My two best friends and I are going on a road trip from Iowa to California this summer (woo-hoo!) We are staying for a few days in Long Beach and San Francisco, but one of our main concerns is keeping cost down. Is there anywhere in these two towns where we could tent it (safely)? Anything else you would like to share would be awesome...tips, places to go, things to do...anything, really. I would love some feedback on this topic, we've never been on a serious road trip before so we're kind of newbies to this type of thing. Also, one other thing, she has a very small car and we're going to be gone for a few weeks...renting costs a ton (or does it?), and we would love a bigger car...but I don't know all the options out there. Well, thanks for listening to my disconnected thoughts and feedback would be excellent.
Back when I did my early cross country trips, my friend and I took along several camping guides. One of them told of free places to camp. I forgot what it was called but we used it several times. We managed to do great road trips on shoestring budgets. Why go to Long Beach? Anywhere in L.A. is going to be a hassle camping, but I actually know a nice semi-private beach on the south side of the Palos Verdes Peninsula that could make a nice camp spot. I was a kid growing up near this beach. It's about a 20 minute drive from Long Beach. There are cool tidepools there and a cute sea lion or otter that is very friendly. San Francisco. Now there's a destination. You can find low-cost youth hostels there, but usually people stay at friend's houses while visiting. I know of an artist/activist colony in some warehouse over there that you could probably stay at, but you'd have to be pretty hardy campers. The place isn't exactly up to housing codes, from what I've heard. A bunch of the activists stayed at my house recently so they'd be happy to return me a favor. Hopefully they haven't all been kicked out by now. Renting- not recommended. You get the best deals with the little economy cars. I tried renting a minivan once but turned away when I saw the rates. But maybe you can find some awesome internet deal. I sometimes rent a car when booking flights through an airline. Usually airlines offer good deals on rental cars.
