"Must See" USA - help!

DH and I vowed that we would have some excitement this year - last year was just so incredibly stressful for us.

We have decided that we will be flying over to the USA with my parents in September!!! I grew up in the States so it will be great to stay with some old friends and visit some of my favourite places.

Cities we will be visiting are...

Los Angeles
San Francisco
New York
San Diego (with a trip to Tijuana)

I would love to hear from those of you who have been to these cities for a holiday and what YOU think are the "must see" attractions.

Ooh how exciting Amy Sarah!

Well I've been to all those cities.

My fave is New York. You have to queue up and get cheap tickets to a broadway show in Times Square, ride the horse and carts in Central Park, there is a cool MoTown Cafe that is great to eat at....just can't think of the name. We didn' go to the statue of liberty but cought the Satten Island Ferry over and back, Empire state at night is fabulous...I'll think of more.

SanDiego - I hated Tijuana. DH wouldn't go back either, but it's cool to go to say you've been there. The people are pushy and I found it quite frightening (and I'm a cop). Silver was good for bargains but I didn't find anything else. It was very third world. The zoo is great, as is sea world, there are lots of millitary museaums which are cool if you're into that (I come from a navy family).

LA - book yourself a city tour, there is just heaps to see and do - and don't forget DisneyLand!!! There are a kazzillion theme parks if that's what you're into but we loved Disney and California Adventure world which is right across from it. There is also a top outlet place just outside of town with great top name bargains.

San Fran - Alcatraz (I was really wierded out by that), Ghirardelli Chocolates, the cable car, the GG bridge, Lombard St, there's also some great Markets, on the piers, Pier 39, but you have to be careful of the mist. There is a weird weather phenomenon there that the travel shows never really show. I haven't got any successful photos of the GG bridge. Food is great, be careful where you stay though.

I've been to heaps of other places as well if you need some more ideas.

Oh how exciting. I was born in the US and moved here when I was 4. I try to go back every 2 years to visit with family and see new places.

In February '08 (my most recent trip) we were in San Francisco for 3 days - not nearly long enough! What a fun city. The must do's that I would suggest are:

* Book an Alcatraz tour. You have to book in advance on the internet to secure an entry because it's so popular if you just turn up on the day you won't get a ticket. We did an audio tour and it was brilliant. If you google 'official Alcatraz cruises' you will get the site and more information

* Fishermans Wharf. It's a great tourist place. But they also sell all kinds of seafood down there. You can buy fresh clam chowder served in big sourdough breadbowls off vendors on the street. Yummo!!

* Take a trolley ride. You can buy 3 days passes and get on and off whenever you want to. It's fun and a great way to see the city.

* Shopping, shopping and shopping. In Union Square (where we stayed) you are in walking distance to great shops so make extra room in your suitcase.

* Ferry cruise to other San Fran areas. We picked Sausilito as our place for a day. It was a nice ferry ride over and we had lunch and came back again.

We didn't get to go in Summer but if so I'd definately stay longer and do some wine country tours next time.

By the way. Las Vegas is my absolute favourite city. Are you by any chance going there???

Have a great trip. I've followed your journey since I've been on this site and you deserve to have a holiday. Have a great 2009!!!!

Just wanted to add that I agree with Kim. I have also been to Tijuana and I hated it. DP didn't like it either. Very scary place. Very dirty and it's quite sad that some parts of Mexico are so beautiful but there are these pockets of depressed areas within it. I couldn't get back on the bus soon enough. Just be careful walking around down there. One good thing is if you get to taste tequila. It's the real stuff in mexico. Nothing like what you would have had here. Smooth and all different kinds of flavours.

never been but my cousin lives over there. you deserve a brilliant holiday huni xx

I went to Tijuana as a kid and thought it was awful too LOL - DH is keen to experience it for what it is :rolleyes:. I grew up in San Diego so the zoo and sea world are high on my list!!!

Would love some tips on the best areas to stay in LA and San Fran - is Hollywood a good place as far as being "central"?

We would love to go to Vegas but not sure if the budget will allow - we'll see!!

Keep them coming girls - I'm getting some fantastic ideas here!!

