Road Trip 2026 · New York & Beyond

Looking back at 19 days, 10 cities, and a family adventure across the East Coast

The summer of 2026 gave the Rajpurkar family a road trip to remember — 17 days that arced from a milestone family moment in Orlando, soared over the coastline to Newark, and then swept through some of America's most iconic landscapes before looping home to Jacksonville.

The journey opened on a personal note: Dhanesh's university orientation at UCF, where the family spent four days in Orlando anchored at the sprawling HGV Tuscany Village resort. Blue Springs State Park, Disney Springs, and a proud send-off to campus set the tone — equal parts family milestone and holiday.

New York City was the centrepiece. Four days of relentless exploration — the vertiginous Summit One Vanderbilt observation deck, a night at Broadway watching Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, morning jogs around the full Central Park loop, the solemn World Trade Center Memorial, the Intrepid Museum, the United Nations, Brooklyn Bridge on foot, and the non-stop sensory spectacle of Times Square. The family navigated entirely on foot, Uber, and subway — a genuine urban adventure.

The Hudson Valley leg brought a nostalgic detour through Saratoga Springs — revisiting a place from 26 years past. The Saratoga Spa State Park mineral springs, a charming volunteer-run Automobile Museum, and the stillness of Saratoga Lake made this an unexpected highlight.

Niagara Falls delivered one of the trip's most emotional moments: a family reunion with Sudesh Mama and family for a day of mist-drenched walks on Goat Island, the Maid of the Mist boat ride, waffle ice creams at the rainbow bridge, and fireworks lighting up the falls at night. Watching the mist rise above the American Falls at dusk, sitting on a bench with nowhere to be — that's the kind of moment road trips are made for.

Hershey was pure indulgence — a well-earned sweet stop with an immersive Chocolate World factory tour, an unexpected Civic History Museum visit perched on the highest point in the city, and a seriously over-budgeted chocolate haul. The drive south through Raleigh added a full day at the Natural Science Museum, and the final chapter in Savannah closed the loop with riverfront pralines, a free ferry loop, and the quiet satisfaction of one last city explored before the drive home.

Total photo count exceeded 15,436 across 14 logged days — testament to how richly every stretch of tarmac was lived. A trip of firsts, reunions, chocolate, and the kind of long road miles that quietly bind families together.

Date	Location	Day Highlights	Album	Photos
May 30, 2026	Orlando	Blue Springs Sate Park	🔗 Open Album	1,466
May 31, 2026	Orlando	Disney Springs	photos for all four days in one album	—
Jun 01, 2026	Orlando	HGV, UCF campus	photos for all four days in one album	—
Jun 02, 2026	Orlando	HGV, UCF campus	photos for all four days in one album	—
Jun 05, 2026	Newark	runways, planes, view from plane	🔗 Open Album	872
Jun 06, 2026	New Jersey	Statue of Liberty	🔗 Open Album	1,571
Jun 07, 2026	New York	Summit Tower, Broadway show, times square	🔗 Open Album	752
Jun 08, 2026	New York	Central Park, Intrepid Museum, United Nations	🔗 Open Album	1,194
Jun 09, 2026	New York	Central Park, Rockefeller Center	🔗 Open Album	578
Jun 10, 2026	New York	downtown, Brooklyn Bridge, Washington Square, WTC Memorial, One World mall	🔗 Open Album	710
Jun 11, 2026	Saratoga	drive to Albany, Clifton Park, Saratoga	🔗 Open Album	841
Jun 12, 2026	Saratoga	Saratoga State Park, Automobile Museum, Saratoga Lake, drive to Batavia	🔗 Open Album	900
Jun 13, 2026	Niagara Falls	Drive to Niagara, enjoy the Niagara State Park with mama, mami	🔗 Open Album	1,860
Jun 14, 2026	Niagara Falls	Family lunch at Niagara, drive to hershey	🔗 Open Album	1,091
Jun 15, 2026	Hershey	Drive to Hershey, Chocolate factory tour, Civic History Museum and drive to Rocky Mt, NC	🔗 Open Album	1,795
Jun 16, 2026	Raleigh	drive to Raleigh downtown, Natural History Museum, drive to Savannah	🔗 Open Album	1,217
Jun 17, 2026	Savannah	explore Savannah, drive back home	🔗 Open Album	589

