Travel Tips
One of the best investments I made when doing a road trip in the states was to join the AAA. I never needed them for an emergency but it was well worth my while. Aside from the peace of mind you also get FREE maps of cities/states/areas, discounts on accommdation, attractions, rental cars and lots of local information at every office I called into. Best of all it was only around $60.
Hannah (June 98)
Staten Island Ferry is now FREE in BOTH directions. When I got to New York it was apparently common knowledge that most budget travelers prefer to view the Statue of Liberty from the Staten Island Ferry. There are multiple advantages. Not only do you save money and get a trip to Staten Island thrown in, but you get views of Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan and the Statue without having to queue and the whole business can be done in less than a morning if you're pressed for time-as most of us are on holiday.
Sarah Manocha - UK (Dec 97)
One great thing about D.C. is that there is no admission charge for the Smithoneon Museums and you could spend hours in there. Also, anyone can visit the White House (I can't think of many countries that allow this type of thing in the home of their political leader), the State Capital, the Treasury, the Library of Congress, FBI headquarters, the Holocaust Museum, etc. without paying any admission fees. Food and lodging is terribly expensive, but there are hostels there and so many of the monuments and museums are in close proximity. Also, the public transportation is great and safe. So, if you stay in a hostel - reservations would likely be necessary May through September - and if you eat from the grocery rather than restaurants, I'd guess you could do two days for two people for $100 total. It is worth it! The hostel number is 1 (202) 737-2333 and it says in the 1994 book I have that RESERVATIONS ARE NECESSARY and the cost was 16-18 per night back then. So, it's bound to cost more now. But, you can't beat the location, it's only a 2 blocks from the middle of everything.
Sarah (May 98)
Working
South Florida (Fort Lauderdale) is paradise for anyone who wants to stay warm, travel and work. Yachts leave here year around for destinations around the world. Pay for day labor is in the $10.00 per hour range - no experience necessary. I volunteered to work for free as a deckhand on my first transatlantic passage in order to get experience. That was on a small 32' sailboat. Since then I am considered experienced and have worked for pay on many luxury sailboats and motoryachts. What I did, and continue to do, almost anyone can do. There is an unlimited amount of work available on the thousands of local and international yachts. The yachting community is centered around S.E. 17th street in the southeast area of Fort Lauderdale. Jobs include cleaning, repairing, crewing, etc. These are jobs for man and women. Most new people get advice and cheap accommodations at the 16th street hostel or one of the many crew houses. There are also several crew placement agencies that assist people in finding crew positions. One tip: don't expect to set up any work or crew positions in advance of arrival. You must just show up and start looking. That is essentially the only way for a beginner to get started. And we were all beginners at one time so come on down. The water's fine.
Sailorman (June 98)
Anchrage: Went to a bar names "Moose's Tooth" which isn't in the LP guide. The place is located on the corner of Benson Rd and Frontage Rd, a stone's throw away from the Seward Highway. They brew their own beer - more than 10 different tastes and have the greatest pizza on earth. You can even get a fresh salmon pizza there!
Jens Sitarek - GER - (Nov 98)
InHale'iwa we found H. Miura General Store at 66-057 Kam Highway, on the makai side. This is an old-fashioned general store where you can pick out your fabric and get a pair of shorts or swim trunks made to order. The also serve the best shave ice I had on the island - a large serving, with a generous helping of syrup, mercifully without neon food coloring - the only place where this was so. The mango syrup actually contained tiny bits of mango pulp. And no lines!
Annabel Falk - ENG (Oct 98)
Another highlight of the Boston trip was visiting the "Writers Ridge" in sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord (it was NOT nearly as spooky as I expected!) Such authors as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Louisa May Alcott, and Henry David Thoreau are buried there. Thoreau's tombstone is simply a huge piece of uncarved marble - no name carved on it, etc. - which reflects his Transcendental beliefs. I was bemused by a couple of tourists looking for his tombstone who walked right past it several times saying "Where is Thoreau?? Is that him?? I don't see him??"
