The U.S. Issue Frugal: $100 a Day On the Road.

The quickest way to drive from the Washington, D.C., area to Savannah, Ga., is to steel your nerves, grit your teeth and high-tail it for nine and a half hours down the monotonous, multilane, McDonald's-laden highway called I-95. Looking for Southern culture? Try a McRib sandwich. But there's an alternative. It'll take you a lot longer - six days or so - but offers so much more: a mishmash of coastal and inland roads that form U.S. 17, from Winchester, Va., as far as Savannah. The route has one constant appeal - good barbecue - and, outside of gas expenses, it offers plenty of frugal options: bursts of Civil War history, alligator-filled wildlife reserves, old plantations and schlocky miniature golf courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]