Date	Location	Slot	Place	Highlights
May 30, 2026	Orlando	lunch	McDonalds	Halifax location
May 30, 2026	Orlando	dinner	at resort	Costco, Walmart groceries
May 31, 2026	Orlando	breakie	at resort	healthy omlets
May 31, 2026	Orlando	snax	Geradelli	chocolate sundaes
May 31, 2026	Orlando	dinner	Kizuna Asian Buffet	asian buffet
Jun 01, 2026	Orlando	breakie	at resort	a fast breakfast for Dhanesh, Aai, and later easy one for Yuvi and baba
Jun 01, 2026	Orlando	lunch	at resort	dhanesh, aai have quick meal at UCF, yuvi and baba have packs at resort
Jun 01, 2026	Orlando	snax	at resort	fruit time at resort, later Yuvi has starbucks; Dhanesh and Prajakta do their part in UCF
Jun 01, 2026	Orlando	dinner	at resort	package meal heating in resort; Prajakta comes in late
Jun 02, 2026	Orlando	breakie	at resort	no time for breakfast; doing packing/ loading into odyssey; checkout before 7am and rush to UCF
Jun 02, 2026	Orlando	lunch	at UCF	quick meals at UCF canteen; use their meal cards, canteen in Student Union building; large setup
Jun 02, 2026	Orlando	snax	McDonalds	quick snacks on the way back fromn UCF to Jacksonville
Jun 02, 2026	Orlando	dinner	at home	dinner at home
Jun 05, 2026	Jacksonville	snax	lite dinner at airport	burger fi sandwiches for boys
Jun 05, 2026	Newark	dinner	Newark airport	pick cold sandwiches at Newark airport; most of the eateries were closed
Jun 06, 2026	New Jersey	breakie	at Sheraton	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 06, 2026	New Jersey	snax	at Liberty island	multiple snacks instead of lunch; smoothies, drinks, its hot so less eating more drinks
Jun 06, 2026	New Jersey	dinner	dominos	pizza delivery at hotel room
Jun 07, 2026	New York	breakie	at room	Marriott breakfast before checkout
Jun 07, 2026	New York	lunch	roadside stall	only pick hotdog, pretzel for boys from roadside stall, prajakta and amit skip; we are rushing to broadway show for which we are getting late
Jun 07, 2026	New York	dinner	Val Pizza	pizza dinner one slice each; small shack mexican
Jun 08, 2026	New York	breakie	at room	muffins picked from CVS last night
Jun 08, 2026	New York	lunch	fruits at Central Park	boys, prajakta have meal near museum, i have fruit cup in Central Park
Jun 08, 2026	New York	snax	Aviator Grill, Krispy Kreme	some grill place at times square ; plus krispy kreme
Jun 08, 2026	New York	dinner	HCW	chocolate sundaes at Hershey shop, times square
Jun 09, 2026	New York	breakie	Angelina Bakery	lavish breakfast for boys
Jun 09, 2026	New York	lunch	at room	use food from Angelina
Jun 09, 2026	New York	dinner	Shake Shack	burgers at this place at times square
Jun 10, 2026	New York	breakie	SpitFire Cafe	coffee during 8am standup
Jun 10, 2026	New York	lunch	Greenwich Thai	after brooklyn bridge walk
Jun 10, 2026	New York	dinner	Naya at Wall Street , Venchi at times square	this was like chipotle
Jun 11, 2026	New York	breakie	at room	use snacks from corner stores picked last night
Jun 11, 2026	Albany	lunch	check-fil-a	late lunch fast food
Jun 11, 2026	Saratoga	dinner	at room	heat up food collected from Latham's Sams club
Jun 12, 2026	Saratoga	breakie	at hotel	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 12, 2026	Saratoga	lunch	in car	much chips and sundry we were carrying
Jun 12, 2026	Batavia	dinner	at room	heat up soups; have subway, salad
Jun 13, 2026	Batavia	breakie	at hotel	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 13, 2026	Niagara Falls	snax	at Goat Island	chips, biscuits, fruits from bag
Jun 13, 2026	Niagara Falls	snax	near rainbow bridge	hot waffle ice creams for all
Jun 13, 2026	Niagara Falls	dinner	Murugan Cafe	dosa house dinner for all
Jun 14, 2026	Niagara Falls	breakie	at hotel	cold breakfast at Spark
Jun 14, 2026	Niagara Falls	lunch	Olive Garden	elaborate family lunch at Olive Garden Niagara
Jun 14, 2026	Piffard	snax	Tim Horton	coffee and donuts
Jun 14, 2026	Williamsport	dinner	McDonalds	value meals for all
Jun 15, 2026	Hershey	breakie	at hotel	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 15, 2026	Hershey	lunch	Chocolate world	sundaes, chocolates
Jun 15, 2026	Raleigh	dinner	at room	salad, warps
Jun 16, 2026	Raleigh	breakie	at hotel	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 16, 2026	Raleigh	lunch	museum cafeteria	left over salad, nuggets and drinks
Jun 16, 2026	Savannah	dinner	Crocker Barrel	elaborate dinner, meals
Jun 17, 2026	Savannah	breakie	at hotel	standard hotel breakfast; egg, sausage, potatoes, fruits
Jun 17, 2026	Savannah	lunch	sweets by the river	ice creams and pralines
Jun 17, 2026	Savannah	snax	gas station	cold sandwiches, drinks
Jun 17, 2026	Jacksonville	dinner	new thai restaurant	early and timely dinner

