Apropos of this question, we looked at our bank and our car insurance companies (State Farm and also Amica), but they don't offer travel insurance.

General advice on trip insurance, or insurance company suggestions, are welcome, too. She's currently looking at this TravelSafe policy.

Nine Hours in Istanbul

slowcat — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:42:42 -0800

I'm arriving at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul nine hours before my connecting flight. I was wondering what recommendations people had for how to spend this time? I can't do anything too involved as I need to be back at the airport a few hours before my flight, but I would like to see something of the city! Thank you!

Road trip: Minneapolis to . . . ?

sciapod — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:41:59 -0800

We have four days to take a road trip from Minneapolis to wherever we want. Where should we go? My friends and I (female, in our early twenties) are looking for suggestions for a fun and manageable four-day road trip out of Minneapolis. Ideally, we'd like to take this trip over a four-day weekend, but we could probably stretch it to five days if the sights or route demanded it.

We're not opposed to driving longish days or visiting our Canadian neighbors, and we're not picky on the natural wonders vs. big city front. We're looking to do this on the cheap end, but we don't want to cut any corners. Basically, we're just looking for a good time, some interesting sights, and the open road.

Destinations we've talked about include Mount Rushmore (Wall Drug, Sturgis, Black Hills, Badlands, etc.), driving around one of the Great Lakes, or hitting up Winnipeg or Toronto, but I thought I'd poll the experienced masses.

So, travelers, where to?

How do I expedite a travel visa for a US->Brazil trip that happens in two weeks.

cothebadger — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 02:45:52 -0800

I have 14 full days (from now until APRIL 21, 2009) to obtain a travel visa so I can visit Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. How can I best expedite the process of obtaining a travel visa in time while not spending more money that I need to? I have my passport, and I will be visiting a friend. My passport expires more than six months after I return from my trip. For the sake of quickness, can I say I'm a tourist and sightseeing vs. "visiting a friend", for which I would need a notarized invitation letter from my friend? (Is that even true?) My friend is an American, but speaks Portuguese and a number of other languages. She is comfortably living in RJ right now.

So far, the cheapest I can find is approximately $229 for expedited service through the Chicago Brazilian consulate. I live in Madison, WI.

What do I need to fill out to make this happen? Im already investigating a 6am trip to Kinko's to get my photo taken.

Help my foreign friends enjoy their American experience...

whiskey point — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:51:05 -0800

Any ideas on a route (and some great points of interest) for some Italian visitors to take from Mt. Vernon, Ohio to Fargo, ND? It'll be their first time in the U.S. and would like to see as much as possible. The parents of the Italian foreign exchange student (and said exchange student) who stayed with my family in high school are making their first trip to the US to attend his college graduation. They're going to rent a car to drive from Mt. Vernon (near Columbus) to Fargo, ND.

They would like to see any big attractions or wildlife, basically taking in some Americana. I'm sure any Italian-American towns/areas would be great for them to check out. Also, a fun place for them to stay overnight would nice (they'll be splitting the trip into two days, so somewhere close to the halfway point).

If you've taken trips along the route, or live along the route, any advice you have would be greatly appreciated - these people are very special to me, and I'd like them to have the best experience possible! Thank you in advance.

Seeking fashion, covetousness, wine, and French coffee

The Whelk — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:56:37 -0800

Going to Boston/Cambridge for few days (April 2-7th) and wondering what I should see, do, or eat ... Details: I've been to the area before, albeit many years ago and done the standard tourist stops. I'll be staying in Cambridge. I don't have a car. Very interested in weird or neat events and shows, what local listings should I check out?

Looking for some sun on the coast

bellbellbell — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 19:03:59 -0800

I'm looking for advice and recommendations for a trip to the Sunshine Coast. I'm planning a short jaunt in a few weeks for my birthday.

About me: I like outdoorsy and active stuff (biking, hiking, surfing, snowboarding, running, yoga, ultimate, etc.). I also like cultural and artsy stuff (museums, galleries, knitting, concerts, etc.). And I like unusual things and hidden gems.

I likely won't be biking or snowboarding this trip (although I've wanted to for a long time). I'm not opposed to camping if there's a reason (amazing hike? gorgeous beach?), but currently leaning towards somewhere warm n' dry.

Where should I go? What should I avoid? Where should I stay? Eat? Visit? Do?

Thanks for your help!

