Brandi
05-27-2008, 10:10 AM
We're starting to think about the beginning stages of planning our PCS move back to San Diego. We've gotten word that we'll be leaving sometime around the beginning of November, which is only 5 months or so away, and this trip is going to take quite a bit of planning :insomnia
We'll be traveling with 4 kids (ages 6, 3, 2 and newborn) and there are a few different scenarios I am thinking through. I have no idea which one would be best when you factor in stress, money, etc. So, tell me what you think you would do.
Flying -
If we fly, it's going to cost around $200-$250 per ticket. So, we're looking at a flight cost of around $1500 or so when you factor in tickets, fees, taxes, any extra luggage (we will have to bring carry ons, bags, a stroller PLUS four huge britax carseats). We'd also have to make arrangements to fly Yogi (around $300-$400), plus we'd have to factor in the cost to ship the van which is about $1,000 maybe more with gas prices the way they are now, plus the cost of a rental car for a few days. So, we'd probably be looking at around $3,000 or so to fly with all costs factored in.
We've done the flying thing with three kiddos and it was seriously one of the most stressful days of my life. It didn't help that two kids had fevers, one was colicky, the rental car people at our arriving airport were running more than 2 hours late and none of us had eaten anything for about 8 hours. But seriously, it was pretty much hell trying to juggle three kids, plus baggage, plus the carseats.
The plus side is that it was only one day of travel, then it was over with. So, we didn't have all of the driving, eating out, hotel stays, multiple days of sun up to sun down driving, etc to worry about. Plus, I think we ended up spending the same amount of money to fly as we did to drive b/c we didn't have things like gas, eating out every day, hotel stays, etc to pay for.
Driving-
We've also done the driving thing with three kids and a dog. It was pretty much hell also :lol It's a 2,200+ mile trip, so it was 3 FULL days of getting up before the sun was up and driving until we were all about to die from being in the car. The kids were cranky, the van was believably cramped just with the three carseats, the dog and the luggage we had. I don't even know how we'd work it with a forth carseat thrown into the mix. :insomnia
It ended up costing us a fortune b/c the hotels that accepted pets Yogi's size were few and far between, they were crappy run down pieces of junk and they were expensive ($100+ per night). Plus, eating out three times a day for a family of 5, gas, etc, etc. We spent around $700+ just on gas last time, this was with gas like a dollar cheaper per gallon than it is now. So, we're looking at probably $900+ for gas and such. Then another $100-$125 per night for a hotel for 4 nights. Plus, another $100 a day in misc eating and other crap. Two tune ups and oil changes for the van (before and after) which is another $100. With all extras factored in, we're looking at probably $2,500 or so to drive.
The plus side to this was that we didn't have to worry about running through airports juggling luggage and kids, we weren't rushed, we could stop and go as we pleased, we didn't have to worry about being the focal point of a plane full of people with the kids crying and being antsy :lol and no rental cars or anything like that to worry with.
RV -
This is something that we've never done but I've been thinking about doing so I finally called to verify prices for renting a large (28 foot I think, sleeps up to 8 people) RV for a one way trip. Since we'd be dropping off instead of doing a round trip, they automatically tack on a $1500 "Drop off" fee. So, that's $1,500 off the bat which is where the bulk of the cost is, IMO. Then it's $91 per day and 32 cents per mile. If we did the trip in 3 days, our total cost would be about $2,500 plus the cost of food to bring with us and gas.
The plus side is that we could tow our van and not have to worry about a rental car, we wouldn't have to worry about hotels to accommodate dogs, we could drive and stop when ever we want to, rather than planning around which hotels I"ve booked that will let Yogi stay there, the kids can have free access to stretch and move around, easier to feed the baby whenever he needs to eat, we can buy regular food at the grocery store to cook and eat in the RV without eating fast food the whole way and we'll have a lot more room to bring the carseats and luggage that we'll need.
