travel costs in retirement?

[Jim34RL]

Being a retired engineer who use to use project management and spread sheets at work I now use them to provide data for me to review such as my camping cost. So, I went back and checked my cost before retiring and after retiring well I spend the same if corrected for inflation. The only difference is we spread out the time traveling now and not trying to squeeze everything into three or four week time period. What we normally do now is travel locally once a month for a week or so. We then take a month-long or two-month trip to some area we want to visit such as the east coast or out west. Our biggest expense when we do this is fuel which can be up to $1,000 a month depending on driving distances.

We review our yearly budget in Dec./Jan. time frame each year and decided on how much we want to spend on vacation and so forth. So far this has worked out to be about $1,000 a week each year we travel. This includes camp fees and fuel + spending cash but not food.

My DW only wants full hook-up sites with 50AMPS so we do not stay in state parks to often.

[tuckerdog1]

Originally Posted by Oakman

As soon as you turn 62 get an America the Beautiful Seniors Pass from the federal government. It will get you half price camping at most (not all) national parks and Corps of Engineer campgrounds and free entrance into national parks. The pass is good for life and I believe the new cost is $80. Ha, $80 bucks for a lifetime pass that gives you 50% off camping fees and free entrance to national parks…what a deal.

$80! Got mine 2 years ago & it was $10. What happened?

Tuckerdog1

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by tuckerdog1

$80! Got mine 2 years ago & it was $10. What happened?

Tuckerdog1

Gotta review the whole thread

[debit]

All these comments are super accurate. I think one of the additional considerations is to match the RV to your life style, and then be sure to match the TT and TV. Personally, I have found that the mid-size TT (our last two TTs have been about 29') gives us great versatility and reasonable fuel costs for the last 20 years. Our current TT has a slide (see roomy pic).
We often take the TT off paved roads, but yet use it with are Good Sam club outings.
------------
2500 Ram diesel, 4x4 6 speed manual, 8 foot bed with canopy.
FR 251RKS

[Kanga99]

For general planning for a trip (not long term stays) I figure about $125 per day when stopped and about $300 per day when traveling. Main difference if gas and more expensive overnight stays at KOA, etc. When we get to a destination it is usually a state park which is nice and cheap but then we have other tourist costs such as history tours, train and boat rides, wineries. These cost of course are different for everyone. Food stays about the same as home since we eat out at about the same rate. At 10.5 MPG I can burn through 300 bucks in gas on a 12 hour drive crossing the Great Plains. But I spent my work life in airplanes and hotels so I would not trade this for anything!

[Swampy]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

For those of you whose camping time increased in retirement, can you share how much you spend on RV travel, not including food? I'm a couple years out from retirement and, while I have no interest in full-timing, I do hope our time spent camping will increase significantly. Along those lines, I'm trying to forecast those increased travel expenses so I know when we have "enough" to retire.

Not being tied to a job means we can spend several months at a time taking longer trips. Three to five months on the road per year seems like a reasonable estimate. When we do that, other costs of living won't change. We're not ditching the condo so costs of ownership won't change, except maybe for utilities. We still have to eat and mostly cook for ourselves but do eat at restaurants. The restaurant part probably would go up while in transit but not dramatically. I have been warned to consider the cost of healthcare outside our PPO provider networks, should we need that.

FWIW, we're more of the state park type of camper rather than RV resorts. I foresee us staying in locations like that for the limit allowed (a couple of weeks?) lounging around some days and taking day trips on others. When spending time out west, dry-camping on BLM land is definitely an option, but it won't be a goal to do that for the purpose of a cheap residential life. Instead, that will be an economical way to visit places we want to see. Also, we're not averse to a few stints as hosts in public parts but I'm a bit skeptical about the economic benefits of doing that.

If anyone has some wisdom to share, I'd appreciate it. Thanks for your time.

