Driving from San Francisco to Houston

[AmberGretchen]

Hello lovely PSers. I apologize that I haven''t been around much lately - its been a crazy hectic time, and promises to get more so in the coming weeks. As some of you know, I recently finished my PhD, and my DH and I will be moving from San Francisco, CA to Houston, TX for me to start my new job, which I''m very excited about. We will be driving a small-ish car (Subaru Impreza) that will have to hold us plus three cats plus enough supplies for the drive and our first days in Houston. We will be making the drive in early September.

I''m struggling with what route to take on our drive, and I''m hoping that some of you will have some input. Here is the route I''m currently favoring. Supposedly the most direct route is to go South through Los Angeles, and then cut across through El Paso to the South, but I don''t really want to be spending that much time that close to the border.

Plus, going through both Albuquerque and Austin would give us a chance to spend time with friends in those cities.

One major unknown is how long it will take our stuff to get to Houston. Hopefully no more than a week, but it could be longer, so its important that we not rush the drive and get there long before our stuff.

Also, if you''ve done a drive like this, did you book all the hotels in advance? How could you be sure to make it to your next destination by the end of the day?

Any thoughts, input, insights, etc...are welcome.

 

[Skippy123]

Hi AG, how exciting to be on your way to Houston pretty soon!!

I have gone that route (on our way back from Monterrey, CA 4 or 5 yrs ago) but not the portion from NM to TX.
We didn't have reservations one time and another time we did have reservations. Some hotels will let you cancel before 6pm (I guess it depends on the hotel though) before they charge you so maybe make reservations and if you know you can't make it call and cancel them??

Looking at your route we have stayed in Barstow (nothing much out there) and we stayed at a Holiday Inn Express which was clean and nice but it looks like there are new hotels built since then. I have stayed in Flagstaff, AZ which a 45 mins away from the Grand Canyon, we stayed at the Comfort Inn and it was clean but I have friends who loves Little America in Flagstaff. In Albuquerque, I have only stayed at the Embassy Suites (it is fairly new) . The other places I don't know so hopefully others will chime in.

 

[luckystar112]

The drive from El Paso to Houston is, in a word, boring, so I think it''s great that you are considering a different route! I remember on our way to Vegas we took I-10 all the way across TX and it was nightfall before we ever reached El Paso. There is nothing more depressing than driving all day long and still being in the same state at the end of the day. lol. I think the best part of our drive was going through Arizona and New Mexico at dusk (so beautiful).

I''ve also traveled from Las Vegas to Maine, and I can say that we never booked hotels in advance. You just never know if you''ll be too tired to make it to your destination, or if you will want to continue to keep going, etc. So we just waited until we felt we were done for the day and went to a motel 6 or whatever was available. Never had a problem finding a room.

Oh, and I traveled with a dog on my lap the whole time, as well as a ferret!

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:02:38 PM
Author: Skippy123
Hi AG, how exciting to be on your way to Houston pretty soon!!

I have gone that route (on our way back from Monterrey, CA 4 or 5 yrs ago) but not the portion from NM to TX.

We didn''t have reservations one time and another time we did have reservations. Some hotels will let you cancel before 6pm (I guess it depends on the hotel though) before they charge you so maybe make reservations and if you know you can''t make it call and cancel them??


Looking at your route we have stayed in Barstow (nothing much out there) and we stayed at a Holiday Inn Express which was clean and nice but it looks like there are new hotels built since then. I have stayed in Flagstaff, AZ which a 45 mins away from the Grand Canyon, we stayed at the Comfort Inn and it was clean but I have friends who loves Little America in Flagstaff. In Albuquerque, I have only stayed at the Embassy Suites (it is fairly new) . The other places I don''t know so hopefully others will chime in.

Thanks Miss Skippy

Yeah, I sort of don''t have a good sense at all of how to break up the trip, other than that we''d definitely like to stop in Albuquerque and Austin if we go this way.

That''s a good tidbit about the hotel cancellation policies - I will for sure have to check that for any hotels we book. I''d be much more comfortable having them booked ahead of time, especially with the cats, but a cancellation policy would be really nice too...

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:04:26 PM
Author: luckystar112
The drive from El Paso to Houston is, in a word, boring, so I think it''s great that you are considering a different route! I remember on our way to Vegas we took I-10 all the way across TX and it was nightfall before we ever reached El Paso. There is nothing more depressing than driving all day long and still being in the same state at the end of the day. lol. I think the best part of our drive was going through Arizona and New Mexico at dusk (so beautiful).


