Trip of Destiny '09

Hello forum,

My friends and I are nearing the end of our junior year in highschool, and with college and actual REAL responsibilities approaching... we want to rough it on a road trip, but learn life lessons along the way...

Our Initial plan was the Route 66 way to LA (we live in Southwest Michigan)

that got trampled real quick--- then we planned another route thru canada and back down thru the east coast---

Now we have a final plan; and it will most likely stay this route :

MI>PHILLY>NYC>DC>MYRTLE BEACH>FLORIDA>MI

We are thinking about Camping a few nights, but cheap motels will work also--were not real picky about lodging... and we have places to stay in Myrtle Beach and when we get to florida...

Since our parents have always taken care of costs for vacation, i was just wondering if any of you new what a realistic cost for 3-5 friends to accomplish this type of trip.. well probably be driving a small SUV, so gas might be expensive.. we were thinking 2-3 weeks but if we can get the funds... longer would be better than shorter....


Thanks
Mike

To Elaborate--- weve decided on the Toll road 80 > NYC then 95 Thru Philly and DC and continuing on 95 to myrtle beach, and once again to fort lauderdale... waiting on tips and pointers

Mike

A first roadtrip can be thrilling.

It's pretty tough for us to give you an estimate of your travel costs. Too many variables. How you intend to eat, what activities you intend to do, the gas consumption of the vehicle you're driving, and lodging will all factor into it. This post will give you some tips on how to go about figuring out your expenses and creating your budget. And this post will give you some tips about how to keep food costs down.

Here's some other tips that might help you sort through what you want to do and how best to do it. That article also contains some good information to work through with your parents in case they're having trepidation about your plans. And be sure to follow the link to the Roadtrip Compatablity Quiz in that article. It will also help make sure you are all in agreement about things and how to handle issues that might occur while on the road.

Two or three weeks is definitely long enough to do this trip in. The issue will be your budget. Work through the steps to get an idea of what you think you'll need. Feel free to come back here with your budget so we can advise you if it's realistic or not.

Camping is a great way to keep costs down. It will always be cheaper than motels.

Well, let us know how we can help you further. Happy planning!

I put your destinations into my computer. Obviously, this is very rough because I don't know your details. I didn't put in your specific roads; I just let the computer pick the fastest way from city to city.

The route you're proposing is about 3847 miles.
You'll be in the car 61 hours, 52 minutes.
If we assume your car gets 15 MPG in the city/20 on the highway (obviously a guess, but it's based upon my old Ford Explorer), and if you pay $3.00/gallon for gas (none of us can predict whether that'll be realistic or not in a year, but it's going to be higher in the big cities), you will spend about $578 in gas -- adjust up or down, depending upon your mileage expectations, but also add in a little more for around-town driving and getting-lost miles.

So it can be done in two weeks, but you'll be in the car an awful lot of the time. If you travel for two weeks, you'll be in the car an average of 4.4 hours per day.

You say three to five people; try for four. Four is considerably less expensive than five because you fit into a standard hotel room and you fit comfortably into a standard car. Once you add that fifth person, you're piling on extra expenses.

You can stay in cheap hotels for about $50-60/night (plus taxes; it varies from state to state, but figure 15% -- hotel taxes are higher than other things). In the big cities, you'll pay more, considerably more, and camping won't be an option in New York and Philadelphia; expect to pay at least $150/night in New York and $100/night in Philadelphia -- and that's going to be for the quality of hotel of which your parents probably wouldn't approve. In between the big cities (and in Florida), you'll do fine with decent, cheap, clean hotels. You have to be awfully careful in Myrtle too, and I'm not talking about just hotels with bugs -- the cheap areas of Myrtle are downright dangerous.

Still, cheap hotels area better deal than camping -- if your goal is to keep moving down the road each day to see new things. Camping'll usually cost you at least $20/night, and you'll have to spend an hour each evening and an hour each morning setting up -- not to mention the large amount of your car space that'll be devoted to tent, sleeping bag, pillows, and more. Plus there's the issue of walking to the bathhouse during the night and having no air conditioning. Have you seen the bugs in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida? Camping's great -- when the destination's camping. It's not so great when you're traveling to other places, and you don't necessarily want to look like you slept on the ground last night. Camping also means leaving all your worldly goods in a tent, protected only by a zipper while you go out to see great stuff each day. Finally, if you have to buy any camping materials, this option is simply not financially feasible. When you consider all the details, camping just isn't as cheap it it appears on the surface.

