Collegian reporters offer up ideas for road trips in the break between summer session and the beginning of fall semester. Here are the guidelines, three days, $300 and a working vehicle. These are the options they came up with:
Boston, Massachusetts
Ocean views and the country's bluest of blueblood cities? We may not have 401Ks or bank accounts with more than a couple of bucks, but we can afford to go camping in Massachusetts. Well, I say that on the premise that you have $300, four friends and a car in good working order (repairs are not in the budget).
Personally, when camping with three other people, I prefer two three-man tents instead of one cramped four-man tent. But this is your prerogative, just make sure you have a spot and sleeping bag.
Destination is Plymouth, Mass., more specifically the Indianhead Resort, $60 for three nights, minutes away from the ocean and a few more minutes away from Boston. If Indianhead isn't your style, there are dozens of campgrounds in Massachusetts, and if you want to be right on the beach, check out the ones on Upper Cape Cod.
So let's figure $70 on gas (this should be generous), and $70 for plenty of camping food (please don't be an idiot and forget the s'mores). Ask around if anyone has a hibachi grill, but if you are up to cooking over a fire, go for it. Some campsites have firewood there, but you may want to check.
Wine and Beer! This is the big expense. You are allotted $80, and if you go over you have a problem this article won't attempt to address.
Now you have $20 left to spend on tube fares and the odd bottle of water in Boston. Use it sparingly, and avoid unnecessary temptations. There will be no souvenirs for you people, that is reserved for larger bank accounts, and besides, memories are invaluable.
You only get to spend a day in Boston. Use it wisely and walk as much as possible. Check out Newbury Street (most people can only afford to window shop here anyway so you won't feel alone) and walk around the Back Bay area. Don't forget Harvard Square and any other sights you have heard mentioned in jokes and American folklore. The Freedom Trail, Boston Public Garden (excluding swan boat) and plenty of other beautiful historic locations are free.
Return home to your campground, exhausted from the sights and ready to cook dinner and drink beer by the fire with your friends. If you planned it right, you will be too tired at the thought of returning to the city to do anything but swim and tan on the beach your next two days there.
Charge parking to your credit card.
Come back to State College.
-- Reviewed by Emily Morris
Outlet Mall Shopping
The short break between second summer session and fall classes begs to be filled with a mini-vacation. Road trips to big cities and the beach are both viable escapes, but for the car-sick and shored-out crowd, there is a different kind of trip: the shopping trip.
A limited budget is no reason to miss out on the excitement of super-cute pumps, too-perfect tanks and must-have accessories.
Ready, Set, Shop!
11 a.m.: The first step to the ultimate trip is packing the Eclipse Spyder (though any convertible will do). The tiny trunk will accommodate only a small bag for two tops, a pair of jeans, changes of underwear, a little black dress and a toothbrush for each passenger.
Noon: Next it's time to head to the first outlet mall. Outlet malls, for the less familiar, are groups of stores that sell excess and slightly imperfect merchandise. Usually sold for 20 to 70 percent off suggested retail, not all items are flawed, Kimberly Houston, general manager of the Williamsburg Outlet Mall said.
Outlet malls in Pennsylvania are especially enticing, as there is no sales tax on clothes.
With the car top down passengers can get some color, and soak in some vitamin D for healthier skin. The first stop is The Crossings Factory Store, 1000 Rt. 611 in Tannersville.
2:30 p.m.: After the two-and-a-half-hour drive from State College, students will encounter more than 100 outlet stores. As friends discover what each vendor has to offer, they will burn calories trekking around the mall and work up an appetite.
American, French and Italian dining options are available at The Crossings, though sweet-tooth satisfaction centers are far more accessible. Outdoor seating at the restaurants allows shoppers to appreciate nature as they dine with a view of gardens and storefronts reminding them of the day's accomplishment, mall administrative assistant Lisa Skuse said.
8:00 p.m.: After dinner it's time to crash and rejuvenate for another exciting spree. Limited cargo space and funds prevent shopaholics from going overboard (though almost every store will ship to homes, should the necessity arise). Restrictions are only obstacles, intensifying the pursuit of the outfit that's "just so."
