Gas

So . . . it's on everyone's mind . . . how are gas prices affecting y'all's plans? We were planning a month-long trip, but we budgeted for $2/gallon and now prices in our area are in the $3.70 range (and who knows how high they'll go?). We're driving a Honda Civic, so we're not going to find a less expensive transportation option.

Options we're considering:
-- Putting the trip off another year so we can have a larger budget.
-- Cutting the mileage of the trip but not the length (so we'll spend more time in each place).
-- Biting the bullet and paying the money; after all, our kids are "the right age" now -- they're old enough to endure long miles, but they're not old enough to have jobs/boyfriends that'll make them want to stay home.

We're not looking at cutting back on hotel room quality; we have enough free rewards points from this and that place to get about half our month's hotel stays for free, and we'll use Priceline for most of the others -- this isn't going to be a huge cost regardless.
We're already planning to eat many meals out of the cooler, but we won't cut one restaurant meal per day -- my husband is too grumpy if he doesn't get one good, solid real meal per day, and that's not a sacrafice we can make while we're sharing a Civic with four people.

I don't know what we'll choose -- how are gas prices affecting y'all?

Related topic: Two families in my neighborhood have huge RVs for sale in their driveways. I wish 'em luck, but those metal monsters've been out there for a looong time, and I haven't seen anyone looking. I don't see how anyone can afford that option with these gas prices!

I've been thinking a bit about gas prices, too. I'm considering bringing bikes on our road trip so we can at least cut down on the in town driving, but since we'll have our pup, I'm not sure how that'll work. Maybe we can find a bike trailer. :-/

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Originally Posted by MrsPete

So . . . it's on everyone's mind . . . how are gas prices affecting y'all's plans?

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There is no question that the rising cost of fuel is going to impact the money most of us have set aside for summer road trips, but not in the way you may think. The actual difference between $2.00/ gallon and $3.70 per gallon for a 1000 mile trip is only about $48.00. $48.00 is less than one night's lodging, or one admission to a theme park, or the cost of an average meal at a restaurant. (use our Fuel Cost Calculator and run some real #'s to check mine).

The rising cost of fuel IS a factor because our normal commuting and daily work expenses will be higher and we will have less to spend on holiday. But the cost of fuel alone would have to reach ~$10.00/gal before it started having any significant effect on roadtripping.

Mark

The extra $150-200 I figure gas might cost me this summer on a trip that is going to be, at minimum, about 3300 miles, isn't a make-or-break deal.

We are, however, becoming more conscience of our regular driving here at home. Bundling more errands together so we spend less on gas on a regular basis, for example.

The cost of gas is certainly going to limit my roadtripping this summer. I expect to take far fewer trips, and the trips we take will likely be closer to home. But the reason is two-fold, as Mark mentioned, the cost of the actual trip would be a little higher, but more importantly, with the cost of commuting, we just don't have as much "extra" money for use on travel.

If I didn't do a long distance trip on a given year, I'd typically take several long weekend trips that would be about 300-500 miles away. I really don't see doing anymore than one of those this year. To do a 1000 mile round trip using my SUV that gets a reasonable 20 mpg, it would cost nearly $200 just for fuel, as opposed to just 100 dollars when gas cost $2. An extra $100 added to a weekend camping trip, is a pretty significant difference when I would probably only have budgeted $200-300 total for the trip 2-3 years ago.

But of course, the commuting is the real killer. The family transportation fuel bill is now pushing beyond $500 per month just for commuting. Add in the soaring cost of heating fuel - which I'll be paying for well into the summer months - and that takes up any extra money that I might otherwise use to obsorb the extra cost of taking a roadtrip.

I'll also say that the incredibly low value of the US dollar is also playing a role in my roadtripping. In the past, I've tryed to get to Canada at least once every year or two. With US$1 equal or less than value to the Loonie, I'll probably be waiting awhile before traveling across the northern border.

Anyway, Like I said, gas prices are not going to stop me from traveling, but I will be taking fewer trips and I will be doing much more of my exploring closer to home. However, if I had been planning a major trip, I certainly wouldn't let it stop me. We've been telling people for many months now to budget for at least $4 per gallon this summer, and I can't imagine that getting better by waiting for another year. If I was starting to plan for a summer roadtrip in 2009, I'd be using $5/gallon for my budget calculations.

