Planning a trip to the states

[Shark]

Hi All,

 

My partner and I traveled to the states 2 years ago where I introduced her to theme parks and roller coasters. Now she is as addicted as me, so it is time for us to return to the states for more. We just booked return flights from Australia to LAX we arrive May 21 and fly out June 23.

 

Now for the fun part of planning this trip. The holiday won't be theme park exclusive(unfortunately).

Here is our tentative plan:

 

- Magic Mountain(Pick up season pass)

- Knotts Berry Farm (Pick up season pass)

- Mexico (Six Flag Mexico)

- Cuba

- Alanta (SFOG)

- Carowinds

- Dollywood

- Pigeon Forge

- Kentucky kingdom

- King Island

- Cedar Point

- Chicago (SF Great America)

- Denver

- Universal Studios Hollywood

- Disney Land

 

With this plan Magic Mountain and Cedar point are the only parks we have already been to. The plan is to hire a car in Atlanta and drive up to Cedar Point. The plan will be to spend 1 day at all parks but Cedar Point. Will budget for fast passes where required. I will try to find accommodation halfway between parks.

 

Any advice on additional activities to do around the these parks would be greatly appreciated. I am open to recommendations for a different version of the road trip. Originally I was only going to revisit Cedar Point this trip if Mean streak was reopened 2017 but this road trip seems like the easiest route to take with maximum parks(that I could work out).

[RollerManic]

I'm popping in to say Knoebels before Bill cries. I see it is way out of your way, though.

 

To fly into LA, cross the entire continent, and then return to LA for only three stops seems highly inefficient. Is there anyway you can fly into Chicago instead and end in LA, by working your route (in the order it is now) backwards and moving Denver, USH, and DCA to the end leg of the trip?

 

Also, why not go to Florida while you are near it?

[Shark]

Anything is possible just have to start and finish at Lax. We did Orlando and Miami last time but would be happy to return.

 

Only thing that is set is Mexico as my partner wants to go there. So I thought it makes sense to do that first or last.

 

I want to go to Knoebel's just got to make the travel in a logical order.

[RollerManic]

Anything is possible just have to start and finish at Lax. We did Orlando and Miami last time but would be happy to return.

 

Only thing that is set is Mexico as my partner wants to go there. So I thought it makes sense to do that first or last.

 

I want to go to Knoebel's just got to make the travel in a logical order.

I don't see much problem with Mexico. It gets you to Cuba and to the the other side of the continent from there, which puts you on track for the Eastern half of your trip.

 

It seems to me that whatever benefits there are to fly in and out of LA would not outweigh the great cost of it, or time spent driving. However, I am sure you have a perfectly good reason for it, and that I should not become involved in it.

 

Do you plan on flying anywhere in between up to Atlanta? How are you going to get to and from Cuba? I'm also not sure how it applies to foreigners who are traveling from inside the US to Cuba, but there is a travel embargo in place between the US and Cuba, and despite being "lifted" recently, it still applies to most inquiries except for specific categories of reasons.

[Shark]

Coming from Melbourne Australia so Lax is our gateway to the states.

 

Thanks for that link, I will have to look into Cuba. Plenty of flights from Cancún to Cuba and can fly direct from Cuba to Atlanta for a decent price.

[ytterbiumanalyst]

I think the itinerary is good, considering you've done Florida before. All the parks you mentioned are worthwhile. One-way rental cars are expensive, but so are multiple flights, so as long as you've budgeted correctly, should be a fun time. I'm sure a lot of enthusiasts will tell you to skip Denver, since Elitch Gardens isn't worth going out of your way, but I've been to Denver 3 times and never actually gone to Elitch Gardens, and I've had a wonderful time.

 

I work in the travel industry, so in response to some concerns about Cuba: Don't worry about it. The embargo applies to U.S. citizens and nationals only. Previously American businesses were barred from doing business there, but recently some airlines have been given permission to fly to, but not within, Cuba, so it's much easier now. You can expect slow-moving queues for U.S. immigration, as we are still screening passengers coming from Cuba a bit more than we do other countries, but all you'll need to do is show your Australian passport, explain the purpose of your visit to Cuba and to the U.S. ("on holiday" is generally fine), and welcome back to the U.S.

[Shark]

Thanks for your advice. Yet to look at rental car prices but expecting it to be expensive.

 

Only planning on going to Denver to visit an old friend so no need for a theme park there.

[RollerManic]

I'm sure a lot of enthusiasts will tell you to skip Denver...

Colorado is gorgeous. The more time there, the better.

 

For the record, there are some pretty cool batshit crazy attractions over cliffs in Colorado. It's not as barren as enthusiasts usually make it.

[larrygator]

I like the itinerary. Although I do not know your exact driving route from I speculate that the only minor/major parks that are not more than 2 hours away from your route will be Holiday World, Beech Bend and Indiana Beach. Are you returning the rental car near Cedar Point or in Chicago? If you are planning to drive in Chicago, investigate their toll road system so you are prepared for the tolls.

 

If you could squeeze one more park in you should try Holiday World, especially if you can do it on a weekday.

[xstech25]

Unless you have a burning desire to see to Rocky Mountains I would recommend doing Disney and Universal in the first part and ending the trip in Chicago and flying back to Australia from there, even if you have to connect out of LAX or Canada. That drive from Chicago to Denver to LA is, best described, a LONG ASS DRIVE. The first 10 hours is all fields, the next 10 hours is mountains ( which are beautiful, but after flying from Australia to the United States, driving through Mexico, going to Cuba, flying back to the United States, then driving from Atlanta all the way to the Midwest, and hitting up theme parks the entire time, are you really gonna want to drive through a crap load of rugged terrain?), then the next 10 hours is mind numbing desert and LA traffic. That is just a lot of driving to do after doing such a big trip.

 

If you're one of those people that likes that kind of thing, and if you have lots and lots of extra time and money, then just make sure to be safe and be careful. You only live once I guess

[Shark]

Will start the drive in Atlanta and end at one of Cleveland, Detroit or Chicago, which city will depend on what flights I can find to Denver.

 

Lucky coming from country Australia I am use to long boring drives.

[ytterbiumanalyst]

For the flights involving Denver, look into Frontier Airlines. They're based in Denver and they're one of the cheapest airlines out there. They have pretty low fares if you're flying out of a major airport. I'd suggest with your itinerary driving from Sandusky to Chicago, then flying out from there. I'm seeing on random weekdays in April (which is as far as they're booking right now) ORD-DEN and DEN-LAX for under $50 for each leg. Now, keep in mind that they're one of those piecemeal carriers that charge a fee for each piece of luggage and each service you need, so the final price isn't going to be that low. Depending on how much luggage you bring (and that may be a lot due to the length of this trip), the fees may be enough that it's better to go with one of the standard carriers like American that roll it all into one price. However, if you travel light and don't care about things like in-flight meals, Frontier could save you a lot of money.

[coasterbill]

I'm popping in to say Knoebels before Bill cries. I see it is way out of your way, though.

 

Yeah I didn't really see an opportunity to shoehorn Knoebels into this one so I just stayed out of it.

[boldikus]

Yeah I didn't really see an opportunity to shoehorn Knoebels into this one

 

How is this even possible?