I want to travel near Seattle but not to Canada or Portland. Where else can I go?

handabear — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 09:40:55 -0800

Last minute spring break starting from Seattle for under $500? Here's the deal:

We have $500, the evening of March 26 through morning of March 29th free. We live in Seattle and would like to get out of the city. We can drive, but not a lot - preferably not more than 4 hours. Portland and leaving the US are not options. We could possibly take a plane or train somewhere, but that would cut into our budget heavily. Boy, we're difficult! But we're open to suggestions. What have you enjoyed in the area? Any personal recommendations? Thanks!

Where to travel with my mom and sister?

brynna — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 11:15:20 -0800

Where should I take my mom and sister for a week of family bonding and exploring? For my graduation gift, my family decided to give me an all-expenses paid one-week trip to anywhere. They wanted me to invite a friend, but since it's my last chance to spend time with my family before accepting a full-time job on the opposite coast (in Boston), I've decided that I want my travel companions to be my mom and my 16 year old sister.

So the question is: where to go?

Some caveats:
1) with the added expense of my other family members going (instead of JUST me), the trip has to be a little bit less expensive, especially regarding airfare. Would like to keep airfare under $400 each, although trains and cars are also options.
2) Departing from Sacramento/San Francisco area. Trip can occur any time in June or July.
3) We have Hilton Points, so would be staying at a Hilton or Doubletree somewhere (I know these are all over, so it's not an issue of WHERE rather than just pointing out that accomodations are spoken for)
4) we are into food and quaintness, with an equal mix of relaxing and exploring.
5) some ideas we were considering were Costa Rica (mine), Montreal (my mom's) and North Carolina (my sister)... but we are still exploring other options!
6) If it were completely up to me and I was traveling alone, I would go somewhere like Morocco or Istanbul, but my mom is more of a coast-of-Maine or Carmel-by-the-Sea type.

Where can three women (45, 21, and 16 years of age) go for a unique week of bonding??

How far in advance should I buy my plane tickets?

voltairemodern — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 11:24:28 -0800

AirfareFilter: I need to go to Montana in May. At what time between now and then will tickets be cheapest? Not much more detail to provide, really. My wife and I need to get to Montana at the beginning of May, and want to buy our tickets when they'll be the cheapest. I know prices fluctuate a lot, and that buying farther away from the date isn't necessarily the best choice, but I don't know much more than that. Should I wait until the last minute, or three weeks out, or a month and a half? Is there a science to the pricing, or is it too arbitrary to predict?

In sum: how far in advance will I find the best prices on airfare?

We need an atlas, a guidebook (maybe) and some travel tips.

MithrilMongoose — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:05:13 -0800

Where should we go on our impromptu roadtrip in Western U.S.? We've decided to take advantage of the gas prices and go on a road trip. We'll be in the Western U.S.-ish. Will include the Yukon when we leave Alaska, Montana as we come over the border from Canada, then Portland to visit a buddy, and ending in Taos. Not sure which other states/locales. A couple questions:

1) Any suggestions as to where we should stop on our tour?

2) What is the awesomest atlas and guidebook (separate or conjoined) that will help us have a great trip? This way we can hit up one of the relatives for a Christmas gift that doesn't involve a sweater.

About us: Two young people with their golden lab, doing traveling right in a 1975 yellow Dodge Tradesman campervan. We like progressive, funky places, and aren't afraid of the cold. Centipedes can be a problem, though. We're into hiking and natural phenomena. (Although, heck, if you know of some supernatural phenomena feel free to send us that way, too). Also very into cultural stuff like museums, ethnic food, Americana, and mimes. Especially crazy ones. We're not on any particular time table. Oh, and we're on the shoestring budget. Neither of us has properly explored this part of the country before.

Advice? Suggestions? Sensations?

I want to drive from North America to South America

Scientifik — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:24:53 -0800

I'd like to drive from Texas to Tierra Del Fuego. How do I pull this off? Ok So I've traveled quite a bit internationally, Europe, Asia, South America etc.... I figured I would like to try something different and drive from either Texas or California down to Tiera Del Fuego in Chile, sell the truck I drove and fly back to the US. I would plan for the trip to take a few months. Any MeFi-ites done this or know any good resources for a trip like this?