I''ve also traveled from Las Vegas to Maine, and I can say that we never booked hotels in advance. You just never know if you''ll be too tired to make it to your destination, or if you will want to continue to keep going, etc. So we just waited until we felt we were done for the day and went to a motel 6 or whatever was available. Never had a problem finding a room.


Oh, and I traveled with a dog on my lap the whole time, as well as a ferret!

LOL @ picturing you with a dog and a ferret in your lap

I feel you on the driving all day and being in the same state - I''ve done that more times than I can say in California.

I guess my main worry with not booking hotels is the cats - not every place will take them, and I worry about getting stuck without a place and three crabby, stressed, and hungry cats in the car

I am looking forward to the part of the drive through AZ and NM - I think it should be really pretty, and hopefully not too stressful, although much of that will depend on the aforementioned felines and how they behave themselves...

 

[luckystar112]

I forgot there were honest people out there. You see, we never told the hotels about the animals.....we kind of just snuck them in.

 

[bebe]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:36:58 PM
Author: luckystar112
I forgot there were honest people out there. You see, we never told the hotels about the animals.....we kind of just snuck them in.

Ha ha!! if I tried something like that, I''d be the one to get caught!

AG - we did the New Mexico to Houston drive last year. We overnighted in Las Cruces, drove to El Paso for breakfast 9am and drove straight to Houston on I-10
getting to our house around 10pm. That is the longest drive ever. We''ve done this before and I forgot how boring it is. I love road trips, but El Paso and south is
awful. Take lots of reading material, unless you enjoy gazing at mile after mile of brown dirt !!!!

I-10 through San Antonio and south into Houston can be a nightmare on a weekend day. I will never put myself through that again. I-10 is a 2 lane highway
until it gets close to Houston. The high speeds and everyone jockeying for lane position - geez!!

 

[luckystar112]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:57:04 PM
Author: bebe


I-10 through San Antonio and south into Houston can be a nightmare on a weekend day. I will never put myself through that again. I-10 is a 2 lane highway
until it gets close to Houston. The high speeds and everyone jockeying for lane position - geez!!

But did you stop at Buckees?!

 

[ChinaCat]

Amber- Welcome to Texas (almost!)

I agree, El Paso is deathly ugly, and the drive from El Paso to Houston is so long and boring, NOTHING to look at but a few prisons. I would do the Albuquerque and Austin if you can, great places to visit.

I''ve done the CA to Dallas route quite a bit, and never reserved hotels ahead of time. But I never stayed anywhere nice, and definitely didn''t have animals at the time.

When are you coming???? I was going to start a thread about welcoming you to Texas, but unfortunately I am due to have a baby in the next few weeks, so probably won''t be around for a PS GTG anytime soon.

 

[bebe]

Date: 7/29/2009 11:00:32 PM
Author: luckystar112

Date: 7/29/2009 9:57:04 PM
Author: bebe


I-10 through San Antonio and south into Houston can be a nightmare on a weekend day. I will never put myself through that again. I-10 is a 2 lane highway
until it gets close to Houston. The high speeds and everyone jockeying for lane position - geez!!

But did you stop at Buckees?!

I freaking LOVE Bucees (or Buckees? or Buccees? )

the best place to pee!!
and I love the Hook ''em cutting boards they have for sale.

We just discovered the new one on 45 North in Madisonville. It is huge! The place is like Wal-Mart on a Saturday!!

 

[luckystar112]

I had never heard of it before! DH and I went to San Antonio a few weeks ago for our anniversary and so we passed it. Of course, there are the million and one billboards set up before you actually get to the place. We were like "what IS this place?!" We passed it on the way there but said that we''d stop on the way back. But when we tried to stop there on the way back there was NO WHERE to park. Not a single place. So we decided to just find the next gas station. Later we googled it and apparently it''s awesome in there. Sigh.

Doesn''t one of their billboards say something about peeing? lol.

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:36:58 PM
Author: luckystar112
I forgot there were honest people out there. You see, we never told the hotels about the animals.....we kind of just snuck them in.

LOL, I think that might be a little challenging logistically, with three large, vocal kitties

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/29/2009 9:57:04 PM
Author: bebe

Date: 7/29/2009 9:36:58 PM

Author: luckystar112

I forgot there were honest people out there. You see, we never told the hotels about the animals.....we kind of just snuck them in.

