Fly/drive in the United States – the ‘thrifty way’ (North America)

Name: libertybell

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Product:	North America
Date:	29/04/01 (225 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Do as you please, see more of the US, can be cheaper

Disadvantages: too much travelling, changing rooms can get tedious

Having just returned from a ‘Fly/drive’ holiday to California, I thought what better way to get back into the Dooyoo writing thing than to write an opinion on this subject.

For those unaware of Fly/drive, its basically a type of holiday where you pay for a flight, a car and then you drive around a region of the US stopping in a number of hotels/motels on the way. I’ve been on 3 these holidays to the States and thought I would share some of my thought on how to keep costs under control.

I’ve broken this subject down into a number of headings, which are presented below in no apparent order. Even if you are not fly/driving, please have a read, as there are many things you may find interesting.

If I have missed something or there is something I ought to add – please add a line in a commentary.

And we will start with……..

Travelling
The beauty of Fly drive holidays, is that a) you are not limited to staying in one or 2 locations, and b) you can do things like travelling under your own steam in your hire car. My tips for travelling include:

* Map reading – The US is very different from the UK when navigating the roads. Other than the obvious such as driving on the right, their towns are laid out in a ‘criss-cross’ fashion. Many roads within towns and cities can go on for miles and you never know whether you are travelling in the right direction. A decent map is a must – one of those big multi-page maps of America supplemented by local maps from Tourist Information Centres. If going with other people, get someone who specialises in driving and another in map reading. My driving is far better than my map reading – which I leave to my Wife!
* Safety – The US has many dubious neighbourhoods. Use the central locking in your car to keep all doors closed. You shouldn’t have any problems. Also keep any ‘tourist’ items (like m
aps) out of harms way. In 5 trips to the States, I have only felt uncomfortable once when passing through Newark (NJ).
* Turning right on red lights – One of the sensible things you can do in the US (and not over here) is to turn right on red lights (unless signed not to). This will save you lots of time. Don’t hold up drivers behind you when you can move on – they will use their horn on you. And also, don’t forget to look out for pedestrians crossing the road. Sometimes crossings allow pedestrians to cross. Just be careful and watch out.
* U turns – You’re chugging along a highway and suddenly you discover you’ve missed your turning or the shop is on the other side of the road. It’s time for a U-turn and this is a manoeuvre you will practice over and over again. Find either the next left turn on the road (or at the next junction/set of traffic lights), check what is coming the opposite way and swing the car around with a bit of gas. Try not to do a ‘Starsky and Hutch’ burnout (it’s no longer cool and you might end up in the pavement!) Be careful where you do U-turns – many turns forbid them because of traffic coming the other way. There are also more Police in the US and they will not take too kindly to you breaking their laws.
* The price of petrol – Time was when the price of gas in the States was very cheap. It still is compared to UK prices – but the price is gradually rising. In California, gas was between $1.60 and $2.00 a gallon. They predict it will be $3 a gallon by next year. Fly drive drinks fuel. You can easily drive 300 miles a day. So – checkout pump prices and pay as little as possible. Go for the cheapest grade (there are usually 3 types) and ignore certain chains – ‘76’ are consistently more expensive than neighbouring stations.
* Public Transport – If convenient, try saving car parking charges in cities and Theme Parks
by taking public transport. San Francisco, Washington DC and New York all have their own underground systems.
* Distances – Don’t underestimate distances in the US. What looks a short hop on the map may turn out to be a 200mile slog on an empty, dull freeway. Try to get a balance between getting from one location to another and checking out the attractions by staying in one area for a number of nights before moving on.

Hiring cars
The most important thing (or the next important thing to where you sleep) is your car. Lots of things are written about cars. Here are my thoughts:
* Enough boot space – Make sure the car you hire is big enough to transport suitcases, people and other clutter in comfort. Your car should be big enough to swallow your suitcases so they aren’t stowed on the back seat. If in doubt, always order a bigger car than you will need.
* Gadgets to have – On the whole, the bigger the car – the more toys that come with it. As a minimum, make sure your car has air conditioning (you will fry without it in the US – most if not all rental cars have it), cruise control (stops you getting cramp in your right foot on endlessly long freeways) and central locking (for your safety in dodgy areas and to ensure you don’t leave any doors unlocked and hence lose your possessions). Drink holders in the front and back are useful for those cold drinks from McDonalds!
* Dropping car off at different airports – Flying into one Airport and out from another is worth considering as it reduces the needs to travel in 1 big loop. However the Rental Company might try to sting you for a $100 drop-off charge. They did with us in California – we objected and it was waived!
* Convertibles – Great for posers, but expensive. The sun in the US is strong and bright in the south even in the winter and a dose of sunburn/sunstroke might suggest a boring hardtop with aircon is far more sensi
ble and cheaper too!

