Tiki Roadtrip: Los Angeles-Florida

Spring 2009 I plan to drive cross-country from Los Angeles, Ca to Satellite Beach, Fl. I thought it would be interesting to see what tiki locations I could fit into my road trip, given that I don't have an unlimited revenue stream or time limit.

Driving East, I can bounce between the I-10 and I-40, then options open up to include the I-20 when I hit Texas. So if you were taking this trip, what locations would you hope to visit?

• The Kon Tiki in Tucson
• Trader Vic's in Dallas
• Trader Vic's in Atlanta

Take pictures and good luck.

This trip sounds exciting.
Hope you have a good efficient car!
Gas prices have curtailed my road trippin' lately...

The very, very best advice I can give you is to AVOID INTERSTATES.

You aren't going to see anything worth seeing in the interstate. If you're in a hurry to get where you're going, just fly. If you are going to take a road trip, then take routes where you will actually see something cool.

Map out some old US Highways (usually magenta lines on maps, and they often run parallel - or nearly so - to interstates) and take those. THAT is where all of the old motels, diners, crazy old towns that time forgot, antique malls, tourist traps, historical markers, etc etc etc are to be found.

Take Route 66 from LA to Texas, for starters, and then pick up some other routes from Texas to Florida.

Have fun!

James and Bora Boris speak the truth! Avoid I-10 unless you're in a hurry, because as long as you drive on it, you will get there fast, but you won't see a thing. Once you're in Florida, drive along 98 some to see the beaches a bit, and somewhere around Tallahasee, drive state road 19-27. You'll drive through some small towns that, while not great, are a hell of a lot better than what you'll see on I-10. Around Ocala, you will see some beautiful horse farms. It's not tiki, but (other than the Mai-Kai) you're not really expecting to find tiki in Florida are you? :D

I second the motion to not miss Trader Vic's in Dallas and Atlanta. I haven't been to the Dallas location yet, but I know it's great based on everything I've seen and heard. As for Vic's Atlanta, it's everything tiki should be.

Oh, and yeah: Atlanta trader vic's is in my top three Vic's (along with Emeryville and Tokyo).

On 2008-07-13 16:15, GatorRob wrote:
(other than the Mai-Kai) you're not really expecting to find tiki in Florida are you?

Old Highway 90 along the Gulf Coast. It will take you through all of the smaller coastal towns, in Mississippi will take you through some real good eats, in Alabama will take you through some old-world charm, in Florida will take you past some beautiful beaches.

Of course, that makes Atlanta hard to make..... so never mind. Trader Vics Atlanta is a must!

C&A - Hwy 90 parallels I-10 and takes you through the heart of the Panhandle, but not even close to the beach. That would be Hwy 98 with all of the beautiful beach scenery - its a slow trip.

I can't advise West of Louisiana so I'll stick to Florida. From Pensacola drive along 98 and stop at the beaches (East of Destin is the road 30A they may be the nicest beaches in all of FL). Warm water, sugar white beaches and not overly crowded. Continuing East shoot up to Marianna (north of Panama City) to visit the FL Caverns (the only caves in FL). You can jump back on I-10 and head East to Central FL where you HAVE to stop and swim in a spring. If you move to Satellite Beach the Springs are very close and a MUST SEE!

Have fun and welcome to the FL ohana!

I love that here, tourist trap is a good thing! Bring them on!

You'll be going south of my knowledge base. From Atlanta, the highway south to Florida is either 411 or 11, but that's maybe not where you intend to go.

From the Dallas Trader Vics, you could swing along the I-30/I-40 corridor (I agree with above comments, take non-interstate if you can work it into your schedule) and make it to the Omni Hut, just south of Nashville, and from there go to the Atlanta Trader Vics.

You could also add in a visit to Elvis's Jungle Room in Memphis.

If you approach Florida/Satellite Beach from the north you can stop at Julians and the Hawaiian Inn in Daytona Beach.... on the other hand, coming from the west you could pay a visit to the Weeki Wachee mermaids or Silver Springs .... there are many other worthy non-tiki sites you may want to stop along the route.

Last year I drove roundtrip (non-interstate, two different routes) from western Texas (Marfa) to the Austin area - there was a definite difference in scenery between two routes that run parallel 70 miles apart. Consider buying a road atlas that highlights the more scenic routes (often designated by a green dashed line)

Google Maps has a nice interface, which lets you interactively adjust waypoints along a route - so you can quickly and easily see the difference in mileage between the more northern Nashville route and the southern Pensacola route.

Mahalo for the continued information . I am using Google Maps to create a custom map for my course. Dragging around the icons lets me see what is doable for the actual trip, and what would be a fantasy trip. I think I will save the Florida sight seeing for after I get settled in. I haven't lived there in 12yrs, I'm sure I'll have a lot of local exploration to do.