Brian Lew - US (Oct 98)
Florida
We had a great time at Rainbow Springs State Park and I was surprised not to find it in LP's Florida guidebook. It is absolutely beautiful, only a two hour drive from both Orlando and the Bay Area, on the way if you are heading for the Panhandle or Georgia. Rainbow springs offers swimming, picnicking, camping, walking in the beautiful garden and snorkeling the blue and green headwater. Canoes, innertubes and snorkeling equipment can be rented at the State Park Campground. The Park is open every day from 8am to 8pm. Admission is US$1. The campground offers 105 sites for camping and a camp store.
19158 SW 81st Pl. Rd. ;Dunnellon, FL 34432; 352/489-8503; http://www.dep.state.fl.us/parks
Wonter Adamse, NDL - (Oct 98)
New England. Gifford Woods Stare Park, as well as being an excellent campground, contains a very walkable stretch of the Appalachian Trail. The Long Trail forks from it in the park and with the circular Leaping Deer Trail, the three trails make an inspiring and very pleasant 3 hour walk, with spectacular views from a rocky ledge out over the Green Mountains. Not to be missed! For parking, take the turn off signposted for a lake almost opposite the entrance to the Gifford Woods State Park.
Andy Hay, ENG, Oct 98
The Amusement park at Opryland Nashville has closed. It was being bulldozed down during our visit in October.
Brian Holden US (Dec 98)
Oregon is beautiful and I prefer it over California. If you travel up into Oregon, be sure to stop in Lincon City - its' a town of about 5,000 on the coast, past Newport (too touristy) a bit off the tourist trap as most people just drove through to newport etc. We stayed in Lincon city for 6 days. They had a to die for Safeway food store with fresh fish -cheap too. Also they have a major golf store and facilities. Huge outlet type retail stores too. If you're into wine then you're in the right part of the usa. Oregon has most excellent pear and brandy growers/vinyards inland. From portland to lincon city -an hour or so drive- we spotted at least 30 vinyards.
California goes without saying - If you travel up the california coast be warned that taking the costal route will take you much longer as it's high camper season and many people go a slow 30 miles an hour. There are signs posted every few miles where larger vehicles and campers are required to stop into to let 'faster' vehicles pass... inland is a bit boring but faster. We stayed in Redding, california, an interesting but typical american city yes. From san fran to redding is a good days drive! Virginia City is a must, I agree.
Cools (April 98)
Epcot, Epcot, Epcot!! Not as many children, they are all at the Magic Kingdom, no fruity tootie kiddie shows,(usually very good show at the Americam Gardens stage). Interesting entertainment at several of the world pavillions, rotated every hour or so day, be sure not to miss the band "Off Kilter", they appear at a stage in front of Canada. VERY good act, funny and great music!!
At this park you can dine at various "countrys", one of the most popular is France, try the Bistro (upstairs). Be sure to make reservations WELL in advance for any of the restaurants. If you enjoy alcoholic beverages this park does offer a wide variety (oh my, how un-Disney!). Don't miss "Illuminations" the big laser show at the end of the day, 9:00 PM.
You will have a great time at this park, Magic Kingdom is for kids, MGM, unless you are really "star struck" or "in to" the film and entertainment indusry, is kind of blah. After Epcot closes, if you are still in the mood to sight see, go to "Downtown Disney", the newest addition to the adult entertainment area of Disney, it consist of; House of Blues, Wolf Gang Pucks, Planet Hollywood, Bongos (Gloria Estephans place), Pleasure Island, much much more. Pleasure Island has alot of live entertainment, but has a hefty cover, the rest is free.
Have fun!!!!!!!! Keep those tourist dollars coming, we need you to pay ou taxes!!!! THANKS!!
Orlando local (April 98)
I want to let you know about a wonderful, out-of-the-way restaurant we found on our recent trip to Honolulu. Well, actually the restaurant is on the other side of Oahu, in Kailua. It's not your typical Hawaiian, tourist place. It's a middle Eastern restaurant. Now what you'd expect in Kailua, and maybe not what you're looking for on a visit to Hawaii. But....