One thing I am considering when DW and I decide to get out there and explore is working as Campground Host at the CG. Most require a few hours per week and in return you get to have the site of your choice. The worst thing you may have to do is mop out the restrooms and restock the TP. Most require you stay a certain amount of time ... say a month or two.
....... Swampy

[Rvdixie]

We are in full retirement and like to travel for 2 or 3 months at a time and then come home for a month or two and then travel again. We found the least expensive way to travel was to get monthly rates in an area from which we could do some daily trips. The monthly rate of course is so much less and you also use less gas than going from CG to CG. When in transit we like to use the Passport America campbrounds in order to save more. If it's just an overnight stay we prefer the savings to the luxury. That's not to say that there aren't great PA camgrounds.

[bobbrown]

My wife and I didn't buy a Class C RV to save on hotel costs. I believe that you need to counter in the cost of the RV itself and associated expenses and it doesn't really save you money!

We don't like hotels anymore. Plain and simple. Even the best hotels can have college kid parties in the middle of the night, pulled fire alarms, bed bugs (ugh) and clipped toe nails in the sheets. That's just a small sampling so you get the idea.

Our RV affords us the luxury of not having to lug suitcases in and out of hotels, long lineups at the reservation desk or climbing stairs as the elevator is being serviced!

There is something to be said about the freedom of RV life. Most parks are nice and if they aren't just leave for the next one!

For those who worry about the budget too much then you shouldn't have purchased a vehicle that gets 8 miles per gallon lol...just saying!

Bob Brown

2013 Forest River Sunseeker 3170DS

[Oakman]

Ditto what Rvdixie said.
If you plan to stay at an RV park be sure to check to see if they offer monthly rates. Even though you may not plan on staying a month there are parks that have monthly rates that are cheaper than paying the weekly rate for just two weeks. There’s no rule that says if you pay the monthly rate you have to stay for the month.

I’ll give you an example. Let’s say you plan to visit the Memphis, TN for 14 days. A good campground in that area is the EZ Daze RV Park just across the border in Southhaven, MS. They have a daily rate of $49, a weekly rate of $300, and a monthly rate of $550. Rather than pay $600 for two weeks pay the $550 for the monthly rate.

Any time you plan to spend two weeks anywhere, be sure to compare rates for weekly vs. monthly. Not all RV parks offer weekly and monthly rates but it pays to check.

Another way to save money is to join Passport America. P. A. offers 50% off camping rates at 1900 participating campgrounds. The fee is just $44 but the savings can be great. Check out their website for the campgrounds that are members to see if you might stay at one of them. A word to the wise though, each campground will have their own restrictions and limitations associated your stay and always check reviews of those campgrounds. Some of the campgrounds that honor the 50% Passport America rate might be real dumps such as Cherokee Hills Campground in Jackson, MO. Conversely, some of the member campgrounds are outstanding such as Mountaindale Campground in Colorado Springs, CO.

Another way to save money is to join the Good Sam Club if you aren’t already a member. The cost is $27 a year and that also gets you a discount price on parts and supplies at Camping World. While the discount at participating Good Sam parks is only 10% it doesn’t take very many days at one of their parks to make up that $27.

[Tapex]

Originally Posted by Swampy

One thing I am considering when DW and I decide to get out there and explore is working as Campground Host at the CG. Most require a few hours per week and in return you get to have the site of your choice. The worst thing you may have to do is mop out the restrooms and restock the TP. Most require you stay a certain amount of time ... say a month or two.
....... Swampy

We to have took into consideration the thought of temporary working while traveling to different CG's also. Even the thought of volunteers for the Red Cross in disaster relief helping others has been talked about between me and DW. There's a part of us that wants to help others out while traveling around this great nation. We're​ just trying to plan accordingly to choose the life style we're looking to live. Our budget is the key to traveling successfully ​during retirement.

[stillontheroad]

We have been retired for the past 20 years and have camped extensively. When we started we would book into a private park (in the warmer south) for the 4 winter months. That started to become an expensive proposition when we decided to travel all around the US and Canada because short stay s were always much more expensive. We FOUND AN ANSWER in a membership park called Thousand Trails and added another, Resort Parks International (RPI) and also Passport America. Thousand Trails cost us $2000.00 (purchased as a resale on line, and then some $500.00 per y and after that ear, RPI costs us $118.00 per year and Passport America is $44.00 per year. When we camp at the thousand trails parks (full service resorts) our first 50 nights are no charge and after that $5.00 per night, RPI parks are $10.00 per night and Passport America parks are 1/2 the list price. For the last 12 years we have travelled to almost every state (generally a 4 month trip each time) and aour camping costs including our annual dues for each of the three are just under $1000.00. Actually it is cheaper to camp than pay house taxes. If you need more info, let me know. Vern

[dalford]

Originally Posted by aspengirl

The website still shows the Senior Pass at $10, but that's not to say it isn't going up any day. If you're 62, you should probably jump on that right away. We each bought a pass and did it online, so it was $20 each, as they add a handling fee of $10 each. Still a GREAT deal and as you said, $80 is still a deal!!

