The Dispatch
Cross-country road trips are the biggest gap between fantasy and reality in travel writing. The fantasy: open road, scenic byway, golden hour every night. The reality: 12-hour driving days kill the back, the kids hit a wall around day five, and somewhere in Nebraska the route gets boring even for adults who love driving. The posts here plan for the long-form trip honestly. Daily mileage caps. Where to stop overnight that isn't a strip-mall Hampton Inn. Which scenic stretches actually deliver. Which sound great but are just a long way between exits.
7 posts tagged Cross-Country Road Trips. See all posts →
Gas is more expensive today than it has been in nearly 4 years. Filling up the tank each week takes a huge chunk out of your budget and every little penny you save helps. Here's a few smart ways to save.
Two stations a mile apart, same gas, almost $.75 difference in price. Why, you say?!?! Once you know, you can drive right past the expensive one.
Ten Cadillacs nose-down in a Texas field, an elephant you can walk inside, a hill where balls roll up. All real, all worth the detour.
Ten Cadillacs nose-down in dirt, a hill that spells GOD IS LOVE, and a billboard mystery 200 miles in the making. Here's where to pull off.
A six-story elephant, ten buried Cadillacs, and a troll eating a real VW: the pull-offs that beat any screen in the back seat.
Seven anchor stops out west, what each one actually delivers at the pull-off, and an honest word on the six-hour drives between them.
Six western drives, ranked by what they actually deliver between the trailheads: ocean cliffs, red rock, alpine switchbacks, and one road Charles Kuralt called the most beautiful in America.
