Rest areas, they aren't just toilets anymore.

i don't travelbut about 10 years ago i went to Nashville and stope at a rest area and all they had was maps and food machines nothing special

I am not a fan of public restrooms at all. If I think I can hold it until I get to a friend or family members house, then I will. But, since we travel by car quite a bit, I know I have to stop at a rest area or something. And you're right, a lot of rest areas are much nicer than any restaurant! This is my most recent favorite rest stop. It was 40-some miles from anywhere in Nevada. I wanted to get a picture of it inside because there was about 30 rolls of toilet paper in there! It wasn't a fancy one, but it sure did work better than any tumbleweed was going to!

I like to stop at the rest area not only because I need to use the washroom, but also to see what is around the state...I also visit rest area in my own state, because I like to travel locally...

It sounds like you are referring to the Welcome Centers that are usually located just inside the state line. I always stop at the welcome centers for each state when I am traveling. They are always clean, have plenty of information about the state you are entering into. And you can normally pick up a state map for free along with other brochures of cities you might be planning to visit. I do know that the roadside rest areas in Texas, Virginia and Pennsylvania are kept clean and are nice to stop at, but they are mainly just a restroom break. The Texas on my avatar is actually in front of the Welcome Center as you cross into Texas on I-20 from Louisianna

I'm on diuretics, do I ever stop at rest areas! Tennesse, there was this rest area, all metal and glass. Shined so it glowed. There was one guy there wiping fingerprints off after you touched the door. Bathrooms looked like they had never been used. Woman there who would go in after you and clean. One near Buffalo, NY, the stores, unbelievable. You could buy a Native American cedar baby carrier. It was absolutely beautiful. In VT, they have some that are coffee stops. In NY, up in my area, some are visitor ones staffed with people who can give directions and with all kinds of maps and pamphlets for tourists. But between the special ones, we have mostly reg. bathroom ones with soda and maybe snack machines. We do have a big one near Peru NY that includes a police unit, snack bar, and some other things.

HI GardenGerty: Wow! That photo you posted on the rest stop in Iowa is just BEAUTIFUL! Very cool place! Heck I'd stop there to check it out even if I didn't have to go..LOL!! I always use the rest stops when I used to go anywhere, not late at night but I'd stop at them along the journey; Very cool photo you posted!

I have not travelled in a very long time. I did notice a rest area, we stopped at, had alot of ammenities also. I was surprised to, that they had all kinds of information available to us.

you should visit the 'rest areas' along the highway in our country - it's almost like a 'shopping complex' - not only with toilets (with shower rooms) and food stalls.. there also children playground, foot massage, handicraft stalls etc in some locations. we have a lot of public holidays and school holidays in our country - and families normally travel during these holidays, so no matter how 'big' the rest areas are, they are normally very crowded. as for myself, my husband's family lives in the northern part of the country - which is about 4-6 hours travelling on the highway - the time varies because it really depends on how long we stop at the rest areas ... and with 5 children - - we normally 'rest' a bit longer so that children (especially the 2 younger ones) wont get cranky in the car...

Big time. But I bought a choco-taco in the vending machine at one and broke a tooth on it! Good thing I had Dent-Temp in my suitcase, eh? When we got to our room, I put in a temporary filling and when I got back home 3 weeks later, the dentist said he couldn't have done a better job himself. At first he didn't believe that I fixed my own tooth while on the road. I like rest stops! I've catnapped in them before, but that was in my youth ;-)

I don't stop at ANY rest area unless I absolutely have to because the places are so dangerous and infested with crime. Not only that, it's a homosexual hangout, at least in Virginia they've become that way. However, the one you uploaded is really pretty! Cool!

LOL we also have a picture of a rest stop in Iowa, its right before the Iowa/Minnesota border. They are really nice. I've found that the northwestern states and a few of the midwest states have the nicest rest stops and the southwest has quite a few that I would rather NOT stop at unless it was an emergency LOL.

I love rest areas! We have a couple here in Ohio and there's one at the Michigan border that are full of information, pamphlets and displays about the state's history. I'll look forward to seeing your pictures and reading your comments. You could make a very entertaining trip by touring some of the rest areas of the the midwest! The Southwest rest areas aren't so nice. They are usually dirty although they are fairly new and could be beautiful if not abused. Not much info there, either.

We do. There's this one in particular along the 99 somewhere between Sacramento and Los Angeles that we always stop at. Has this huge rock the kids like to climb on. then it was closed for a prolonged period and when it re-opened it was all done up nicely, new toilets and lots of them. Grass was redone, tables too. They hadn't put vending machines in yet though. But it was 10x nicer than any of the other rest stops along the route.

Sometimes, I didn't know that they were updating them with useful kinds of information. Most of the ones I've been in I read some dirty lymricks and got a few phone numbers for later use from a payphone, I'm not using my cell minutes for a prank call.

We do stop at them, but they're usually not much around here. They mostly have (besides the rest rooms) a bulletin board with a map behind plexiglass, and drinking fountains. Some of them have one of those racks that hold little pamphlets about local attractions, and other stuff further down the road. While nicely maintained, there sure isn't much lol. On the turnpike though, there is a nice restaurant, gas stations, and a gift shop. Guess the turnpike is the only kind of rest areas around here (Ohio) that have anything special. Just over the line into Pennsylvania there is the kind of rest stop that you're talking about though. It has everything, and there's much they have there to learn from regarding Lake Erie, the nearby zoos, and things like that. I think that's the nicest rest stop I've been to in ages, it was such a nice surprise! We even spent a little more time than we usually would just checking out the nice displays and the info that went with them. That's kind of neat about that one you found in Iowa.

Not normally. There are a few here in central Arkansas that are known to be hangouts for homosexual men. Definately not something that you would want your kids walking in on accidently. I wish we had some that nice. Most of ours are run down, dirty and hot with little ventilation. Occasionally you'll find vending machines in some, but they are very overpriced and often emptied.

I haven't traveled much in years now.....if you share photos, please tell me how to view them! Marsha

I dont usually stop at rest areas when i travel. However lately I've when i travel i take my dog with me so i do tend to stop a bit more often. I used to be more likely to only stop to get gas or food and go on from there.

When we travel with our dogs, we make frequent stops. Just like kids, they always have to go. If we're traveling to new areas we like to stop too. Rest areas are great places to pick up maps and information about places you might want to stop at, and a terrific source for discount coupons. The hospitality industry is one area that's almost recession proof, and it's a hugely growing industry. Think of the cafe squares in malls, rest areas, hospitals, etc. Even if the people who normally drive are staying home because of the economy, many people who normally fly are driving instead.

I haven't traveled anywhere in ten years but when my parents and I used to travel, we would stop at rest stops. Also, I used to travel with tour groups and we would sometimes stop at rest stops when we could. Yes, they do have a lot more in teresting things than they used to years ago. I bet the one in Holt, Iowa was very interesting. Kathy.