Eating
* Breakfast – Start the day with a good breakfast. If it’s substantial, you may find you can skip lunch and eat in the evening. Pick a Hotel/Motel where they serve a complimentary continental breakfast and go for cereals and fruit where available. Chocolate doughnuts and waffles covered in syrup may be novel at first, but they do get dull after a while. If you can’t get breakfast where you are staying, try Denny’s where they do all day breakfasts. It will cost you!
* What’s a sandwich? – Unlike in the UK where you can easily grab a sandwich for lunch, getting one in the US is all but impossible. Bakeries are scarce and many supermarkets tend not to produce lunchtime grub. We even found a Wal-Mart (owners of ASDA over here), which didn’t even stock fresh food. Other than eating junk food, you may find snacking on cookies is the only way of getting through the day if you are feeling hungry (or have kids).
* Finding supermarkets – Leading on from the previous 2 tips, try and locate a local supermarket. If you see one near where you are staying, make a mental note of it and visit it. They are a good source of cheap basics such as soft drinks (buy in bulk), bread and fillings for sandwiches, sweets and beer. If your Motel/Hotel room has a fridge – great, if it doesn’t you may have to forego the perishables!
* Junk food choices – Sooner or later you will succumb to junk food. We have sampled McDonalds, Burger King (both ok), Taco Bell (insubstantial), Pizza hut (scrummy – try for a takeaway), and KFC (good).
* All you can eat buffets – Check these out as they are great value for money. You pay an amount upfront (this may be for say a steak) and then you can eat as much as you like – salad, chicken, cakes, biscuits and soft drinks. We went to one in Anaheim LA, where you could eat as much as you wanted for $8!
* Look out for plac
es to eat – Other than watching out for Supermarkets, watch the TV, read newspapers and other blurb for examples of places to eat. We came across a great and cheapish restaurant called Sizzlers through watching TV.
* Free refills – In the US, many fast food outlets allow you to keep filling up your soft drink containers whilst you are eating there. Do take advantage of this before setting off on the next stage of your journey i.e. fill em up, and put them in the drink holders in the car! As with all drinks, don’t go to mad. You might be happy to drink a lot – but your bladder might not be so considerate.

Theme Parks
If you are in the States and are in the neighbourhood of a theme park – check it out. They are far ahead of anything the UK can offer in terms of size, variety of rides – and the weather is much better. However, they are expensive so…..
* Paying for car parking & using free transport – It’s amazing what the theme parks get away with charging for. When you are paying $40+ per adult to enter a theme park, you would think that car parking would be free. Nope! It will cost you cost you about $7 to park your car for the day. If you can take a bus to the park, or the Hotel/Motel runs a shuttle or you know someone you will drop you there – take it. $7 may not sound too much – but it’s going to cost you $100 to get a family through the gates and we haven’t even mentioned food or souvenirs yet!
* Using vouchers to reduce admission charges – Consider this – it will cost you $42 per adult and $32 per child to gain admission to a theme park. That’s $148 for a family of four or £100! You can reduce this cost by looking for vouchers, which will cut adult admission tickets by between $3 and $10. This may not sound a great deal, but it’s just saved you the cost of car parking. At 6 Flags Magic Mountain in LA, someone gave us a VIP pass which sav
ed us $20 each on adult admission! Check out the coupons at your Motel, local papers or tourist blurb. Don’t pay full price!
* Eating in theme parks – Con number 2. After charging you to park your car, theme parks will overcharge you when you eat. Your $4 hamburger will be $6 in a theme park – without refills. If possible, take your own cold drinks especially water – which you can top up from the water fountains. Ignore the warnings about taking your own food. Like cinemas, theme parks are after your money and food sales generate a load of revenue for them. You are there to ride on the rides – not eat their food!
* Weather – Take sensible precautions. Slap on the suntan lotion in the car park and drink plenty of liquids. Even in Florida in November, the weather can be warm and you might get burnt. Stay in the shade when you can. A day is a long time to stay out in the sun if you are not used to the climate. After sun lotion can be very soothing if you are a bit burnt – take some.