I think the Scottsdale Trader Vic's is worth a stop. And stay at the Valley Ho hotel next door. It's not tiki, but it is very cool retro. You expect to see the Rat Pack wandering the grounds. Or another retro hotel in Scottsdale is the Papago Inn. Very cheap, kind of tacky, and gorgeous grounds. Supposedly it was where old Hollywood hung out while in Scottsdale. And it's close to Trader Vic's.

I also second driving north to Emeryville Trader Vic's and, of course, Forbidden Island.

Just came back from a week in Florida and it was a blast. Daytona Beach has some really nice spots, you'll like it. Fortunately enough I did't have to spend my money on a hotel (crashed at a friend's place who owns some Florida property, came in quite handy :)) so I had more money to spend for the parties and the restaurants. Just one week of BBQ's, beach and party. Life can't get much better than this.

I built a custom map using Google Maps, tried to locate places along the route from CA to FL. I'm not sure if I will be able to hit every place, as it will be determined on actual drive times, and what time of day I actually hit all the places. Locations in West and South FL I will probably have to skip (except for the Mai Kai) until after I get settled. As you can see, there are a few "bare areas" in States like New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Any suggestions?

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=108192487034102173648.000451c61e11d8f98042b&z=5&mid=1232471541

On 2009-01-20 09:18, TikiMango wrote:
As you can see, there are a few "bare areas" in States like New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Any suggestions?

TikiMango,

My advice to you is to pick up a copy of James' book Tiki Road Trip. It it you will find the most comprehensive listing of Tiki establishments across the US.

DC

Done! That is how I found the locations that I listed. I was curious to see if there were some new or local spots that might not have made it into the 2nd edition.

I completely agree, Tiki Road Trip is the best book. Depends on which way you go, but we've been to Kon Tiki in AZ, pretty cool. AZ also has a new Trader Vics in Phoenix which is really nice. Expensive appetizers but great outdoor space with couches & firepit. Have a mai tai, "it's a moral imperative"...

Also, if you venture up toward Chicago, you must hit the Hala Kahiki, it's absolutely fabulous!! Hope it's still there...

Of course, once you hit FL, you must go to the Mai Kai in Ft. Lauderdale. Also awesome, see the dinner show, can't go wrong with polynesian dancers and fire. And they have great food too!

I wish I were going...

...the best laid plans of mice and men... I probably won't be stopping at too many places alone the way. I skipped a visit to Frankies in Las Vegas, I just get on the road and want to get where I'm going. I decided to take the I-10, so it looks like I'll be skipping the Dallas Tader Vic's as well. My Xterra is packed to the gills, and I had to leave a few choice items behind (like my Peavey bass and amp), but I know they are in TikiG's safe keeping. Maybe I'll get some stuff shipped to FL after I get settled-in.

I have Kirby's Kavakava Skullkeeper keeping an eye open for Da Fuzz, and Chongolio's Monkey's God Vision riding shotgun. It should be smooth sailing.

Safe journey, Ray.

Take care of him, Florida. He's one of the good ones.

Nice pic, Ray -

• keep the pics coming from your trip across the United States(as you drive through open areas keep an eye out for anything strange in the sky - like UFOs! - but keep your eyes on the road too!)

Have a safe rest of your trip. All my best wishes and good thoughts are with you, man.

TikiGodSpeed to you Mango !

Are you at least stopping at the Kon Tiki in Tucson ?

I'll mis ya bro'.

At least Mecca awaits you on the other side...the MAI KAI !!!

I went through some sort of time warp, I just stopped for the night in Fredericksburg, TX. Dang it! Looks like I'll miss the Mud Dauber Festival (a real event). I saw plenty of quilts, but no tiki...

I wanted to post that as I was driving through CA yesterday, I saw at least 140 palm trees in the process of being cut down. This was in Desert Center, where the 177 crosses the I-10, about 180 miles East of Los Angeles. Many of the palms had their tops cut-off already, and there were piles of cut and pulled-down palms (root balls intact) laying next to some heavy equipment. Not sure if the palms caught some sort of rot, but they are being taken out. It might be worth the drive for any carvers that are looking for the palm logs... don't forget your chain saw.

Yes! The HalaKahiki is alive and well in Chicago. Actually about 20 minutes outside Chicago in River Grove, but thee best Tiki bar I've been to. If, by any chance, you find yourself in Sarasota, look for the Hukilau Hut on Osprey Ave, just south of Hillview. Shave Ice just like JoJo's in Kauai! His insanely Hawaiian decorated truck is parked in a parking lot on the side of the road. Worth the trip to see the truck alone... and the guy is super cool.