I haven't been hun but in LA my Uncle lives in Newport Beach which is close to Orange County, Laguna Beach, Huntington Beach, Fashion Island etc. Mum went over last year and said it was absolutely amazing. She said they have gorgeous markets and fantastic shopping. So now sure if you want an action packed holiday but this could be nice for a few days downtime. They do have a lot of water sports and activities in those areas if you guys are into that too :)

In San Francisco we spent 3 nights at Hotel Fushion. (You can look it up on Tripadvisor). It is a small boutique hotel. The room was very small even with just 2 of us staying there but it was super clean and close to everything that we needed. Our hotel was in Union Square and that means it was close to shopping and places to eat. It was a couple of steps to the cable-car station which means it was really easy to get down to Fishermans Wharf and other places we wanted to see. I highly reccommend it if you are on a budget and want somewhere cosy to stay. They also include a free continental brekky every day too.

Thats brilliant AG!!!! That hotel looks great!!

Any suggestions for NY? It's SO expensive!!! We're staying with friends in San Diego so we'll use that as a base for that area. Also, any recommendations for LA?

Nothing for NY. We always have it on our list and take it off because it's too expensive. Next time we'll have to just suck it up and pay the money.

When we were in LA we stayed close to Disneyland. That is actually all we went to LA for so I'm not really much help with that one. We just picked a cheap motel that was walking distance to the park. Too easy. Are you going to Disneyland? We had the best time it was just the 2 of us and we had as much fun as any child in the park. It's a great place for all ages! That trip was about 5 years ago so I can't really suggest anything current.

I think I will just have to cough up and pay extra for NY - I really want to go more than any other place in the US!

In LA we want to go the whole movie thing so Walk of Fame, Universal Studios etc. We also want to spend a day at Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach and a day doing the Beverly Hills/Rodeo Drive thing.

We're going to do Disneyland while we're in San Diego (we're there for a week). I've been 6 times as a kid and CANNOT WAIT to do it again as an adult! DH and I love all that stuff - we're big kids :)

I backpaked from the east to west coast by myself when I was there in 94.

I didn't stay in LA when I was there - I stayed in Venice Beach, hired a bike and rode up and down the bike paths for a day - it was great. I did end up in a mansion in the Hollywood Hills for a few days which was a blast.

New York - I loved! The museums, the park, the shows on broadway!!!

New York is AMAZING!!! Do the Circle Line 3hr round island cruise, it's great and in my opinion an absolute MUST DO. Try to catch some sort of sport (not sure what's on in Sep think it's too early for Basketball). We also got tickets to see live recording of the Late Show with David Letterman at the Ed Sullivan Theatre (it's free and was soooo much fun). The Grayline All loops hop on hop off (valid 48hrs) is a good way to get around especially for your first 2 days (otherwise use buses or the subway - taxis are a death wish and expensive). We also had alot of fun in FAO Schwarz (has that big piano on the floor from the Tom Hanks movie Big) and the quality of the toys is amazing - we bought a bear for our Bub as we were ttc at the time. Have a walk around Times Square and get your picture taken with the Naked Cowboy - he's a scream. Empire State Building is great too but it's like airport security to get to the top so allow plenty of time. We went up at dusk and the view was breathtaking. One thing I wish we'd done was a helicopter tour over Manhattan and I also would have liked the sex and the city tour but DH wasn't keen so we didn't do it. Grab a lonely planet New York 'condensed' book, it's small and has excellent maps and info for getting around on your own. It's personally choice - I don't like museums I like to get out there and blend in amongst the cafes & restaurants. A walk through Central Park is good too, we visited 'Strawberry Fields'. Oh - and the shopping is also AMAZING. Make sure your DH takes you to Tiffany's and spoils you (even if it's just something small - it was one of my highlights too). We stayed at a place mid town called 'The Lucerne', not too expensive for NY standards and about 20mins walk to times square (or bus stop right across the road and subway around the corner).

Just one thing about Tijuana, I went there back in '98 and it was so much fun but when I went there 2 years ago it was crap. No-one goes there anymore and there was no atmosphere at all, the day was totally boring and the shopping nowhere near as good as it used to be. I've heard that Ensenada is much better.

In LA I really enjoyed the Farmers Market, I could spend a whole day there. Night time at Third St Promenade Santa Monica is also pretty cool (heaps of street performers and lots of shops & restaurants open). And well I'm a HUGE DIsneyland Fan so I would never go to LA without a few nights in Anaheim so I could spend a few days at Disneyland. In my opinion Disneyland is one of those places that just keeps getting better as time passes.

