Travel USA travel tips and tricks

[alex_is_on_fire]

Do the US east coast

That's the goal, I think I've got her convinced that the East Coast is the way to go. The dollar vs the pound is helping me change her mind.

I did DC- Philly - NY - Boston (then flew to Buffalo)all by amtrack train last May.Paid for first class from NY-Boston (a 4 hour trip which was one of the highlights of my whole 3 months in the US. The scenery was amazing)

Boston was my fave city in the US(just beating out Chicago and OKC) just a beautiful city, so much to see history and sport wise,NY is NY but Philly was a real eye opener it was a real gritty city which had soul.I loved it there.It really had character.ended up staying there for 3 nights at this place right in the city

I think we're going to try and spend 10 days in NYC, 3 days in DC and 3 days in Boston with 3 days back in La La land or San Fran. Done LA and San Fran many times, so 3 days is ample time I suspect but would that time frame give us enough time to scratch the surface of each city?

DC obviously has all the monuments(the best way to see them is a tour at night),museums etc ,and I even got a tour of the pentagon(write to the Australian embassy and ask them for tickets)

Does this just apply to the Pentagon? Would love to arrange a White House tour and have herd that is possible but imagine it would be very difficult?

 

[jerry springer]

I will be in Philly for a couple of days in March and advice of what to do and see would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

No problems.One place i cant recommend more is south st, i went there nearly every night for to dine and have fun.Its fine for kids too if you have family

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Street_(Philadelphia)

http://southstreet.com/

Other than that. the rocky stairs were great and had great view of the city from the top and are also is the philly Museum of Art so go inside its world class.The waterfront is great(Boathouse rd is great to run along at night) and you have have all the historical places like the Liberty bell,independence hall and Franklin Square and the Franklin Institute. One cool place i went to was the Eastern state Penitentiary which had amazing stories and had Al capones cell

 

[jerry springer]

I think we're going to try and spend 10 days in NYC, 3 days in DC and 3 days in Boston with 3 days back in La La land or San Fran. Done LA and San Fran many times, so 3 days is ample time I suspect but would that time frame give us enough time to scratch the surface of each city?

Does this just apply to the Pentagon? Would love to arrange a White House tour and have herd that is possible but imagine it would be very difficult?

1.I would cut NY 2 days and add 1 to each other city So Boston 4,NY 8 and washington 4. NY is full on and can wear you out quickly,probably the reason i loved Boston so much and Boston has so much history is a beautiful city and it is 100 times more relaxed than NY

2.With the pentagon we went through the embassy and got the guided tour that way.To get tickets to the white house we had to go through the local Congressman(my sister was living in the states at the time) TBH the white house was not worth it, you only get to go through a few rooms,there is no guided tour and you cant take any photos at all cept we did take one as we went out the main back entrance,they turn a blind eye as you leave. Instead of doing the white house do the capitol building tour,it was fantastic and it was guided.

defiantly try and get the Pentagon tour, i will try and get you the point of contact off my sister that she used to organize the tix if you like? just give me a day or two.Its easy to catch the subway out to pentagon city and there is a good mall out that way too.

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

1.I would cut NY 2 days and add 1 to each other city So Boston 4,NY 8 and washington 4. NY is full on and can wear you out quickly,probably the reason i loved Boston so much and Boston has so much history is a beautiful city and it is 100 times more relaxed than NY

I look at NYC in a different way. Because it is so full on and can wear you out, you need more time, add a couple of rest days and spread things out a bit more.

 

[jerry springer]

I look at NYC in a different way. Because it is so full on and can wear you out, you need more time, add a couple of rest days and spread things out a bit more.

Fair enough too, i just didn't think NY was that great,its far more expensive than any other city in the US(for no reason whatsoever) and full of rude campaigners.

Still obviously its a must see place with heaps of sights to see but there are far better cities in the US IMO. There was a awesome rooftop bar that peejay recommended too which is mentioned earlier in this thread

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

I reckon we lucked out during our trip as we had no real problem with rude people. Some are a little sullen, one lady on 5th Avenue was dismissive when we asked directions but the cab drivers were great, taxi queue coordinators were great, the cruise people were funny and friendly. We also found clothing and food pretty reasonably priced.

