How to Find the Cheapest, Greenest Travel Options

khallgeisler — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0400

The sun is out, and beach trips beckon. But guilt at raiding the college fund for gas money or spewing toxins into the air just because we want to feel sand between our toes is keeping us housebound. There is a way to get away this summer, if you do a little research.

DrivePricing.com is a new Google Maps mash-up that calculates the cost to fuel your summer road trip. Just enter your zip code, miles per gallon, starting and ending points, and gasoline grade to get an estimate. (If you don't know your car's mpg, there's a link to trusty FuelEconomy.gov on the site).

This info makes for great travel comparison shopping if you're not locked in to driving this summer. Let's take a real-life example: My brother wants me to visit him in Montana this summer (I know -- no beaches), and I'm trying to find the cheapest way to get there.

Drive Pricing calculated the cost of driving my little red pickup truck from Portland, Ore., to Great Falls, Mont., at $281.93. Whoa, Nelly!

Amtrak can get me close enough to Great Falls for $227 on an overnight train. A little better, but train schedules are unreliable.

Kayak, my favorite flight finder, tells me that I can fly directly into Great Falls for $434. Not cheap, especially if my husband wants to join me on this trip.

The greenest option is the train trip, especially if I end up taking this trip by myself. The Nature Conservancy spells it out and does the math, but the bottom line is that the train has the lowest per-passenger emissions of any form of long-distance transportation. (I know, EVers, that your plug-in cars have zero emissions, but for now they have to stop every 40 miles to recharge.)

Hear that, Ryan? You may have to pick me up at the train station after all.

airplanes

How to Find the Cheapest, Greenest Travel Options