10 a.m.: Up and at 'em! There's shopping to be done. Plus, it's someone else's turn to drive, so the driver from State College can rest in the car. Next stop -- Rockvale Square Outlets, 35 S. Willowdale Dr., in Lancaster, two hours south of The Crossings.
More than 120 outlet stores, six restaurants and a food court should keep the posse going all day.
6 p.m.: Check in to the most inexpensive hotel available, rent a movie and relax. Begin to prepare the mind for the ultimate in outlet shopping (drum roll)...
Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, 498 Red Apple Court, Central Valley, N.Y., three and a half hours from Rockvale.
10 a.m.: With more than 220 outlet stores, Woodbury Commons is known for its designer focus and open-air plaza, where shoppers walk outside from MaxMara to Chanel and Fendi to Dolce & Gabbana, general manger Robin Giannetta said. Authentic merchandise at knock-off prices is the regular shopaholic's dream.
9 p.m.: As Woodbury Commons closes, the group will have to decide if it's time to return home and recover from the rush or continue to Gettysburg, where outlet malls are up and coming, rivaling the best of them.
Either way, what started as four friends and some cash is now changed to a cohesive bond of common experience. Four souls were there for each other when the last BC BG diagonal-hemmed skirt with a wide, pulled waistband was in the wrong size or when the Banana three-quarter sleeved ribbed sweater matched pants from three years ago still tagged for lack of a complimentary top. Tear.
With windblown tresses and tight calves from three days on their feet, Penn State shoppers will have the strength to face fall semester.
-- Reviewed by Jocelyn Brick-Turin
Washington, D.C.
As people grow up, childhood dreams are often forgotten. But there is a cure. Students can remember their dream job by taking a trip with four friends to Washington, D.C.
Day 1: Preparations
Pack the car with a tent, sleeping bags, camping-appropriate food and clothes for four days. Drive four hours to Patapsco Valley State Park near Ellicott City, Md., and set up the tent, build a fire and roast marshmallows. S'mores are a must.
Expenditures: $30 food.
Day 2: James Bond
Morning: Get up early and drive 45 minutes to D.C. Find the International Spy Museum downtown. It has more than 600 gadgets on display and shows what real-life espionage is all about, said media relations manager Jennifer Saxon. She said the museum is geared for college students and above. It has spy stuff from the last 2,000 years.
Noon: Eat lunch at the Spy City Cafe. Peruse through the gift shop and resist buying an "I visited the International Spy Museum" mug. Search for a pen that explodes when clicked twice. Fail.
Afternoon: Walk through the sculpture garden and rooms of the National Gallery of Art to gain the spy-required love of art. Perfect dodging-around-bushes spy style.
Evening: The two-hour "I've got a Secret" walking tour of D.C. is just what a budding James Bond needs to find secret location information. One can see a Mall tree house for a hideout, a brothel for some relaxation and a canal for a quick getaway. Girls not included.
Expenditures: $52 museum tickets, $40 walking tour and $24 lunch
Day 3: Astronaut, Deep Sea Diver or Rock Star?
Morning: Arrive in D.C. after a good meal of Earth-food. Head to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and spend the morning looking at exhibits, being sure not to miss the space food from the first missions. Yummy. Wait in line for the flight simulator. Shove little kids aside if necessary.
Noon: Get pizza or fast food at the food court, play with the motion detector trash lids and listen for the compactors inside each can. Resist depositing a screaming little kid.
Afternoon: Visit the National Aquarium inside the U.S. Department of Commerce building to remember why aquariums are neat. Consider wearing a diving suit and being in a shark cage.
Evening: Eat at the Hard Rock Café to relive a true dream job. Rock stars are so much better than scientists.
Expenditures: About $75 for food and $14 for the aquarium
Day 4: Back to the Home Front
Spend a leisurely morning picking up, stuffing the tent in that little bag and finding the freeway home.
Overall: $60 for camping and $40 gas; $299 total.
-- Reviewed by Justine Maki