So, all of our options obviously have a few sucky parts and a good good parts, but they will all cost around the same amount of money, give or take a few hundred bucks.
Which would you do if you were in my shoes?
We'll be traveling with 4 kids (ages 6, 3, 2 and newborn) and there are a few different scenarios I am thinking through. I have no idea which one would be best when you factor in stress, money, etc. So, tell me what you think you would do.
Flying -
If we fly, it's going to cost around $200-$250 per ticket. So, we're looking at a flight cost of around $1500 or so when you factor in tickets, fees, taxes, any extra luggage (we will have to bring carry ons, bags, a stroller PLUS four huge britax carseats). We'd also have to make arrangements to fly Yogi (around $300-$400), plus we'd have to factor in the cost to ship the van which is about $1,000 maybe more with gas prices the way they are now, plus the cost of a rental car for a few days. So, we'd probably be looking at around $3,000 or so to fly with all costs factored in.
We've done the flying thing with three kiddos and it was seriously one of the most stressful days of my life. It didn't help that two kids had fevers, one was colicky, the rental car people at our arriving airport were running more than 2 hours late and none of us had eaten anything for about 8 hours. But seriously, it was pretty much hell trying to juggle three kids, plus baggage, plus the carseats.
The plus side is that it was only one day of travel, then it was over with. So, we didn't have all of the driving, eating out, hotel stays, multiple days of sun up to sun down driving, etc to worry about. Plus, I think we ended up spending the same amount of money to fly as we did to drive b/c we didn't have things like gas, eating out every day, hotel stays, etc to pay for.
Driving-
We've also done the driving thing with three kids and a dog. It was pretty much hell also :lol It's a 2,200+ mile trip, so it was 3 FULL days of getting up before the sun was up and driving until we were all about to die from being in the car. The kids were cranky, the van was believably cramped just with the three carseats, the dog and the luggage we had. I don't even know how we'd work it with a forth carseat thrown into the mix. :insomnia
It ended up costing us a fortune b/c the hotels that accepted pets Yogi's size were few and far between, they were crappy run down pieces of junk and they were expensive ($100+ per night). Plus, eating out three times a day for a family of 5, gas, etc, etc. We spent around $700+ just on gas last time, this was with gas like a dollar cheaper per gallon than it is now. So, we're looking at probably $900+ for gas and such. Then another $100-$125 per night for a hotel for 4 nights. Plus, another $100 a day in misc eating and other crap. Two tune ups and oil changes for the van (before and after) which is another $100. With all extras factored in, we're looking at probably $2,500 or so to drive.
The plus side to this was that we didn't have to worry about running through airports juggling luggage and kids, we weren't rushed, we could stop and go as we pleased, we didn't have to worry about being the focal point of a plane full of people with the kids crying and being antsy :lol and no rental cars or anything like that to worry with.
RV -
This is something that we've never done but I've been thinking about doing so I finally called to verify prices for renting a large (28 foot I think, sleeps up to 8 people) RV for a one way trip. Since we'd be dropping off instead of doing a round trip, they automatically tack on a $1500 "Drop off" fee. So, that's $1,500 off the bat which is where the bulk of the cost is, IMO. Then it's $91 per day and 32 cents per mile. If we did the trip in 3 days, our total cost would be about $2,500 plus the cost of food to bring with us and gas.
The plus side is that we could tow our van and not have to worry about a rental car, we wouldn't have to worry about hotels to accommodate dogs, we could drive and stop when ever we want to, rather than planning around which hotels I"ve booked that will let Yogi stay there, the kids can have free access to stretch and move around, easier to feed the baby whenever he needs to eat, we can buy regular food at the grocery store to cook and eat in the RV without eating fast food the whole way and we'll have a lot more room to bring the carseats and luggage that we'll need.
So, all of our options obviously have a few sucky parts and a good good parts, but they will all cost around the same amount of money, give or take a few hundred bucks.
Which would you do if you were in my shoes?