Siblings in Boston

rhapsodie — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 19:32:29 -0800

My brother and I will be meeting in Boston on Wednesday for a week vacation. What things are Must-See or Must-Do or Must-Eat? I am an attached straight female in my late 20s, flying from Alaska. My brother is an attached gay male in his mid 30s, flying from San Francisco. We both came into some airline miles and will be meeting in Boston on Wednesday for a week. Neither of us have been to Boston. We have a vacation rental apartment about 3 miles from downtown and will not be renting a car. We both are somewhat artsy, love photography and will be bringing our dSLR cameras with us everywhere.

We have a general list of things that might be fun to see and do, and I've checked other Boston AskMe threads, but what are the things we should see and/or do while in Boston that we would regret not seeing/doing this week?

Advice for cross country moving and road-trip

Rustbeard — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:50:45 -0800

Some general/all around advice and tips from experienced/veteran movers and road trippers to help me with my move across the country would be extremely helpful. So I just got a job out in Northern California and I will be moving there from New England. I've never made a big trip like this before, I've lived on the pretty much in the Northeast my entire life. I've also never really made a big road trip like this before either.

I was going to use Pods but the don't deliver to the town I'm heading to and I don't want to do Uhaul; so I'll be just packing up my SUV (and putting the rest in a storage unit) and driving out there probably by myself.
Some things I would like to know are what are some vital things that people bring on road trips? Such as I assume bring an extra cannister of gas since I assume there are long stretches without gas stations and a SUV isnt that great for conservation.
I've had some friends recommend sleeping in Walmart parking lots or bringing a tent. Others just go to Motel 6 when they can find one.
As well as some decent sites to see, I'll be traveling across route 80 which I hear can get pretty boring
Thanks

Help troubleshoot and enhance my move / road trip from Lawrence, Kansas to Eugene, Oregon.

Derive the Hamiltonian of... — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 09:27:01 -0800

Help me troubleshoot and enhance my roadtrip / move to Eugene, Oregon. I will soon depart Lawrence, KS for adventures that will eventually leave me in Eugene to begin graduate studies with UO. I'm going to outline the planned itinerary in the hopes that the hive mind can suggest areas to visit at our planned stops, beautiful or interesting routes to take between them, and interesting pit stops to make. Also, warnings of potential trouble spots or situations will be greatly appreciated. The Participants:

A mated pair of chemical engineers and myself. We all love the outdoors, interesting technology, interesting architecture/engineering (especially anything energy efficient, otherwise green, or enormous), anything that will increase our nerdlore, and any delicious food of almost any variety. We're all in very good shape, although my 270 lb ass will not be running up any mountains.

The Vehicle:

A 2007 Volkswagen Rabbit, so no unimproved roads.

Itinerary:

Day 1:

Leave Kansas and pick up two friends at Denver International, thus officially beginning the road trip. Drive to Great Sand Dunes National Park and set up camp. We're thinking about stopping at Garden of the Gods on the way down. I'm kinda torn between driving down on 29 so that we can see Garden of the Gods and driving out on 70 and then down on 24/285 to get some awesome mountain highway action in.

Day 2:

A hurried attempt at acclimation for days 3 to 4. Play around on the Dunes and see other interesting things in the area. So far, besides the Dunes, I know of Zapata falls, although I cannot remember the exact location.

Day 3:

Get up very early, drive to the Mt. Blanca/Ellingwood trailhead, and pack in to Lake Como. Set up camp and enjoy the lake, trees, and canyon walls. I should mention that I've done the Blanca/Ellingwood combo before and that we are all experienced hikers. I'm not enthusiastic about doing this two days after getting to altitude, but this is the portion of the trip I'm most sure of. One question; on my previous trip, we were in Jeeps and easily made it to the beginning of the serious incline before we got out and started hiking. Are there spots on the sandy, car-navigable part of the road where I will be able to pull over and park without going into the bushes and rocks? 14ers.com seems to indicate so, but I want to be sure that I'm not going to have to park within sight of the highway.

Day 4;

Summit Blanca and Ellingwood, head back to the vehicle, and drive off into the midday sun. Head out to Black Canyon of the Gunnison and make camp. For the drive to Gunnison, we're currently set for doing 285 to 114 to 50, but 149 looks really fun and twisty.

Day 5:

See what we can in Gunnison during the early morning, drive to Arches National Park, see what we can in a few hours, and drive to Great Basin National Park to camp for the night. This is a very rushed portion of the trip, but we want to have several days in SanFran later on and are constrained by plane tickets.

