Preview – Georgia

I will have an exciting treat for my birthday – we will be flying over Atlanta in a bi-plane.  We purchased heavily discounted tickets via Groupon.com.  Certainly looking forward to having an aerial view of this interesting part of the world.

Preview – Arkansas

The Crater of Diamonds State Park is the only diamond-producing site in the world open to the public and is located in Murfreesboro.  The policy here is “finder-keepers” so you can actually keep any diamonds you find.  Certainly looking forward to getting covered in dirt and hopefully bringing home something awesome!

Preview – Rhode Island

We won’t have the opportunity to stay overnight in Rhode Island, however there is something we are looking forward to seeing when we arrive.

Providence was the home of the important early horror writer HP Lovecraft.  He was so connected with this area that engraved on his tombstone is “I am Providence.”

There are several sites around Providence which are of significance in his life.  A great outline of some of the key sites around providence is available here.

Preview – Boston

Lots to do in Boston as it is a wonderful historic city.  In keeping with the historical theme, we will be staying in the very historic Omni Parker House. I bid a bit higher than normal on Priceline.com, but I think it will be worth it.  The hotel is centrally located along the Freedom Trail, which is one of the key areas we will be seeing while in Boston.

The Freedom Trail contains many key revolutionary war sites and will be a fascinating insight into the of the country.

Also can’t miss another famous part of America’s History, the Salem Witch Museum.

I am also really excited about Boston as we will be there during restaurant Week.  I am looking forward to trying out a range of meals at reasonable prices.

Preview – Minnesota

No trip around the US would be complete without a visit to the famous Mall of America.  It is a mall with its own theme park.  32 Boeing 747s could fit inside the Mall and it has 40 million visitors annually which is more than the combined populations of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa…and Canada.

Preview of Alaska

It will be quite a big change going from Hawaii to Alaska but it should certainly be an exciting few days.

We will be staying at the Millenium Hotel in Anchorage which was another great buy from Priceline.com

We will be arriving very early in the morning, so we may be able to catch the Aurora Borealis.

Either way I am hoping to get my first view on real snow on the Galcial snowmobile tour. It may not be possible to go to the actual glacier depending on the weather, but it should certainly be a very new experience.

I am also looking forward to enjoying the peace and quiet of this lovely state.

Rating Each State

I have had a few questions about whether I will be providing a summary of each state.

I think it is a bit unfair just to summarise each state with an overall star rating, but I think it is better to provide a score in several categories.

I will provide a score out of 10 for each category for a total score out of 50.

The categories will be:

Home comforts
Quality of food, accommodation, etc.

Attractions
The quality of the attractions and generally how fun and interesting they were.

Natural Beauty
The aesthetic vistas of the state which make the drive easier.

Culture
Historical and cultural sites and interactions with the locals.

Value
Financial value – bang for your buck, so to speak.

Multi- attraction passes

There are quite a few passes available on the Internet which offer discounts when purchasing multiple attractions. These passes can provide significant savings over purchasing attraction tickets individually, however there are a few things to consider prior to deciding to purchase these passes.

1. Do you actually want to see the attractions covered by the Pass? It may be a good deal,but only if you are actually going to enjoy those attractions. It may be that savings are still available even if you only see some of the attractions; just make sure you do the math.

2. Do you have enough time in the city to do those activities? You may want to see everything, but make sure you estimate how much time you have for each attraction.

3. Are there any other perks that make the passes worth more? For example, you may be able to skip lines, or be provided with VIP access to some attractions.

This in mind,I have purchased passes for both New York and Chicago from Citypass

Is a great deal and covers high profile attractions such as the Field Museum, Adler Planetarium and Shedd aquarium in Chicago and Statue of Liberty cruise,, the Met and the American Museum of Natural History.

The citypass provides free entry to a range of key attractions and expedited entry. Well worth the money.