Hi All,

I (27M) am planning a solo trip to the USA from August for roughly 3-6 months. My plan is tthe following:

• Start in Boston for 2 nights

• Train/Bus to Chicago (maybe stopping somewhere along the way such as Cleveland).

• Chicago for 3 nights

• Route 66 - roughly 2-3 weeks

  • Renting a car and looking for a travel buddy in Chicago (is this a good idea?)

• Ending up in Southern California - skipping LA but going straight to San Diego

• Mexico's west coast (1 week) - looking for a nice beach/party town not too far from the US

• Then renting a car (in the USA again) and going up the West Coast to Oregon in time for Fall (4 weeks and slowly though Big Sur -> North California -> Portland -> Seattle -> Vancouver.

I have a couple of questions:

1. How is solo travel in the US? I don't think it will be as tourist friendly as SE Asia but are there any good tips or tricks to meet people? Is it the same as SE Asia where Hostels work well or are there other avenues to meet people?

2. Are there any areas of the along the route I should avoid as a solo traveller? Not necessarily for safety reasons but I get the feeling some places might be unfriendly for tourists. For example, I'm looking a Cleveland for a night to stay and it doesnt seem as tourist friendly as somewhere like Boston.

3. Any tips or ticks on doing the US on a budget would be great. I know it will be kinda of pricey (thinking roughly USD 100-200+ maybe more) per day (is that reasonable?). I dont mind (actually prefer) going to more rural places where things might be cheaper.

Its a bit of a dream to travel the USA for me. Coming from South Africa, we always hear and watch US media and learn about parts of the different US Cultures. Now that I have worked a couple years to save some money, I am looking to soak it all in, learn about the different parts and meet some interesting people!

Post edit: thank you for all the comments! Will take your advice seriously in due course! Awesome sub👍