4 months in America.. HELP

America is very expensive but you have one thing going for you and that is that the pound is worth a lot more than a us dollar so your money will go further.

American southwest is generally cheaper if you stay out of the big cities. The deep south is also cheaper. you don't want to be in the north in the time frame that you are going to be there as it will be very cold.

bring a tent and sleeping bag. look into a amtrac pass .

Good Luck! Reply to this

Consider couchsurfing (couchsurfing.org) which is a great way to get to know the people and places as well as saving money. It is not for everyone though.

Sounds like New York, San Francisco, and either Miami or Southern California would be great placse for you.. Can still go to the beach in November and possibly December in Miami, though I think southern Cal has more to offer.

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Hello:

Agreeing with above post, the weather will be on the cooler side up to freezing depending on where you go. It is expensive to travel in and around the states. Unfortunaley we do not have good tranportation systems like most of Europe does. Getting from one state to another almost required flying or driving.

The experience it sounds like you are looking for I would suggest San Diego, San Fransisco and Los Angeles. The weather can be a little cold, but you wont have to deal with any snow. I live in San DIego and can tell you there a millions things to see and do in and around the San Diego area. You will want to rent a car with GPS system. There is a youth hotel right on the beach, in the Mission Beach area. Lots of music, museams in gorgeous balboa park and great night life. However th drinking age is 21 and that can limit your options for some music shows and of course night clubs.

The beaches are beautiful, but more than likely it will be too cold to to go swimming. You can do alot of water activites that do not actually require a getting in.

If you want more information on San Diego and possibly San Fransisco, I can email me at jodinbill@cox.net.

Another good option would above suggestion of Florida and the East Coast. I would also recommend going to New York City if you can afford it. It is amazing, but it will be very cold the time you are planning.

You have alot of options, sorry none are really that cheap. But don't let that discourage you, you just need to get a little creative. Come visit and I am sure you wont be disapointed where ever you end up choosing. Reply to this

Western US offers many options for that time of year. Southern CA is gorgeous as are the northern mountains. LA is an experience in and of itself. Northern CA offers beautiful scenery, great skiing. San Francisco is awesome. Reply to this

We have some really great skiing here in Montana. Red Lodge is almost a secret as to great skiing. They have already had over 40" of snow this year and will be open late in Oct or early Nov. If you would like to see this - I don't live too far away and can help you make arrangements. I know I got an e-mail earlier that said you could get a ski package for $43.50 a night to stay in a lodge and have the lower lifts per night. The expense will come with the rental of equipment, a lesson (recommended for newbies), and for upper steeper lifts.

This would also put you in here during hunting season, which ends Thanksgiving weekend. You might want to try an outfitter to go hunting.

The Rockies are very different from the Alps. I remember being asked which is more beautiful and all I could say is that you cannot compare apples to oranges.

Christmas in Yellowstone National Park will get you more snow than you can imagine and cold. But it is so beautiful and something you will never forget. I can get you a web site to look at what they have to offer if you like. Reply to this

Hi Lou and Charlotte:

Since you two are so young I think you'd have the best time in so-called "college towns" like Austin, Texas, Athens, Georgia, or Charlottesville, Virginia. These 3 are home to their respective state universities and have huge student communities. You'll certainly find vibrant new music and art scenes there. The Dave Mathews Band comes to mind as a band that grew up in Charlottesville, for example.
Asheville, North Carolina is another fun town even though their local university is a little smaller than the others.
Because Austin, Athens, Asheville and Charlottesville (especially for you Charlotte!) are located in southern states they're going to be cozy warm during the winter months. That being said however, I think some of the posters here over-emphasize the severity of the cold in the northern states. New York will be colder than you're used to in Cornwall, but the real severe cold stays pretty much in the north-central states such as Wisconsin, Minnesota and around. Montana is an interesting idea because it is so remote and wild but it will be VERY cold up there in January. Missoula and Bozeman are the prettiest cities in that state, IMO, and are also the seats for the state universities up there.
Halloween is becoming more and more popular every year. San Francisco has the wildest Halloween parties anywhere, but it also gets crazy in any good college town.
Thanksgiving is really for families in the US, so you need to get to know someone so you can be invited to their Thanksgiving dinner! Otherwise it will be a very quiet day for the 2 of you.
Everyone talks about how magical New York is at Christmastime and it's true. New Year's Eve in Times Square would be unforgettable. You might have snow in New York at Christmas; but you might not. If you want to be sure of snow try the mountains of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, or Montana (as the earlier poster mentioned).
January and February might be a good time to go to the desert southwest -- Arizona and California. February is about the only time of year you can see the Grand Canyon without crowds.
Don't give up on air travel as an efficient way to get around. With a few weeks advance booking you can take a flight from Texas to New York for as little as $99 each way. The same trip by train, bus or car would take up to 3 days and would end up costing you almost as much in incidentals. Even the smaller cities in the US have airports so you don't have to travel to a large city to get a flight with good connections.
Good luck with everything. Reply to this

