Any advice for traveling America alone?

This is quite general i know, but i'm planning to go for a month, it would be good if anyone had any ideas regarding; best time to go, ways to travel, cheap accomodation etc. i have guide books, but first hand info is so much more valuable. ThanksAny advice for traveling America alone?
I always find hostels are the best way to go when travelling alone - cheap and a good way to meet people.


Getting around, it depends on how far you want to go - Greyhound buses are probably the most economical way to go, but if you want to travel from one side of the country to the other you might be better off taking a domestic flight since you're only going to be there a month.





If you're planning on travelling in the NE at all then you might want to check out the Chinatown buses - not sure if similar services exist, but it's definitely a cheap way to get between NY and Philly or Boston.





The best time to go depends on where you want to go and what you want to do really, there's never really a bad time, but you may want to avoid Florida in hurricane season say, or New England in the depths of winter. But then again, maybe not?





The most important advice I'd give you is not to try and do everything in a month, you'll spend all your time rushing around and not enough enjoying yourself. Pick out a region or two, maybe three that you want to explore and allow yourself at least a week for each. Definitely consider flying if you've got long distances between the parts you want to see.





Be flexible in your plans too, you never know who you'll meet or what you'll end up wanting to do, so don't set your schedule in stone, just have guidelines.





And of course, enjoy.Any advice for traveling America alone?
Outside of the big cities, public transportation can be limited. The train system here isn't nearly as good as it is in Europe. Check out the routes before you come here.


September and October are beautiful in most states and an off season time.


Travel with traveler checks or some form of money that can be replaced if lost or stolen. Have a cell phone with you for safety.


I'd stay at the more main stream chain hotels for safety.


Some of the bigger cities, like Chicago, offer a one priced pass that gets you into all the museums.
I always enjoyed camping out...national parks, state parks, etc. Sometimes free if the ranger doesn't come around to collect. All you need is a tent and a car pretty much. If you are a girl I would not recommend this method though, for several reasons.





dboy
stay away from the projects
Stay safe and always follow your gut....send me a postcard...x