Hostels are a good, cheap option -- they're just few and far between in America. I know you can find them in New York, Philly, and Orlando.

Plan at least $20/person/day for food -- that's going to be lots of fast food and eating-out-of-the-cooler meals. If sit-down meals are on the menu, add to this figure. Do not figure that you'll skimp on every meal for two weeks straight; you'll burn-out on that, go overboard, and run out of food money.

So if four people travel for two weeks, your gas, cheap-cheap hotel, and cheap-cheap food would be about $3000. Of course, that's before you visit anything, have a single souvenier, etc. -- entertainment, snacks, laundry, and loads of other things will add a considerable amount to that bottom-line estimate. Also, you'll have some "start up" costs like an engine check-up and oil, possibly tires. And you'll need supplies for the trip.

Serious question: You say you're doing this before REAL responsibilities approach. College tuition and books'll be due in August. I had to work every minute of the summer every summer to pay that huge bill -- how can college students afford not to work for 2-3 weeks of the summer?

Thanks you Two, Like i said--- i have, all this spring break... all summer... all next year... and alll next summer until i start college---

Furthermore... me and my friends-- (we are waiting on a 4th) have gotten it down to an 18 day schedule, weve excluded Philadelphia, because nothing interests us there, plus we figured we'd need Hotels For 3 Nights in NY and 3 Nights In DC; In Myrtle Beach and Ft Lauderdale, well have relatives... so most of the food and all of the lodging will be diminished.. as im sure dinner will be on them ;] on the way back, were taking 2 days
and going straight from FL> Michigan-- Stopping in another family members house in Atlanta... Making it a 9 hour Drive to ATL and a 11 hr Drive Home--- with 4 people switching off, and others resting--- it shouldnt be that bad....we figured 900 dollars a piece...and if in any way we lose that, we can get loaned money from our 3 respected relatives to make it home---

TOTAL Budget : ~2700-3600 Dollars...

Reasonable? based on our new plan?

Appreciate all the help youve given so far
Mike

Hey Mike,

Looks like a great trip.

Yeah, I think you can do the whole trip for about $4K or even a little less.

A couple thoughts. First, staying in NYC can border on the ridiculous costwise. Consider staying outside of Manhattan. For me, part of the fun of being in NYC is using the Subway and public transportation. Brooklyn and Queens offer some pretty reasonable alternative to Manhattan and they're loaded with Subway stops.

Skipping Philly may not be entirely necessary. Given your group, I think you'd be more than glad that you took a few hours to explore Independence National Park, and then strolled a few blocks to South St. Trust me. For your group, Philly won't require an overnight stay. Just head south into Delaware and find a campground, then head down to DC the next day. In the DC area, I've stayed at a couple of campgrounds within reasonable distance to the City.

Myrtle Beach is an interesting choice. Personally, I can't stand the place-but I haven't been there in a long time. Very touristy if memory serves. What about Savannah or other Georgia islands? Take a look into them. You might be surprised. But I know you have relatives in Myrtle, so it's probably not terribly negotiable....

I'm not as pessimistic about doing a road trip while camping along the way as a previous poster. I think it's entirely doable, particularly if the weather cooperates. I would just suggest that you have a minimum of two good quality tents that are absolutely weatherproof. Borrow them or find them used on eBay or something like that. The tents should be lightweight and you should be able to put them up or take them down in less than ten minutes in the dark. And you should have really good sleeping pads, or even air mattresses. Air mattresses are more time consuming but they can be really comfortable. And if you need hotels, based on your route, you won't have the slightest problem finding them. They're everywhere, and often pretty inexpensive (but not like $40....closer to $70).

Food should be pretty easy for your group. It's actually pretty simple. A cooler. Supermarkets along the way. Maybe a camp stove, maybe not. Fast food now and again. And decent meals with your relatives. You'll be fine with that plan.

Whatever you decide, just take your time with the planning process and don't get too bogged down with detail. Have fun....

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Originally Posted by Dooses

we figured 900 dollars a piece...and if in any way we lose that, we can get loaned money from our 3 respected relatives to make it home---

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Four of you can do it for $900/each, but it'll be a bare-bones trip. I woudn't start out assuming that it's okay to borrow money to get home -- borrowing's never a good idea. Instead, I'd say each of you should put aside $150 in an envelope in your suitcases; if you have to open that envelope before you reach -- well, I don't know what spot . . . pick a reasonable one -- and say that IF you run out of money before that "safe spot", it's time to turn around and go home while you still have that money left.

