Cost per day to tour
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NightShadow
Well-known member
You are pretty close on that. It will depend on what gas mileage u get and how much for hotels.
If you look for cheap motels - 60 a night or under then you probably can do. I would say it is
more around 150 a day.
I should have said that Canada is way more expensive then the U.S.
You haven't said where you are going. I was talking about the U.S.
If you look for cheap motels - 60 a night or under then you probably can do. I would say it is
more around 150 a day.
I should have said that Canada is way more expensive then the U.S.
You haven't said where you are going. I was talking about the U.S.
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It would be nice if it was only $125! Based on my experience (and depending upon where you travel) you should consider $120/day for a decent hotel room, $50/day/person for meals, and up to $50/day for gas (based on 600km/day.) So, if you are going solo, you are looking at $220/day. If you are going 2-up with a passenger, that will go up to approx $270/day (extra meal cost.) Incidentals (beer, snacks and cigars for the end of the day) might add another $10.... so there ya go... $230 - $270/day.
Note... sharing your hotel room with another rider will half the cost, of course. Meals, fuel and incidentals should be considered fixed costs of $100 - $110/day. Hotels are highly variable... I have paid $250/night for a beautiful room in Quebec City, and $75/night for some crappy fleabag hotel in Pennsylvania (and I hope to never repeat that experience!) You should be able to get a decent room for an average price of $100 - $120 per night. Incidentals should also cover the cost of toll highways and ferries if required (the ferry off PEI for example, is about $30!)
Note... sharing your hotel room with another rider will half the cost, of course. Meals, fuel and incidentals should be considered fixed costs of $100 - $110/day. Hotels are highly variable... I have paid $250/night for a beautiful room in Quebec City, and $75/night for some crappy fleabag hotel in Pennsylvania (and I hope to never repeat that experience!) You should be able to get a decent room for an average price of $100 - $120 per night. Incidentals should also cover the cost of toll highways and ferries if required (the ferry off PEI for example, is about $30!)
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Summer 2014, Toronto to Florida 1 week, Florida to California 1 week, Cali to Washington 1 week, Washington to Toronto 1 week. Roughly, with a day here and there in interesting places to rest. Blue lines on the map. Haven't decided between 1975 Honda CB750 or 1976 BMW R90/6. I'll sell the one I don't take, to finance the trip. Can't swing $120/ night in a hotel! I'm thinking $20/day for food max. Shoestring budget.
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You want to plot out Air BnB to find some cheap places tho outside the major cities motels are cheap too.
Depends on how many KM you put on as well.
Mine is likely typical getting 20km per litre on a 35,000 km base. That's $30 or so on fuel for 500 km ( figure its cheaper in the US)
Food is cheap in the US. You can do $20 but carry your own drinks.
Motels are the biggest variable. $50 is possible in the more remote areas but I'd say $80-120 if you are going to say Washington.
But the remote highways in between can be very cheap and competitive but you may not find places depending on when you are travelling.
That distance you almost certainly will do in a tire - CAA plus a very good idea. Figure $200 for a tire mounted if you aren't proactive on it. You should count on an oil change or two.
You'll needed extended healthcare as well....CAA can provide that. I'd get a year long deal that covers up to 30 days continuous - you can then extend that.
Some credit cards give you a bit as well but nothing like long term deal.
Honda might be easier/cheaper to find parts if things go wrong.
This is useful for interesting rides.
http://www.motorcycleroads.us
as are a number of cell phone maps that do not need a data connection.
I use ForEver Map - and just got TomTom but it's $$ but has voice guidance without needed data. Roaming is expensive.
There is a cool app called Glympse that lets people keep track of where you are.
All MacDs have wifi.
I think it really depends on how much slab you are doing versus mcycle roads.
Slab can be cheap.....good mcycle regions require some work and planning.
Someone else mentioned a hostel network as well which can make major cities cheaper.
Sounds like fun.
but I'd skip the straight South leg, do East West instead - the East can always be done later - there is just too much good on the West Coast
If anything a long triangle going west to the Seattle area, south along the coast to San Fran and then La and then angle back across
There are others here who can advise that better
Depends on how many KM you put on as well.
Mine is likely typical getting 20km per litre on a 35,000 km base. That's $30 or so on fuel for 500 km ( figure its cheaper in the US)
Food is cheap in the US. You can do $20 but carry your own drinks.
Motels are the biggest variable. $50 is possible in the more remote areas but I'd say $80-120 if you are going to say Washington.
But the remote highways in between can be very cheap and competitive but you may not find places depending on when you are travelling.
