Justifying cost to visit place that just costs more?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, where is it? Why are you being so coy, OP? It's just a vacation destination, no need to keep it top secret.

So you can pick it apart for fun? No thanks. Just assume it’s someplace you’d like to visit and insert that place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would pay $500 not to drive. How long is the drive?
I see you said 5 days wherever you go. Do you get more fun time if you fly. Why only 5 days btw?

The drive is around 8 hours, so not terrible. Only five days because we take a couple weeks off for each month throughout the summer and only have so much vacation time.

[Anonymous]

We did a week trip in Bethany last year for well under $5k. And it cost way less than our usual cape cod vacation (houses there are just more expensive for what I like). And I honestly just didn't enjoy it. So we are going back to Massachusetts and I hunted for a deal that will bring me what I want (walking to beach in a specific town) for a price I'm willing to pay.
All my flying vacations i pay for with credit card points for either flights or hotels.

[Anonymous]

Maybe I’m spoiled but, for me, a local-ish road trip that could be done on a long-weekend, that’s not a vacation. So yeah, you spend the extra to go all out. If it fits within your finances, yolo. Seriously.

[Anonymous]

Does your 5 day vacation include 16 hours driving?

[Anonymous]

You get what you pay for, remember that!

[Anonymous]

Travel isn't about "worth it." Not to those who enjoy having new experiences, enjoy traveling, enjoy planning travel. OP, it's ok to not be one of those people. You probably prioritize other things. Likely you would rather spend money on other things to enrich your life, your home for example. Point is: this mindset of your is likely not about this particular travel destination. Or the extra $. But you need to compromise with a partner for whom new experience do matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Travel isn't about "worth it." Not to those who enjoy having new experiences, enjoy traveling, enjoy planning travel. OP, it's ok to not be one of those people. You probably prioritize other things. Likely you would rather spend money on other things to enrich your life, your home for example. Point is: this mindset of your is likely not about this particular travel destination. Or the extra $. But you need to compromise with a partner for whom new experience do matter.

OP here. My husband is completely on board! Also, it’s me who found this location/deal, so that’s why I’m having a hard time understanding.

[Anonymous]

If it’s summer, keep in mind that flight delays and cancellations can screw up a short trip. I have two friends whose short trips this summer were cancelled. They were packed and at the airport but flights were cancelled and they couldn’t get another in time to mark the trip worthwhile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Travel isn't about "worth it." Not to those who enjoy having new experiences, enjoy traveling, enjoy planning travel. OP, it's ok to not be one of those people. You probably prioritize other things. Likely you would rather spend money on other things to enrich your life, your home for example. Point is: this mindset of your is likely not about this particular travel destination. Or the extra $. But you need to compromise with a partner for whom new experience do matter.

OP here. My husband is completely on board! Also, it’s me who found this location/deal, so that’s why I’m having a hard time understanding.

I'm the opposite. I can justify expensive plane tickets and the cost of travel abroad, because the geographic distance and new cultural vistas makes it "worthwhile". Whereas spending far less on a local trip is so unappealing to me that we've rarely visited things outside of DC.

[Anonymous]

I would love to go somewhere for $5k, so please share where!

[Anonymous]

If its someplace I really want to go and see then I will find a way to justify and save to make it happen. Yes, its a mindset but also knowing the extra cost - look for ways to either reduce the cost, pay in advance or save to make up the difference. Our family started a yearly travel savings account - we have x$ to spend on travel, we set a budget and stay to it - unless it truely is once in a lifetime kind or experience or its the "cost of doing business" like a trip to Iceland. With that said -there are ways to safe money on food, reduce a day of a rental car etc to stay within a budget. For use we love traveling and find a way to make it work - as others have said - we are very frugral in other areas of our lives - and annualy setting aside travel funds helps us to make sure we aren't dipping into our savings.

[Anonymous]

OP now you have to tell us where! I promise not to pick it apart.

I also have a hard time with expensive trips. But it helps not to compare them as apples to apples. Not "summer vacation is more expensive this year", but "Cape Cod is more expensive that Chincoteague".

[Anonymous]

Driving isn’t free. It’s time and gas and wear and tear. I think spending $500 a night on lodging is pretty good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wasn’t sure how else to word the thread.

We are in the preliminary stages of planning our summer vacation. It’ll be a five-day trip no matter where we go. We are considering doing something different this year, and if we chose this route, it’s going to cost us more.

I get it: it’s just going to cost more to visit this place. But I’m having a hard time justifying to my rational brain that we aren’t being ripped off, etc, that this is just the price of traveling there.

Our original plan was going to cost us around $2000 for lodging before food, gas (because we would drive there) or activities. Realistically, I’d add another $1500 for those things, so $3500 for those five days.

The new plan will run us around $5000, but only because of the added airfare; the lodging will cost only around $500 more.

Why is my mind having such a hard time wrapping itself around the idea that, yeah, airfare costs money, and what can I do to talk some sense into myself?

For me it would come down to time and money. There is an extra cost to fly, but if you could drive - do you have the time or what to use your vacation time to drive? If you drive - there is gas etc to consider, but if you fly will you be renting a car? additional costs. Try doing a spreadsheet to compare costs - you might surprise yourself when you break it down cost, time etc. At a certain point our family determines if the extra time vs cost is worth it. Sometime it is and then I don't have any remorse for going with a more expensive options.

(And yes, we can afford this, it’s not a hindrance to our budget or anything at all, it’s purely psychological.)