Photo by Ryan Parker on Unsplash
My top east coast driving destinations
In less than a week, I will embark on an ambitious solo adventure. My plan is to drive up the Atlantic coast visiting destinations which I think would be most interesting, beautiful or, just plain, fun for the solo traveler. Miami, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, St. Augustine, Jekyll Island, Savannah, Charleston, the Hamptons, Newport, Cape Cod, Salem, Portsmouth and Kennebunkport is the itinerary for this forty plus day trek.
Photo by Jason Briscoe on Unsplash
How did I decide where to go?
Besides chronicling the cultural uniqueness of each place, my goal is to gather substantive material for my soon-to-be launched website, Astrid Solo Travel Advisor. Countless hours have been put into the research for this trip. My media team has gathered input from various tourist bureaus and I have scoured hundreds of websites and YouTube videos deciding on what to do, where to eat and stay, where to shop and, bottomline, how to experience what makes each place special.
Where will I stay?
My lodging choices include posh resorts, an ultra modern hotel, hip boutique hotels, historic inns, bed and breakfasts and even, an one bedroom villa with a pool offered by Airbnb, my first time using this accommodations site.
What will I do?
Some of the activities on my to do list will include; food tours, wine tours, walking tours, shopping in specially markets and one-of-a-kind stores, visiting art galleries, museums, historic mansions, plantations, churches and gardens, sailing on a schooner, trying my skills at kayaking and of course, plenty of people watching, one of my favorite solo travel activities.
Documenting it all
Besides taking pictures on my Nikon camera and iPhone, I will be attempting to take video with my new GoPro camera and my ultra cool "mini" drone camera. Wish me luck, I still struggle with this aspect of gathering blog material. Even though I have had numerous lessons on how to use all of this photography equipment, it is yet to be determined if I will get some good material. I'll give it my best shot!!
How you can follow along
In addition to documenting my trip through pictures, videos, blog posts, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, (phew!), I will be tracking the cost of each destination and seeing how well I stay within my "affordable luxury" budget. Likewise, I plan to highlight how the culture, food, styles, shopping, architecture and landscapes change as I go up the Atlantic coast; what makes these coastal destinations the same, what makes them different from each other and why.
Although, I will be driving the entire jaunt solo, something I know will take endurance, I am excited about sharing my experiences, as well as the insights and tips I gathered from this upcoming adventure. You can follow me several ways on this journey. Content will be available at on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Lastly, I welcome any and all feedback. I want to know what you find interesting, what you want to see more of and what you want to know more about!