San Fran my highlight was a cable car ride (from Union Square to Fishermans' wharf) and Alcatraz (do the audio tour).

Anyway - I could babble on forever I love the US but NY is my favourite city anywhere in the world.

Thanks so much AJC - some fab ideas there!!!

I'll give you a list of what I have for New York - let me know if I should add or subtract anything... We will arrive in New York on the evening of September 11th so our first stop will be Ground Zero for the memorial.

Day 1

Battery Park/Statue of Liberty
Soho/Greenwich Village (cannot WAIT to get to the Marc Jacobs store :D)
Washington Square Park
Joe's Pub

Day 2 (which is also our 2nd Wedding Anniversary - I've made it SOOO romantic!)

Central Park:
Bethesda Terrace
Carousel Ride
Strawberry Fields
Alice In Wonderland
Belvedere Castle
Bow Bridge/Lake
Shakespeare Garden
Horse and Cart Ride

5th Avenue (FAO Schwarz, Tiffany’s etc)

Day 3

Rockefeller Centre (NBC Studio Tour, Top of the Rock)
Radio City Music Hall
Times Square
Broadway Show

We will fly out for San Diego the next day and I am contemplating whether or not to have the day in NY and then fly out or just leave in the morning. If there is anything I am missing that would require an extra day (I'm hopeful ;)) then please let me know!

Sounds good...

I would still try to do the 3hr Circle Line Cruise, it goes past Yankee Stadium & also statue of Liberty. Honestly, it's not expensive (from memory around $23 USD) and we found it to be the most relaxing and enjoyable way of seeing some of the big sights. It gives you a really good opportunity to see the NY skyline. It also lets you get up close to the Brooklyn Bridge as you sail under it. Just at least look into it, I thought it sounded a tad boring but my boss insisted I do it (as I'm a travel agent & hard to impress as I've had so many fab travel experiences) but I did it and loved it. The man who does the commentary is absolutely amazing (lots about the history of NY too), I've never seen anyone get so many tips as what this guy got when everyone disembarked.

We had 5 days and it still wasn't enough so if you can get an extra day in then do it. We found that we stumbled across so many things that we wanted to do that were unexpected (like seeing Paul McCartney in the flesh at the big Virgin Mega store in Times Square).

If you want Letterman tickets then don't apply online - we went to the Ed Sullivan Theatre on our first day and registered with the crew. Take your Aussie passports (you need to show ID) if you have AU passports as I think that really helped us win some seats as they saw how far we'd travelled to be there.

Also if you are after an airport shuttle I would recommend NY Airlink over Supershuttle.
Oh - and take plenty of tissues to the WTC site, we went on just an ordinary day and I cried and cried (They had these collages up of paintings that children who had lost loved ones had made 'Miss you Daddy' etc, VERY emotional stuff. I still get tears in my eyes when I look at the photos).

I would still recommend doing Empire State Bldg too.

I don't want to say to take anything off your list because sightseeing is such a personal thing and we all have different opinions. Some people travel and visit every museum going but I like to get out there and soak up just being there and blending in with everyday life (but with the major sights of course).

I am so excited for you, NY is the BEST!!!

In New York we stayed at the West Side YMCA at 5 West 63rd St. - not flash but very cheap and half a block from Central Park - it was awesome! For a double room it is about $70 a night each from memory.

Girls - you ROCK! :D

I have added the 3hr Circle Line Cruise and Letterman to our itinerary for New York which means we can have the extra day there before we fly out to San Diego. I'm iffy about the Empire State Building - only because of what I have heard of the lines and waiting to get up. A few people who I have spoken to say the top of the Rockefeller Centre is just as good for views and photos and with half the waiting time. I'm keen to hear any different though??!!

I did want to do the Natural History Museum but it's not high on our list of "to do's" so we'll see. Each day of activities will leave room for wandering around and discovering so I'm sure we'll find more to do while we are there. Shopping is low on my agenda - except for the Marc Jacobs store on Bleaker Street where I plan on buying another MJ bag. That will blow my whole shopping budget anyway!

The place we have found to stay in NY is called The Broadway Hotel & Hostel - newly refurbished with "Ikea" type furnishings - only AU$245 a night which is impressive!! We plan on going to Joe's Pub which is famous for acoustic guitar players and similar artists but any other recommendations for night life spots would be great.

