How to have a Gilmore style road trip
Where are we going? Hot, cold, rocky, sandy, mountain, valley? ๐
Hey Cutie pie!
Got something quite special for you today:
A complete guide on how to retrace Lorelai and Roryโs steps and recreate their famous road trips!
I included every detail I could think of. I hope you like it!
Episodes to watch
2.04 - The Road Trip to Harvard
3.08 - Let the Games Begin
7.17 - Gilmore Girls Only
What you'll need
perfect weather
tunes (hereโs an AMAZING playlist I made! ๐)
Certs mints (in case you're stuck in your b&b room for an extended period of time!)
coffee travel mug
paper clips
and this!
We are hitting the road. Pack everything. Traveling light is for girls.
-Lorelai
Packing list
(but you know, pack everything, 'cause traveling light is for girls ๐ )
a blue swimsuit
sunscreen
light layers
that Colette biography
folding chairs
extra coat
a 2nd bathing suit
a skirt to go with that nice sweater
rain boots
a rain hat AND an umbrella
Recreate the road trip to Harvard (from anywhere!):
Bring some nuts or stop by a grocery or department store on the way to stack up (Haden's Nut House is not a real place, it was filmed in Griffith Park in Los Angeles)
Stay at a B&B! Do a little research before leaving (or on your way!) and make sure to pick the cringiest of them all (remember LaDawn and Sammy and all the Boston dentists...) Write something evil in the guestbook!
Go to Harvard! (or any Ivy league college) Depending where you are, Harvard might not be within reach, so feel like Lorelai & Rory by visiting any fancy college, wandering the halls, assisting a class if you can, or book a tour of the place. Don't forget to order coffee while you're there! If you are in the Massachusetts area, of course, you can visit Harvard for real. Check this website for more info
Buy a ton of Harvard paraphernalia! Pillow, baseball cap, t-shirt, mugs, model, flags, posters, etc.
Satanic forces are at work here.
-Lorelai
If you want to retrace the Gilmore girls steps exactly, here's their itinerary:
(let's say Washington Depot is Stars Hollow)
Washington Depot, Connecticut
Portsmouth, New Hampshire (B&B)
Harvard, Massachusetts
Portsmouth, New Hampshire (back to the B&B to sleep)
Washington Depot, Connecticut
Recreate the road trip to Yale (from anywhere!):
If you're in the Connecticut area, you can actually visit Yale! (get all the info you need right here) Otherwise, visit the Old Campus of any college. Don't forget to check out the art gallery!
Eat tacos. Do a quick research to find out where the best tacos are in the city you're visiting. Lorelai & Rory go to Hector's (as of 2023, there's no trace of an Hector's in New Haven, but there is one that serves tacos in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin... check it out here and plan your trip!)
If you want to retrace the Gilmore girls steps exactly, here's their itinerary:
Washington Depot, Connecticut
Yale, New Haven, Connecticut
A taco place in New Haven
Washington Depot, Connecticut
Recreate the road trip to North Carolina (from anywhere!):
Stop at a diner. In the show, they go to Winky's; doesn't seem to be a real place. But you should be able to find many diners on the road, with pictures in the menu, a trophy case full of cakes and a crane machine! ๐งธ Don't forget to get a doggie bag.
Stay at the Best Western or The Ballantyne Luxury Collection Hotel, in Charlotte. In the show, Lorelai and Rory stay at Best Western and Emily stays at the Valentine Resort. A quick research tells me that name doesn't exist, but Ballantyne is quite similar, and there's a spa so it fits! If you're not road tripping through North Carolina, there are Best Westerns and Spa Hotels everywhere, so just take your pick!
Get junk food from the vending machine and watch a movie in your hotel room. In the show, they watch The Lake House and the Pursuit of Happyness. Junk food wise, they get Dots, Nutter Butters and Little Debbies.
If you want to retrace the Gilmore girls steps exactly, here's their itinerary:
Washington Depot, Connecticut
A diner on the way to Charlotte, North Carolina
Best Western, Charlotte, North Carolina (to sleep)
Attend a wedding or go to a luxury spa, like the Ballantyne!
Best Western again (to sleep)
Washington Depot, Connecticut
We're almost there and nowhere near it. All that matters is we're going.
-Lorelai
Other notable places to visit
Barnacle Billy's - Ogunquit, Maine
They have the best lobster you've ever had and you sit on the deck, look at the view --๏ปฟ you never want to leave.
-Lorelai
The Mayflower Inn - Washington Depot, Connecticut
The Birch Grove Spa in season 2, episode 16, There's the rub, is fictional.
In real life, thereโs a bunch of luxury spas in Connecticut where Emily and Lorelai could have gone to. You take your pick!
But the Mayflower Inn in Washington Depot was the inspiration for the Independence inn and it has luxury spa facilities. So, you know... a good replacement!
The Strand - Manhattan, New York
This is the bookstore they talk about visiting when they plan their last vacation week before Rory goes off to Yale.
Pair that with pizza at John's next time you're in New York. Blast guaranteed!
Merch for your trip
A baseball cap (in case of rain, too much sun or bad hair!)
A Luke's tote bag (to carry your nuts, coffee mug and the books you buy!)
A "Harvard go to hell" button! (wear it to go to Yale!)
the WW๏ปฟTGGD? card deck (play the game during your road trip free time!)
Hereโs the complete guide in PDF format, if you prefer to download and carry it around. Itโs got everything mentioned above, all the same links, more quotes, photos and details, and even a nuts recipe! ๐ฅ๐ฐ
I hope it serves you Cutie pie. And soon!
Let me know. Donโt forget to send me photos ๐๐ฅฐ
Talk soon,
Ari