Ha ha!! if I tried something like that, I''d be the one to get caught!


AG - we did the New Mexico to Houston drive last year. We overnighted in Las Cruces, drove to El Paso for breakfast 9am and drove straight to Houston on I-10

getting to our house around 10pm. That is the longest drive ever. We''ve done this before and I forgot how boring it is. I love road trips, but El Paso and south is

awful. Take lots of reading material, unless you enjoy gazing at mile after mile of brown dirt !!!!


I-10 through San Antonio and south into Houston can be a nightmare on a weekend day. I will never put myself through that again. I-10 is a 2 lane highway

until it gets close to Houston. The high speeds and everyone jockeying for lane position - geez!!

Bebe - this description makes me even more sure that our alternate route that doesn''t go through El Paso or on I-10 is a better way to go (see link, above).

I feel like the last thing we will need by the time we finally get there is tons of stressful traffic...

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/29/2009 11:05:28 PM
Author: ChinaCat
Amber- Welcome to Texas (almost!)


I agree, El Paso is deathly ugly, and the drive from El Paso to Houston is so long and boring, NOTHING to look at but a few prisons. I would do the Albuquerque and Austin if you can, great places to visit.


I''ve done the CA to Dallas route quite a bit, and never reserved hotels ahead of time. But I never stayed anywhere nice, and definitely didn''t have animals at the time.


When are you coming???? I was going to start a thread about welcoming you to Texas, but unfortunately I am due to have a baby in the next few weeks, so probably won''t be around for a PS GTG anytime soon.

Hi ChinaCat - thank you so much for the sweet welcome, and congratulations on your soon-to-be new addition

I was thinking of suggesting some kind of Houston GTG when my DH and I get into town in September - maybe I should start a separate thread?

I''m so glad to hear that you think the non-El Paso route will be better, I''m really starting to feel much better about my decision on that.

 

[zoebartlett]

Hi AG -- sorry, but I don''t have any travel advice to you, as I''ve never been to either place. I just wanted to congratulate you on completing your PhD and accepting the position in Houston. I remember reading your thread when you were deciding which city to move to, and I don''t know if I knew which one you ultimately chose. Thanks for the update and best wishes for a smooth move to TX.

 

[zoebartlett]

AG -- I just typed this whole post and then reread the part about getting there before your stuff. The following describes our experience with moving ourselves. You can probably disregard some of it now, but hopefully some of it may still help.


Oh, maybe I do have something more to add. My husband and I just moved from NH to NC and he came down a month before I did. We ended up renting a 26 foot truck for both moves because when I came down, I had a whole classroom''s worth of things to move as well as the rest of our things. My husband drove the Penske truck and I drove his car down first, and then mine. We''d recommend Penske over U-Haul or someone else -- Penske was by far the cheapest option.

To choose a route, we oped not to drive through major cities, so we went a tad out of the way to do a more comfortable route. The only thing we had to watch out for (and we knew by the 2nd trip) were alternate routes that my husband and the truck had to take due to low bridges.

We looked at Mapquest for our route and we basically saw the route line on the map and chose a couple of spots along the way to stop. We drove 5 hours the first day, 8 hours the 2nd, and 3.5 the third. Obviously I know you have a lot longer of a drive than we did, but that''s how we chose to break up the driving. We didn''t really want to check out any touristy places along the way -- we chose just to keep moving. Some people like to do that but we were on a time crunch because we had movers coming to help us unload the trucks when we arrived in NC. We could have done the drive in 2 days but we wanted some down time each day to just hang out at the hotel and relax. Again, I know you have a longer drive than we did, but it''s something to think about when you''re planning your trip.

We made reservations ahead of time at the same hotels for both trips. When we booked rooms, we made sure to book at pet-friendly hotels (Hilton Inn and Comfort Inn are what we chose). We also made sure to check that the parking lot had enough room for such a big truck. We didn''t want to just show up and have nowhere to put the truck. Remember to get a lock for the truck!

 

[appletini]

AG, Somehow I missed that y''all finally decided on Houston...very excited! What area are you going to live in? Oh and yes the Bucee''s signs crack me up.

 

[AmberGretchen]

Zoe thank you SO MUCH for all the detailed info. I remember reading about your move. I hope that you guys are settling into your new area and things are going well for you.