You also need a credit card in case you have a mechanical or medical emergency. Even a brand-new car can pick up a nail in its tire. Even a healthy young person can have an accident and need stitches.

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Originally Posted by metsno1

A couple thoughts. First, staying in NYC can border on the ridiculous costwise. Consider staying outside of Manhattan. For me, part of the fun of being in NYC is using the Subway and public transportation. Brooklyn and Queens offer some pretty reasonable alternative to Manhattan and they're loaded with Subway stops.

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On the other hand, if you stay close to the things you plan to see (and I can only assume you plan to see the typical touristy things, which are in the Manhattan area), then you'll see them more quickly and move on faster. On the other hand, if you stay an hour away from everything, you have less time in the day. So what's more economical? 2 nights in an expensive room, or 3 nights in a cheaper place? Check into both possibilities before you make your decision. NYC also has hostels, which will be cheaper than the cheapest hotel and offer a unique experience. Check the ipod hotel too; not super-cheap, but reasonable for the area when split four ways.

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Originally Posted by metsno1

Myrtle Beach is an interesting choice. Personally, I can't stand the place-but I haven't been there in a long time. Very touristy if memory serves. What about Savannah or other Georgia islands? Take a look into them. You might be surprised. But I know you have relatives in Myrtle, so it's probably not terribly negotiable....

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Well, it's not my favorite place either. They call it the Redneck Riviera for a reason. It is certainly the cheapest beach in this area, but the reason why is evident! Now, if you go a little ways north or south, you find nice areas -- at higher prices. Senior Week at Myrtle is a long-standing, out-of-control tradition, and the police are always on the lookout for just-graduated kids doing anything wrong. Be careful and be good!

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Originally Posted by metsno1

I'm not as pessimistic about doing a road trip while camping along the way as a previous poster. I think it's entirely doable, particularly if the weather cooperates . . . [hotels are] everywhere, and often pretty inexpensive (but not like $40....closer to $70).

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I've camped across America, and I have come to the conclusion that road tripping with the goal of seeing American and camping don't mix well. IF the weather cooperates, you're not going to JUST put your tent up/down twice a day -- you're also going to have to pack up mattress pads, sleeping bags, lanterns, etc. Realistically, every time you move camp, it's an hour to pack up and another hour to set up. That's assuming it doesn't rain; if so, you're packing up a wet tent. Consider the things that a hotel gives you that campsites don't: comforable beds (which are very welcome after a day's driving); clean, private bathrooms; good lights for reading; air conditioning (when you get to the Carolinas and Georgia, you don't want to camp in June, July, or August -- you will learn the meaning of sweltering); laundry facilities; swimming pools. If you're lucky, you can find a hotel with a free breakfast buffet, which eliminates the need to pay for a meal. More than once, we've "won" an inexpensive hotel on Priceline for less than $50 AND it's included breakfast; for a family of four, this can't be beat. Using Priceline, we've recently stayed at Country Inns & Suites for $90 (that was high season right by the cruise ship pier, and it included breakfast), we've stayed at Residence Inn for $50 (included breakfast), and we've stayed at a five-star Marriott resort for $60.

Then, keep in mind that camping costs more than you think it does. Oh, at first glance, it's easy to say, "Oh, it's free -- I already own the tent!" But that's not true. You'll pay probably $20/night to camp. Want a fire to roast marshmellows and keep away bugs? You're not toting wood from home, so you're going to have to buy it. If you're cooking on a camp stove or using a lantern, you're going to need to replace your propane. Unlike hotels, you can't get free ice at campgrounds, so you're going to have to buy it every day or two. The campground fee plus these "extras" are going to add up to at least $30/night -- and they could easily be more in some areas; some campgrounds charge $30-40 just for the use of a spot for one night!

