Boston to Seattle

Mount Rushmore, the Badlands, Yellowstone NP, Glacier NP, Grand Teton NP, Mt. Ranier, Salt Lake City...too much to name You're going to be mostly driving if you plan to take two weeks. 3-4 weeks would be better.

Camping instead of hotel rooms. I agree you are going to miss a lot if you want to make it there and back in under 2 weeks.

We are staying in Seattle for acouple weeks. I know it will mainly be driving, but looking for some great places to try to see or drive through.

I've been debating the drive through yellowstone, maybe camping there too.

I've driven east-west from the midwest to the west coast on I80, 90 and 94.

First, I echo the previous poster about taking more time if possible. The western states are enormous.

90 across S Dakota is the most scenic route. It's also going to take the longest as there is a lot to see on this route. You absolutely must drive 90 through western MT and northern ID at bare minimum. I'd recommend a few days of camping/hiking/driving in these areas. You can drive through an awesome mountain pass at huge elevation if you go south from Billings to Yellowstone. I would also recommend driving the highway along the Columbia River on the OR/WA border.

94 in N Dakota provides a stunning test of will because that state is so flat, so large and almost entirely empty. You'll hate this drive while you're making it, but you'll never forget it either if you do it. You'll make the best time this route as there is simply no reason to stop in ND other than getting gas and seeing T Roosevelt national park near the MT/ND border.

Drive 80 if you want your kids to sense the magnitude of the farming operations in this country. More population and towns than I94, but nothing compelling to stop for in IA or NE. Driving across Nebraska is also a test of will. From here you can go through Denver and SLC which are spectacular drives, and you'd drive through the salt flats (which is like another planet) in UT if you drive west on 80 from SLC.

As far as cities, Chicago is the must see city outside of the coasts if you pick one. Rush hour there is nasty, so time it accordingly if you want to drive through downtown. IMO you shouldn't spend much time there on your trip since it's so easy to visit by plane over a long weekend. For about $100 admission total for the family plus parking you could see the Art Institute, which is one of the best. Get a Chicago dog, Malnati's deep dish and some Italian Beef and you'd be out of there in under 4 hours for under $175 total.

Have fun!

I spent two full weeks on a road trip 1/4 as long as that and it was still very rushed. If all you have is two weeks, I would consider something else. It would be very easy to spend several days in any one particular city or national park. Driving from Boston to Seattle and back completely by itself with zero detours is 90 hours of driving, or about 6.5 hours per day based on two weeks. That sounds absolutely miserable. Terrible idea.

My suggestion would be to either drastically reduce the amount of driving you're thinking of doing or double the amount of time you intend to spend. Based on your question of how to save money, I'm thinking the former would be your better option. Maybe spend some time in the Rockies somewhere as well as some city you've never been to.

FWIW, Mt. Rushmore is probably the most anticlimactic thing you'll ever see in your life, so if you decide to go, just understand you're going to be bored after 5-10 minutes.

If you take the shortest major route you are talking about nearly 50 hours of driving each way. If you drive every single day, you are talking over 7 hours a day of driving. That only leaves you a few hours a day for sightseeing.

I would recommend following the shortest routes (I-90 or I-94) you can stop in Chicago, and if you take 94 you can stop in Minneapolis and The Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, or I-90 and skip Minneapolis but hit up Mt. Rushmore. After the two highways connect, in Montana you can swing north and hit up Glacier national park, or swing south to hit up Yellowstone. In Washington you can swing north before you get to Seattle and drive the North Cascades Highway through the North Cascades National Park, or you can swing south to the Mt Rainier National Park...both are gorgeous.

Having driven across the country I would suggest being very aggressive about driving on a few days, and then not so much the other days. You can have a day or two where you drive 12-15 hours, only stopping for gas and eating, then set up camp and go to sleep, and get up early and hit the road again. This will give you far more time to sight see on other days. (I drove from Spokane WA to almost Fargo ND in one day...I would have made Fargo if I didn't stop to take an hour long hike at the Theodore Roosevelt to give myself a break.)

