NY-BIG SUR 7D 7d
Route: NYC→Hershey→Gettysburg→Berlin OH Driving: ~520km, 6.5hrs plus stops
Day 1 · NYC to Ohio
Highlight: Amish Country. Note: Early start essential.
Times Square
Departure from Manhattan
Hershey's Chocolate
Sweet factory tour break
Gettysburg Battlefield
Civil War historic site
Amish Country Inn
Overnight in Amish heartland
Day 2 · Ohio to St. Louis
Highlight: Gateway Arch sunset. Note: Central time zone.
Amish Country Inn
Continue west through farmland
Indianapolis Motor
Racing shrine and museum
Cahokia Mounds
Ancient Mississippian city
Gateway Arch
Sunset at stainless landmark
Day 3 · St. Louis to Oklahoma
Highlight: Route 66 original pavement. Note: Long prairie day.
Gateway Arch
Morning departure west
Merkel Ranch
Historic Route 66 gas station
Blue Whale
Iconic roadside swim hole
Oklahoma City
Canal district overnight
Day 4 · Oklahoma to Santa Fe
Highlight: Cadillac Ranch art. Note: High desert altitude gain.
Bricktown
West on I-40 toward Texas
Cadillac Ranch
Spray-painted tailfin art
Palo Duro Canyon
Second largest US canyon
Santa Fe Plaza
Adobe architecture overnight
Day 5 · Santa Fe to Flagstaff
Highlight: Petrified Forest painted desert. Note: Navajo Nation entry.
Santa Fe Plaza
South through high desert
Acoma Sky City
Ancient mesa-top village
Petrified Forest
Rainbow wood and badlands
Meteor Crater
Best preserved impact site
Flagstaff Historic
Route 66 mountain town
Day 6 · Flagstaff to Big Sur
Highlight: Pacific Coast Highway start. Note: Dramatic cliff drive.
Flagstaff Historic
Early desert crossing
Hoover Dam
Art Deco engineering marvel
Death Valley
Otherworldly eroded badlands
Bishop
Eastern Sierra overnight
Day 7 · Sierra to Big Sur
Highlight: McWay Falls finale. Note: Slow curves, frequent pullovers.
Bishop
Over Tioga or via 395 south
Mono Lake
Calcium spires alien landscape
Bixby Bridge
Most photographed bridge
McWay Falls
80ft waterfall to sand beach
Big Sur Coast
Sunset cliff dinner finale