Remember what a value camping is!

Virginia Deacon · 07-17-2010, 07:29 AM

We just spent several days in Western NY, at our favorite motel (Country Inns and Suites). Their rates are very competitive - BUT it cost us $125-135 a night, plus $11 (8%) State Tax and $7 (5%) Occupancy Tax = $143 - $153 a night. The large, delicious, all-you-can-eat breakfast only partly offset the cost.

We didn't think there were any campgrounds nearby (we later saw one) and didn't want to tow 900 miles over the mountains and interstates. It didn't take long for us to realize what a value camping is (about $40 a night, campfire, meeting new folks, etc.)! We are looking forward to the Boone KOA rally at the end of this month; we couldn't afford it at $ 125 a night, but $35 a night fits our pocketbook just fine!

**wbmiller3** · 07-17-2010, 04:54 PM

My wife and I have talked about this a lot. With the expense of a new TM we could stay at quite a few cheap motels. We finally come down to the fact that camping gets us closer to the natural areas we go out for in the first place, and using the TM gives us some of the creature comforts.

07-17-2010, 06:47 PM

Using our camper for three week long summer vacations really saved us on foods. One of us could take the kids to the pool or slides while the other cooked dinner ( I took some turns). With the fridge we had the ability to buy foods and have picnic lunches which also saved us time and money over restaurants. But the real benefit has always been the camping experiences we shared.

Virginia Deacon · 07-17-2010, 06:59 PM

We've been campers for over 40 years - starting with canvas and nylon tents, then Coleman popups, and finally our TrailManor. You are right on both counts, when you say a TM is a major investment and when you say how much you and your family enjoy nature. Our "children" have grown - but some of their favorite memories are camping memories; the same is true with our grandchildren. So, overall, I'd say it's worth it.

Have a great camping season!

ThePair · 07-17-2010, 09:19 PM

Ditto to the above, plus the dog. He's a full member of the family, and the ability to have him with us on vacation with no issues is certainly worth more than the price of admission.

My 3 1/2 year old twins love camping now, and that would not be the case without our TM.

Priceless

07-19-2010, 06:10 PM

Yeah, you gotta be careful with this line of logic.
DW helped me calculate the cost of fish per pound when I fished a lot.
Turns out you can eat an awful lot at really nice resturants when boat, storage, insurance, gas and beer are factored in...not even figuring the sweat equity

**ShrimpBurrito** · 07-19-2010, 06:43 PM

Jim&Joan nailed it on the head.

Don't even kid yourself that buying a TM -- even a used one -- and camping is cheaper than staying in a hotel. I posted a break-even analysis in April 2008 that outlined the specific numbers, but I cannot find it. In any event, you had to spend alot of nights (a dozen or two IIRC) at $150/night EVERY YEAR to even come close to breaking even after buying a used $10,000 TM and owning it for 5 years (after which you'd sell it).

We own our TM because we like to camp vs. stay in hotels, not because it's cheaper, because it's not.

Dave

07-19-2010, 08:04 PM

"Turns out you can eat an awful lot at really nice resturants when boat, storage, insurance, gas and beer are factored in"

Jim

You have to be extra careful with the fishing calculations as some of the factors figure in exponentially ie the less fish you catch the more beer you drink. This means (beer)2/(fish)2 needs to be used in the calculation.

**B_and_D** · 07-19-2010, 08:24 PM

On the other hand, we can camp at the beach here (otherwise 1K - 5K a week) for $55 to $65 a night, or at the lake shore (? maybe 750 a week never really checked into it?) for $28 a night.

It depends on where you're going.

07-19-2010, 08:31 PM

I try to avoid mathematics for RV. Then again, there may be ways to make the whole package more sensible - buy a used TV rather than new, keep the TV a lot longer than the main family car (if two car fam, of course). Those savings are also "tax free" or even negative tax - less property tax and no income tax. I like to remind myself frequently that $10k is only $27 per day for a year. How often do we spend $27 frivolously?