Pittsburgh - New Orleans
 

Hey folks, I'm trying to plan a 10 days or so road trip from Pittsburgh to New-Orleans.

New orleans is only our turn around point and knowing nothing of the south I'm looking for ideas as to what not to miss any where along the way. So please if you got any ideas or live near those places I would love to here about it. If we can pull off that trip we will be sure to bring back our experience here :nod:

The general road path so far is this:
I don't have endless amount of vacation days so the closer to our path the better :razz:

- Starting from Pittsburgh
- Down to West Virginia to pick-up the beginning of the Blue Ridge parkway. I'm thinking of doing to the whole Blue Ridge mountain parkway but knowing nothing about it, some of it might be a waste of time... I don't really know...
- Asheville with so far possible visit of Biltmore estate and there seem to be 2 car museum (Estes-Winn Antique Car Museum, and possibly "Wheels Through Time Motorcyle & Car Museum", Maggie Valley).
- After that not so sure yet, 85 pass Atlanta to 65 pass Montgomery. I don't know...
- New Orleans for a day or two than back around.
- Hoping to do some visit in the the Mississippi before heading back north
- On the way back we hoping to go to Nashville. I don't have any ideas yet of things to see or road to take between New Orleans and Nashville.
- Then back home from there to Pittsburgh with the same dilemma, not sure what road to take, though Lexington to Charlston seems more interesting as a road trip plan than Cincinnati to Columbus. I don't know...

Anyway, if you guys have ideas that would make this road trip fun just drop it here. I would be most thankful :)

I'll try to drop a map later on this post to give a general idea of the path...

Thx!

For what it's worth:

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a beautiful road with some great views, but IMO is pretty much the same after the first 100 miles or so. The 45 mph speed limit and relative lack of curves and twisties also contributes to the lack of excitement. You're going through some of the most beautiful driving roads in the country through VA, WV, KY, and TN in a great handling car, so you may want to look at some alternative roads.


Too many great state and county roads to consider. Best trip I had in KY and TN was when we simply took some very squiggling county roads we found on a map (mostly 4 digits) connecting tiny towns. Last year we went over 200 miles E/W through central KY, and never had more than 5 miles of straight / non-hilled on the route. That trip was on my Harley, this year we're doing it again in the MINi.


As far as some places to see, try the Bourbon Trail in KY. Great roads, a lot of history, interesting to watch and sample some great food and drink with 5 distilleries to tour.

Hey Kenny, nothing wrong with any of that. I'm not opposed to changing things a bit. I don't know much about the southern areas so it's all unknowns for me.

I did mentioned I had some doubts about doing to whole Blue Ridge Parkway and I think the better portions are in the south of it most likely...

Thanks for the suggestions.

Ultimately I think having a mix would be good.
I totally agree, too much straight road over long distances at slow speed can feel like an eternity.
By the same token I also wouldn't do 1,000s of miles on twisty road especially if it is always the same background such as wooded area. That gets tiring after a while as well. This time not boring, just physically tiring :p
So I hope to mix it up. Some high way to shave some time, some twisty road to have fun, and some just simple roads as long as the decor is beautiful...

I've driven on amazing roads in France so that's always a challenge for me to top that :p

thx :thumbsup:

Also, I never realized the Dragon is right after the Blue Ridge parkway... almost a continuation.

Asheville is a hoot. When we drove from Phoenix to Raleigh last summer, we ended up spending a couple of days there. Be sure to buy a day pass on the tourist bus, was a great way to get around in old downtown.

Thanks AZ. I'm taking note of that :thumbsup:

Tripadvisor has travel forums listed by State. I've used them for some great ideas and they do have knowledgeable moderators. You'll find them on the dropdown menu under 'More'. Besides all that, good and bad recommendations on accommodations too.

sound like its going to be an amazing trip! take pics and let us see!

That was the plan :thumbsup: