nina

I am a bit, instead of taking my own car down to the OBX, I'll drive with my mom and stepdad. It's just my younger son and I, older son had football practice and dh has work, but normally the two of us would drive down and stay a night up and back.

This year we'll share the ride....

GoTravel

We are going to Palm Beach in a couple of weeks (Mr.GoTravel has an upcoming project there) and we are flying instead of driving because it is cheaper.

When Mr.GoTravel got rid of his gas guzzling Expedition that got 15MPG, he bought the largest pickup truck on the planet that only gets 12MPG.

utahtea

Even in our motorhome, I figure it's only $280 more in gas if it goes from $3.25 per gallong to $4.00 a gallon for this summer's 3,000 mile, 4 week trip. We can handle that.

Utahtea

marleneawe

Nope DH and I will be leaving May 16th, driving all the way to Alaska for two months. Driving a 2001 Grand Marquis Mercury. Can afford it, and the gas prices do not bother us at all.

P_M

Last year we vacationed in the UK where gas cost $6/per gallon. Driving in the US still costs half that. But to answer your question, no, this will not change our plans.

trippinkpj

We got our Prius last summer, so we won't change our plans. And roomier inside than our 2000 Acura was, even though it's smaller on the outside.

corwin

has anyone heard that gas is going to be $6 a gallon this summer?
corwin

trippinkpj

I think I heard $4.- in the most expensive spots.

AnnMarie_C

Last night, it was reported that gas in some areas is already up to $4.00/gal. Not here, though--we're hovering near $3.

Hi Nina, we are not changing our travel plans.

gail

As utahtea computed, the actual dollar amount more it will cost, even with a vehicle that chugs gas, is not all that much.

What will change my travel plans is the dollar amount more I am paying in gas in my regular life - it just leaves me with less money at the end of the month since I must use my car for work and do not get mileage reimbursement.

P_M

I'll tell you of a change of a different nature we are about to make. My husband has decided to trade in his gas-guzzling pick up for a Honda. (The transmission is going out, so he needs a new vehicle anyway.) We already have one car payment so I'm not thrilled about having a second one, but in the long run I think this will be best.

girlonthego

I am making less trips around town. I find that I don't do as much back and forth since the prices are going up. I guess I am subconsiously trying to conserve.
I will still go to the beach this summer and probably bit-- about all the way!
So, no I am not changing travel plans, but I am changing my daily routine.

corwin

well, if gas is already near $4 someplace, than $6 this summer can't be far off the mark. the gas thing is supposed to go on for three years! (google news). my 10 yr old volvo wagon is about to hit 200,000 miles and it's time to start used car shopping.

i'm with you, gail. the weekly gas budget is ruining my financial balancing act. wonder if there are used hybrids on the market? i'm in newburyport, ma, and don't think there's any market for used hybrids YET. what about out west? i need largish car for kids gear (lacrosse, snowboarding, friends) and tools for my landscape design work.

i've gotta get up to speed on cars that run on salad oil. heard you can convert just about any car to do this.

corwin

SAnParis

Still no...in the grand scheme of things, if you are budgeted so tightly that an extra $100 in gas makes a difference...you probably shouldn't be taking the trip anyway...just a thought. Both my vehicles get in the 22-30 mph range so the impact is really insignificant. Everyplace else on the planet (short of Saudi Arabia & Dubai) if you travel, you pay much more than what we pay anyway...Hopefully this will encourage more research that will steer us away from our oil-dependent economy.

nina

"if you are budgeted so tightly that an extra $100 in gas makes a difference...you probably shouldn't be taking the trip anyway..."

I doubt anyone here is in this situation. I posed my question in response to a piece I saw on Good Morning America for a family planning a trip from VA to Orlando. They had all intentions of driving, but when they figured out the cost of gas lus 2 nights lodging there and back, it was less expensive to fly.

I was thinking more in terms of altering travel plans rather than actually cancelling travel.

Also, not sharing the ride from CT to NC is going to save me approximately $240 in gas and over $300 in lodging and meals that I would have incurred had I driven myself, (I wouldn't attempt the whole trip without stopping)so the savings in my case is considerably more than $100, at almost $600.

nina

Meant to say sharing the ride is going to save me. Wish there was an edit feature on these boards!

SAnParis

Point taken Nina - I don't drive anywhere outside a 6 hour radius myself. That gets me home to Ohio to the North & to Amelia Island to the South, otherwise, I'm getting on a plane. Obviously for serious road-trippers the cost is more significant. It will be interesting to see if the beaches are impacted since many/most of the visitors we seem to have in summer come from Ohio, Michigan & Ontario.

nina

I know, so many people think I'm crazy for driving 11 hours, but I prefer it to flying.

I only fly when absolutely necessary, I can't stand it, the crowds, the delays, the lost luggage, the risk of finding a parking space, the traffic to the airport, I get a panic attack everytime I have to go to JFK or LGA, and it's not the thought of being in the air that bothers me.

Flying just ain't what it used to be.

corwin

SAn Paris, what are you driving, may i ask. i find your mileage encouraging. never too poor to travel. can always skimp elsewhere, like the weekly gas outlay!
corwin

RedRock

If you need to check gas prices this is a good site to go to.

http://www.gasbuddy.com/

I agree with several others, if a $100 or so extra will make you think twice then you should not be making the trip.