I agree with everyone else that 1 week is not enough time to drive across the country if you intend to do any site seeing.

Also be careful with National Parks in the summer busy season.... Especially Yellowstone. They will be overcrowded and you will spend 4 hours in traffic to get around a single damn bison and 4,000 idiots getting way too close to it trying to take a selfie with it.

I would recommend your first major stop be Niagara Falls. Then go through Canada and make your way to Chicago, it will save you time to go through Canada. After that Wisconsin Dells is a huge tourist town that your kids might enjoy. Everyone else has mentioned a lot of the great spots that I would also recommend (Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone).

road trip wrote:

I would recommend your first major stop be Niagara Falls. Then go through Canada and make your way to Chicago, it will save you time to go through Canada. After that Wisconsin Dells is a huge tourist town that your kids might enjoy. Everyone else has mentioned a lot of the great spots that I would also recommend (Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone).

You could also go up through Michigan, stop at Sleeping Bear dunes and the UP. You can go to Chicago on the way back.

Boston to Niagra Falls

Niagra Falls to Chicago

Chicago to Wall Drug Store, South Dakota

South Dakota to somewhere Wyoming (or Montana) stopping in The Badlands, Crazy Horse, Mount Rushmore and Devil's Tower.

Spend a day (or two) in YellowStone NP / Grand Teton NP (or save for return drive)

Drive to Spokane

Spokane to Seattle with detour through Mt Rainier NP (go over Chinook Pass - stop at Paradise)

Niagara Falls is 30 mins off 90 and it's worth the stop. You can stay with me in Bflo for free if the timing works out - might be bedroom / couch / tent in the backyard depending on when you show but I could accommodate 4 tolerant / tolerable people.

I've always wanted to do The Ninety I hope it works out and you post your results no matter what.

A road trip with friends wow, dunno what could be even better. I don’t have a car yet, but can ask some friends of mine to rent one at special car renting services ( https://travelsites.com/car-rental/ ) . I would definitely went to see Rushmore if I were you.

I made that same drive a while back. Took ten days to Seattle, but took some big detours off of 90. Posters above are right about most of the destinations. With the long days in the summer you can make it work, but more time would obviously be better.

I'd suggest cranking through the Northeast if possible.

Get to the Badlands as fast as possible. Depending on how many drivers you have and whether you're going to Niagara Falls on the way there or back you can cut a day of travel by really pressing through that stretch. Check the border crossings, sometimes it's faster to cut through Canada from Buffalo. You'll be really happy to have that extra day for a few more runs in Grand Teton.

Don't skip wings in Buffalo- they are as good as advertised. Anchor Bar is the original, but locals like Duffs.

Call ahead for your Giordano's on your way through Chicago; it's delicious but they need 45-60 minutes to prep it. Or find a Chicago-style hot dog while you wait. On our trip we skipped the rush hour mess of Chicago and went to the Giordano's (and Firehouse Dogs) in Schaumburg.

Once you get out west you can dry camp for free in National Forests, just fill up your water bottles ahead of time. Check in with the rangers as you get into the forests.

State Park campgrounds are generally $20-25/ night, so that beats hotels too. National park CGs can be a little more but are still reasonable. Avoid KOA if you can; they offer nice amenities but won't help with your budget.

How old are the kids? That's a lot of time for kids of any age to be cooped up in a car all day. And there will be long stretches where the most exciting thing will be stopping to eat.

What is the longest road trip you have taken with your family before?

On the surface this seems beyond horrible....one way would be bad enough...but then you are going to turn around and drive over the Great Plains AGAIN?

I would rent a car, take 10-14 days one way, and then fly back.

I just did a train ride from Seattle to Chicago and 70% of the scenery was in the first few hours heading out of Seattle through the North Cascades.

why not fly to the west coast and then road trip from down the Oregon Coast to the redwoods in california or up to Banf in Canada?