And I mean it. Right now, it seems to be a buyers market. In not very long, we'll have everything paid off, all the kids out of the house, and two full incomes. And a long term hankering to see the country.
As much as I really feel badly for the people who find themselves on the losing end of change, there's always some silver linings for others.
Destinations less crowded... Campgrounds less crowded. More attractive rates and deals for destinations you need to travel to...
Better deals on RV's, TV's and even accessories/equipment.
Maybe some of those campgrounds with "age limits" will find that my money is just as good as the next guy's.
My wife and I have a planned trip in 2011.. We want to see about 43 of the states that year. 15,000 miles, roughly, and I've been thinking about how to approach the fuel cost issues.. I'm using today's prices.. so..
Class A MH - 10 mpg, 1500 gallons of gas X $4.10 = 6150
Small "lite" TT behind my diesel Dodge - 15 mpg = 1000 gallons of diesel X 5.20 = 5200
Propane fueled Tow Rig - 8 mpg = 1875 gallons X 2.60 = 4875
Now, let's add up our other estimateds...
120 nights X 40/night = 4800
120 days X 3 meals X 2 people = 3000
16 weeks X 3 attractions/week X 120 each = 5760
Maintenance on the road: Est .20/mile = 3000, expect 1 breakdown and possible tires, oil changes, etc.
Incidentals, such as cell phone, internet, etc: 800
Of course, this leaves out the insurance and such, but you have to budget for those whether you travel or not.
So, let's see just how big of a dent gas prices makes...
I'll round this to 23,500, and that includes the most expensive fuel bill.
Now, let's raise gas from 4.10 to 6.50...
And the bill goes to 27,000.
It went up 15%, roughly.
Now, I don't know about you, but I suspect we could save a few percent on food, and possibly skip a few attractions and get that change to less than 10%. Maybe plan our driving a bit more tightly and shave 2000 miles off. Maybe use more primitive sites... Cut 2 nights a week, boondock them, or spend them in otherwise cheaper facilities... That would make a sizeable dent.
Looking at this, we're still "on" for the trip. I think unless gas gets over 8 or 9 per gallon, we're still going to be "on".
So, what do you think, all? Is it really time to cry doom and gloom? Not from my point of view. If you really like travelling...find some way to do with less of something else... fuel cost just does not seem insurmountable.
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Mopars forever... Not German, Japanese, Chinese...American Mopars!
The price of freedom is higher than the price of slavery, but it's still a bargain!
it sounds like a good plan, except plan on fuel continueing to raise in price. Campground rates will follow and so will food. I hope you can work it out. Good luck.
OK, you are budgeting $12.50 a day for food? I think my math was right. I am guessing that you are planning most all meals at home (in the trailer). But, there are places like Dissyworld where you will likely not be able to take you own food in. Might want to budget a bit higher for food. How much do you budget at home for two? That will be your baseline, plus a percentage for eating out. Your fuel cost I think is way low. On a very good day with a tail wind, a gas powered MH of any length will get closer to 8 than 10 MPG. Not trying to throw a damper on your plan, just might want to readjust the numbers some.JMHO
I think you're on the right track but you may be underestimating some of your expenses, especially food and fuel. OTOH I would think $40/night would be a bit high if you favored SPs.
We all know it's going to cost more than you think but why not? Go for it. You'll make great memories and your family will be closer for it. That's worth more than money.
DW and I in our Gulfstream Amerilite 21MB
Chevy Silverado 2500 HD - Duramax Diesel 6.6L - Allison Tranny
"We can categorically state that we have not released man-eating badgers into the area." - Major Mike Shearer - British Army - Basra, Iraq
Well, I wasn't trying to be "perfect" on the numbers, but to show how fuel, even going up A LOT isn't going to totally wipe out the notion. $4/meal/person is plenty, meaning we do a lot of our own food preparation. And yes, we'd want to stay mostly in state and national parks (that's what we're going to see).
I want to see, if possible, at least all the major national parks in the lower 48, that I haven't been to before. I want to see a lot of the historical revolutionary war era and civil war era sights. Even spend a little time in Washington DC, though proximity to politicians gives me the creeps...
We wanted to do this with the kids, when they were young, but just about the time we thought this might work out, financial catastrophe happened, we ended up bankrupt and even lost our home. So, that didn't work out. We did manage to take a few trips with them, though. We saw much of the Northwest and a little of BC. Our TV was 35 years old and our TT was 29, but we had a blast anyway... And we never broke down once, even on our trip that crossed the Continental Divide 5 times.
