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A 28 Day Escorted Small Group Tour

Tour Dates: 15th August 2016 – 11th September 2016

The Great American Road Trip

T R A V E L L I N G M A D E E A S Y

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to leave the cities

behind and just take off on a road trip of discovery? This small group

tour does just that. We will travel the country roads, meet the locals,

make new friends and embrace the American lifestyle.

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Your Tour Highlights

Our road trip starts in Los Angeles and follows the great

coast road to San Francisco before heading through

the farm lands of Idaho to the cowboy town of Jackson

in Wyoming. Explore the rugged beauty of Yellowstone

National Park with its incredible ecosystem.

We’ll see the faces that launched a thousand camper

vans at Mt Rushmore and spend time at Crazy Horse

Memorial. We can take a gamble at Deadwood where

Wild Bill Hickock played his last hand of poker and even

see where he is buried beside Calamity Jane.

Other highlights include crossing the great plains of South

Dakota to Chicago where we learn about the gangsters

of the Al Capone era, the awe inspiring Niagara Falls,

spending time with the Amish people, exploring USA’s

capital city – Washington and time in New York City, “The

Big Apple”.

Lower Manhattan, New York

> Departs 15th August 2016The Great American Road TripDays From

28 $ 15,850*pp

* Tour prices are per person twin share in Australian dollars.

Tour Inclusions

• Return Airfares from Brisbane or Sydney including Airport Taxes.

• Travel in a Mercedes Sprinter.

• Twenty-five nights accommodation.

• All meals and gratuities as outlined in the itinerary, plus tipping.

• All sightseeing and attractions as highlighted in bold.

• The services of a Travelling Made Easy tour guide for the full length of tour.

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

Niagara Falls

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Monday 15th August Dinner/Breakfast/Dinner

Your tour begins with your direct flight from Brisbane where our

Travelling Made Easy Guide will assist you with check in. Having

completed check in, move downstairs to clear customs and do

any last minute duty free shopping. On arrival in Los Angeles

we will clear customs and make our way to the Holiday Inn

Express. A tour this afternoon of Los Angeles where we will visit

Hollywood, search for our favourite stars outside Grauman’s

Chinese Theatre, drive down Rodeo Drive, visit Beverley

Hills, see some movie star homes and end our tour at Santa

Monica Pier, where we will have an early Welcome Dinner.

Overnight: Holiday Inn Express LAX

Tuesday 16th August Breakfast/Dinner

After breakfast it is off to Disneyland. Regardless of our age,

Disneyland is a magical place and we will have the whole day

to enjoy the sights, the sounds and the experience that is ‘the

happiest place on earth’. There is something for everyone

as Disneyland has more than 60 attractions. There are eight

themed lands including Frontierland, Adventureland and

Tomorrowland.

Overnight: Holiday Inn Express LAX

Wednesday 17th August Breakfast/Dinner

An early start as we head north along the 400 mile stretch of

coastline between San Francisco and Los Angeles known as the

Central Coast. This piece of the country embodies all things

Californian – rolling surf, a seaside highway built for cruising and

dramatic bluffs topped by weathered pines. A detour to visit the

quaint Danish town of Solvang and pick up a pastry or two.

Overnight: San Simeon

Thursday 18th August Breakfast/Dinner

A visit this morning to Hearst Castle before continuing our

beautiful coastal drive to Monterey, where we will spend time at the

Monterey Aquarium, one of the finest anywhere in the world. A

short drive via Santa Cruz to San Francisco – which after New

York is the second most densely populated city in the U.S.

Overnight: San Francisco

Friday 19th August Breakfast/Dinner

A full day to explore all that the ‘City by the Bay’ has to offer

including a Cruise under the Golden Gate Bridge, a visit

to Alcatraz, Fisherman’s Wharf, Lombard Street (most

crookedest street in the world), riding a Cable Car, visiting

Chinatown and much more. We will even stop for an authentic

Irish Coffee where this drink was created and eat Clam

Chowder from a bread bowl.

Overnight: San Francisco

Saturday 20th August Breakfast/Dinner

Leaving San Francisco behind us we cross the Golden Gate

Bridge to explore the Giant Redwood Trees and the wine

growing region of the Napa Valley, where 90% of the nations

wine is produced. An afternoon drive to Reno known as the

biggest little city in the world and Nevada’s main gambling

destination until it was surpassed by glitzy Las Vegas.

Overnight: Reno

Sunday 21st August Breakfast/Dinner

A longer drive today as we travel across Nevada on what is

known as the ‘Loneliest Road in America’. Early explorers

mapped this region, Pony Express riders raced across it and

the long distance Lincoln Highway finally tamed it. Late this

afternoon we’ll cruise into the town of Ely, in eastern Nevada.