Places to stay overnight
Other than your car, your major concern on a fly drive will be the places where you will stay. The number of hotels/motels is huge as are the variety of facilities they offer. There are also a huge variety of prices, which can also be paid and the trick is to get a comfortable room for as little money as possible. Consider the following:
* Pre-pay schemes – One way of keeping costs down and pre-booking all your accommodation is to use a pre-pay voucher system. Each voucher costs about £44 and entitles you to a room for one night. You get a Directory from which you choose the Hotel and location. You ring the voucher company in the UK and specify which hotels, and when. In return, they send you vouchers (which you have paid for) which you present at the Hotel in question.
* Booking on the Internet – An alternative way to book is on the Internet though I have never tried this.
* Book
ing in the States – If you want to be really flexible, book your accommodation when in the States. Hotels often have rates displayed, though if you book in that evening – you can always try to negotiate a cheaper deal. Really cheap deals can be found by getting hold of a free Hotel/Motel voucher book. These are packed with coupons giving cheap prices. You can get these books in diners, tourist information centres and some hotels/motels.
* Suggested chains – In the past we have used Motel6 (budget – but clean), Best Western (ok), and Ramada (more upmarket). There are loads of motels around. Turn up, see a room and haggle over a price. Remember an empty room brings in no income – so see what you can get away with!
* Facilities including fridges – If you can, try to get a room with a decent set of TV channels (including movies, kids channels and sports), a fridge to keep your perishables (and beer), and coffee maker.

Money
* Cheap travellers cheques – I must admit that I am not keen on travellers cheques as you don’t tend to get a good rate of exchange and you often have to pay commission. Shop around and try to get a commission free deal. I bought my cheques from the main Post Office – on a commission free deal. Get $50 notes and remember to keep the serial numbers separate in case you lose the cheques and need to get replacements.
* Cash for tolls & sundries – When exchanging your pounds for dollars, get about $50 in cash (various denominations) for when you arrive in the States. If nothing else, you will need some cash in Orlando, Florida for getting through the toll road system that surrounds the airport. Don’t embarrass yourself by trying to pay for a $2 toll with a $50 travellers cheque! As to coinage, it’s worth keeping for putting in things like parking meters, which don’t always take notes.
* Use of ATM machines and credit cards in the US – Once in
the US, you can easily get cash through ATM machines. Although you will pay a cash advance percentage, the exchange rate will be far better than when buying travellers cheques. Once signed on, use the checking option to get at your money. The machines are far more laid back than ours – they even welcome you by name.
* Buying gas – You can pay for gas in advance at the pump by cash or credit card, or inside. If you use a card, you may be asked to enter your PIN number. I tried this and found my card wouldn’t work as the network was down. I finally gave up and used travellers cheques or cash. If you pay for $20 worth of gas – this is all you will be able to put in your car.
* New coinage – Finally, the Americans have been introduced to dollar coins. They look a bit like chocolate money. So if you get one – they are legitimate. However you may have to wait sometime to find a machine that will take them!

Things to do on holiday
* Beaches – Obvious really. The best beaches I have come across were in Florida on the Gulf Coast. Clean, golden and peaceful. Many beaches have facilities to shower off the sand. If you want something a little more remote, California has loads of beaches north of SF. You won’t find lifeguard facilities here.
* State Parks – If tranquillity is more your ticket, State Parks are worth a visit. Some have interesting countryside where you can wander, others have historical monuments containing say something interesting about America’s history. There is often an entrance charge and they often do not have anything better than chemical toilets – which are a bit of an acquired taste!
* Museums – The US have a variety of these. Many are very small or poorly advertised. Watch out for them on tourist information leaflets. We went to an excellent Railway Museum in Sacramento. Entrance fee was $3 and kids up 16 were free. If the museum is run by the State or t
he country, they tend to be cheaper.
* Shopping – Outside of towns, decent shops can be found in some malls, which house big stores such as Seers, Barnes and Noble etc. If you want cheap clothes (such as t-shirts), try Wal-mart, Target or Kmart. They are not upmarket, but the prices are very keen. Some locations have outlet malls where you can buy quality seconds. Remember that you will have to get these into your suitcases somehow.

If you have got to here, I apologise for all the words. There is more I could write – but I will spare you the eyestrain. Thanks for reading.

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