But this time, we'll have been married 25 years, and the youngest will be 19 and probably gone off to school somewhere. So, we're going to do this while we're young and can appreciate it. My wife's profession is such that she can work anywhere and anytime, and in the right conditions, $3-4K a week. So, budgets can be adjusted and our trip adjusted to bring in some extra money to make it work or extend it. We'll have paid off our mortgage, cars, and all debts well before then, and all the cash in the bank we expect to need.
I own my own business, and I will be able to leave for 6 mo, if I want.
I refuse to wait until I'm "old". It might be too late. I may never get there, or the wife never get there. I don't plan on leaving my kids any large inheritance to fight over, and I know you can't take it with you. We want to do good with it and it's likely we'll see not just the US, but also join some of the volunteer teams that go to disasters around the world. The kids ask... "why would you do that?" and we always answer "Because we can, because someone needs to, that's why."
65 Crewcab
Just a little advice. Do it now, don't wait!
My wife and I were planning on buying a MH and doing some traveling. We had all our bills paid off and we were comfortable. We weren't rich but comfortable. We usually did what we wanted and would go where we wanted. This past December my wife started having pains under her rib cage. She went to the doctor and was treated for acid reflux. The pain didn't go away, just got worse. I took her to the emergency room on December 23. The next day she had two operations. On January 22 she died from cancer. Liver and colon. Since then I've had the worst 5 months of my life. And I'll always regret not doing the things she wanted before her death.
Good Luck
Jim
texaswonder wrote: 65 Crewcab
Just a little advice. Do it now, don't wait!
My wife and I were planning on buying a MH and doing some traveling. We had all our bills paid off and we were comfortable. We weren't rich but comfortable. We usually did what we wanted and would go where we wanted. This past December my wife started having pains under her rib cage. She went to the doctor and was treated for acid reflux. The pain didn't go away, just got worse. I took her to the emergency room on December 23. The next day she had two operations. On January 22 she died from cancer. Liver and colon. Since then I've had the worst 5 months of my life. And I'll always regret not doing the things she wanted before her death.
Good Luck
Jim
So sorry to hear that story Jim. It sounds like you were working on doing all the things she wanted, but just ran out of time. It also sounds like your wife was a very lucky woman to have a husband who, even in this time of grief is giving advice-and very good advice-to someone who he doesn't even know and will most likely never meet.
I wish you only the best and hope that you get that motorhome and travel the country in honor of your wife.
texaswonder wrote: 65 Crewcab
Just a little advice. Do it now, don't wait!
My wife and I were planning on buying a MH and doing some traveling. We had all our bills paid off and we were comfortable. We weren't rich but comfortable. We usually did what we wanted and would go where we wanted. This past December my wife started having pains under her rib cage. She went to the doctor and was treated for acid reflux. The pain didn't go away, just got worse. I took her to the emergency room on December 23. The next day she had two operations. On January 22 she died from cancer. Liver and colon. Since then I've had the worst 5 months of my life. And I'll always regret not doing the things she wanted before her death.
Good Luck
Jim
We've done our best to try to do stuff together. My wife travels for her work, so she's gone a lot, but when the opportunity was there, we went. She's been to England, Scotland, France, Peru, Japan, all on trips with our kids for band, english class, sister city ambassadors, and mission trips with our church or school.
I recently spent a couple weeks with her out on the North Slope of Alaska... we actually rode dog sleds and went out on the sea ice, and saw the midnight sun, too.
Right now, we can't go. We have basically been funding two households to get my middle daughter through college, and she graduated last week. There's just under two years of sizeable bills for education left and then we're mostly on our own.
We bought a timeshare in Florida ( found a deal from a desperate salesman trying to make his quota at a week's end), and paid about 1/3 of retail for it, and joined a resort exchange, and we're making use of it.
By IRS standards, we ARE wealthy, but by all other appearances, we're not. No new cars, no big house, and we won't buy an expensive RV. God blessed us with much, and we feel an obligation to use it wisely and prudently, and to bless others with it.
If you ever get depressed, don't know what to do... Join an organization that volunteers to help others. Take two weeks in some godforsaken jungle or tundra or desert or whatever, busting your butt to help others and when you get back, you will find your mind renewed, your depression gone, and an appreciation for amazingly wonderful and rich life we all take for granted.
You don't need drugs or therapy. You need to serve others, and in doing so, you will do more for yourself than any therapist or doctor. Time heals the wounds, but serving others don't just help, it gives you a chance to heal other's wounds, the best medicine ever invented for the soul.
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