Not sure just how much help I can be here, but we completed a similar trip a couple of years ago. See our blogs from
"There's always Vegas" onwards (starts in S.F., ends in D.C.). We drove the US coast to coast, so can't really advise on your travel arrangements, and stayed in motels/hotels, but we covered many of the states you're aiming to travel. The following is a very personal appreciation of places to visit.
The short version...
The south west is fantastic
The mid-west is huge, with less that appealed to us, though still not without its high points
The south is great for Blues bars
The south east is great for history
The long version...
The US South West is glorious country. The grand circle around the Grand Canyon (basically LV in the west, Zion and Bryce NP's to the north, and northern Arizona/southern Utah generally, Lake Powell and Monument Valley to the east, the South Rim, with Sedona in N.Arizona also worth a mention), are all stunning in a swelteringly hot, mostly orange coloured kind of way. Vegas is gloriously tacky and a lot of fun. Always happy to get there, and always happy to leave after 4 or so days. Not sure, however, how much of this you can do without a car. Maybe base yourself in Vegas, or another large town in N.Arizona/S.Utah and sign up for some excursions?
We found Roswell to be interesting. If it's on your route then it's worth a stop, but I'm not so sure it is worth a major detour if time is scarce. There is a museum, but the 'crash site' is private property and not accessible. If you do find yourself hanging around this area, then White Sands National Monument is also a good place to visit, in a blinded-by-white-gypsum-dunes-in-the-searing-summer-heat kind of way. Not sure how easy this is without a car though.
We found Texas to be huge, flat, and a state that we pretty much just drove through, so can't really advise you much on that one. Our route took us through the less touristy northern part of the state, and we went on to Oklahoma City and Dallas. Both are worth a visit if they are close to your route, though it sounds as though you will be further south. The OKC National Memorial marking the site of the bombing there in 1995 is an extremely well presented, poignant memorial, and we watched some great live blues in the old Brickworks, now converted to a leisure area. Dallas itself is just a big city, but the site of the Kennedy assassination is worth a wander around.
The southern Louisiana coast was fascinating in 2006, though this was more to do with the carnage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita the previous year, so things might be a little more together now. We passed on New Orleans itself. Too soon after Katrina, and things still seemed a little dodgy there.
If you get a chance and the American Civil War is of any interest to you, Vicksburg, Mississippi is a good place to visit.
We thought that Memphis, Tennessee, was brilliant. We spent our nights in bars along Beale St, listening to some great Blues (we still listen to Delta Highway today). The town is also well worth a visit for the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther Kings drew his last breath, and Sun studios, where the Elvis phenomonem drew its first. Really liked that town.
We had family friends down in Florida, which is pretty much the only reason for going down there. This is where we hit the east coast, having started out from the west coast a couple of months previously. Cape Canaveral is well worth a stop if you're in the area, even if space stuff is not your bag. If you time it right, you might even get to watch a shuttle launch (we screwed it up and missed it by a day).
Our route then took us up through the Carolinas and Virginia, with memorable stops being Charleston (a very attractive colonial coastal town, and the place where the seccession started and the American Civil War got very serious), Kittyhawk (nice park and an interesting, albeit minimalist museum commemorating the Wright brothers), and Jamestown (site of the first English settlement in the New World).
We ended our trip in D.C., which is just a fabulous place to hang out in. So many museums and monuments, and something for everyone. I recommend giving yourself a good few days there.
From previous visits I have done, and depending on your interests, you might also want to consider more time visiting colonial Virginia. Along with Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown are the big three historical sites there. And again, if the civil war is of any interest, then I definitely recommend Gettysburg in Pennsylvania. It's a nice enough rural scene anyway, and quite easy to get a picture of what happened over the 3 day battle as you tour the site. Standing at both Federal and Confederate lines and looking out over the landscape of Pickett's disastrous charge is quite fascinating.
Hope this is helpful.
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