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Originally Posted by Mark Sedenquist

The actual difference between $2.00/ gallon and $3.70 per gallon for a 1000 mile trip is only about $48.00. $48.00 is less than one night's lodging, or one admission to a theme park, or the cost of an average meal at a restaurant.

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You know, I hadn't looked at it that way. I've already budgeted for $2/gallon (and that money's already sitting in the bank), so it's not a matter of paying the whole $4 or $5 -- it's just the difference between $2 and the increased price.

Looking at it this way, I see that if gas is $4/gallon, our trip estimate will increase by $345. If gas is $5/gallon, our trip estimate will increase by $511.

What's really bothering me is the unknown. If I could KNOW that it'll be $4 or $5, I could do the math and make decisions. I like facts and figures with which I can plan.

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Biting the bullet and paying the money; after all, our kids are "the right age" now -- they're old enough to endure long miles, but they're not old enough to have jobs/boyfriends that'll make them want to stay home.

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In 5 years what will you remember if you do take this trip - that 'perfect' trip because the kids were just the right age, or the fact that you had to spend a little more for gas? My parents passed a lot of wisdom to me, but the one thing that really stuck in my mind was to think a few years out and see what's really important to you. It really puts a lot into perspective. I made the time and scraped together enough money to take my daughter to Europe. I knew it would be the last few years she'd be truly interested in taking a trip with her mother. And those memories are some of the greatest for both of us. And to this day, I don't remember how much I spent!

interesting comments as here in the u.k thats roughly [$10] what a gallon of fuel will cost your over here in the u.k.
some of you have mentioned cutting down on fuel usage due to costs and that is what our government keep telling us is the reason we are being taxed on it so heavily, to cut down on usage and pollutants,yet they fail to offer any cheaper alternative that runs effectively and reliably.

this gives an example although our pump prices are around £1.14 a ltr at the mo [aprox £5.13p]

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United Kingdom

From 2007-10-01 the main road fuel (petrol and diesel) duty rate in the UK is GBP£0.5035 per litre. The rate for biodiesel and bioethanol is £0.3035.[1] Value Added Tax (VAT), currently at 17.5%, is also charged on the price of the fuel and on the duty. At a pump price of 100p/litre (typical for unleaded as at November 2007), this would put the combined tax at 65.24p/litre, or approximately USD$4.84 per gallon. Thus without tax, the retail price would be 34.76p per litre, making a combined tax rate of 188%.

[edit] North America

Fuel taxes in the United States vary by state. For the first quarter of 2008, the average state gasoline tax is 28.6 cents per gallon, plus 18.4 cents per gallon federal tax making the total 47 cents per gallon. For diesel, the average state tax is 29.2 cents per gallon plus an additional 24.4 cents per gallon federal tax making the total 53.6 cents per gallon.[3]


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a combined tax rate of 188% for us, grrrrrrrrrrr!!!! [and i think it's gone up since]

sorry for the rant and back to the original question.
as long as you don't put your yourselves in real financial difficulties then bite the bullet and try and have the holiday you want.
to do our trips with the rising costs we tend to cut back on mileage and treats before and after the holiday to ensure we have the best possible time whilst out there. have a great trip

Our plans were already being affected by employment changes even before the gas prices started back on their sharp rise. Over the past two years the significant other and I have both seen substantial changes in our employment situations, both for good and ill.

As for any other plans for trips this Summer: We only have, at this point, one trip planned (in a couple of weeks). Outside of that, we are limiting ourselves to local trips when time allows. This, again, has more to do with employment than the cost of fuel. Scheduling issues have dictated that the times we do have available to us are few and far between.

I don't know that fuel, as a percentage of a trip's cost, will necessarily be higher than it has been in the past. But that's simply because I'd wager that the overall cost of a typical trip will be higher than it has been in the past.

Anyway, I would still take the trip if I were you. Your children are certain to remember it, and someday, sooner or later, you will be able to reminisce about the experience, and that alone will be worth far more than what you spent on the trip.

Well, from my point of view the gas price affects almost everybody who's planning a road trip. I was thinking about driving to Chicago but with those prices, I might postpone it.

