Washington D.C. Road Trip Announcement

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As you may or may not know, I just returned from an end of summer road trip to Six Flags Great Adventure this past weekend. If you have yet to read about my adventures in New Jersey be sure to check them out here:

• End of Summer Road Trip Part 1 – Lambertville, New Jersey!
• End of Summer Road Trip Part 2 – Six Flags Great Adventure!
• End of Summer Road Trip Part 3 – Six Flags Wild Safari!
• End of Summer Road Trip Part 4 – Jersey Shore Baby!

Decisions, decisions…

Three days ago I received an email from a marketing officer at Qatar Airways inviting me to a special media event going on in Washington D.C. At first I thought, “Cool, but I’m not in D.C.” Then it dawned on me that I could be in D.C. tomorrow if I wanted thanks to my flexible work hours at Pause The Moment!

I searched for some last minute flights on JetBlue (my favorite domestic airline ever), and all I could find was a R/T ticket from Boston to D.C. for $215. Not bad, but do I really want to spend $215 to fly from Boston to Washington D.C. for a 5 hour event? Eh, not really…

Another Road Trip?

Considering I just bought a new car this week, I might as well get some use out of it… right?

According to GoogleMaps, the drive from my hometown to the Qatar Airways US Corporate Office in Washington, D.C. will take about 8 hours and 20 minutes (447 miles).

Not so bad, especially since I drove 5.5. hours straight to Lamberville, New Jersey last weekend. What’s another 3 hours?

Route Map – Boston to D.C.

The Unofficial Plan

Monday 9/19/11 – Wake up and drive to New Jersey. Where in NJ? I have no idea yet. I figure that I’ll drive straight through Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York before stopping off somewhere in New Jersey for the night.

Tuesday 9/20/11 – Tuesday morning I’ll wake up and make my way towards Pennsylvania. Depending on what part of New Jersey I stop into the night before, I might not have to drive that far to get into PA. Once I settle into Pennsylvania I’m going to try to see a little bit of Philadelphia as well as try to make the drive out to Amish country if possible.

Wednesday 9/21/11 – Wednesday morning I’ll make the drive from PA to Washington D.C. Depending on what time I make the drive down there I should have quite a few hours to burn before the Qatar Airways event which starts at 5PM. I hope to be able to see a little bit of D.C. before the event. After the event, I’ll call it a night and depending on how much there is to do/see in D.C., I might stay for an extra night or two.

Thursday 9/22/11 – Sightseeing in Washington D.C.

Friday 9/23/11 – More Sightseeing in D.C. or maybe back to PA?

Saturday 9/24/11 – Heading home?

The Real Deal…

As you can see above, the only real plan I have at the moment is to be at the Qatar Airways event on Wednesday evening at 5 PM. Other than that, nothing is really set in stone. I’m thinking a spontaneous trip might suit me best.

On that note, I’d love to meet with some of my readers along the way if possible so if you’re located in New Jersey, Pennsylvania or D.C., please feel free to get in touch with me! Also, if you have any sightseeing/stop over ideas for me on the way down to D.C., OR on the way home please feel free to leave a comment below!

My Thoughts on Road Trips…

If you had asked me to take a mid-to-long distance road trip a few months ago I probably would have told you that I’ll fly and meet you at the destination.

After finishing up my first “official” road trip last weekend, I feel much more confident in driving long distances. I also found that I actually enjoy the feeling of driving and getting to experience things that I would normally fly right over. Sure, there are stretches of road where you see nothing but trees, fields and road signs, but that’s just a small part of the big journey.

Costs:

According to this nifty little tool AAA Fuel Cost Calculator, if I was to drive round trip from Boston to Washington, D.C. (906 miles) my approximate gas costs would only be around $130.00!

Of course, my fuel costs will most likely be much more than $130 since I won’t be going straight from Boston to D.C., and back. My plan to go off the beaten track and see some other things along the way but I’m still shocked as to how cheap traveling by car can be. I obviously owe it to my new car that gets an average of 32-35 MPG!

Companionship:

As for road tripping with or without a companion… I have to admit, having my friend come along with me this past weekend was one of the best parts of the trip. Not only is it nice to be able to talk to someone on the long rides but it also helps to have some sort of a navigator at times when you’re driving on unfamiliar roads.

This time around it’s not likely that I’ll be able to find anyone with the time or the money to come along with me. Unfortunately, Liz has already used all of her vacation time on a three week trip to Egypt that we took back in May.

Of course, I would love for her to be riding along with me but oh well, that’s the way life goes… I’ll miss you Lizzy! ;)

Do you have any recommendations of things to do/see or places to eat along the way? Leave a comment below!