You really only need to buy one pass for the family. It gets you and and 3 more into National Parks free. When making reserva just make them under the card holders name.

Here is the link.. https://store.usgs.gov/pass/senior_pass_application.pdf

[chriscowles]

I apologize for not replying individually but DW and I appreciate all of your responses. Many contain information and ideas that are new to us. (DW's looking up the membership clubs as I type this.) I look forward to others sharing their knowledge and experience, as well. That will benefit lurkers who are reading without participating, too.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by debit

... I think one of the additional considerations is to match the RV to your life style, and then be sure to match the TT and TV. ...

Those who can see my sig in their desktop browser can see that I'm pulling a 21' hybrid with a Ford F150. We plan to upgrade to a ~25' couples trailer with a single slide, possibly with a Murphy bed. I don't want a larger truck and will match the TT to the F150. I've observed larger trailers bashing trees and bending stab jacks on the tight, sometimes rough, roads in the state parks we like to frequent.

[aceinspp]

Originally Posted by dalford

You really only need to buy one pass for the family. It gets you and and 3 more into National Parks free. When making reserva just make them under the card holders name.

Here is the link.. https://store.usgs.gov/pass/senior_pass_application.pdf

This is one of the better deals and we use it a lot at corp parks. Alot depends on how much you want to travel and camp as to your cost. Later RJD

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by tapex

We to have took into consideration the thought of temporary working while traveling to different CG's also. Even the thought of volunteers for the Red Cross in disaster relief helping others has been talked about between me and DW. There's a part of us that wants to help others out while traveling around this great nation. We're​ just trying to plan accordingly to choose the life style we're looking to live. Our budget is the key to traveling successfully ​during retirement.

We share your interest in public service through volunteerism. The Appalachian Service Project may be one through which we can escape Florida's summer heat by spending a few months in the cool mountains while also putting some of my talents to work.

[spock123]

DW and I retired to never work again. Well DW keeps the camper clean. I save as much as I can when camping but DW doesn't like to dry camp so we stay in campgrounds, about a week is the longest we stay in one place. We like to eat in good places. We eat at home a lot but I also like a steak, DW likes Olive Garden and I like Red Lobster, we can't eat there every night. I'm enjoying life, no work and I'm not saving for a rainy day. Have fun camping I do

[f5moab]

Originally Posted by Oakman

OK my bad. I thought the rate had already been increased to $80 so it behooves anyone who is 62 to buy the pass now before it goes up. The National Park Service sent me an email this past December that the plan was to increase the senior pass to $80 in 2017. I take it for granted this planned increase is still on the table.

Per the Pocatello BLM office I was at getting the pass replaced a month ago (if damaged the old pass will be replaced for free), it will go up to $80 sometime this year. But no exact date has been given (at that time anyway).

[Tapex]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

We share your interest in public service through volunteerism. The Appalachian Service Project may be one through which we can escape Florida's summer heat by spending a few months in the cool mountains while also putting some of my talents to work.

In our spare time, when needed for helping out. We are volunteers for the North Carolina Special Olympics working with special needs and the interlectaul disabilities which brings us much joy. Giving back to the unfortunate with our spare time. We've been doing this around 8yrs.

[dahagen]

How much does it cost to retire? As much as you have. The more you have, the more you can travel. The biggest cost of RV travel usually is fuel for your rig. We travel less and stay longer. Stay 2 weeks (many public park limits) then go to another park and do the same. When we visited Florida a few years ago we sometimes only traveled 50 miles on the travel day. And get the senior pass before it goes up.