I'm still stuck on where to stay in LA. I have found a decent place in downtown LA which is only AU$200 a night but I'd really like to stay near the Sunset Strip as most of the bars we want to visit at night are there (Whiskey a Go Go etc). But apparently West Hollywood is too far out of the way for anything else when it comes to daytime activities. Does anyone have any suggestions on which area to stay in LA??

ETA: I just found a fab place to stay in LA - The Orbit Hotel & Hostel. Some great reviews and only AU$140 a night for a private room with bathroom! It's walking distance from the Sunset Strip and is located on Melrose. It's close to The Beverly Centre, Farmers Markets, Comedy Clubs and Sunset Strip/Fairfax nightlife. I figure it will be fine to stay in West Hollywood at night where all our night time activities will be and we can explore downtown LA during the day by public transport.

Question...

How much would you allow for each day? i.e. food, activities, transport etc.

That Ny Hotel looks ok for the money, we found we were leaving our room around 8am and not returning until 11pm at the earliest each day anyway. I assume you're going for one of the private rooms for that $$$. For transport, food & activities I would allow US$250 per day to make sure you are comfortable. Transport is pretty cheap, from memory the bus is $2 per ride. Food - well that can vary depending on your style & taste & attractions can too. Some days you might spend more some days a bit less. I've heard the same about Rockefeller Centre but I really wanted to go to the top of the Empire State cause it's in so many movies etc. It took us about 45 mins to get from the front door to the top and I don't think it was a particularly busy time/day either. Yay for adding the Circle Line cruise.

Sounds like a good spot you've found in LA too, we used public transport and found it efficient and reasonably priced too.

AJC - yes it's one of the private rooms with it's own bathroom. I'm not too good in hostels - I hate having my space cramped!! I don't mind staying in them as long as they have a private bathroom and double bed. I figure the more we can save on accommodation the more money we can spend doing things!

I just did a quick tally of expenses (flights, accommodation, car hire (for one leg of our trip - San Fran to our friends Lake House), activities and food/shopping) - it's probably going to hit the $10K mark for the whole trip. I think that's pretty good for two people over 20 days and four cities...

If you can do it for $10k then you are doing really well. How exciting, keep us updated - am so happy for you.

It's so much more real now that I am planning it!!! I'm sooooo excited - DH and I deserve this holiday - I don't care what it costs!

About 9 days of our trip will be spent at friends houses in San Diego and just north of San Francisco which means we won't need accommodation for those legs - bonus!

What are some good things to see in San Diego? I have the obvious - Disneyland, Sea World, San Diego Zoo etc. Anything else worth a look?

There is another wildlife park (I think it's still linked to the zoo) there which looks good too, I think it's called the 'Wild Animal Park'. I enjoyed a look around Old Town too. There are some interesting things in Balboa Park (I personally would enjoy the gardens). I'd also like to visit Knotts Berry Farm but like Disneyland that is much closer to LA/Anaheim than San Diego.

I'm from San Diego... well I lived there for years.

It really depends on what you are into... if you want a quiet day out that is cheap there is Mission Beach which has amusement rides on the beach, there is San Diego Zoo which is expensive but amazing as well as Sea World and the Wild Animal Park.

Places which are cheap but interesting are Balboa Park & the observatory, a little town which is an hour or so drive, but is cute & quaint & has amazing apple pie is Jullian, in winter there is snow.

Whenever I go back to visit we spend heaps of time at the beach watching the sunset and heading down to a coastal town in Mexico.... but if you are in a more touristy mood, than you can't go to San Diego without going to the zoo!!!

ETA: cheap shopping in San Diego near the border, or in North County at Carlsbad are some amazing factory outlets, Osh Kosh, Gap, Vans....etc etc.... I love it! I went to Carlsbad High School for yrs 8-11.

How cool is this...

I updated my Facebook status to - Amy is going to LA, San Fran, NY and San Diego!

I got a reply from my wedding planner in Santorini (where we had our island wedding) and she wrote...

"How about dinner at my home in NY?"

OMG!! Soooooo incredibly cool! I am even more excited about going now!

Another question girls...

We have found ourselves left with an extra day while in the US. I have planned every day with activities in each city and I am wondering where you would spend that "extra" day - Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco or San Diego?? And what would you do?

Even though I've never had the pleasure of visiting New York City I would say definately spend the extra day there. So many of my friends have come back and said they should have stayed longer as they didn't even get to scratch the surface.