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Originally Posted by Mark Sedenquist

The actual difference between $2.00/ gallon and $3.70 per gallon for a 1000 mile trip is only about $48.00.

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and

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a combined tax rate of 188% for us, grrrrrrrrrrr!!!! [and i think it's gone up since]

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A couple years ago, Washington state added a new gas tax which would start at 3 cents per gallon and gradually go up to 9 cents per gallon over several years. All the proceeds are to be used on state highway projects. The naysayers screamed doom-and-gloom saying that nobody would be able to travel anywhere, etc. I calculated that a motorhome getting 10 miles per gallon, driving from Seattle to Ocean Shorse (a vacation spot on the coast) would spend about an extra $1.25. I don't recall if this was round-trip or one way. But even $2.50 per trip like that is really nothing. And the highway improvements already done are definitely worth it, imho.

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Originally Posted by Judy

and



A couple years ago, Washington state added a new gas tax which would start at 3 cents per gallon and gradually go up to 9 cents per gallon over several years. All the proceeds are to be used on state highway projects. The naysayers screamed doom-and-gloom saying that nobody would be able to travel anywhere, etc. I calculated that a motorhome getting 10 miles per gallon, driving from Seattle to Ocean Shorse (a vacation spot on the coast) would spend about an extra $1.25. I don't recall if this was round-trip or one way. But even $2.50 per trip like that is really nothing. And the highway improvements already done are definitely worth it, imho.

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now i think this is our problem,we have a fairly good motorway system but other than that a lot of our roads are rough and unable to cope with the amount of traffic. i'm not sure how this works in the states but before we put fuel in our cars we pay the equivalant of aprox $360 for an average size family car and with new legislation about $850 for a 4wd or high powered carfor road tax,all of this money supposedly goes to maintaining the roads,but most of the british public wonder where this happens,the prime ministers drive perhaps?as the state of the repairs are laughable in places.
on top of this we have fuel tax,where on earth this goes is anybodys guess.
for example our 3000 mile journey in the states cost aprox $1000 @10 mpg in the r.v . here in the u.k that same journey would have cost us aprox $3000 which $1950 would be tax, making the cost of the fuel on par with your prices without it. at 9 cents per gallon i think that works out less than 3% tax on the overall price which would leave everyone in the u.k dancing from the rooftops. god bless america :)

The 9 cents fuel tax is not the only taxes on our fuel. It's simply a new tax on top of the other fuel taxes. This new 9 cents is dedicated to roads because, prior to that being added, our state wasn't getting enough taxes through other means to keep up on road maintenance and improvements.

Our total tax rate per gallon in my state is 54.4 cents on gas and 60.4 cents on diesel. Today, gas prices in my state for regular are averaging $3.88/gallon and diesel prices are about $1 more. So I guess this makes our tax bite roughly 14% on gas and roughly 12% on diesel.

This varies state-by-state. I believe our fuel taxes are amongst the highest in the nation. But the tax structure in each state is very different, some tax things that others don't tax. It gets confusing and hard to compare across the various states. For example, our state doesn't have a state income tax. Before you say "wow" and think our taxes are low because of that, we tax different things to offset that and have higher sales/property/excuse/business taxes, etc. than some other states have. But not always. Again, it's complicated.

hi judy,
your right,it's very complicated and i am not trying to make out were hard done by this side of the pond and that you have it easy over there everyone has to balance there books accordingly,and if you felt thats what i was saying i apologise,but as this thread was about motoring i guess i was trying to say in answer to the original question, was not to let a few bucks added on your fuel ruin your holiday,it could be worse. for me however it was these differences and the £ v $ that made my lifetime dream come true of getting to the u.s.a and roadtripping. :-)
i'd also add that fuel costs will not affect my "roadtrips" over here but i will have to budget elsewhere as a compromise.

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Originally Posted by SouthernGirl

In 5 years what will you remember if you do take this trip - that 'perfect' trip because the kids were just the right age, or the fact that you had to spend a little more for gas?

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This is a very good point. We're looking at our proposed route to see if we might trim off a few "edges", but we're not looking at major cuts.

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Originally Posted by Judy

A couple years ago, Washington state added a new gas tax which would start at 3 cents per gallon and gradually go up to 9 cents per gallon over several years. All the proceeds are to be used on state highway projects.

