3 month road trip - where to go and why?

Hi guys,

my friend and i are headed to the US for 3 months in around August 2010, we'll be taking a road trip and im hoping for some insider tips on a few great places to go (on a tight budget), and why to go there.
Looking for ideas other than the usual suggestions of grand canyon etc.
Also, to give us a rough idea, how long does it take to drive from one side of the country to the other? (not that we're planning to do this, but just to give us an idea of time and distance!)
Also, does anyone know anything about busking laws in the US? just wondering

Busking is the practice of performing in public places for tips and gratuities.

It depends on the local jurisdiction. Some are liberal, some not so understanding. It would behoove you to check with local authorities when you arrive in a new place. You'll probably have better luck in urban areas.

I traveled with family from Montreal to Vancouver island last summer( Yeah i know its Canada) but distances are similar,doing 4 to 5 hundred miles a day and making a couple of stops it took us almost 2 weeks and close to 6000 kilometers. Busking just about anywhere is going to require a license from the local city hall and most major cities have a quota on how many licenses are handed out,if you are thinking on living on busking money to support your trip i'd think about plan B,

Theres a million things to see and do in North America, you'll have to get specific about what you want to see and do if you want constructive suggestions.

As N.America is an automobile based society its going to be hard to get to anything but the major urban centers with out a car.

[ Edit: Edited on 28-Oct-2009, at 18:26 by jambo101 ]

Quoting jambo101

Theres a million things to see and do in North America, you'll have to get specific about what you want to see and do if you want constructive suggestions.

.

Let me rephrase that
As there are millions of things to see and do in N.America you'll have to list your vision of the trip so we can give some suitable suggestions for example if the Grand Canyon fails to impress then i guess you arent into the scenic aspect of the trip,i'd suggest Googling each state and checking out their "calender of events" to see what could become interesting destinations

Okay, here's a few ideas on things to do in the US--based upon categories:

(1) National parks--the most famous/scenic are the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Redwood, Grand Tetons, Everglades, Olympia, Arcadia, Great Smokies, Arches, Bryce Canon, Glacier, Carlsbad Caverns, Rocky Mountain, Canyonlands, Sequoia, Shenandoah, Death Valley, Zion, and Mesa Verde (and national monuments like Lake Powell, Monument Valley and Sedona).

(2) Recreational activities--white-water rafting down a river like the Snake or the Colorado, visiting famous golf courses like Augusta (Georgia) or Pebble Beach (California), surfing in Hawaii, skiing or mountain climbing in the Rockies (Colorado/Utah/New Mexico) or the Sierras (California/Nevada/Oregon/Washington) or in the Appalachians (Vermont), hot air ballooning in New Mexico, riding horses and herding cattle on a dude ranch (Colorado/Utah/Wyoming/Montana), boating and (almost every state), or biking (any state).

(3) Visiting famous resorts--Palm Springs or La Quinta (California), Scottsdale (Arizona), Greenbriar (West Virginia), Miami and Fort Lauderdale (Florida), Vail (Colorado) or Turtle Creek (Texas).

(4) Visiting famous amusement parks and water parks and historical parks--Disney World and Universal Studios and Sea World (in Florida), Disneyworld and Universal Studios and Sea World (California), Schlitterbahn (Texas), Kings Mountain (Ohio), Williamsburg (Virginia), and Seven Flags (all over).

(5) Major cities with activities/museums--some of the best are New York, New Orleans, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, Boston, Nashville, and (of course) Las Vegas

(6) Towns with specific attractions--Los Angeles (beaches and TV studios), Cocoa Beach--Florida (space launch location), Memphis (blues, BBQ, and Graceland), Philadelphia (Liberty Bell and Independence Hall), St. Louis (Giant Arch); Ashland--Oregon, and Cedar City--Utah and Santa Cruz--California (Shakesphere Festivals), Laguna Beach (art festivals) and Park City--Utah (film festivals); and

(7) Total wilderness--Alaska, Montana, parts of Florida, and areas throughout the country from Maine to Texas to Oregon.

Enjoy

[ Edit: . ]

Thanks everyone thats given us some great ideas. We are definitely interested in natural attractions ( i was just using the grand canyon as an example of a fairly crowded tourist spot)
The whole point of the trip is to get life experience, and no we arent relying on busking to pay for the trip, we just happen to love our music and performing!
The idea is we'll be stopping at haunted locations, taking ghost tours etc (this is where our greatest interest is) but whilst we're getting a great list together of scary places, we're also looking for places to see along the way that are interesting for different reasons.

A few Must see suggestions on your trip.

San Francisco
Drive the Pacific Coast Highway
Yosemite National Park
Zion National Park
Smokey Mountains and Blue Ridge Parkway
Washington DC
New York City
Montreal and Quebec's Gaspe region.

That should take care of 3 months.

Ok so we booked our flights today, we'll be arriving in LA mid july, heading up to san francisco and into Oregon to visit friends, then planning on heading in a bit of a loop down back down south to arizona, across to new orleans, then over to the east coast by early October. Does this sound possible or are we dreaming?
Also, ive read that temperatures can get pretty unbearable in the south in summer, exactly how hot does it get on average?

In July and August its not uncommon for temperatures to get above 100 degrees in the southwestern desert areas And temperatures into the 125 degree range around the Death Valley area during the summer(could be dangerous),the south east may only get into the 90's but with the humidity factored in it can make for some uncomfortable muggy weather. Ending your trip on the East coast is definitely possible with 3 months to travel however are you then going to have to drive back to LA for your return flight? if so it might be cheaper to get your return flight from New York City ,Boston or Washington.

[ Edit: Edited on 08-Nov-2009, at 09:06 by jambo101 ]

Just had to find a temperature converter online, so 100 farenheit is about 38 celcius. Thats pretty hot! (where im from we complain when it gets to 30!) I also just took a look at Death Valley on a few webpages, looks interesting but the high temperatures tend to be a bit offputting! We may give it a miss.
We're looking at options for getting back to the west coast, potentially going with a budget airline. Any sugegstions of a good one to use? Our main flights are already booked so we have to fly home from LA.
Thanks for all your help!