Then there are the intangible costs: lack of lighting, lack of privacy in the bathroom (okay for a couple days, but for 18 days?), lack of a place to wash dishes/clothes, lack of privacy in the campground (sometimes you have great neighbors, other times . . . ). Hanging your wet towels on trees gets old after a week, as does sleeping in a sweaty sleeping bag that could've used a wash a week ago. Don't forget, too, that the camping equipment will take up LOTS of space in that small SUV; that's less space for coolers and food, which are big money savers. These things would be acceptable IF, IF, IF camping saved you big bucks . . . but it doesn't. Compared to a cheap hotel, camping only saves you about $20-30/night -- and if you get a good, free breakfast at the hotel, camping and a cheap hotel are about the same cost! Is it worth packing up /sleeping in the heat /etc. worth $20-30/night divided by four people?

Look into the prices of campgrounds along your proposed route and do some math for yourself. Add $10/night for incidentals -- you WILL spend that much on firewood, bug spray, and other things you'll need. Go camping with the group who's planning to travel together; time yourselves putting up the tent, spreading out the sleeping bags, putting up some camp chairs. See if you're happy hanging around the campground after the sun goes down. Don't jump into 18 nights cold turkey -- see how it's going to work for YOU.

Don't get me wrong -- my family LOVES camping, and we go frequently! But tent camping doesn't mix with road trips. We camp when our intinerary includes hiking, swimming, fishing, long evenings around the campfire. We camp when we know we won't need to be up early in the morning, when we won't need to pack and repack our tents, and when we won't run out of clean clothes. We camp when it's good weather; nothing's worse than being stuck in a tent during a thunderstorm. We camp when we don't care whether our hair looks good the next day, and when we don't care that we smell like campfire smoke. Most of that doesn't mesh well with visiting historical sites, museums, and cultural attractions, which is what we care about during a road trip!

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Originally Posted by MrsPete

We camp when we don't care whether our hair looks good the next day, and when we don't care that we smell like campfire smoke. Most of that doesn't mesh well with visiting historical sites, museums, and cultural attractions, which is what we care about during a road trip!

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Us too. But that's when we're camping for camping's sake.

I have a couple thoughts about the particular group that we're talking about...

First, I don't think they're gonna care quite as much as we might about hair, smelling like a campfire, or similar. There are showers at most campgrounds, often laundries, and you can leave the campground nice and clean without too much hassle.

Second, I'm not sure the purpose of this trip is to visit museums, cultural attractions and historical sights. I could be wrong ;)

IMO, it's all about the preparation. Like I said, you've gotta have a tent that you can put up and take down quickly, and stow in a relatively small and waterproof bag (even when wet, which doesn't matter much because you're taking it out again right away).

I'd suggest a halfway decent self-inflating sleeping pad rather than a full blow up mattress pad (time and space saver). And all you really need are really good LED headlamps for light. Forget lanterns. They're too bulky and cumbersome for this type of camping. If you get a headlamp that's really good, it'll be bright enough to light up everything! Always carry backups too.

Have a bag set up with all of your toiletries in it. And have a small duffle bag that you can pack every night before you go to sleep. Put your clothes for the next day in it, plus a towel for the shower. Wake up, grab it and go shower. Make sure that warm clothes are easily accessible for cool mornings (nothing's worse than cold camping without proper gear!)

Camping doesn't have to mean the whole "get everything out every night, put up the big tent, blow up the air mattress, unload the cooking gear, make dinner, make a campfire, tend the fire, make smores, eventually go to sleep." It can be as simple as "Set up the tent, unroll the sleeping pad and bag, pack the bag for the next day, hit the bathroom and go to sleep."

If you're comfortable with the "abbreviated version" of camping, then it can work on a road trip. If you're not, then I'd agree that camping doesn't represent a bargain.

The fact that you're staying with relatives along the way will give you the opportunity to get a better nights sleep now and again, so you should be good to handle "camp sleep" on the other nights (although if you're like me, you sleep like a rock whenever you're outside). And when you're traveling and it's raining at camp setup time, that's an obvious hotel night.

I've done the minimalist way, and I'll tell you what, I've enjoyed it every bit as much as the full-blown camping experience. They're just different animals, that's all.

Would I do it for 18 straight nights? No way. But sprinkle in a hotel night here and there in addition to your relatives homes, and you're golden.....

I am a huge advocate for camping while on a roadtrip. For several reasons:

First, after being in the car all day, even if I get out to explore a lot, gives me some kinks. Moreso now that I'm in my advanced years. One of the best ways to work the kinks out is to put up my tent. The moving, bending, etc. feels good.