The Journey

Day-by-day stories from the road · Thumbnail slots ready for Google Photos links

Day 1 May 30, 2026 Orlando

Blue Springs State Park Orlando ☀ clear, sunny

✨ memorable ferry

this was a long drive for dhanesh; at state park, it was the last day fo the pass; the park visit was excellent

Day 2 May 31, 2026 Orlando

Disney Springs Orlando ☀ drizzling

✨ soveniers, ferry, giradelli

happy time, collecting soveniers, doing ferry, we tried multi-cycle which dropped because of rain; then had so much chocolate; later in.evening the asian buffet was hearty as well

Prime outlets Orlando ☀ drizzling

✨ extended shopping

before the asian buffet we had this shopping stop; we bought brand new branded clothes for boys

Day 3 Jun 01, 2026 Orlando

HGV Resort Orlando ☀ drizzling

✨ grandeur of resort

Dhanesh's orientation; so Yuvi and me in resort; mum and Dhanesh in UCF; Dhanesh stays overnight

Day 4 Jun 02, 2026 Orlando

UCF Campus Orlando ☀ clear, sunny

✨ big campus

after doing early checkout from HGV, we all got into UCF Campus; in between i did fill tank full at Costco and came back to campus; for most of office time i was in Student Union building

Day 5 Jun 05, 2026 Newark

United Airlines flight Newark ☀ clear, sunny

✨ amazing aerial views

The flight experience was interesting as we got to see the several water bodies that we may not have ever known about nor seen, places we have been to but seen in a different prespective, and it brought back several joyful memories of planes taking off and landing. We felt our hearing capabailities struggle as the landing descent to arrive Newark-Liberty In't Airport. We were introduced to Newark and the surrounding area by a North Indian Uber driver named Tenzin.

Day 6 Jun 06, 2026 New Jersey

Statue of Liberty New Jersey ☀ clear, sunny

✨ Statue from all angles

Lite rail to Hoboken New Jersey ☀ clear, sunny

✨ monorail experience

Day 7 Jun 07, 2026 New York

Summit Towers New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ amazing 360 degree view of New York Manhattan

Broadway show New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ memorable drama stage play

Times Square New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ just like they show on TV

Day 8 Jun 08, 2026 New York

Intrepid Museum New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ submarine, planes

Central Park New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ full day walks

United Nations New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ guided tour was excellent

Day 9 Jun 09, 2026 New York

Central Park New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ boys and prajakta experience the Central Park

they do this only once !!

Rockefeller Center New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ fair walk from Central park to Rockefeller

Empire State quest New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ half-hearted walk and upsets

family was done at rockefeller center, but my exploration quest dragged all to find where is Empire State, which turned to be a long walk; after reaching their we just ubered back to times square

Day 10 Jun 10, 2026 New York

Brooklyn Bridge New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ bright morning adventure

this was a refreshing walk for boys and prajakta

Washington Square New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ looking for dosa guy

dosa guy hunting, experiencing subway trains, trio got to washington square and explored that area, had food there

One World Mall New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ explore this area

after lunch this place was explored; in meantime, i was doing my meetings from hotel room

World Trade Center Memorial New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ video conf for prajakta and me, boys spend long time in this memorial

after my last call, i ubered to WTC memorial to join family

Day 11 Jun 11, 2026 New York

late checkout New York ☀ clear, sunny

✨ wait for noon

i tried to finish 3 calls from room before i left the wifi

Car rental at Newark Airport Newark ☀ clear, sunny

✨ uber to EWR, for nissan altima

my next calls were on cell phone; i opted to drive the car out of big city

drive across Albany Albany ☀ clear, sunny

✨ interstate 87 was good to head out of big city NY; teh road was clear after teh suburbs

searching Clifton Park US-9, NY ☀ clear, sunny

✨ trying to hunt for old time place was a tough one; the landscape had surely changed since last 26 years