A guy in LA told us, you either love NYC or you hate it. I can see that. I was mesmorised by the place.

 

[jerry springer]

Yeah,might of been bad timing on my part.it was the memorial day holiday weekend last year so it was more crowded than usual(If that's possible)and it was stinking hot so that might of been the reason everybody had their cranky hats on.

Saw some of the most amazing scenes of road rage you will ever see.there has to be a higher rate of cardiac related illnesses living in NYC just due to the stress

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

This is why I feel that maybe we used up all our luck when we came over as nothing went wrong. Next time we are bound to see the bad stuff.

 

[sabre_ac]

A warning to those going to the states. ALL american airlines are terrible and the airports are worse. It's the only place on earth I know my flight will be delayed, I'm unlikely to get fed on the plane and I'm likely to get lost in the airport.

This will be the worst part of an otherwise incredible experience.

LAX = Hell

For this reason I've almost fallen out of love with Qantas as it insists on travelling through LAX. Admittedly I'm yet to go through Dallas so there may be hope.

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

True, the airports seem mostly pretty crappy with few food options. Some are spread out a lot, Phoenix comes to mind. Memphis was decent. I found them pretty easy to navigate though. Just have to get there in plenty of time. I found it interesting during one early morning flight at LAX. We are told to get there a couple of hours early, but no baggage check desks opened until 45 mins before the flight and the TSA staff only came in at the last minute.

 

[d33my]

I was told again and again how shitty the airlines were. Maybe because I had such low expectations I didn't really find them that bad, at least nothing terribly worse than the budget airlines here (over the course of two months I had about 9 flights). I guess if you go expecting the worst, you'll be fine.

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

I was told again and again how shitty the airlines were. Maybe because I had such low expectations I didn't really find them that bad, at least nothing terribly worse than the budget airlines here (over the course of two months I had about 9 flights). I guess if you go expecting the worst, you'll be fine.

Yeah, I knew there was bugger all food on board unless you wanted to pay. We were allowed to take our own food on board though. The prices are so cheap you'd expect that. We did have entertainment systems on some flights and some were user pays. Jet Blue were the best. Air Trans were a bit weird. Mesa Airlines took one US Airways flight from Vegas to LA and that was dodgy as anything.

However overall I found the airports and boarding and security fairly easy to deal with. Just be organised and patient. 15 flights in 20 days or thereabouts. We were old hands.

 

[TheStinger]

Yeah, I knew there was bugger all food on board unless you wanted to pay. We were allowed to take our own food on board though. The prices are so cheap you'd expect that. We did have entertainment systems on some flights and some were user pays. Jet Blue were the best. Air Trans were a bit weird. Mesa Airlines took one US Airways flight from Vegas to LA and that was dodgy as anything.

However overall I found the airports and boarding and security fairly easy to deal with. Just be organised and patient. 15 flights in 20 days or thereabouts. We were old hands.

I was lead to believe that US TSA agents weren't allowed to have a sense of humour. I get to Houston airport from Mexico and I had to go through their security again as I was connecting to SF. I happened to be wearing my Chicago Bulls hat I got in Chicago and as I went through the xray machine, I beeped. They take me over to the side and the guy says to his offsider "This guy alarmed going through, so we need to give him a pat down, maybe check his bag and we have to throw away his Bulls cap and get him a Rockets one."

And then he chuckled. Which made me laugh. Wow, these guys do have a sense of humour. Who knew?

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

1.I would cut NY 2 days and add 1 to each other city So Boston 4,NY 8 and washington 4. NY is full on and can wear you out quickly,probably the reason i loved Boston so much and Boston has so much history is a beautiful city and it is 100 times more relaxed than NY

I like your line of thinking and agree with it and will quite possibly implement that strategy. Last year, we were in Las Vegas for 12 days and when we got home, we both agreed that stayed in Vegas 2 or 3 days too long and we become exhausted because of how full on that city is as well. So taking your advice and taking into consideration what ODNB has added to the conversation, 7 or 8 nights would be ample time for us to spend in New York and then we can have the happy memories or at least the desire to come back again.