The restaurant is on a quiet side street just outside the 'downtown' part of Kailua. In the front is a modest place where you can get falafel, baba ganoush, kebabs-your typical middle eastern fare. The prices are reasonable, and the food is quite good. But if you go through this front part of the restaurant, and through a small breezeway, you'll come to the back room-where the ceiling is raped to look like a big tent, the floor and walls are covered with Persian carpets and you sit on low benches or cushions on the floor at low tables. It's stunning. The waiter brings towels, a basin and a pitcher of warm water to pour over your hands. Because-you eat the meal with your fingers, although cutlery is available for the inhibited. There's a fixed-price menu in the back room, and while it's not cheap (about $30/person), you get a steady supply of warm pita bread, an assortment of appetizers and salads (six different kinds the night we were there), soup (they served harira that night), a chicken and vegetable-filled pastry with wonderful spices., your choice of about a dozen main courses (the choices included several seafood dishes, chicken, lamb several different ways, a couple of vegetarian choices), dessert and mint tea. Best of all, the food is just wonderful. Everything tasted so good. The servings are ample, enough to really stuff yourself. We hung around eating and chatting for about 2 1/2 hours and nobody rushed us, although the waiter was attentive and friendly. After the meal, the waiter brings the hand-washing equipment again, and then gently sprinkles you with rose-water. Ahhhh! It was a wonderful evening, and a place worth knowing about. The restaurant is called Casablanca. It's at 19 Hoolai St., in Kailua, HI 96734, telephone 262-8196.
Catherine Smith - US (May 98)
PhiladelphiaThe book does not advise travellers hoping to stay in the city during October (as I hope to do in order to attend a conference) that hotel accommodation is IMPOSSIBLE to obtain unless booking is made many weeks in advance. I tried two/three weeks in advance and was told by many hotels/B & Bs/and tourist info. that there were no rooms to be had in the city. The nearest I was offered was 12 miles away, and dependent on having a car.
Simon Parker - UK (Oct 98)
Kodiak Ferry - take the offer to queue at boarding time if you have to; we had no problem getting our Hundai Excel with canoe onboard although we were about 8th on the standby list. Get a spot on the floor on the top deck. It's very noisy but this is where the atmosphere is and you get fresh air, heaters and shelter. Just remember the ear plugs when its time to sleep and beware the horn blowing at least twice during the trip. Great spot for beluga spotting too.
Bronwyn Siviour - CAN - (Nov 98)
I just returned from traveling around the states on the US Bus and it was a really great experience. I travelled from Niagara Falls to LA in 4 weeks on a bus ticket that cost approx US $260. This is great for travelling in a van that only takes 14 pax, and the timetable allows for loads of stops on the way which the passengers decide upon, like outlet shopping, swimming, Kodak moments etc. The bus drops and picks up at HI Hostels along the route and you can get on and off whenever you choose. The only drawback was that because the service is only a few months old they are suffering a few scheduling problems as in too many people and not enough buses, but this was in September and most of the travellers were just released from working at summer camps so its probably not the best time to travel.
The drivers are great, and the hostel staff are very helpful in finding passengers beds at short notice when they are already full. The US Bus also gives you a $30 phone card and a book with all the info you need to book your accommodation .
My best tip, offer the US Bus driver %5 to sleep in the bus at night, a great money saver, and they appreciate the security.
Sarah Avenell - AUS (Oct 98)
Just a quick update from a recent trip to Florida. The LP book only mentions in the Getting There section Orlando International Airport for the only way into Orlando, but the majority of the charter flights from which very cheap last minute seats can be purchased fly to Orlando Sanford. This is North of Orlando, a newish airport. The day we departed it had 14 UK flights only that day. We nearly went to the International Airport on the way home by mistake as the LP book says that this is the only airport. Beware, we nearly missed our flight.
Steve Brookwell - US (Oct 98)
Cars, rentals, driveaways
Auto driveaways are basically non-paying situations, not paying jobs. there are offices in most cities of some size. usually it is difficult to find a driveaway of less than 400-500 miles. a typical arrangement would be like this example: you pick up a car in tampa florida after leaving a $200 deposit, to be refunded after delivering the car to denver colorado. the car has been checked out and declared roadworthy. there is no charge for the use of the car to denver. the gas tank is full when you get the car; you should turn it in with at least 1/8-1/4 tank of gas. there is an allowance of mileage given: if the company calculates that is 1800 miles tampa to denver, they allow you maybe 2100 miles to deliver the car and 6 days to arrive. do not exceed this mileage or time restriction, or there will be charges and penalties. you are restricted to daylight driving only, but this is on the honor system. in rare circumstances of rush departure or unusual destination, there may be additional incentive, such as all or partial gas paid, but VERY RARELY do they pay you to drive the car to the destination. hope this information was helpful to you.
