Sorry all, been out riding my ass off and not been online much.
Was talking with my wife afterward and we were wondering maybe it’s not such a stupid idea to look into a small camper, RV, or pop up that we could get to do such trips as for a trip like that, with 2 adults and 3 kids we are 100% gonna be more than 10k.
We went to the west coast in 2008 (the last time the prices of fuel spiked big, for those who remember) on this exact premise...and we ended up proving it quite true...albeit fuel prices (at least diesel) were a little cheaper that summer, around $1.60/L IIRC. But despite this summers prices, gas prices have moderated again and are likely to stay that way for some time.
Our truck pulling our (at the time) 30' Fifth wheel got around 25L/100KM towing. We spent around $4000 in diesel travelling all the way across Canada on the TC and back through the USA via Yellowstone etc etc and across I90.
Living expenses including food and all the entertainment and extras was about $3K.
So, total was 7K for around 35 days on the road and 11,000km travelled.
So, over 35 days on the road and all the places we saw, things we did, campground fees (we also boondocked a lot in the boring areas where we were making big miles every day), meals we ate, etc etc...that was $200 per day total averaged out.
Could we have travelled across the country and back for $200/day including hotels and 3 meals a day for 4 people? Not a hope in hell. We'd have spent $100/day (likely more in many places) in food alone and there's no way we'd have *averaged* $100/night for hotels/motels, even assuming cheap motels for $79/night in the boonies, but the $400/night places like Banff, Vancouver, Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone National Park, etc etc would have skyrocketed that bell curve. And we spent 3 days in banff, 4 days in vancouver, 4 days in Yellowstone, etc etc.
So yes, there is a strong argument to be made that you can save money with 4 people. With 2 people the math might be different, but the experience is still hella fun IMHO vs boring hotels and eating out constantly.
It's why we still absolutely favour travelling with our camper to this day versus just road tripping and hotels. Heck, I think we did our entire trip to Boston/CapeCod/Marthas Vinyard for about $750 this past summer for a week....zero chance we'd have been able to do that for that price any other way - heck, the hotels alone in all those places would have probably run us $1500 by the time we were all done - they're all tourist traps with prices accordingly.
Pop up is the way to go in terms of sleeping quarters and towing with a minivan
Popups are HEAVY. Yes, they have an aerodynamic edge, but many people are suprrised to find that they weigh more than a comperably sized traditional trailer. And if you're travelling and want to stop on the roadside somewhere for a meal (or an emergncy pee break as was the case of my photo above LOL), you have to crank the thing up, pull it out, etc etc etc. On a travel trailer..you just open the door and walk in.
And as others have said, if you pack them away wet, you have to dry them out. And there are a lot of areas particularly out west where you're not allowed to camp in soft-sided campers due to grizzly bear risks.
rvshowsontario.ca
www.potentialmotors.com