As I said, we spend a week and a half in Las Vegas and I don't see any need for us to actually go back to any time soon. Grand Canyon and Skywalk done, don't gamble and don't drink. So Sin City for us, has been done and dusted.

2.With the pentagon we went through the embassy and got the guided tour that way.To get tickets to the white house we had to go through the local Congressman(my sister was living in the states at the time) TBH the white house was not worth it, you only get to go through a few rooms,there is no guided tour and you cant take any photos at all cept we did take one as we went out the main back entrance,they turn a blind eye as you leave. Instead of doing the white house do the capitol building tour,it was fantastic and it was guided.

That's good to know, I also think I read somewhere that tours of the White House for non American citizens was off limit these days. The pentagon and Capital building still sound like fantastic places to visit so any help gaining a ticket would be massively appreciated.

defiantly try and get the Pentagon tour, i will try and get you the point of contact off my sister that she used to organize the tix if you like? just give me a day or two.Its easy to catch the subway out to pentagon city and there is a good mall out that way too.

That would be fantastic if you could grab that information. Take your time mate as we're leaving until Boxing day, so if you can post that contacts information (or PM it to me) sometime over the next month or two would be awesome.

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

I look at NYC in a different way. Because it is so full on and can wear you out, you need more time, add a couple of rest days and spread things out a bit more.

I hear what you're saying but IMO and only mine I don't know If I can justify spending $15,000 on a US holiday and sitting around having a rest day. I like the idea of decreasing the amount of day and prioritising the more important tourist spots we visit and then comeback again. We will create a list of 10 to 15 things we 'must' do in our allocated time frame and then if we still have time, we can see where the trip takes us.

We like to stay busy and go, go, go from morning to night and then when we come home, just chill out before going back to work. No sitting around and wasting time for us. I'm not judging anyone who does that, it's just us or should I say me.

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

I hear what you're saying but IMO and only mine I don't know If I can justify spending $15,000 on a US holiday and sitting around having a rest day. I like the idea of decreasing the amount of day and prioritising the more important tourist spots we visit and then comeback again. We will create a list of 10 to 15 things we 'must' do in our allocated time frame and then if we still have time, we can see where the trip takes us.

We like to stay busy and go, go, go from morning to night and then when we come home, just chill out before going back to work. No sitting around and wasting time for us. I'm not judging anyone who does that, it's just us or should I say me.

My version of a rest day is more about not walking as much. Eat locally, shop locally, explore the local blocks. As it was, we were tearing off from one end of Manhattan to the other on a regular basis. Hours on cruises, bus tours etc. I think it is sort of important to do something to feel less like a tourist and more like a local. Therein lies the charm.

 

[jerry springer]

No worries,Im going to see my Sis in early feb,will get the info then and PM you

the capitol building was amazing,great tour and think it was free too

In washington As well as all the Smithsonian's(free entry) which can you can spend days in I found this place

http://www.spymuseum.org/

It cost about $20 to get in ,but was really cool and had a great gift shop.

If you are going to dine out I can recommend going to Dupont circle or Georgetown

http://dc.about.com/od/bestofdc/tp/Dupont-Circle-Restaurants.htm

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

My version of a rest day is more about not walking as much. Eat locally, shop locally, explore the local blocks. As it was, we were tearing off from one end of Manhattan to the other on a regular basis. Hours on cruises, bus tours etc. I think it is sort of important to do something to feel less like a tourist and more like a local. Therein lies the charm.

Yeah ok, this is something regarding a rest day I agree with and I feel, this was where we got pissed off with Vegas.

You have a few different options - car, taxi, the Deuce (bus), hop on hop off or walking. On the last 2 days, we elected to walk and in Vegas, places look so close but in reality, they are very long walks. It took us 20 minutes to walk from the Luxor to the M&M world and that's just basically from one side of the intersection to the other.