Second, I can't stand sitting in a hotel room....I don't care if it's a 5-star resort or a Motel 6. Just can't stand it. But I thoroughly love sitting around my tent, with my lantern, reading a book, watching people, watching nature, watching the sunset, etc.

Third, I love to go for a walk after getting my tent set up. Walking around a campground is far better than walking around a parking lot. And I often strike up the best conversations with people. It's not unusual to find someplace who has just come the direction I'm traveling to and to get some great tips and ideas.

I have timed myself numerous times and I can tell you that it takes me all of about 10 minutes to set-up camp and about 15 minutes to take-down camp the next day. To be honest, it doesn't take all that much longer than it does to take my stuff to my room and pack up in the morning. Just make sure you get a tent that goes up/comes down easy and after practicing a few times, you'll get a good routine.

I regularly leave items at my campsite if I'm going to explore for the day. While I don't leave anything really valuable behind, I will leave my stove, lantern, chair, etc. out. I do tend to put them under the picnic table so they're not totally exposed or easy to grab too quickly. I leave my clothes, etc. in my bag in my tent. I have never had anything stolen yet. Not to say it can't happen and everytime I write that I figure I've jinxed myself. But it's not something I would worry much about. Unless you've got some people camping near you that give you the creeps, heed that notion.

I sleep better in my tent and find it just as comfortable as most hotel beds. In fact, I'm more comfortable in my tent, on my little backpacking-style pad than I am in my own bed at home. Maybe I'm just strange? But there is no better night's sleep than outside.

I have regularly taken roadtrips lasting up to 2 weeks in my little New Beetle with all my gear and had plenty of room left over. Only with 2 of us in the car though. There aren't room for passengers in the backseat. But I see no reason why you can't fit this all into a much bigger vehicle like an SUV without problem.

In addition, I take my campstove/cooking kit and cooler and rarely eat rsetaurant meals...usually only every 2-3 days and, when I do, I splurge on a nicer place or someplace with good regional food. Most of the time, the free breakfasts don't appeal to me from what I've seen. Too many carbs. I'd be napping by 10am. Ice is usually only $1 a bag and propane is cheap and can last for days.

I am a fairweather camper. If it's raining or unseasonably cold, I will get a hotel. It always bums me out but I don't like to be cold or wet.

Except for a few vacations to Washington, DC, and Orlando, and a business training I attended in Huntsville, AL, my experience with The South is pretty limited. Maybe I wouldn't enjoy the roadtrip/camping routine as much there due to the humidity and the bugs. Who knows? Hopefully I'll get to that part of the country someday and find out.

Anyway, whether or not you enjoy camping while on a roadtrip is definitely an individual decision. Some of us may enjoy it and some may not. That's cool as we all like to do things differently. Makes the world more interesting. But I know camping is a big moneysaver so, if budget is an issue, you might consider camping. If you don't think you'll like the stop/set-up and then get-up/pack-up routine, you might try a shorter roadtrip first to see if you find it a hassle. I know I don't but YMMV.

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Originally Posted by metsno1

I've done the minimalist way, and I'll tell you what, I've enjoyed it every bit as much as the full-blown camping experience. They're just different animals, that's all.

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I'm totally good with minimalist, but NOT when my schedule says that I should be up early the next day and out to see some wonderful place. I've run college Outdoor Bound type programs, and I worked at scout camp for three summers. I know camping. I'm also not going to do it for a couple weeks straight. My kids also make a difference in the plans -- more equipment, more sleeping bags, more food, etc. Sure, they're old enough to help, but I still have to supervise, and there's no way we're getting everything up (or down) quickly for a whole family.

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Originally Posted by Judy

Second, I can't stand sitting in a hotel room....I don't care if it's a 5-star resort or a Motel 6. Just can't stand it. But I thoroughly love sitting around my tent, with my lantern, reading a book, watching people, watching nature, watching the sunset, etc.

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You can do the same thing at a hotel: You can take your book out to the pool while the kids swim. You can sit in the lobby or the breakfast room. Often hotels -- Hampton's particularly good about this -- offer manager's socials during the week, and that's free dinner and a great chance to chat with fellow guests.

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Originally Posted by Judy

I have timed myself numerous times and I can tell you that it takes me all of about 10 minutes to set-up camp and about 15 minutes to take-down camp the next day. To be honest, it doesn't take all that much longer than it does to take my stuff to my room and pack up in the morning. Just make sure you get a tent that goes up/comes down easy and after practicing a few times, you'll get a good routine.

