Quasi-road trip in the southeast

[Ceezer]

I'm thinking about taking my daughter on a road trip this weekend. I called it "quasi-" in the subject heading because I'm not adhering to the standard road trip practice of going 'on the fly', because I don't think an 8 year old girl would truely appreciate the greatness of what an honest-to-goodness road trip is. Instead I thought I'd line up a half-dozen, or so, points of interest and drive around to them, probably over the course of 2 days.

Any suggestions? I'm trying to keep costs down as money is a bit tight, so I'm looking more for sights, natural monuments, cheap tours, etc. It's less about trying to buy cheap thrills (amusement park, etc) and more about spending time quality together (she thinks I spent too much time working on stuff at home/on the computer), taking pictures and making memories. Also looking for suggestions on where to stay the night; someplace where lodging will be cheaper (small town, versus a large town) and good breakfast nearby.

We're in Sumter, SC and I don't care which direction we head

 

[FreezerBurns]

How far is it to the beach? I always liked going to the beach when I was a kid... As a matter of fact, I still do!

 

[mbrooks]

I'd say head for the Blue Ridge Parkway for lots of trails (most of which aren't too strenuous) and plenty of views. Boone and Blowing Rock, NC are pretty popular among tourists (trust me, I know after five years in Boone), so hotels aren't going to be cheap. Both are good jumping-off points, but I'd recommend staying in Wilkesboro since it'll probably be much cheaper, and the Parkway is only about 20 minutes west.

Note that the time last I checked, the Parkway between the two towns was closed, probably for repaving, but there's a detour that's still fairly nice. And if you want to see what kind of shots you can get at the overlooks, feel free to look at my old photo journal.

 

[dchasef]

It was always pretty cool to tour the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta, GA when I was a kid. Plus there are many other interesting places to see there. Nonetheless, I could not help you with lodging suggestions.

http://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/

Hope your road trip goes well!!

Regards,
Chase

 

[krissy]

don't forget to have at least one picnic out even if you take your MickyD burgers or a bucket of chicken to go and find somewhere else to eat them other than the building.

 

[mbrooks]

It was always pretty cool to tour the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta, GA when I was a kid. Plus there are many other interesting places to see there. Nonetheless, I could not help you with lodging suggestions.

http://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/

Hope your road trip goes well!!

Regards,
Chase

If I may, I'd like to add to Chase's suggestion. There are combo tickets for attractions in Atlanta like Stone Mountain, the aquarium, Braves games, etc. as well as the World of Coke. You can go to any of their websites and find them on the tickets page if you're interested. Seems like a pretty good deal.

 

[Ceezer]

How far is it to the beach? I always liked going to the beach when I was a kid... As a matter of fact, I still do!

That's what I got to thinking after I posted yesterday. We're about 1.5-2 hours from Myrtle, so I was thinking of running over Sunday, hitting the Bass Pro Shop, and letting her get one more day of swimming in before it starts to cool down.

I'm still wanting to do a road trip, though, so please keep the suggestions coming. I'm just going to put it off for 2 weeks, as that's her birthday weekend anyway.

I love the Blue Ridge Parkway. A couple years ago I drove her on the leg from Roanoke to Mt. Airy and I think she enjoyed it, though not nearly as much as I did.

Also thinking about heading East. I lived on the Crystal Coast for 6 years and she was actually born in Jacksonville, NC (well, Camp Lejeune). I thought it might be fitting to return to her birthplace on her birthday. There's also a route I used to get up and drive every-other Saturday that took me from Jax, up through Emerald Isle, around to Ocracoke & Hatteras Islands and back. It was a peaceful and serene cruise and I'd rarely see any other cars on the road (except in high-traffic areas like Atlantic Beach & Morehead City).

The World of Coke definitely looks neat. Looks easy to get to, too (right off I-20). It's something I'll be sure to continue.

Thanks for the suggestions, folks. Please keep 'em coming!

 

[tsmba]

I love traveling through the mountains on US76. Be sure to check out Highlands, NC and Cashiers, GA.

 

[airplanedoc]

You might want to check into taking the train. It might give your daughter a really memorable trip (more than a ride in the car), and you can focus on spending time with her rather than driving. It looks like it is about $100 RT for 1 adult and 1 child from greenville to atlanta, and you get 12 hours in Atlanta if you return the same day.

I was looking for something to do on a day off back in the spring, so I just hopped on the train and went to Chicago for the day. Cost me $30 (less than I could park my car in Chicago) and it was about a 300 mi round trip for me to drive. I ended up going to the Art Museum for the day, and the sears tower.

If you do some internet searching, you can sometimes find discounts for Amtrak as well.

Just something to consider