Honestly, no offense to the people who live in the middle, but I’d recommend spending the first part of your trip doing stuff on the East Coast, then catching a flight and spending the second half doing stuff on the West Coast. The trip in between is long and, frankly, boring.

If this really interests you, visit[url=‘http://www.viarail.ca’]www.viarail.ca[/url] for information on the "Canadian" train or see [url=‘http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/messagepost.cfm?postaction=reply&catid=11&threadid=765314&messid=6508223&STARTPAGE=1&parentid=0&from=1’]this Thorntree thread[/url] for some descriptions from people who have done it.

Otherwise, a great trip might include New York, Boston, Montreal, Quebec City, Ottawa, Toronto… and then a flight to Calgary, Edmonton, and spend some time in the Rockies (Banff, Jasper, Lake Louise) and Vancouver, Whistler, Victoria… just a few suggestions.

This totally depends on what you’re into..but if I had the chance, I would go to Glacier National Park in Montana http://www.nps.gov/g…
also Niagara Falls near NY and Canada, Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone Natl Park (Wyoming) http://www.nps.gov/y…
Canadian Rockies (most parks in Alberta) are nice too.

Seattle is a cool city and not very far from Vancouver. I was there for about 4 days last year and went to the Fisherman’s wharf (I think that’s what it was called). There’s lots of yummy produce and gifts to buy. The Univ. of Washington campus was nice..and the transportation system was really efficient.

Have fun on your trip!

The rail system in the US is expensive!! It is almost cheaper to buy plane tickets. But I agree that there really is not that much stuff in the middle, unless, of course, you are searching for some natural beauty. Yellowstone is great, the Grand Canyon is awe inspiring.

Other than that, the Pacific Northwest (Seattle, Vancouver and everything inbetween) is beautiful. Mountains, water, islands, and everything is really conducive to exploring outdoors.

The U.S. is a huuuuge space to cross – so be prepared for hours upon hours in a crowded bus.

hello

As others have stated, trains are expensive. We don’t have an extensive rail/bus network like Europe does. To be honest, almost everyone who is of driving age, drives and owns a car. Most people fly too.

It all depends on money, how much time you have, and what you like to see/do. Both the East and West coasts have so much to offer. The US’s landscape is quite diverse but the middle is kinda "blah".

I would fly from NY to Vancouver. I think it is about a 5 or 6 hour flight. NY seems to be central to flight options and decent prices because it is so frequented.

What are you into? Cities or landscape?

You said you have a month to travel in the US? What season? Weather plays a role in what to see and do as well.

good luck and happy travels

wow, unsure why the west coast is so darn popular, but i’d suggest trying to visit a bit of the central provinces and states. i live smack in the middle of canada, and find this province to be rather fantatic with many hidden treasures.

honestly, you’re far better off taking the plane rather than the bus as you will be traveling vast distances! you may also want to consider (as already suggested) taking a plane to edmonton than the viarail train through the rookies onto vancouver. my mother used to work for via, and rather adored the train journey through alberta and bc!

good luck!