That distance you almost certainly will do in a tire - CAA plus a very good idea. Figure $200 for a tire mounted if you aren't proactive on it. You should count on an oil change or two.
You'll needed extended healthcare as well....CAA can provide that. I'd get a year long deal that covers up to 30 days continuous - you can then extend that.
Some credit cards give you a bit as well but nothing like long term deal.
Honda might be easier/cheaper to find parts if things go wrong.
This is useful for interesting rides.
http://www.motorcycleroads.us
as are a number of cell phone maps that do not need a data connection.
I use ForEver Map - and just got TomTom but it's $$ but has voice guidance without needed data. Roaming is expensive.
There is a cool app called Glympse that lets people keep track of where you are.
All MacDs have wifi.
I think it really depends on how much slab you are doing versus mcycle roads.
Slab can be cheap.....good mcycle regions require some work and planning.
Someone else mentioned a hostel network as well which can make major cities cheaper.
Sounds like fun.
but I'd skip the straight South leg, do East West instead - the East can always be done later - there is just too much good on the West Coast
If anything a long triangle going west to the Seattle area, south along the coast to San Fran and then La and then angle back across
There are others here who can advise that better
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Will do.
I replied to your question in the other thread, but I'll add it in here as well. I average about $100-150 a day.
Motels range from $40-80 a night on average. Majority of the time $50-60 is doable without much trouble and will get you something decent. Food is normally $20-30 a day, I try to stay away from fast food, but I always end up eating way more of it than I want to. Gas is comparatively dirt cheap in the states, say somewhere between $0.90 to $1 a litre.
You can cut down on the cost significantly if you camp along the way and make your own food.
Edit: You may want to skip Florida. Outside of Miami and the Keys, the state is a wasteland that takes a lot of time to pass through.
Motels range from $40-80 a night on average. Majority of the time $50-60 is doable without much trouble and will get you something decent. Food is normally $20-30 a day, I try to stay away from fast food, but I always end up eating way more of it than I want to. Gas is comparatively dirt cheap in the states, say somewhere between $0.90 to $1 a litre.
You can cut down on the cost significantly if you camp along the way and make your own food.
Edit: You may want to skip Florida. Outside of Miami and the Keys, the state is a wasteland that takes a lot of time to pass through.
Well, I suppose it can be done cheaper than I have outlined above. You may find hotels that have some kind of breakfast included, and if you want to survive on crappy fast food, you can probably then keep your meal costs to $20/day (but I would guess that you will tire of that in a hurry.) Other alternatives for food are supermarkets that have meals to go... but you are probably still looking at close to $10 for a reasonable meal there, and you have to eat it sitting on your bike in the parking lot. Food is NOT cheap in the USA anymore (unless you want to get a bag of chips or some peanuts.) Quite often you will find that food costs more in the US than it does in Canada - particularly in grocery stores. Fresh fruit and vegetables are a LOT more expensive in the US than here (at least in Vermont and NY they are!) Beer is cheaper though!
Gas price is approx $1.00 - $1.20/litre so it isn't that much cheaper than it is here in Canada. Don't expect huge savings in fuel costs.
As for accommodations - if you are going with someone else, sharing a room can be a huge $$ saver. It sounds as though you are going solo though. In my experience, decent rooms can cost up to $120/night but probably average around $75/night. If you are fine with staying at fleabag hotels in the middle of nowhere, then you might be able to cut that down to $60/night but I suspect you won't be too happy with what you get. There are some very crappy hotels in that price range. I try to stay at the big chain hotels (Microtel, etc.) because they seem to have a reasonable minimum standard for quality and are reasonably priced. Most of them also have swimming pools which can be a HUGE relief after a day of riding. Also, sometimes it is worth paying a little extra to be downtown somewhere so you can get out and walk around and see the sights (although there are some US cities where this would not be recommended!) If you want to stay in cheap hotels then you're going to have to do your research on Tripadvisor,etc. to find reasonable cheap hotels, and stay away from vermin infested fleabag joints. Bed and Breakfast places are awesome as well, but ultimately they will probably end up costing close to what a hotel would cost and will require pre-booking in most cases. When I tour, I don't pre-book anything and just ride until it starts to wear on me (around 4 - 6 pm) then I start looking for a hotel.
To make the trip as pleasant as possible, you might consider only doing 2 weeks instead of 4 this year. Stay in reasonable hotels, and enjoy your trip! You don't want to come home with a bunch of stories about how you woke up one morning to find a rat gnawing on your big toe in this quaint little hotel you discovered in the Ozarks for only $39.99/night. Just my $0.02
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I think everybody has well detailed how it can work, we have done $50 a day, planned some stays with friends and got some free meals and camped, had lunch at grocery stores, buy stuff at deli and make sandwiches.
