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regarding driving at night-------------that is why the wife and I departed at 2:am.
We wanted our 4 hours of night time driving to be at the beginning when we were the most fresh.
( plus we would be going through Minneapolis at 3:30 am )
So what do you do in the evenings when you travel overnight in a car and are staying at a motel/hotel? Is going to a mall a crazy idea?
Going to a mall isn't a crazy idea, especially of y'all walk around and get some exercise.
We have two kids and try to stay at a hotel with a pool and get some exercise/down time that way after dinner. We all sleep better and feel better about continuing the adventure.
Last year my wife and I drove all the way across America by car
and usually checked into the hotel around 5 PM.
So what do you do in the evenings when you travel overnight in a car...
Hit the bars and find some action.
Do the driving overnight... find a local greasy spoon to stop at for breakfast.
If it's a small town.. find a park to take your morning nap in.
Get up around noon and see whats going on... cafe, pool hall, whatever suits.
Maybe see a matinee movie. Find a place to shower, change clothes before dinner.
After dinner find the closest thing to a live music scene they have.
Enjoy a few beers. Maybe more.
Around 11 or so... go back to the car to nap (in the back seat) until about 2AM.
Coffee up and hit the highway again until breakfast.
So the average traveler is only on the road to get somewhere and drives 14 hours a day to make it there quickly and can't enjoy the communities on the way? How sad!
The area I live in is usually the destination. If I were traveling through I would ask at the front desk about dining options,free internet and TV station line up. After 15 or 16 hours I would be grumpy and just want to relax.
Eat, sleep, go to a near by bar (locals type places, no tourist traps), or maybe check out a museum. Usually just eat, sleep, and check out a local bar.
Last year my wife and I drove all the way across America by car and usually checked into the hotel around 5 PM. After resting for an hour we usually had dinner till about 7 PM but then were restless and wanted to walk around and get a feel for the community. So we headed to the closest shopping mall.
Usually we did not buy anything at all we just liked walking around and observe the people. We saw lots of shopping malls on the trip and came up with some interesting observations about the culture, way of life, economics and demographics of the communities we visited by visiting these malls.
When we got home we told some friends about our evenings visiting the local malls in the communities we stopped at. They were shocked that we would bother going to a mall if we were not shopping for something to buy. I asked them what they do in the evenings on a cross country or regional car trip and they did not have an answer.
So what do you do in the evenings when you travel overnight in a car and are staying at a motel/hotel? Is going to a mall a crazy idea?
Sounds like an excellent idea.
After a long day of travel, I love to stretch my feet by going on a walk.
We like to do rest stops during the day to relax from the road just a little. We also like to make our big meal midday to save lots of money. Sometimes we will visit a grocery store and buy something for a picnic in some park or rest stop we know about. We prefer just a snack and sometimes make that an apple and a granola bar for the nighttime meal.
Then it is TV time or get everything ready for the next day. Swimming pools are great if we choose, but usually we don't want to get our suits wet and have to carry them in the car like that. Walking around the hotel/motel and maybe using the internet to communicate with family for a few minutes and then off to bed to start out as early as possible the next day.
I think you are a bit more lively than we are. I don't even visit malls where I live, but your mall visits sound interesting. If that is what you like to do; don't worry what others say or do. That is what road trips are for--to do your own thing. I know many good places to buy special chocolate. Those are favorite stops for us.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NCN
We like to do rest stops during the day to relax from the road just a little. We also like to make our big meal midday to save lots of money. ....your mall visits sound interesting. ...
Another idea.... Find a local Costco and Tank-up on FREE food SAMPLES + Walking. If you are still hungry, it is tough to beat their $1.50 Polish + drink. But if there are more than 3 of you... Buy the Rotisserie chicken $4.99 (I get 20 meals (servings) out of one of those. UNLESS the kids stop by for supper...
From someone who used to drive a truck over the road so driving across country was just another work day...
a: keep driving.
b: Pick a place with some sort of attraction and schedule a stop around that.
c: keep driving.
d: pull into a rest area and sleep for a bit, then...keep driving.
e and etc: find a place to take a nice long walk then either keep driving or get a night's sleep at a motel....
Another idea.... Find a local Costco and Tank-up on FREE food SAMPLES + Walking. If you are still hungry, it is tough to beat their $1.50 Polish + drink. But if there are more than 3 of you... Buy the Rotisserie chicken $4.99 (I get 20 meals (servings) out of one of those. UNLESS the kids stop by for supper...
We like to buy the chicken at the beginning of the week when we get to our timeshare. That is mostly why we travel by car, so we can have our own vehicle when we get to the timeshare. I keep planning trips with one week in between timeshares that are special deals at RCI. I can't talk my husband into wanting to do the trips though. I am so spoiled that I don't even like hotels anymore. He doesn't want to be away from home for 4 weeks rather than 4 days to California. Maybe someday!
Another tip on the food: If you buy already prepared slaw and a package of the type you need to prepare yourself, just put the two together and stir for more slaw for the week. Most prepared slaw has too much dressing for us, so we dilute it. We are members at Sam's and I sometimes check to see where the local Sam's is in the area so we can shop at a store we are used to. That saves a lot of money too when you have less waste.
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The area I live in is usually the destination.
If I were traveling through I would ask at the front desk about dining options,free internet and TV station line up. After 15 or 16 hours I would be grumpy and just want to relax.