Monday 22nd August Breakfast/Dinner

Crossing the Great Salt Lake Desert we will arrive with plenty

of time to explore Salt Lake City. Apart from its spectacular

natural setting Salt Lake City is known as the spiritual base of

the Mormon Church, which has its worldwide headquarters in

Temple Square.

Overnight: Salt Lake City

Tuesday 23rd August Breakfast/Dinner

The country side today is just spectacular as we leave Idaho

Falls and continue driving east and into Wyoming. Let’s put on

our cowboy hats and pull up our boots and get ready to create

memories that will last a lifetime. Heading east we’ll follow trails

blazed by rugged mountain men centuries ago as we explore

sweeping valleys and high, mountain passes and into the

authentic Old West town of Jackson with time this afternoon

to explore this beautiful old style cowboy town complete with

wooden sidewalks and barstools made from saddles.

Overnight: Jackson

Wednesday 24th August Breakfast/Dinner

Yellowstone National Park holds the dual distinction of being

both the largest park in the contiguous United States as well as

the first National Park in the world. Yellowstone also happens

to be one of the largest active volcanoes in the world, with over

300 geysers and 10,000 thermal geothermal features spewing

steam and boiling water from beneath the earth’s crust. Today

Yellowstone is still recovering from fires that burnt over one third

of the park in 1988. The destruction is especially evident in the

western half of the park, where charred tree stumps line the

roads. Despite the fires, Yellowstone retains its rugged beauty and

sustains an incredible ecosystem. Following the reintroduction

of wolves in 1995, the park once again became home to all the

T R A V E L L I N G M A D E E A S Y

The Great American Road Trip – Tour Itinerary

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animals that lived in the Yellowstone area before the arrival of

Europeans, with the exception of the black footed ferret.

Overnight: Jackson

Thursday 25th August Breakfast/Dinner

We’ve been pretty busy since we arrived in the States and there

are a couple of longer driving days coming up so today is all

about taking time to relax as we spend some well earned free

time in the lovely town of Jackson. Take a stage coach ride

around town, check out the shops and art galleries or take a

long bath in your tub.

Overnight: Jackson

Friday 26th August Breakfast/Dinner

This morning we say good bye to Jackson as we continue

our drive east through the Rocky Mountains, Bridger Teton

National Forest and head east across Wyoming and the Wind

River Indian Reservation to Casper.

Overnight: Casper

Saturday 27th August Breakfast/Dinner

Different scenery today as we drive past the Thunder Basin

National Grassland and into South Dakota. Our first visit will

be to Crazy Horse Memorial. In 1947, Lakota Chief Henry

Standing Bear commissioned sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski

to create a memorial to Crazy Horse as reminder that Native

Americans have their own heroes. An afternoon visit to Mt

Rushmore where we can stare in wonder at the sculptures

of four favourite presidents. Borglum encountered all kinds of

opposition to his work from those who felt that nature could

not be improved, but he defended the scale of his masterpiece,

finally completing the busts of Washington, Jefferson, Theodore

Roosevelt and Lincoln in 1941. A short drive to Deadwood

where gunslingers Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane sauntered

into town during the height of the gold rush in the summer

of 1876. Bill stayed just long enough, three weeks, to spend

eternity here. Jane and Bill now lie side by side in the Mount

Moriah Cemetery, high on a hill south of downtown. Saloon

# 10, 657 Main Street, was forever immortalised by Wild Bill’s

murder. Hickok was shot holding black aces and eights, now

known to poker players as a ‘dead mans hand’.

Overnight: Deadwood

Sunday 28th August Breakfast/Dinner

We pass 100 American country towns as we travel across the

Great Plains of South Dakota today arriving late afternoon in

Sioux City. A busy railroad centre and Missouri River Port Sioux

City sits on the northern cusp of Iowa’s green shaggy Loess Hills.

Overnight: Sioux City

Monday 29th August Breakfast/Dinner

A pleasant drive through the farm lands of Iowa arriving this

afternoon in Dubuque on the banks of the mighty Mississippi

River. Iowa’s oldest city was established in 1788 by French

voyager Julian Dubuque.

Overnight: Dubuque

Tuesday 30th August Breakfast/Dinner

A short drive this morning through Illinois to arrive in Chicago,

once famous hometown of notorious gangsters and the ‘mob’.

This charming city on Lake Michigan is also known as the

starting point for Route 66, home of the Deep Dish Pizza and

some of the best blues music on the planet.

Overnight: Chicago

Wednesday 31st August Breakfast/Dinner

A full day to explore Chicago however you wish. A highlight

dinner tonight as we get to know all about those roaring 20’s at

Tommy Gun’s Garage.

Overnight: Chicago

Thursday 1st September Breakfast/Dinner

A morning drive from Chicago to Detroit. Detroit today is

known as ‘motorcity’ after Henry Ford started manufacturing

automobiles here in 1896. By the early 1920’s most American

automobile manufacturers had moved their headquarters here.

In Detroit you look south to see Canada.

