gas, gas, & more gas
4
a big consideration when thinking of traveling full-time is how much will it cost. while this varies for each and every person depending on their circumstances, one thing everyone has to contend with…gas. our number one expense is gas. the amount we have spent on fueling the tank has been huge, more than we ever could have imagined. we have a 3/4 ton suburban so it is arguably not the most gas friendly but without it we would have been struggling to pull eddie. 22ft may be small but our little airstream is still heavy! we try to minimize our driving once at our destination but we still drive a lot. we didn’t come on the road to stay in each place long term, we saved our pennies to get out and explore as much as we could and that means more driving not less, which means more cash for gas.
while our gas expenses are high we can’t imagine the gas costs for the big buses, if you are thinking of going this route think big numbers when you fill the tank and decide if you’re ok with that. the larger and heavier the rig the larger the dent at the gas tank. if you don’t plan on moving all that much then this will minimize your cost and if you drive a big rig and pull a small car and you don’t move from place to place a lot then you will really save, but even if you pull a car for destination driving.. if you’re moving your whole set up a lot (like us) you will spend major bucks on fuel. (little car or not) if you drive a motorhome and don’t pull a car then you have to drive your rig everywhere you go, with the exception of wherever you can bike or walk (weather permitting) and this is another way your gas costs will rise.
gas is a major thing to consider when planning your travels because you never get to forget about it. every couple of days you’ll be filling up again, a constant reminder of how much it’s costing. it’s all the time, in your face, more money for gas please! this all comes back to being very clear about what you want out of your travels.. why are you/do you want to do it, what do you want to get out of your travels, is it permanent, for six months, a year, undetermined? without a clear focus of what you’re wanting to see/do/accomplish you’ll just be spinning your wheels and at the tune of 4 bucks a gallon, ouch. without a clear focus of what you want when the gas bill is $300 a week you’ll be wondering what the hell you got yourself into. a few questions to ask yourself.. are you going for a limited amount of time and want to see as much as you can in that time? do you want to live on the road full-time and what are your expectations of how much you will see how fast? if you want to live full-time are you going to stop somewhere for the winter? do you want to go for one year and can you stay in places for weeks at a time to minimize driving or do you want to go every few days to a new spot? all of these questions will help point you to what your expectations are and this will help you realize what kind of costs you will incur, particularly gas costs which is a variable cost for any traveler but is the one that can suck you dry if you’re not prepared. think of the measure twice, cut once philosophy and you’ll be on the right track.
Filed Under: airstreams & campers
Tagged: airstream, full-time rv, full-time traveling, gas costs, rv and gas costs
*please & thank you* link back to us if you re-post something you see here.
I feel you on the gas. I am looking to get a vespa that can fit in the airstream when I travel. It was kind of a shocker when I got my 3/4 ton car and I think I cried the first time I filled it
But your experience I am sure makes up for it!
the experience has been just what we needed, but we had
very clear goals going into it and if we had not.. even
with great memories and experiences we would have been fraught with the expense.. thousands+ just on gas! it’s the things
nobody talks about that everyone really need to know! (:
good to hear from you!!
very, very good to know. thanks for sharing your numbers!
suzanne, by far the fastest cash out of your pocket, if you’re sitting still a lot no biggie! but if not it’s good to be forewarned or else you’re really really shocked!