Then we decided to walk to the Miracle Mile shops, Bellagio fountains and a few other places. But we should have just grabbed a Deuce ticket.

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

No worries,Im going to see my Sis in early feb,will get the info then and PM you

the capitol building was amazing,great tour and think it was free too

In washington As well as all the Smithsonian's(free entry) which can you can spend days in I found this place

http://www.spymuseum.org/

It cost about $20 to get in ,but was really cool and had a great gift shop.

If you are going to dine out I can recommend going to Dupont circle or Georgetown

http://dc.about.com/od/bestofdc/tp/Dupont-Circle-Restaurants.htm

Awesome stuff.

Smithsonian has already been added to the list as a must do and we are US collage/university geeks so going out to Georgetown university will be a must as well.

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

You stayed at the Luxor? That's where we stayed.

I had no issue walking to the Bellagio each day, but we sort of did it by going from place to place rather than walking all the way there. Takes an age just to walk through the car parks. Each casino you could spend two days exploring and soaking up. We went to M&M world in NYC and went to Vegas later on so fortunately we didn't need to walk there. We bought monorail tickets but the stops are out the back of the strip casinos so it takes a while to walk out to the strip again.

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

Southwest - great price, easy access to tickets and flights were on time and looked after us. No drama. Saying that, we only has a 70 minute flight to San Francisco. Would fly with them again with inbound US flights.

Air Pacific - pathetic organization and will never fly with them again. Didn't enjoy my flights on bit and won't use them again, even if it means not going. No TV or entertainment unit that worked, shit meals and it took me 20 minutes to grab the flight attendants attention to grab a drink with my meal. They also didn't have any consideration for our needs as a customer. My wife fell over boarding the flight and cut her knee open, they knew about it but didn't care and just wanted us to sit down and shut up. I had to grab some tissues to stop the bleeding before they returned an hour latter with a few wet towels. I was not happy and just polity asked them to go away. No, just NO

Hawaiian Air - Food was good, flight was smooth and flight attendants were were happy to help where they could. Only complaint would be, having to pay for the TV entertainment on an International ticket. We went to Hawaii from Vegas, so I'm not sure if that's still an international ticket but it was only $6.99 US for 6 movies and 10 TV shows. So wasn't too bad. OK but would be looking for other options for Hawaii when we go their again. Just passable but still good for the money we paid.

V Australia - Flew Adelaide to LA last year and would highly recommend anyone use them as a very viable option on the long haul flights. Professional, kind and caring. Not a bad word to say about them. 9 out of 10. Very good.

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

You stayed at the Luxor? That's where we stayed.

Ha ha, no. We stayed at the Excalibur. We were doing the Sports exhibition at the Luxor but it looks very nice.

I had no issue walking to the Bellagio each day, but we sort of did it by going from place to place rather than walking all the way there. Takes an age just to walk through the car parks. Each casino you could spend two days exploring and soaking up. We went to M&M world in NYC and went to Vegas later on so fortunately we didn't need to walk there. We bought monorail tickets but the stops are out the back of the strip casinos so it takes a while to walk out to the strip again.

I had no trouble either but by day 12, I think I'd had enough. It was out last day and it was cold, freezing in fact and I was pissed off. Somehow, but don't ask me - we got suckered into doing one of those time share property presentations with the lure of getting $200 in gambling chips and a free show. We even said to each other before we stepped foot on the strip, we will not do a time share presentation as e know they are crap and a load of crap. However, in the end the free show ended up costing us a $25 x 2 ($50) upgrade and the gambling credits were non pay out promotional chips. So I was ready to get the hell out of dodge and just move on.

So I was cold, tired, pissed off and ready to move on but Vegas is still a very cool place.

 

[jerry springer]

Awesome stuff.

Smithsonian has already been added to the list as a must do and we are US collage/university geeks so going out to Georgetown university will be a must as well.

then you will absolutely love Boston

 

[alex_is_on_fire]

then you will absolutely love Boston

Yeah, Harvard is a must.

 

[wce4premiership]

Thread is shit, because I can't afford to go back yet