Our situation is slightly different - the movers that my company recommended and who we decided to go with will be packing most of our stuff and moving basically all of it (of course, we don''t have a ton of stuff to begin with and we''re getting rid of a lot of furniture before we move).

So we will only be taking the two of us, the 3 cats, and basic necessities in the car (a Subaru compact - its going to be pretty crowded in there

). We don''t want to get there before our stuff, because we wouldn''t have anything to sleep on or anything, since the movers will have our mattress, etc...

I guess we could get an air mattress and camp out at our new place, but we''d rather not if we can help it. That''s another thing I like about the Austin/Albuquerque route, is that if we end up getting close a few days ahead of our stuff, we can hang out in one of those places for a few days (we have several friends from college as well as family in Austin, particularly) and still be close enough to get to Houston quickly once there''s word of our stuff arriving.

I am totally with you on not wanting to do touristy stuff on the drive. If it was just us, then sure, but with the kitties, especially at the end of the summer, I just don''t think its feasible, and so I think we''ll want to basically plow on through the driving, and have time to relax (hopefully) at the end of each day in the hotel. I think we''ll aim for no more than 8 hours of driving time per day - I just think it would be tough on the cats to be cooped up for much more than that.

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/30/2009 9:49:23 AM
Author: appletini
AG, Somehow I missed that y''all finally decided on Houston...very excited! What area are you going to live in? Oh and yes the Bucee''s signs crack me up.

Hey appletini - would love to meet you IRL once we''re there - maybe a GTG of some sort??

We don''t have a place picked out just yet, but we''re in the process of it. We want to rent at least for the first year, just because of the uncertainty of where we''ll be going next.

We''re definitely looking inside the loop, probably in Montrose or Upper Kirby, or possibly West University.

 

[appletini]

Good choice on being close in! Our neighborhood is partially inside the loop, we are just outside so have all the inner loop benefits without the markup. We''ll have to meet up at Rice one day and go for a walk.

 

[appletini]

oh and please let me know if you need any recommendations for hair, nail salons, etc, etc.

 

[AmberGretchen]

Thanks Appletini - I''d love to meet up, that sounds fun

We should be in town by the second week in September, and I don''t start work until the 28th, so I''m sure we can squeeze it in somewhere in there.

I''d LOVE recommendations for hair/nail salons and anything else you can think of. I know I''ll want to at least explore good gyms, and good places to take Pilates, and DH and I LOVE going out to eat, so restaurant recs are always welcome. And anything else you can think of - we''ll have a good support system with the company I''m going to work for, and we''ve really hit it off with my new co-workers, but we''ll still be totally new to the city.

 

[appletini]

Well be prepared you will gain some weight...lots of good restuarants Houstonian''s drive everywhere.

Also if you are into bikram yoga there is a studio off of Kirby in the West U area.

 

[ChinaCat]

Appletini- Didn''t know you were in Houston, for some reason I thought you were in Dallas!

Amber- I live in West U, but lived in Montrose/Midtown before that. Will totally help you out with recommendations for anything as well as Appletini. The areas you are looking in are perfect for being new to the city, you will be close to everything. I do Pilates at my gym, but have a friend that has a place nearby that she loves, will find out the name for you.

I would love to do a Houston GTG and meet some PS ladies! Like I said, I am supposed to be having a baby around August 8, but maybe by middle of September I will have some semblance of a routine and can get out to meet ya''ll. Especially for lunch or walk around Rice!

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/30/2009 3:37:18 PM
Author: appletini
Well be prepared you will gain some weight...lots of good restuarants Houstonian''s drive everywhere.


Also if you are into bikram yoga there is a studio off of Kirby in the West U area.

LOL I''m hoping not on the weight gain. Its going to be a struggle, between all the new restaurants to try plus being on the road for work a ton, but I''m really going to try. I had to really fight off those pounds a few years back, and I''m pretty determined to not have to do it again

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 7/30/2009 5:07:00 PM
Author: ChinaCat
Amber- I live in West U, but lived in Montrose/Midtown before that. Will totally help you out with recommendations for anything as well as Appletini. The areas you are looking in are perfect for being new to the city, you will be close to everything. I do Pilates at my gym, but have a friend that has a place nearby that she loves, will find out the name for you.


I would love to do a Houston GTG and meet some PS ladies! Like I said, I am supposed to be having a baby around August 8, but maybe by middle of September I will have some semblance of a routine and can get out to meet ya''ll. Especially for lunch or walk around Rice!

