What One Trip Really Cost: A Line-by-Line Report
One sample trip: our ledger, line by line
This report is one real trip from our own trip ledger: a 13-night fall trip on a regional route, about 1,104 round-trip miles, towing a 44-foot fifth wheel with a 1-ton diesel truck. Every figure below is that one trip. These are data points, not typical costs, not ranges, and not a promise about what your trip will cost. We label it the way we would want it labeled for us: one sample trip.
| Category | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel | $865.85 | 44% of the total; $0.78 per mile. See the caution below. |
| Stops and supplies | $376.62 | Snacks and stop costs. Bigger than dining, and the line most people forget to count. |
| Tolls | $261.54 | $0.24 per mile: six turnpike tolls totaling $225.54, plus one $36 bridge toll. |
| Dining | $220.28 | About $17 per night. |
| Shared costs | $130.00 | Costs shared with traveling companions. |
| Campsites | $70.00 | Low because we stay at membership campgrounds. Membership dues were prepaid and are not counted here. |
| Propane | $34.49 | Heat and cooking for the trip. |
| Dump fees | UNKNOWN | Not separately recorded on this trip. |
| Total | $1,958.78 | $150.68 per night; $1.77 per mile. |
Caution: our fuel detail is incomplete
We are publishing the fuel total because the total is what the trip cost us. But our ledger's fill-by-fill detail underneath it is incomplete: it records three fills of 18 to 20 gallons at $111 to $116 each on a fuel card, and those three fills add up to well under $865.85. There were plainly more fills than the ledger captured. Until that detail is reconciled, treat the per-fill story as unfinished and the trip total as the solid number. We would rather show you a gap than hide one.
What this trip taught us
- Fuel is the budget. At 44 percent of everything, towing fuel decides what a trip costs. A fuel card with discounts helps, and we use one.
- Tolls are a big-rig tax. $261.54 in tolls on one regional trip, priced by axle count, is money a car never sees.
- Stops cost more than meals. Snacks and supplies at $376.62 beat dining at $220.28. Count the small stops or the ledger lies.
- Membership changes the math. Campsites were $70 because our membership dues were already paid. That is real, and it is also why our campsite line cannot be compared to a per-night park rate without the dues counted in.
- One more data point: a travel-center hookup booking on a trip like this was $48.90, and a $35 cancellation fee was charged on it. Cheap nights, sharp edges. See big-rig overnight stops.
Want to count your own trips this way? Here is how we keep our ledger, and how cost per night and cost per mile let you compare one trip to another honestly.
