Weekly Costs
In July ’06 we completed a back costing of the last eight months of RV travel in the USA and Canada.
The weekly costs for the two of us are:
Food & Beverage…………..240.00
Fuel………………………………..100.00
Insurance………………………..97.00
Communication……………….50.00
Accommodation……………….95.00
R & M……………………………..130.00
Sightseeing……………………..50.00
Clothing/Personal…………..70.00
Presents/souvenirs………..30.00
Total…………………US$ 862.00 per week
Food & Beverage
Includes all items purchased from a supermarket; fresh food, meats, detergents, toilet paper, batteries etc as well as any snacks and drink purchased along the way.
We nearly always prepare and eat our meals in the rig. We often prepare a lunch and take with us if we are away for the day especially hiking or bike riding. We buy from the supermarkets and store up to three days of provisions in the refrigerator, freezer or pantry.
We find food costs no more than in NZ, is often less, and we are able eat a very similar menu.
Also included in this item is eating out at restaurants, tips included, which is around $40 per week.
Fuel
We drive a 6.8 litre V10 gasoline ford F250 hauler which is good for about 10 mpg at worst while towing in difficult conditions e.g. towing over mountain passes of 6,500 ft and more.
We also use the vehicle as a commutor when the rig is unhitched and of course obtain better fuel consumption of around 16 mpg.
Petrol has been about US$3.35 per US gallon (3.785 liters)
LPG for the rig is included here. We use 20kg (50lb) every 3/4 wks.
Insurance
Includes our Comprehensive Travel & Health Insurance, Full Auto Insurance (which is very high by NZ standards) and Insurance for our 5th wheel Mobile Home which includes Contents Cover for our clothing and personal possessions.
Vehicle Insurance is still expensive for us as we do not have a Social Security number (which affects our credit rating). However, we now have an Arizona issued drivers license and this has reduced our premiums somewhat. As our insurance history deepens we should enjoy greater savings. We have also made a 66% saving in our vehicle insurance by shopping around and changing companies which we are very pleased with.
Registration of vehicles is also included here.
Communication
Includes; wireless internet connection with unlimited broadband access via our lap top computor, a cell phone, postage, faxes and internet cafe costs if we are out of wireless band.
We place a strong emphasis on being able to communicate with ease so we are prepared to pay this amount.
Accommodation
Includes camp ground fees and any time we stay in a motel or similar en-route.
This includes our electricity bill as that’s included in the camp ground fee or we start the generator and the fuel for that is under Fuel.
R & M
Repairs and Maintenance on the truck and rig. Includes provision for regular oil sevicing, tune ups, replacement of a set of tyres and maintenance on the rig. Repairs to our bikes are included here.
This figure seems high but when we go back we realize that we get large one-off type costs every few months. For example, we’ve had to replace the awning after a storm blew it out ($1,000), replace our generator after it was stolen in Mexico ($1,000), replace two broken widscreens etc… Yes, we may have been able to claim insurance for some of these items but there is the usual cost of excess, higher premium next time round and so we’ve left it.
So R & M makes it to second place in our costs overall.
Sighseeing
Includes any guided trips, eg canyoning, rock climbing, hire of specalised equipment, maps etc as well as the usual entrance fees to exhibitions and parks.
Whats Not Included?
There is no provision for depreciation on the truck, rig or contents.
We purchased the whole setup at the outset (US$30,000 for the Rig and US$15,500 for the Truck) and have not accounted for value on sell back or whether we would sell the rig (as we could take it back to NZ). We may upgrade the truck in the future if we stayed here longer than planned. Therefore have not anticipated any depreciation.
We also have no H.P. payments to make.
No provision for international travel and associated costs while we are away. We treat those costs separately and show here only the ‘on land’ cost of our style of travel within North America.
Where Could We Make Savings?
We think that our costs accurately reflect the standard of travel and style of living that we want to enjoy while in North America.
In other words, we are pretty happy with the weekly costs and do not scrimp or go without in order to enjoy our adventure.