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I know tents like the back of my hand. I worked in a small, upscale camping store while I was in college, and the owner put us through our paces regularly -- he wanted the customers to have the idea that putting up the tents was effortless. Still, even with this expertise and even with my kids working too, I can't do it in 15 minutes.

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Originally Posted by Judy

I regularly leave items at my campsite if I'm going to explore for the day. While I don't leave anything really valuable behind, I will leave my stove, lantern, chair, etc. out.

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I've never had anything taken, but I've seen people walking from campsite to campsite looking around while the occupants were gone. And I have bad memories of one campsite (with the worst fire rings I've ever seen) when a foolish camper left a campfire unattended, and we neighbors had to put out a fire that was spreading!

I maintain that tent camping is wonderful, but it isn't suited to road trips -- unless, of course, the whole purpose is to camp in a variety of areas.

I think we need to agree to disagree. I'm just trying to point out that we're all different. Yes, you can go sit at the pool or in the lobby. Sorry, but that's my point. I don't want to sit, not by a pool or in a lobby or anywhere else. I want to walk around. Walking around a hotel and walking around a campground are two different experiences and I would rather walk around the worst campground than the best hotel. And I usually find people in campgrounds to be more friendly to strike up conversations with.

Gosh....and I can do the tent AND sleeping bags AND sleeping pads AND pillow in about 10 minutes up/15 minutes down. I've done it dozens of times and I've done dozens of roadtrips using 1-night camping stays as my choice of lodging very successfully. No hassle at all.

I've also done roadtrips when, for various reasons, I've mixed it up and camped some nights and done hotels other nights. This is usually because of the convenience of the location of the hotel vs. the location of the campground. This is especially common in cities. If I'm visiting a bigger city and want to explore the city itself, the campgrounds are usually too far out to be convenient. But I always enjoy my evening in the campground far more than I enjoy the evenings in a hotel. Far more. No contest.

I've also done trips where our entire trip is spent in a hotel (using flying trips where a car isn't needed, in places like WA DC or if we're just doing Disneyland and using the shuttle from airport to hotel, for example) and the only reason for staying in a hotel is convenience for that particular trip. So I'm not anti-hotel. But I don't enjoy staying AT the hotel at all and only use it as a place to sleep and dress. I never spend any time at the hotel itself. (Caveat to this...when the kids were younger we would take an afternoon break from the rides at Disney and go back to the hotel for a swim because the kids needed a break. I, myself, prefer to go-go and not do this because I can swim anywhere so why waste prime vacation time doing it, imho. YMMV.)

Anyway, there's no one right way to travel. Roadtrips and camping may not work for you. That's cool. But it works for me and many other people. So we just need to agree to disagree on this.

It's funny how we all have different tastes and different perspectives. That's what makes these discussions fun.

Personally, I love both camping AND decent hotels!

I've been thinking a bit about this particular group, and the more I think about it, the more I actually tend to think that camping is the right way to go. I definitely agree with Judy that setup and takedown can be a very quick experience. I have a family of four (an 8 and a 10 year old who are total camping veterans), and we can be completely set up in about 15 minutes (and that includes three full size air mattresses!). But again, it all depends on the type of gear you choose.

It's funny how people have different experiences. Mrspete has worked with higher end camping equipment, and finds that it takes more time than I would personally expect. My experience has been quite the opposite. The better the equipment, the easier and quicker setup has gone! I can set up my Marmot Halo tent in literally less than five minutes from start to finish, but that darn Coleman cabin style thing takes half a day!! But they're different things with different purposes!

But I also hear what Mrspete is saying. If you're planning on preparing meals at the campground, that means a lot more equipment and more time. I'm making the assumption that the campground is nothing more than a place to set up the tent, grab some sleep, shower up in the morning, and hit the road.

I thought of one other thing too. If it were me travelling with this particular group, I'd be bringing my own one-man tent for privacy's sake-just to get away from everyone else for a while. Now, most campgrounds limit each site to two tents, so that may be a problem, but I've also stayed at many places that won't have a problem if you ask up front, and explain that they're small, one-person tents. YMMV on that.

Ultimately, on the type of trip that you're talking about, I'd do everything possible to pack all my gear in one large backpack; tent, pillow, and sleeping bag and pad included. If everyone does that, you create more space for other "stuff" that might make things more pleasant-including larger coolers for food.