Hello Lou and Charlotte !

I went to the US four months ago for a student exchange, which is not excatly what you plan to do, but to find a flat and to know more about day-2day life in the US,

I hope you'll find what you need !
Good luck !

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Hi Louise -

Most of the responders above have already provided you with some good advice and suggestions, but here's my input.

Given that you can't rent a car and want to experience the holidays (and snow!) I would recommend that you plan a trip down the east coast along one of the Amtrak routes. Starting in October you could see all the fall foliage (which, coming from myself who grew up on the west coast where we don't see the leaves change as much, is the best way to experience Halloween. I also love the suggestion for Salem, Massachusetts), and slowly make your way down to New York for Christmas and New Years, and see the impressive window displays, the tree in Rockefeller Center, ice skating in Bryant Park. For Thanksgiving, I agree that a home-stay is really the only way to get the "authentic" experience and echo the suggestion to look into Couchsurfing. We've been CS hosts in the past and it was a wonderful experience for all involved.

Moving on down to the south through Virginia and the Carolinas in time for basketball season at the colleges of the SEC (this is a huge part of American university experience Dec through March) - you could stay in places in Chapel Hill, NC and Athens, GA.

It's hard to imagine just how large this country is when you fly over it, and I'm of the opinion there is no 'bad' place to go, nor is there ever a 'bad' time to be there. You'll find art and culture no matter where you are, but to get the most out of your experience that's what I'd recommend.

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Hi Louise,

Me and my bf spent 3 months travelling in the states - we planned to stay longer but ran out of money! We are now living in VAncouver, Canada on a working visa.

We started in Seattle and worked our way down the west coast of the states. We went to Seattle, Seaside, Sacramento, San Francisco, Yosemite, Las Vegas and then we flew over to New York, Boston, Chicago and made our way to Vancouver, Canada.

We did not have a car and this was no problem. We travelled by Greyhound bus but mainly Amtrak. Amtrak is rail and is much nicer and if you book at least a week/two weeks ahead is usually cheaper then bus. We flew from Vegas to New York. I definately recommend checking out both and working out which works for you.

We stayed in hostels and we had some great experiences and met some really cool people. I would recommend staying in HI (hostelling international) hostels. We did stay in Green Tortoise hostel in Seattle and San Francisco which were amazing! and HI everywhere else.

Of all the places to see.. our favourites was definately San Francisco which we spent 2 weeks at, Yosemite National Park was amazing as well. Las Vegas is like nothing you have ever seen and worth checking out as well. We stayed at the STratosphere hotel there for $30 a night for both of us which was cheaper then any hostel! We were in Vegas on Halloween which was pretty crazy! New York is definately another must see as you can imagine.

Depends on what type of experience you want to have. You will have an amazing time! We didn't plan alot and depending how we liked a place, we stayed shorter or longer. Have a great time! This is my travel blog from my travels http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/allsey/3/tpod.html I recommend you keep a blog too which helps family & friends keep up with where you are!

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She said she isn't leaving until October 2010, your a bit early :P Reply to this