With gas prices
going up and up, it’s often a struggle to decide whether it’s cheaper to drive
or fly. If you have a travel group of 4 or more, it’s often much less expensive
to drive to your destination if you have time and it’s not that far away. Calculating the number of times you’ll need
to fill up the tank, eat and stay overnight somewhere is a good way to start,
because if you have to travel for 3 days there and back and it’s going to cost
your family of 4 $1200, it’s not worth the time and effort. You’re losing a
week in transit when you could have been there in 6 hours or less and everyone
will already be cranky and sick of each other by the time you get where you’re
going.
If a road trip
is within your budget and sounds like a rousing good time, then by all means,
start planning it out and packing up your car.
There are many benefits to a good road trip and a few downsides, but
that seems to be with anything. Let’s look at the benefits first, because those
are the most fun:
Family
togetherness – With
school, sports, friends and work, you are lucky to see your kids at dinnertime.
Reconnect with everyone while you have them trapped in the car for hours at a
time. Play games, listen to music, talk about what you’re most looking forward
to (or what you loved the most, if you’re on your way home) and plan out what
you will do when you get to your destination (if you haven’t completed you
itinerary yet).
You can bring
your own food – Sure,
you can bring your own food on the plane, but you can’t take an entire cooler
full of sandwich fixings, sodas, fruit and potato salad. When you drive you can
bring all that and more. It can feed you for many meals and allow for snacks
without stopping every 5 minutes.
You can bring
the dog – Yes, you can
bring your dog on the plane with you, but at a price to both the dog and your
wallet. Your dog is probably already used to riding in the car, so it’ll be
less stress on everyone and you can share your vacation fun with your
four-legged child(ren).
2 or 7 can
travel for the same price –
This is one of the biggest plusses. No matter how many people can fit in your
car or minivan, it’s not going to cost you more gas to carry them. You will
fill up the same amount whether there are two of you or a bunch of you.
More legroom – If you’re among the majority, your car
has more legroom than your average airplane seat. If you get cramped, you can
stop at a rest area and run around and use a regular size bathroom stall. Stretch
your legs, eat a sandwich and then get back in the car and be on your way.
See many
things along the way –
Some people aren’t into stopping when they’re on the road, but I say that’s
most of the fun! Buy AAA guides and search the Internet before you leave for
funky and odd things along your route. You can stop at something you never
would have before, like the Oregon Vortex. Maybe it’s hokey, but it can be
entertaining and also get you out of the car for a bit.
No “peak”
travel days – Aside from
everyone trying to drive somewhere during rush hour and all day on Saturday,
you won’t have to pay MORE to road trip when you want to. You might get suck in
some traffic, especially if you’re driving in/through a big city, but that’s to
be expected.
Pack as much
as you want – As long as
it fits in your car, you can take it. No one is going to tell you that your bag
is overweight and slap you with a heavy fee. If you are traveling with
strollers, car seats, camping equipment or golf clubs, this is awesome. If your
little one refuses to go anywhere without their own pillow or blanket, you
don’t have to say there’s no space. You only have to pack light if you want to.
Can stay in
campgrounds or hotels –
When you drive, you have the choice of where you stay. If a hotel seems like
too much, you can bring a tent and stop at a campground. There’s a big
difference in price here. Usually they charge around $12-15 per car at a
campground. If you multiply that by the number of days you’re traveling and
compare it to spending $50+ per night on a hotel, it’s a big savings. Of course,
if you’re like me, after a long day on the road, I want to sleep in a bed. Pick
up those coupon books at rest stops and roadside diners and find deals on
lodgings along your way.
Bring your
own car or rent one – If
your car is in good shape, you can save even more money by traveling it in. If
it’s not, you have the option to rent a car or a bigger car if it would be more
comfortable for everyone traveling. This is still a huge savings over airfare.
You have a
car at your destination
– You don’t have to rent a car at your destination or take public
transportation if you don’t want, because you already have a car to get around
town. Convenient!
Family
togetherness – While
this can be a plus, too much togetherness can be a bad thing. If your
kids are fighting the whole way or your driver doesn’t like to stop for
directions when lost you may NOT have a very good time. At that point, you want
to leave everyone on the side of the road and go without them. Bring your GPS,
pack some chocolates, handheld games and DVDs and when everyone has just about
had it with each other, let them all do their own thing for a while.
Parking fees – When you drive, you can sometimes
incur parking fees, both at hotels and activities. Sometimes they are nominal
and still beat public transportation costs, but other times they are
outrageous.
Takes longer
to get there – You
“waste” a lot of time driving to your destination if you have to spend days to
get there. It’s time you could have spent having a good time there already if
you’d flown.
Rental fees – If you have to rent a car, the rates
can be a little steep, since the larger the car, the more you pay. A compact
car is always going to be less expensive than a sedan or a minivan. You have to
decide if it’s worth the cost, especially if you don’t want to drive your own
car.
Gas prices – Gas prices are nearing $4 per gallon
in some places and in others it’s even higher. You may want to check online to
see what the average cost per gallon is along your route to make sure you’re
actually saving money.
If you decide to
go for it and take that road trip you’ve been talking about and plan to stop at
hotels along the way, make sure you check in advance if there are any
conventions or festivals happening along your way, as this can really throw a
wrench in your plans if you were just assuming you could find a place to stay
while you were driving. This happened to us on a few trips and we didn’t have
reservations and had to drive quite a long way to find a vacancy or we had to
sleep in our car in a campground. It’s better to be prepared than not. Don’t
forget, campgrounds can fill up, too, especially during the weekend. Many will
let you book ahead of time.
Do you have other great tips to add to these? Let everyone know by either posting here or by joining the discussion in the Savvy Living Community right HERE!
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