How to get the most value for money on your North American holiday

Telegraph

21 hours ago

Brandywine Falls pours through the forest, bouncing off a wall of rock that's tiered like a wedding cake. It's the reward for the hard work of a 1.5-mile hike through Ohio's Cuyahoga Valley National Park, one of hundreds of parks, monuments and reserves within the US National Parks system with free entry.
It's also a reminder that an experience-packed holiday in the USA need not break the bank. Play it smart and an American adventure can be exceptional value for money.
A road trip adventure
Fortunately, one of the most memorable ways to explore the United States is also one of the most cost-effective. Hiring a car and road-tripping around the country brings freedom and flexibility to explore and discover. It's also relatively cheap – SUVs can often be hired for under £200 a week.
Having your own wheels also allows for great savings on accommodation and food. Nights can be spent in budget-friendly but characterful smaller towns with bargain motels and hearty family-run restaurants.
Classic road trip routes are also lined with free attractions, some delightfully silly, some photogenically beautiful, others drenched in history. Route 66, for example, is a barrage of absurdly kitsch giant fibreglass statues, picturesque state parks and heritage sites such as Abraham Lincoln's former home in Springfield, Illinois. Many don't have entrance fees.
Going off the beaten track
You don't have to stick to classic, well-worn routes. Pick any two big cities in the USA and there is plenty to do on the drive between them – with considerably lower accommodation costs than the better-known routes. For instance, Brandywine Falls is on the route from Boston to Chicago, along with the astonishing Henry Ford Museum outside Detroit, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the wineries of New York's Finger Lakes.
Going off the beaten track also applies to timing as well as destinations. Shoulder seasons – think March to May or September to November – are usually quieter in both the big cities and the national parks. This means smaller crowds at the likes of Pier 39 in San Francisco or Arches National Park in Utah, plus significantly reduced hotel prices.
Staying away from peak season can also bring more freedom. For example, from 1 December to 28 February, the Hermit Drive along the South Rim of Arizona's Grand Canyon is open to all vehicles, while the rest of the year, you have to take a shuttle bus.
Exploring the great outdoors
Venturing through the States' glorious natural landscapes can work out much cheaper than shelling out for attractions in the city. It costs nothing to go on an elk-spotting mission in the Cataloochee section of Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains National Park, or hike the hundred miles of trails in West Virginia's New River Gorge National Park.
Beaches, mountain lookouts and forest walking trails generally don't cost a cent. The same applies to wildlife-spotting, whether elephant seals on Californian beaches or bison herds in Montana's American Prairie Reserve.
If your trip encompasses several sites in the National Parks system, the single best investment you can make is the $80 America the Beautiful Pass, available online or at the park entrances. It lasts a year, and with entrance to many popular parks otherwise costing $35 each time, it represents an incredible bargain.
Making the most of money-saving passes
Harnessing the wallet-friendly power of passes doesn't just apply in the great outdoors – it works in cities too. CityPass and Go City offer bundled attractions passes in several US cities, reducing entry costs for the big-hitter experiences, museums and sights.
The principle of buying in bulk to save money also works for public transit passes. In Boston, for example, individual subway fares cost $2.40 but a weekly pass costs $22.50 for unlimited travel.
Many big-city icons are free in the first place, however. These include Independence Hall in Philadelphia, the Smithsonian Museums and National Mall memorials of Washington DC and artist Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate in Chicago's Millennium Park.
To combine several sights, look for free historic walking trails lined with absorbing explanatory signs. Printed maps for the likes of Boston's Freedom Trail and the Trail to Treasure route around Seattle's Pioneer Square can usually be found at visitor information centres, with downloadable versions online.
Should you prefer such walks to be guided, there are several tour companies running on a pay-what-you-wish system. These include San Francisco City Guides, Free Chicago Walking Tours and NOLA Tour Guy in New Orleans.
Tackling the USA in a budget-conscious way, it seems, does not mean missing out.