Day 6:

Drive from Great Basin to Grass Valley, CA, where we will apparently be hanging out at some awesome bathing holes near some awesome waterfalls.

Day 7:

Drive from Grass Valley to San Francisco and crash with friends. We will be staying at an apartment in what my friend calls the McBaker Heights neighborhood, although I'm not sure whether that name is colloquial. The intersection of Baker and Golden Gate gives you a general area. My understanding is that the area requires some sort of special neighborhood permit and has no off-street parking, so I need to figure out a safe arrangement for parking my car. Non-exorbitant garage parking would probably be fine. We'll reach SF on a Saturday afternoon, so I'm hoping to avoid doomtraffic.

Days 8 – 9:

San Francisco! Oh, what shall we see?!? Our friends in the city have plans already, but suggestions would be great. Bonus points for godlike sushi and any other kind of interesting ethnic food.

Day 10:

Drive up the coast to Redwood National Park. We're not sure about the route yet, although we would love some awesome coastal highway action. We also aren't sure of what portion of the massive park to camp in.

Day 11:

Drive to Crater Lake, check it out, drive to Eugene and crash at the co-op I'll be living in. Any suggestions for awesome places to eat dinner or night scenes to check out?

Day 12:

Get the other two to Portland for a 10 am flight.

get behind the thrift store

msconduct — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:51:07 -0800

i'm heading to birmingham, alabama from new orleans to see tom waits at the alabama theater next thursday (yea!). my compadre & i would like to hit some thrift stores along the way. anyone have any good recommendations for thrifty places along i-59 between these two cities? thanks. bonus for anyone who can recommend a good hotel/motel that doesn't cost an arm & a leg. and thanks to ScottUltra who posted this link to the thrift store directory in a previous question.

California dreamin'

fcoury — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:22:49 -0800

I will be doing a very anticipated trip to California for the first time. Please advice with good tips! Hi,

I am going to the US on September, and I would like all advice I can get on planning my trip.

It will have two "parts":

On the first part, I will be visiting the IBM team I work with on Boulder, Colorado. I'd like tips for what should be seen on the whereabouts of Boulder and Denver. I will stay there for about 5 to 6 days only and will work 8h a day for 5 days.

After that period, I will be catching a flight to California. Here I have two questions: what would be the cheaper way to fly from Colorado to California? On what city should I start?

My idea for the second part is to have a roadtrip, stopping in must-see cities, staying for the night, then leaving in the morning. I want to drive all the way from California to Las Vegas. I will have 15 to 20 days on that part of the trip. Is that feasible?

I am really into getting to know the American way of life, like small cities, eating at BBQ, Hamburger and Dinner places on the roadside, besides maybe stopping on a amusement or theme park along the way. I am thinking about Six Flags or something like that. Any tips on that?

Also, please consider I am 29 years old and I am on a budget. I'd like to spend some time on budget hotels and motels but I would also spend some nights on good hotels that are worth the money.

Any tips or at least pointers to places on the internet where I can find further advice would be awesome.

RoadTrip TipS!

madmamasmith — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 22:26:27 -0800

I'm going to Yellowstone in May , traveling from Austin TX via New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming then back through Kansas and Oklhoma. I would really appreciate recomendations for any cool places to stop along the way. Cool museums, cheap flea markets, places to buy cool jewelry, cool parks, places to camp, vegetarian resteraunts etc. And also the best places to stay in Yellowstone as thAT's where we'll be spending most of our time.

Help with travel!!!! (berlin - prague - Munich)

monkeyagent — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:30:56 -0800

Hey I'm travelling to Europe this summer and want to go from Berlin to Prague. I found a previous post on it but it's from 2005 and the info is a little outdated so i was wondering if anyone had a good suggestion for going about getting to prague? I'm travelling with my Girlfriend and we'll be going from Prague to Munich after our stay there. Does anyone know if we can use our Eurail passes in Germany (from say berlin to dresden then switch trains to prague) or book a roundtrip ticket that will take us into Prague and then on to Munich? All help would be appreciated! Thanks

UK travel on a budget

nikksioux — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:41:13 -0800

My boyfriend and I are planning a trip to Jolly Olde England in May. Does anyone have any advice on reasonably priced accomadations in London? Other budget-friendly advice? Other travel-savvy tips for vacationing in the UK? Indian restaurant rec's? Thanks in advance.