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Here's the thing with taxes: The feds add a little, the state adds a little, the county adds a little, the city adds a little, then maybe there's a bond . . . and before you know it, it's no longer just a few cents -- it's real money!

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your right,it's very complicated and i am not trying to make out were hard done by this side of the pond and that you have it easy over there everyone has to balance there books accordingly,and if you felt thats what i was saying i apologise,

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I didn't take it that way at all. Not a bit. I just didn't want you to think it was only 9 cents as that would be misinformation.

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but as this thread was about motoring i guess i was trying to say in answer to the original question, was not to let a few bucks added on your fuel ruin your holiday,it could be worse. for me however it was these differences and the £ v $ that made my lifetime dream come true of getting to the u.s.a and roadtripping. :-)

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It has been really fun to see the number of international visitors to the Roadtrip America forums increase as the exchange rate makes it easier for you to afford traveling here. We love having you all as guests. However, I do hope it flip-flops someday so we could afford to visit your side of the pond! ;)

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i'd also add that fuel costs will not affect my "roadtrips" over here but i will have to budget elsewhere as a compromise

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Isn't life all about setting priorities and doing some compromising to get what you want out of it? I have no problem with limiting my local driving more so I have more money available for gas for roadtrips this summer. But, then again, my car gets fairly good mileage. I feel bad for those stuck with more expensive cars to drive. It sure adds up faster for them.

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Originally Posted by MrsPete

Here's the thing with taxes: The feds add a little, the state adds a little, the county adds a little, the city adds a little, then maybe there's a bond . . . and before you know it, it's no longer just a few cents -- it's real money!

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But I've also never had a problem with investing in my country. It's the quid pro quo we pay as citizens to live in this wonderful place, imho.

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Originally Posted by Judy

I didn't take it that way at all. Not a bit. I just didn't want you to think it was only 9 cents as that would be misinformation.

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oh good, i thought i'd check,as great as the internet and forums are it's sometimes hard to write things down in a conversation without having the mannerisms of a "normal chat" to go with the words.

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It has been really fun to see the number of international visitors to the Roadtrip America forums increase as the exchange rate makes it easier for you to afford traveling here. We love having you all as guests. However, I do hope it flip-flops someday so we could afford to visit your side of the pond! ;)

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yes, it's been a great opportunity for us and hopefully one day it will turn in your favour. although [selfishly speaking] not just yet,as i'm hoping to get another visit in first, haa haa!

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Isn't life all about setting priorities and doing some compromising to get what you want out of it? I have no problem with limiting my local driving more so I have more money available for gas for roadtrips this summer.

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thats how i see it and believe thats how it should be done, although it seems to be more common these days for people to make no sacrifices and just keep borrowing money for "luxuries" they can't really afford and then grumble when theres a credit crunch.
oh well, i best get saving as i'm hoping to come over and do another road trip next year,fingers crossed!!

I'll give you a year to save to come back and enjoy another trip to the States. Then I'll wave my magic wand and make travel for us to Europe the cheaper trip. ;)

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Originally Posted by Judy

I'll give you a year to save to come back and enjoy another trip to the States. Then I'll wave my magic wand and make travel for us to Europe the cheaper trip. ;)

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my wife and i have been discussing our next trip which includes the finances of the situation and as keen as she is to return next year she was happy to wait untill the following year if need be, [she's the sensible and patient one] but now i have your wand to add to the equation it looks like next year it is,and thats just fine by me!! ;)

MrsPete--

Each will have to decide for themselves, but to me, the kids don't remain "the right age" long enough and our (parents) opportunities to both teach them a love for traveling with family and spending quality time away from the regular hustle and bustle of life is worth the extra money. I love traveling and love my children--to me it is a perfect time to be "stuck" in a 15 passenger van with all eight of us for thousands of miles. Of course, as with your husband, I will need one hot meal a day or or my outlook gets a little warped.

However, I say this because I can afford the trip this summer.
Not because we have "enough" money, but rather just making it a priority because time is flying by and you never know what next year will bring.

Then again, maybe I will need the phone numbers to the RVs for sale after our trip. Of course, not to live in, but to live in after because I wont be able to afford anything else!!!! :)