Thanks Chinacat - I''d love the recommendation for the pilates place your friend likes

And other recommendations are for sure welcome as well. Honestly, the thing I''m probably most stressed about is finding an aesthetician - I had a traumatic eyebrow experience a few years back, and its taken a long time getting them back to where I''m happy with them. Strange the things you worry about, right?

 

[Gypsy]

Hi honey,

We didn''t make reservations in advance either. What we did is make sure we took our lap top and that there was wireless available at the hotels we stopped at. Each night we''d stop, check out the Holiday Inn website for HI Express locations that are pet friendly (it''s a property by property thing they can accept them or not) and then we''d write down the numbers for them. When we were withing a few hours (2-3) we''d call and reserve. There is an upcharge for pets and they tell you two cat limit... well, we only had two carriers and Hally on her own can do more than the quivering solid mass of fear that Duncan and Frodo were so...

Anyway. HIGHLY recommend Holiday Inn Express. The accomodations are clean (and if they aren''t they will quickly remedy or move you) spacious and conveinient. I believe Residence Inns also are similar (by Marriot) and are also on a property by property basis.

One thing to remember is the the kitties are going to be relatively freaked, so if you are like us (and I know you are) prepare that for the first couple of hours at each stop you will need to do some soothing and coaxing.

Most of the undersides of the bed are blocked off well at most places. But when you first get into a room and before you let anyone out of their carrier... do a check and make sure there''s no gaps between the wall and the bed or anything for them to huddle up into.

Also, one of you go and check in, other stay in the car. The one checking in should ALWAYS go to the room directly and check it for bed bugs, check between the mattress and box for dead bugs and check everything for cleaniliness. You see signs of beg bugs. Clear out of the entire property. That is NOT something you want to take home with you from your trip.

Do a little research on bed bugs before you leave. It will creep you out, but an ounce of prevention is worth it as there is no cure.

**HUGS**

I''m really going to miss you.

 

[appletini]

Date: 7/30/2009 11:21:36 PM
Author: AmberGretchen

Date: 7/30/2009 5:07:00 PM
Author: ChinaCat
Amber- I live in West U, but lived in Montrose/Midtown before that. Will totally help you out with recommendations for anything as well as Appletini. The areas you are looking in are perfect for being new to the city, you will be close to everything. I do Pilates at my gym, but have a friend that has a place nearby that she loves, will find out the name for you.


I would love to do a Houston GTG and meet some PS ladies! Like I said, I am supposed to be having a baby around August 8, but maybe by middle of September I will have some semblance of a routine and can get out to meet ya''ll. Especially for lunch or walk around Rice!

Thanks Chinacat - I''d love the recommendation for the pilates place your friend likes

And other recommendations are for sure welcome as well. Honestly, the thing I''m probably most stressed about is finding an aesthetician - I had a traumatic eyebrow experience a few years back, and its taken a long time getting them back to where I''m happy with them. Strange the things you worry about, right?

AG, Tracey (the owner) and Amanda (Tracey''s sister) at Kai Spa are excellent for facials and waxing. This is my regular day spa. everything is very clean and the staff is very friendly and fun. www.kaispa.com

 

[swingirl]

Date: 7/30/2009 11:43:20 PM
Author: Gypsy

Also, one of you go and check in, other stay in the car. The one checking in should ALWAYS go to the room directly and check it for bed bugs, check between the mattress and box for dead bugs and check everything for cleaniliness. You see signs of beg bugs. Clear out of the entire property. That is NOT something you want to take home with you from your trip.

Do a little research on bed bugs before you leave. It will creep you out, but an ounce of prevention is worth it as there is no cure.
**HUGS**
I'm really going to miss you.

Yikes, have you ever found any in hotels?????

 

[Gypsy]

No Swingirl, but my co-worker brought some home from a 5 star LV hotel. She had to throw out all her furniture, hired pest control x3, it's not covered under insurance, the pest control won't guarantee their removal (because they are actually resistance to almost all but the federally banned toxic chemicals for pest control) she had to wash and store all her clothes someplace else. And she was allergic to them.

It was pretty awful and scary. And when I did research on it, hers was not unusually bad. At least she got rid of them after two rounds of full infestation. (6 months)-- somepeople have had a harder time getting rid of them (particularly if they have pets).