The Ultimate Cross-Country Christmas Road Trip

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In December 2021, my husband and I packed our bags and embarked on a journey across the country. Our farthest point west was Nevada and we wanted to make some stops to see friends and cool places along the way. It was the ultimate road trip and one we plan to do again.

Planning:

I’ve planned plenty of things before including my wedding, backpacking trips, study abroad semester, and European backpacking trip but nothing like a drive cross country with our little Taxa Tiger Moth, and being constrained to only 2 weeks was a new challenge. Because now we had to think about fuel, food, and campgrounds. And as much as it seems that you can just park it anywhere, a lot of places have rules and regulations around that, so you need to plan accordingly.

We started by looking at a map and picking the places we absolutely wanted to go. Like Las Vegas for Christmas to see family, skiing in Colorado, and friends along the way. So those were our non-negotiables and anything more than that was a bonus. So we looked for campsites in those areas and booked those. We left 1-2 travel days between most of our major drives so that we had the flexibility to take our time driving or to stop for fun things. So here is what our outline looked like.

Anything in BLUE was what was booked, RED was locational goals and everything else was options or details.

So here is what Actually Happened…

Day 1 – Cleveland, OH

We have friends here and had been here a few times before but still a great place to stop. We took i-90 there. Here are some highlights:

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Dip your toes into Lake Erie
Dinner at 17 River Grill next to the Chagrin Falls! (A local favorite)

Day 2 – Drove to Kansas

We drove I-70 until we were too tired to keep going. We stopped in Kansas and slept at the Lake Shawnee Campground in Topeka. It wasn’t anything special but has good enough for the night. They also have a light show in the campground so half the campground is closed and if you get there earlier people will be driving around your campground.

Day 3 – Drove to Colorado Springs

So on this day, we didn’t have a terribly long drive so we took our time and stopped for breakfast at the Cracker Barrell and stocked up on snacks and things we didn’t realize we needed until we were on the road. That night we stayed at Falcon Meadow Campground. This campground was awesome, the bathrooms were clean and the location was just outside of Colorado Springs.

Day 4 – Colorado Springs

We have friends that live here so we spent a good chunk of time with them and resting because the altitude hit us hard but here are some highlight places to visit:

Garden of the Gods – A bit overrated but still cool and free
Colorado Mountain Brewery – great food & drinks!

Day 5 – Drove to Arches National Park

So the next day of the road trip we drove to Arches National Park via the scenic route (Route 50)! This place is unbelievable and hands down one of my favorite places I’ve been to! The campground in the park, is first-come, first-serve in the winter so we rushed to the campground to claim our spot but I guess no one really camps here in the winter because there were so many spots available! But sleeping here was so beautiful!

Day 6 – Arches, Moab, & Driving to Las Vegas!

This morning we explored Arches Park a bit more and hiked the Devils Garden Trail. Then we went into Moab and explored a bit and refueled. And then make a straight shot to Las Vegas because a large storm was coming in and we didn’t want to get stuck somewhere. Driving there was super beautiful with a handful of pull-offs that we stopped at for good views!

Day 7-9 – Las Vegas

So we’ve been here before because Derrick has family here but here are some must-stop places!

Walk the strip! It’s so fun to walk the strip and into the different casinos and the architecture is so cool! including Stopping to see the Bellagio Fountains!
Explore Red Rocks Canyons. We did this the last time and it was so fun to hike and explore here!
See a Cirque Du Soleil show!
High Roller Ferris Wheel is an awesome way to see the strip!
Eat at the Flour & Barley. They have the best Gluten Free pizza!
New York New York Roller Coaster. Who doesn’t love a good roller coaster?
Lastly, I recommend staying in the middle of the strip, it’s best! We stayed in Paris and I highly recommend it!

Day 10 – Drove to Breckenridge, CO

A storm came in and it turned our 10-hour drive into almost 16 hours. We had to drive the Vail Pass and it was opening and closing all day due to the snow and avalanches. We got to the entrance of the Vail Pass, right as it was opening again. In Colorado, they have a chain-up law which basically means you have to have 4-wheel drive and a certain depth tire or you have to add chains to your tires in order to go through the pass. Luckily, we have a jeep wrangler so we were all set to proceed through. It was slow and kinda sketchy but we made it through and to our campsite. We stayed at Middlefork RV Park. It’s about 30-40 minutes from Breckinridge and open year-round!

Days 11 & 12 – Breckenridge, CO

We spent these two days skiing at Breckenridge and exploring the town. Some favorite food places are Cool River Coffee House, Flipside, and Mountain Top Cookie.

Days 13 & 14 – Drove Home

It took us about 36 hours from Breckenridge back to Massachusetts. We drove basically straight home and stopped at a random rest stop in Illinois and slept in our camper.

Overview

Overall the trip was incredibly fun but exhausting. We spent way more time in the car than actually enjoying the places we visited but it was super cool to see the country from the car. Living in our Tigermoth for the 2 weeks had its challenges but it was perfect for all weather and adventures. It kept us warm, dry, and comfortable in the mountains of Colorado and the deserts of Utah, it was easy to tow and had everything we needed. Our new Jeep Wrangler 4xe did well but we drove almost exclusively gas because the infrastructure for electric cars is just not there for cross-country road trips. I would love to plan this trip again but for longer and I 100% would recommend driving across the country! And I highly recommend a Taxa Tigermoth for your adventures!

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