Whether you’re spending the holidays with family or getting away from everything (and everyone), there are several factors to weigh when traveling this season.
As airline tickets and gas prices soar, it can be difficult to gauge whether it’s more economical to fly or drive. Luckily, Befrugal.com’s “Fly or Drive Calculator” helps you calculate hidden costs, like overnight pit stops or time spent commuting to the airport.
If you’re driving, AAA, Costco, and Travelmath all offer fuel calculators, so you can figure out about how much gas will run, before you run out of it. According to Mint, a personal finance application, any drive that takes less than four hours is a better budgetary bet than flying.
In addition to the dollar value, there are other elements to factor in, like time. The New York Times has a calculator to help you assess how much your time is worth to you.
Most of the world takes the train for short and long trips. Amtrak offers different levels of trains and some routes include sleeper cars. Be mindful that ticket prices go up, sometimes outrageously, closer to the dates of travel. However, if you book in advance, you can find great deals.
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