Look, since we were kids we've been fed this image in dozens of Hollywood movies. Hair in the wind, sunglasses on, the radio cranked up, an endless road tearing through the desert and your hands gripping the wheel of an American muscle car.
Doing a road trip across the United States is the ultimate "American Dream" for any traveller. But before you land in Uncle Sam's country, rent your convertible Ford Mustang and floor it towards the horizon, there are rules you need to know. The USA isn't Europe, and the distances (along with the laws) operate on a completely different scale.
So your trip ends up an epic action movie and not a comedy of errors, Martin has put together this survival script:
1. The Rental and the Insurance Trap 🚘
Renting a Mustang from Hertz or Alamo is easy and often cheaper than in Europe. The problem is the insurance policy. In the United States, healthcare is incredibly expensive, and the locals love suing each other over anything and everything.
Golden rule: never rent a car without zero-deductible damage cover (CDW/LDW) and, more importantly, supplemental liability insurance (ALI or LIS) that covers you for at least 1 million dollars if you crash into another car. Saving 15€ a day on insurance over there can mean bankruptcy back home.
2. Don't Try to Do Everything (the Desert Is Endless) 🏜️
The original mythical Route 66 runs from Chicago to Los Angeles. That's almost 4,000 kilometres! If you only have 12 or 15 days of holiday and you try to do it all, you'll spend 10 hours a day staring at asphalt and you'll see nothing properly.
The trick: focus on the best bit. Fly to Las Vegas, rent the car there, do the Grand Canyon, cross the Arizona desert, drive through cowboy backdrops in Monument Valley and end the adventure on the beaches of California. Fewer kilometres, more quality.
3. Neon Motels (Welcome to the 80s) 🛏️
Forget 4-star hotels. The real American road trip experience is yanking the handbrake right outside the door of a roadside motel room with a giant flashing neon sign.
Classic chains like Super 8 or Motel 6 are cheap (around $60 a night), super practical, and make for incredible Instagram shots. Just try not to think about Hollywood horror films when you turn off the light.
4. The Traffic Rules (Watch Out at Junctions!) 🛑
Driving an automatic Mustang is super relaxing, but there are two traffic rules that always tie European brains in knots:
- Right on red: in most states (unless otherwise indicated), you can turn right at a junction even if your light is red, as long as you stop first and there's no oncoming traffic.
- 4-Way Stops: when you reach a junction where everyone has a STOP sign, the rule is pure civility: whoever arrives first and brings the car to a full stop goes first. There's no priority-to-the-right rule here!
The Road Trip of Your Life Starts in Your Own Car
The trip is mapped out. You'll spend 15 days driving through the most epic backdrops on the planet.
Now, tell me one thing: how is your epic road trip going to begin back here in Portugal?
Are you going to drag suitcases packed for 15 days onto a bus? Are you going to play Russian roulette with a pre-dawn Uber that might not even have the boot space for all your gear?
Be consistent. Driving holidays demand driving logistics.
Start your American journey with the key to your own car in hand. Drive comfortably to the airport Departures. There, the Multipark drivers are waiting for you. You hand over the key and we park your car in our Valet Parking service (safe and monitored 24 hours a day). You go straight to check-in without losing a minute.
On the way back, after driving 2,000 km through California, you'll be wiped out with jet lag. But your car will be there, at the airport door, waiting for you. Just throw the bags in and do the last (and most relaxing) road trip — the one home to your own bed.
Drive your dream. Get a quote and book your parking on the Multipark website and hit the road!
