Hi

Firstly, I really do appreciate any tips you can give me!!thank you very much for any advice you can give me.

We are planning to undertake a road trip from Florida to California in September 2016, we have 3 and a half weeks in the US and I want to cram in as much as possible without feeling like we're sprinting across the continent. Our dates are flexible but will be around the 11th September to the 5th of October.

This is hopefully going to be our once in a lifetime holiday and we really want to make it an experience!.. before we need to start saving for a mortgage..

-BUDGET-

Our budget is flexible but I could use some advice in a few areas, I wanted to keep it around £5,000 ($7,600) but I am unsure of how realistic that is and have a credit card if I have to spend a bit more. I don't mind shopping smart while we are out there i.e. cheep motels/camping and not eating anywhere fancy/buying food from supermarkets. We really are in it for the memories and experience.

I have so far been shopping around and have gotten estimates of the following, I could be on point or way off:

Flights: ~£1100

Car Hire: ~£700 (Mustang Convertible, I am aware that i'm a cliche )

Fuel:~$500 (Based on 3,500mi)

Accommodation: $90 per night is ~$2,000 (Not sure what I should expect, won't be staying anywhere up market. Don't mind camping if we can't find a place to stay) AirBnB any good?

Food: Is $50 enough a day for the two of us? Too much? ~$1,200

--ROUTE--

I have a few ideas for the route but nothing concrete, any advice about places to visit or routes to take would be a great help, as I don't want to miss something amazing and want to make sure everyday has something special. Some ideas we have had:

- Start journey in either Miami or Orlando (any pros or cons to either?)

- My partner really wants to go to Disney World Florida for a couple days when we land so that takes up the first three days. This will also be a chance to explore Florida, key west etc.

- I am a fan of big cities and the hustle and bustle but would really like to get the southern state experience too. I am hoping to be able to see the big contrast between the big cities and the small towns. The national parks and beaches and the wide open nothingness of some of the desert roads.

- We both love food so proper American food will be at the heart of the holiday, Texas BBQ is something I would love to taste!

- Don't mind rouging it or sleeping in the car if we can't find a place to stay. AirBnB looks like a good option too.

- I am a keen photographer so will be looking for some amazing places to snap and send as postcards.

- We both love nature and the outdoors, hiking is something we wish to do. Don't mind getting lost of diverting our route to explore. Love the American National Parks so I would love these to be part of the route. Yosemite national park is a must

- Las Vegas, we really want to visit Las vegas and the grand canyon towards the end of our journey

- Finish the journey in California, hoping to spend the last few days there to wind down and relax before having to go home but will sacrifice if theres something else to see!

As a footnote its my first time to the USA but my partner has been a couple times!

I would really appreciate any help you can give us and would be sure to blog about our adventure so you could see how it worked out