Overnight: Detroit

Friday 2nd September Breakfast/Dinner

Drive through Canada to London and on to Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls, one of the seven natural wonders of the world,

is flat out spectacular. The giant falls are best viewed from the

Canadian side of the Niagara River, where the natural grandeur

is complimented by the well developed tourist attractions,

nightlife, and a thriving honeymoon industry.

Overnight: Niagara Falls

Saturday 3rd September Breakfast/Dinner

A scenic drive today as we cross the border back into the

United States and drive south through New York State and into

Pennsylvania.

Overnight: Lancaster

Sunday 4th September Breakfast/Dinner

Lancaster County is known as the heart of Pennsylvania

the Dutch Country, but its residents, the Pennsylvania Dutch,

aren’t actually Dutch. When the 1700’s Amish and Mennonite

settlers migrated to the area in search of religious freedom and

introduced themselves as “Deutsch”, English settlers mistook

The Great American Road Trip – Tour Itinerary (continued)

T R A V E L L I N G M A D E E A S Y

the German word for “Dutch.” Lancaster is still home to the

largest Old Order Amish population in the US, a group that

strives to maintain its simple lifestyle in the face of modernity.

Overnight: Lancaster

Monday 5th September Breakfast/Dinner

A short drive from Lancaster to Washington DC and a visit

this afternoon to Arlington Cemetery. The 612 acre Arlington

National Cemetery holds the graves of over 260,000 service

men and women, including veterans of every American War from

the Revolutionary War to the present. A simple walking tour can

begin at the Tomb of the Unknowns, which honours unidentified

servicemen who died fighting for the US. It is guarded by soldiers

from the Armies 3rd Infantry who execute a perfect changing of

the guard. A ten minute walk directly north of the tomb and we’ll

find the Kennedy grave sites. Here lie the remains of President

John F Kennedy, his brother Robert F Kennedy and his wife

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It is said that shortly before that

fateful day in November, JFK visited this hillside spot and was so

enchanted by the view that he declared I could stay here forever.

Now the eternal flame flickers above his simple memorial stone.

Overnight: Washington DC

Tuesday 6th September Breakfast/Dinner

Centre of Government for the world’s most powerful nation,

Washington DC is a stately Neo classical city, with grand

avenues and monumental public buildings that reflect the pride

and ambitions that course through the corridors of power.

Its surrounding region preserves important places where the

young nation evolved from a Colonial outpost to an independent

country. A full day of exploring Washington DC at your leisure.

Overnight: Washington DC

Wednesday 7th September Breakfast/Dinner

A short drive today from Washington DC to New York City. The

self proclaimed ‘Capital of the World’ puts its money where its

mouth is. Eight million New Yorkers pack themselves into the city

limits, and each one can tell you exactly why theirs is the greatest

city on earth. New York City is comprised of five boroughs: the

Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. Flanked

on the east by the East River and on the west by the Hudson

River, Manhattan is an island, measuring only 13 miles long and

2 1⁄2 miles wide. Queens and Brooklyn are on the other side of

the East River. Staten Island, southwest of Manhattan is the most

residential borough. North of Manhattan sits the Bronx, the only

borough connected by land to the rest of the United States. The

afternoon is free for you to enjoy as much of the city as you like.

Perhaps see a show tonight on Broadway.

Overnight: New York City

Thursday 8th September Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

A full day tour of New York City. Departing from Midtown

Manhattan, travel by coach through Times Square, Madison

Square Garden, Greenwich Village and SoHo, and take

guided walks around Wall Street, the South Street Seaport,

Grant’s Tomb, Rockefeller Centre, Little Italy and One

World Trade Centre with your guide. At Battery Park, board

your 1-hour New York Harbour cruise, affording you awesome

views of the city skyline. Snap an up-close photo of the Statue

of Liberty. Back on land, head to Grotta Azzurra, one of New

York’s famous and oldest Italian restaurants in the heart of Little

Italy. This was a favourite of Frank Sinatra Enjoy a traditional Italian

lunch here with your fellow travellers. From here, drive to Central

Park and see famous St John the Divine Cathedral before

continuing through Harlem and along Museum Mile and the

renowned Fifth Avenue shopping street. Arriving at Rockefeller

Centre, hop in the elevator and ascend 70 stories in less than

60 seconds to reach the Top of the Rock Observation Deck,

where you’ll be treated to unbelievable panoramic views of

bustling New York City below.

Overnight: New York City

Friday 9th September Breakfast/Dinner

A travelling day today as we fly from New York City to Los

Angeles and then on to Brisbane. Saturday 10th September

Void as we pass across the International Date Line

Sunday 11th September Breakfast

Arrive into Brisbane International Airport and be met by Travelling

Made Easy Staff who will have your transfers to home organised.

The Great American Road Trip – Tour Itinerary (continued)

T R A V E L L I N G M A D E E A S Y

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