Half the fun lies in the trip. No excitement or scenery at thirty thousand feet, unless something goes wrong.
LOL!
I fly for work about 30 times a year, and drive crappy rental cars on half of those assignments, so I was in the mood for a good old-fashioned road trip in my own car. I grew up seeing most of this country from the back seat of my parents' car, so that's what I like.
FLY?
PHL is about a 2hr drive from my house in Harrisburg and a bad airport.
On top of the plane tickets, you also need to factor in parking at the airport, and gas to and from.
Then there's getting to the airport 1hr before the flight to make it through security, a limit on what I can bring with me or getting whacked with baggage fees. I'm always a two bagger or overweight when traveling for work.
Add in the cost of a rental car for 9 days and the fuel to drive it from Miami to Key West and then to Sarasota.
Factor in the extra cost of a point-to-point rental.
Factor in the extra cost of Flying home from SRQ... or drive up to TPA.
Arrive at PHL and still have a 2hr drive home.
Did I mention my trip was over the holiday weekend? Factor in that cost.
DRIVE?
Bring as much stuff as I can fit in the car for an 11 day trip. Bring home everything the wife buys while on the trip... at no extra charge.
No fat guy using half of my seat.
No lines. No security telling me I can't bring a bottle of water or a can of Rockstar with me.
See stuff.
Leave my house after dinner on July 3rd, drive through the night and drinking a mojito with my friends on the Intercoastal by 2pm on the 4th. Much better than wasting a whole day getting to the airport and waiting in lines, then waiting for my bags and picking up a rental car.
Enjoy the drive to Key West in my own car.
Chase a Murcielago through the glades on Alligator Alley.
Stop at JR Cigar in NC and buy a whole buncha stogies.
More cost effective than flying based on my multi-stop intinerary.
I've been around and around this topic with my clients over and over.
Either you have road trip mentality or you don't. It's not for everyone.
And I'm glad it's not! I'm also glad about the rising price of gas. I've never seen 95 so light on traffic, and it seemed like there was a lot fewer SUV's on the road than there was last year.