Trip planning driving to East coast and Toronto from Texas

I will be driving from Texas to the east coast and Toronto in July for a 2 week vacation with 2 young kids. We want to visit some places ,do some sight seeing and have some fun during this long drive .Can anyone give me advises on where to stop and what to to do for this trip? Or may be kindly enough to share their trip plan.Thanks!

Trip planning driving to East coast and Toronto from Texas

Are you starting from Dallas, if so you%26#39;ll be out of Texas in a few hours. Have you tried posting to the states that you%26#39;ll be traveling through?

Trip planning driving to East coast and Toronto from Texas

We will start from Dallas. We have not decided what states we will be traveling through.Washington D.C and Baltimore are some of the cities we want to visit.Thank You!

You have two weeks to get to Toronto and back, correct? Before you decide where to visit, you need to focus on the time and distance you%26#39;ll be traveling. From Dallas to Washington, DC is a 22 hour drive. I lived in DC for nine years and made this drive several times, and there are several ways you can do it. We did do in just two days, with one overnight stay a couple of times and I must say it was exhausting even for two adults. The easiest was to drive for 8 or 9 hours the first day, 8 or 9 hours the second day, and try to do just 5 or 6 the last day. Even on this schedule, you don%26#39;t have much time for seeing the sights. The drive to Toronto from DC will be about 9 hours as well, add two hours if you want to stop and see the Falls.

All of that being said, you%26#39;re looking at roughly 4 days of driving to get from Dallas to Toronto and 4 days to get back. Eight days of your two-week vacation will be on the road. If that%26#39;s doable for you and your kids, then here%26#39;s my suggested routes --

Dallas to Washington, DC -- Dallas =%26gt; Shreveport =%26gt; Jackson =%26gt; Birmingham =%26gt; Atlanta =%26gt; Charlotte =%26gt; Richmond =%26gt; DC. The sole purpose to taking this route, in my opinion, is to stop at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. It is absolutely amazing and I%26#39;m sure the kids will love it. There are other interesting places along the way, too, that the Aquarium is the big draw. From DC, you pretty much drive up through the middle of Pennsylvania and into NY state to get to Tornoto. Pennsylvania Dutch country is interesting and is Gettysburg. You%26#39;ll also travel through Buffalo, NY and pass through Niagara Falls before you get to Toronto.

On the way back, you can either head back down to the DC area and then make your way to Dallas through Virginia, Tennesee, and Arkansas, or swing around through Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and then down into Tennessee, Arkansas and finally Texas.

You may also want to post this on the Road Trips forum for more advice.

Dear Mr Ted,thanks for your detailed advice. It helps a lot just to hear your experience . we are thinking of driving non-stop to Atlanta on first day, follow your advice and visit the aquarium on the next day, may be visit the coca cola .(my husband is a big fan!)I heard people said that lodging in Washington DC is very expensive. My friend stayed in other city on her last visit and take the public transportation to Washington DC. Do you have any advice? Thanks!

Lodging in DC is expensive, as is everything else, but you have to factor in transportation costs if you%26#39;re going to stay outside of the city. Personally, I would rather spend the extra money, stay in the city, and not have to worry too much about taking the Metro (subway) or a bus. Both of those options are going to take up time you could be spending touring and will limit your ability to head back to the hotel in the afternoon for a nap. Also note, that to get a break on hotel costs, you are going to have to stay way outside the city. Hotels in the close-in suburbs of DC, especially those close to public transportation, are really no less expensive.

blemishes