Rick (May 98)
The previous post is correct, but it is still a great way to get around if you are flexible enough, 1) You almost always get good cars as noone moving a crappy car would pay an agency to do it, one of mine was a Nissan Pathfinders 4WD with CD player and the works, drove it 2000 miles. 2) They do give you mileage limits but noone ever checked at the other end, (you deliver straight to the owner, not the agency). I went 500 miles over (on a 1800 mile trip) and noone blinked. Do not go over the time limit though 'cos then they'll call the police. 3) Definitely definitely definitely check the car with a fine tooth comb before you accept it otherwise you can be charged for damage, or at least loose your deposit. 4) Autodriveaway was the agency I used, I don't know if they're on the web, but they are the largest agency, and they seemed to know what they were doing and had offices in quite a few places. Head office is Chicago I think.
Pete (May 98)
The co. you need to contact is "Auto Driveaway Co." and is listed in the yellow pages. The number for the Seattle office is 206 235 0880.
Monty (June 98)
Hi to all you friendly & helpful people out there! At first, thanks for all the information you gave us. In the meantime, we have found quite a few interesting pages around the net, so we now want to share that with you.
And remember that you always have to pay fees and state of California taxes $1.95/DAY + 8.24%. In case you have other questions, we will be on the road from June 26 (Friday !!!!) but will be available at pleskina@metronet.de. Keep on rockin'
Sandra & Andreas (June 98)
Roadtripping in California
My partner and I are planning to travel around California in August. We wanna start our trip going from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe but travelling trough Eureka, Lassen Volcanic Park and maybe Lava Beds. It's worth the 'detour'?? It seems to us that nobody is going to the North of California, why??
Joan (April 98)
One thing you need to realize, especially if you are European, is that YOU WILL NEED TO DRIVE. You might be able to find some package tour to Yosemite, and deal with all the crowds, but otherwise YOU WILL NEED TO DRIVE. CAR CAR CAR-- this should be your mantra. Northern California is very popular in the summertime and the places you have mentioned are all very far apart with no public transportation between the places. Rent a car, get a good map and look at it with American eyes (things are very far apart here) and drive to as many as you can, making reservations at campsites well in advance. It will be quite hot, temperature-wise. Traveling to Tahoe via Eureka is insane, unless you have a LOT of time. Please look at a map and measure the distances properly. Keep in mind the curvy roads and high volumes of traffic.
Mikey (April 98)
What's worthwhile and what distances are long or too long depends on you, of course. Yosemite's absolutely gorgeous, though you absolutely need to reserve hotel rooms or campground spots in advance. Tuolumne Meadows, in the eastern part of the park, is about 8,000' plus (vs. about 4,500' in Yosemite Valley), and there is better hiking, for day hikes and longer, there. Mt. Dana (13,000') is a relatively easy walk-up (rangers lead hikes there). If you want some uncrowded mountain scenery, you could continue on eastward over Tioga Pass, at the edge of the park (maybe just drive through the park), on over to the eastern side of the Sierra. High desert surrounded by 12,000'+ plus peaks of the Sierra Nevada on one side and equally high desert peaks (really uncrowded) on the other. Lots of hikes there, and fewer people. There are lots of guide books for the whole region (classic is Starr's Guide to the High Sierra). Yosemite is worth seeing, but unless you can reserve in advance you may consider saying outside of Yosemite Valley (e.g. El Portal or Big Oak Flat just west of the park, or the Wawona area in the southern part of the park). If you hate crowds, you could spend the day in the Valley and then continue on eastward to Tuolumne Meadows and on to Hwy. 395 (could loop back to SF via Lake Tahoe or via Sonora Pass, which is lovely and less crowded than Yosemite).
Steve (May 98)
USA