Malta lake US-9, NY ☀ clear

✨ this was the only lookout i could take the car aside for some photos before sunset

reach Saratoga Springs Saratoga ☀ clear

✨ reached around 8:15pm as the sun was setting

Day 12 Jun 12, 2026 Saratoga

Saratoga Spa State Park Saratoga ☀ clear, sunny

✨ this cold water geyser was worth seeing; the state park itself was beautiful

Mercedes Automobile Museum Saratoga ☀ clear, sunny

✨ running on the clock, we quickly made way to this auto museum, it was small but well kept by volunteers

Saratoga Park Spa Saratoga ☀ clear, sunny

✨ the spa area was created during roosevelts time and it was still marvelous

Saratoga Lake Saratoga ☀ clear, sunny

✨ reviving old memories

Mohawk River Welcome Center i-90 NY ☀ clear, sunny

✨ canal dam was an attraction

Batavia Batavia ☀ clear, sunny

✨ Walmart, Marshals

Day 13 Jun 13, 2026 Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls ☀ clear, sunny

✨ walk around, touristy pictures

Maid of the Mist Niagara Falls ☀ clear, sunny

✨ breath taking views of falls

Goat Island Niagara Falls ☀ clear, sunny

✨ this was an easy and long winding walk; goat island is a must do at Niagara

ice cream and rainbow beach Niagara Falls ☀ clear, sunny

✨ after the long windy walk mama, mami had to walk their way back to Canada; on teh way we stopped at an ice cream stall near the rainbow bridge

leisure around american falls Niagara Falls ☀ clear, sunny

✨ after seeing off mama mami, we entered the park again; this time we literally relaxed at a place; we first intended to walk under rainbow bridge but pessimistic ideas prevailed; we then went to dosa place at Niagara for dinner

fireworks at falls Niagara Falls ☀ clear

✨ after dosa we were so full that we sat on bench besides american falls; we did not even go to the goat island

Day 14 Jun 14, 2026 Niagara Falls

family lunch at Olive Garden Niagara Falls ☀ drizzling

✨ family time at Olive Garden

Mall time, Walmart, Marshalls, Niagara Falls ☀ raining

✨ searching for 6dollar shoes, we bought sundries, filled gas, dropped mama mami again and came back to pick dhanesh and prajakta

stop at Canadian burger place Piffard ☀ raining

✨ Tim Horton/ burger King?

we had coffee and donuts here

road to Hershey Hershey ☀ clear

✨ the drive

Day 15 Jun 15, 2026 Hershey

Hershey Chocolate Factory Hershey ☀ clear, sunny

✨ a much awaited chocolate factory tour

this is surely a worth watch; history of chocolate making is presented so well here; the large than like shop with exclusive varieties makes it unbeatable for chocolate lovers

Civic History Museum Hershey ☀ clear, sunny

✨ impromptu attraction

this museum was unique; as per family this one was well balanced and un-biased on history; the location kept the museum on a highest altitude in the city

Harrisburg downtown Hershey ☀ clear, sunny

✨ before heading out, we toured around downtown to get glimpse of capitol buildings

road to Rocky Mount Raleigh ☀ clear, sunny

✨ the drive

hilly terrain, it was mountaneous, one was flowing along at most stretch, james river?

Day 16 Jun 16, 2026 Raleigh

Raleigh downtown Raleigh ☀ clear, sunny

✨ we stayed in outskirts and came in downtown in the morning

downtown buildings were attractive but smaller like Talahassee

Natural Science Museum Raleigh ☀ clear, sunny

✨ Museum was really good

this museum was not as huge as Houston museum, but still we were able to spend a full day till the museum closed

road to Savannah Savannah ☀ mostly sunny

✨ the drive

the scenery along the road, road signs, vehicles, road side attractions all make it memorable

Day 17 Jun 17, 2026 Savannah

NOAA center Savannah ☀ partially cloudy

✨ Yuvans choice

Yuvan wanted to explore what was in this office; i was one one call here

River walk, sweet shop Savannah ☀ partially cloudy

✨ visitor center, then river walk

NOAA office was right near to Railway museum we usually do in Savannah; we spent time in visitor center; themn waited for free trolley; gave up and caught uber again to river walk

River ferry Savannah ☀ partially cloudy

✨ free ferry

we just did round trip ; no getting down; this ferry has total 3 stops in a loop