58 Days on the road -- Summer, 2014 -- Pacific northwest

[Pmount]

Back home for a few days, getting back to the day to day routine. We were gone a total of 77 days, however 19 days of the trip were side trips, not part of the Road Trip. The costs reported below are based on 58 days of the Road Trip portion.

Total - $4939.10

Overnight - $932.95
Motel - $253.20 @ 5 nights, Avg $50.65
Camping - $679.70 @ 53 nights, Avg $12.92 (Husband > 62, so federal camping at 50%)

Fuel - $1719.62
Avg mpg 18, fuel cost $3.53 - $4.39

Meals - $2054.87
Besides meals it includes snacks, happy hour and groceries

Misc - $191.56
Ice, Laundry, Showers, Firewood, Camping Supplies, kayak rental

Travel - $54.10
Ferry, Shuttle, Parking

Avg per day - $85.16
X 7 days = $596.12

Early on I had stated that our goal was about $500 per week. Looks like we exceeded that, but this was a very different trip with the side trips. Even with not including those costs, the days before and after the trips were more expensive than normal because we were based around cities, Portland and Seattle.

Even at the higher costs the road trip portion of the trip was a bargain compared to the cruise. In general the cost of a week's cruise is 10 times the cost of our road trip. Both of us are glad we did the cruise, however neither of us feel the value equaled the cost. We much prefer the freedom of a road trip.

Read the entire field report -- from the road -- for this epic road trip!

[cookiemonster2]

Thank you so much for this! It really helps. I am planning a 2 month road trip around the country next Fall and I will be Couch Surfing. Any tips you can share? I am going solo to big cities, from LA up to Portland over to the East Coast then down to Atlanta and Texas and finishing in Vegas.

[DonnaR57]

I'm pretty sure that one of the moderators will move this to its own thread, but a couple of questions for you about your trip, cookiemonster:

Are you already getting acquainted on the Couch Surfing boards? From what I'm given to understand, you'll need to develop some references. Also, it's polite to offer your hosts either some sort of gift (bottle of wine, etc), take them out for a meal, cook them a meal, clean a bathroom, or similar, as a thank you for hosting you.

Do you have maps? Those are imperative! Either get a Rand McNally atlas at your nearest big box store, or go to AAA for individual state maps.

Are you a AAA member? If your vehicle is no longer under warranty, this is a good idea. Even if it's under warranty, AAA is good for maps, and Tour Books that are up-to-date (we like them for the ideas they have about what's to see in the state, and fairly up-to-date rates), and of course the towing if you do get stuck somewhere. You can also go into a local AAA office and get more brochures and ideas for the area that you're visiting, than your own AAA branch will have. Or, if you're renting a vehicle, you would need the maps more than you would need the towing and the other emergency road services.

WHEN is this trip? The time of year would be important for any of us to offer any suggestions, since certain things don't open until May.

Is this a one-way trip, since you appear to be starting in LA and ending in Las Vegas?


Donna

[MajorMajor]

Good data, I'm guessing by your MPG you aren't using an RV but instead camping in a tent?