And we have spent $350. on a very nicely planned tour in Napa Valley, hotels are 180-220 in the nice season.
Those costs dont cover a tire or two, oil change, and an electrical widget in Colorado.
We also like to stop and see stuff and castle tours, indian museums and national parks add about 20-30 a day.
And we have spent $350. on a very nicely planned tour in Napa Valley, hotels are 180-220 in the nice season.
Those costs dont cover a tire or two, oil change, and an electrical widget in Colorado.
We also like to stop and see stuff and castle tours, indian museums and national parks add about 20-30 a day.
I can see how sharing the cost of a hotel with another rider can save a lot of money, but yes, I have a solo trip in mind. A single rider has a better chance of being offered a couch for a night though. I've done a motorcycle camping trip to P.E.I. some years ago, but as I get older, that's no longer appealing.
Leaving off Florida and doing Route 66 to head southwest is an option. Following the Mississippi River south is another thought. An advantage of a solo ride is that one can just follow the front wheel.
For food: breakfast at hotel, lunch stop at grocery store, finish what's left in the evening at motel.
Leaving off Florida and doing Route 66 to head southwest is an option. Following the Mississippi River south is another thought. An advantage of a solo ride is that one can just follow the front wheel.
For food: breakfast at hotel, lunch stop at grocery store, finish what's left in the evening at motel.
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Not sure, where you're filling up, but you'll have a hard time finding regular for more than $1.10 after currency conversion (http://gasbuddy.com/GB_Price_List.aspx?cntry=USA). Fleabag motels are hit and miss, but there's only one that I regret staying in, Shoreline Motel in Thunder Bay. Others, like the Relax Inn (~$45 a night) in Bryson City, NC I've stayed at three times. If all you need is a place to sleep in for the night, fleabag motels are just fine by me. The chains (Motel 6, Super 8, etc.) are generally pretty reliable, and maybe $10-15 more than a no name motel. The Motel 6 in Winchester, VA (~$55 a night) is one of the nicest I've stayed at. If I'm taking a rest day or visiting a big city, I'll normally splurge on a nice hotel. Otherwise, it's basically just a bed and a shower for the night
Route 66 is an absolute bore, not a damn thing to see except the occasional old restored gas station (once you've seen one, you've seen them all) and shops selling Route 66 memorabilia. Take the advice I got many times but ignored and skip it.
To get south I would either, follow the coast (Savannah, GA is beautiful), or do Skyline Dr/Blue Ridge Parkway to Deals Gap, then Natchez Trace Parkway to Nashville. I'd actually suggest to skip Nashville and visit Memphis instead.
On my trip we saved a bunch of money by camping. It may not be your thing but something to consider. Instead of $80-120 on a hotel we spent $10-20 on a camp site. $10 per night each for the camp site. $25 for food/drinks. $30 to spend on dumb stuff and $30 for fuel (650km). We were usually in the $90-100 per day range for 19 days.
As we traveled we got invited to hang out with people for free beers/food. Nice to save some cash that way and gives you something to do for free. Not everything is crazy expensive when you go camping since camping saves you on the entertainment spending. Plus you can grab food and cook it over a camp fire. Hot dogs, burgers, steak, potatoes. Delicious.
As we traveled we got invited to hang out with people for free beers/food. Nice to save some cash that way and gives you something to do for free. Not everything is crazy expensive when you go camping since camping saves you on the entertainment spending. Plus you can grab food and cook it over a camp fire. Hot dogs, burgers, steak, potatoes. Delicious.
For everything there is a season. (Turn, turn.) Camping has had it's day. Another downside is carrying the necessary gear. Just not for me any more. I wish I were younger and could still enjoy camping.
I'm at an age where I know the song referenced in the first line. This trip is a retirement gift to myself. Freedom 57, baby!
I'm at an age where I know the song referenced in the first line. This trip is a retirement gift to myself. Freedom 57, baby!
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You are eating in the wrong place. 2 weeks ago had a fantastic prime rib the size of a freaking football, about a pound of garlic mashed potatoes, a cup of chowder and a freshly baked entire loaf of bread for $11. Find me that in Canada. I couldn't even eat half of it.
Diners in small towns will usually fill you to the brim for $9.
I stay as far away from metro centres as possible and usually stay in Hampton Inn or similar, where yeah, about $120 max, but using Trip Advisor have easily found some slightly out of the way places that were clean and functional for $60. Microtel is usually tops for a known discount chain. However, you should check the reviews first, I chose a Ramada once that was just horrifying.