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Originally Posted by MrsPete

I maintain that tent camping is wonderful, but it isn't suited to road trips -- unless, of course, the whole purpose is to camp in a variety of areas.

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While tent camping might not be suited to your roadtrips, it really doesn't make sense to say that tent camping doesn't mix with roadtrips. Clearly many of us on this forum make camping a regular part of roadtrips.

Many of my roadtrips have been of a similar nature as the original posters plans. A group of friends, on a limited budget, looking to see a number of things along the way and camping has always been the backbone of our trips, and we almost never stay in the same place for 2 nights in a row.

It is fair to say that there are "hidden" costs with camping. You do have to deal with gear, and there are extra expenses like firewood, propane, or ice (all of which are under $5), and certainly the weather is much more of a concern.

However, hotels aren't always the deals they seem on the surface either. Hotels almost always have a significant room tax in addition to sales taxes that can easily add $5-10 to the face value of a room. If you are staying at a budget motel, typically your "free" breakfast will not be much more than a plate of donuts, toast, and coffee. Its also a bit challenging to cook your own dinner while staying at a budget motel, so it become very tempting to go out for dinner, which costs far more than you save with the "free" breakfast.

I also think in motels the atmopshere is rarely condusive to meeting fellow travelers. While some places might have "managers social," or other amentities that would draw people together, you usually have to be in the mid-range class of hotels (like Hamptons) that you aren't going to find for $40 a night. I can't think of many times where I've had a good conversation at a motel, but I've met lots of fellow campers in my travels.

There are pluses and minus with each option. I will deal with heat or cold when camping, but if its raining, I'll look for a motel. If you are going to be on the road for weeks at a time, then a real bed is a nice treat once and a while. And If I'm traveling late into the night, and on a very tight schedule, there will be times where I don't want to deal with setting up and tearing down camp.

But I also say that the time spent at a campsite at the end of the day, while on a roadtrip, can be one of the most satisfying parts of the day, even if you are setting up and tearing down every night. Its not for everyone, clearly, but for many it is a perfect complement to a roadtrip.

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Originally Posted by metsno1

But I also hear what Mrspete is saying. If you're planning on preparing meals at the campground, that means a lot more equipment and more time. I'm making the assumption that the campground is nothing more than a place to set up the tent, grab some sleep, shower up in the morning, and hit the road.

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Actually, I don't necessarily agree with this either. One of our tricks for eating while camping is to simply bring a small tabletop propane grill ($20) and then we can easily grill most any food we want. It doesn't take up much room at all, and it doesn't really require any more time. If we're hungry, we'll have one person get the grill going while we're setting up the tent, and within 15-30 minutes of stopping, everything is set up and our food is ready to eat.

Of course there are times where on roadtrips where I'll also go "all out" with the full campfire feast, with food cooked in cast iron skillets and dutch ovens over an open flame. Certainly that adds a whole extra element that does take more time and space than just a budget, quicky setup.

(Gosh, we would travel well together, I think, Michael. LOL)

In my experience, it takes far less time to prepare your own meal than it does to sit in a restaurant and wait for your order....unless you're eating fast food, that is.

Sometimes when on caravans with other people, some will want to stop for lunch at a restaurant. If the weather is good, the idea of sitting in a restaurant after sitting in the car, drives me crazy. So I might go to a nearby park to meet up with them after they're done with their meal. I have found that I can usually prepare my meal (whether something cooked or just sandwich/salad type things), eat, clean-up and put-away, and have a nice walk and explore a bit in the same time that they've just sat there waiting for their meal and eating. And I think I've usually had a better time in the process.

Same applies for at night. I have often gotten out the stove, got dinner cooking, put up the tent, and by the time I'm done with the tent, dinner is ready. Pretty simple really.

I'm also like Michael that sometimes the miles I'm traveling that day will make me get a hotel instead of camping. But that is purely because it is tough to set-up your tent in the dark and I want to be considerate to other campers and not wake them up with my late-night set-up. Although there have been a few times, very few, when this is when I've decided to just catch a few hours of shut-eye in the car at a truckstop or similar location. I have never done this when my husband is with me because he just won't sleep in the car. While I can sleep anywhere, I don't think it's as restful either but, when traveling solo, it has been an option for when I'm traveling until late at night. I don't recommend it as a regular nightly routine though.