In May, Wes and I took an eight day road trip to Zion National Park, Red Rock Canyon in Las Vegas, Joshua Tree National Park, and San Diego.
On this road trip, we did some sight seeing, climbed a little, and went on several fun hikes.
We were able to enjoy all of the national parks and national recreation areas for free due to our national park pass. If you don’t have one, I highly recommend you get one. The U.S. is full of amazing places to visit!
The total cost for our road trip was around $1,200.
We were able to have an adventurous, fun, relaxing, and luxurious vacation on this amount, which I am very happy about. We could have saved more money but we decided to splurge a little in some areas.
Below is a recap of our road trip:
The hotels we stayed at.
We planned on camping a decent amount on this trip but we weren’t able to. Many of the campgrounds we went to were full and didn’t have room, it was way too hot (90+), or there were thunderstorms.
This is what busted our budget a little, as we had to plan hotels at the last moment on a few days.
On some of the days I was cheap when it came to choosing what hotel we should stay at, and other times I was all about finding a nice hotel where we could truly have just a relaxing day at a hotel. I will be honest, I had a great business income month in April and I wanted to reward myself a little.
We used some points to earn a few free stays (one was on fight night in Las Vegas so you can only imagine how expensive it probably was without points!) and we also stayed at the Flamingo in Las Vegas for just $50 a night in order to save money on our road trip.
Then, other nights we chose nicer places so that we could enjoy a nice and relaxing day. There were two hotels that I really enjoyed on our trip, and they both turned out to be dog-friendly as well. Even though we didn’t have our dogs with us, I will keep them in mind for future trips as they were super nice!
The first place we loved that we stayed at was the La Quinta Resort. This isn’t the same as the chain of La Quintas, so don’t be mistaken! It’s a very nice and beautiful resort in La Quinta, California near Palm Springs.
This place was probably the nicest place I have ever stayed at and their prices weren’t too high either during our stay. The resort was large, the rooms were nice, there were several pools, the food was great, the customer service was wonderful, and more.
Me and Wes still can’t stop talking about this place and we both definitely want to go back one day.
We even had a private patio (pictured above) and there was a semi-private pool (the picture above is of the main pool, not the semi-private one) that we shared with just a few other guests, which was very nice. I felt very spoiled and lucky at this resort.
The other place we loved was the West Inn & Suites (the picture to the right is of their relaxing pool!).
The weather was bad when we were in San Diego so we didn’t get to do much except for hang out at the hotel. We walked on the beach for a little bit but it was very cold, windy, and rainy when we were there.
This hotel was great, especially for the price. I was a little surprised by how affordable it was due to the benefits that the hotel provided.
They had a free hot breakfast that was good (usually free hotel breakfasts aren’t that great, but this one was good), free wifi, free shuttles around the area, milk and cookies for free, the room we stayed in was nice (roomy, clean, and nicely decorated), we were just a few steps away from the beach, and more. The pool was very nice as well, but I didn’t get to enjoy it because of the weather.
Transportation costs.
Transportation was the biggest part of our travel budget. We spent around $400 on gas.
We could have saved money in this area but we took our Jeep Wrangler (it gets around 14-18 mpg) on the trip instead of our Subaru. We did this just in case we came across trailheads that we couldn’t get to in our low Subaru.
P.S. Gas in California is EXPENSIVE. I was missing my $2.50 a gallon price in Colorado while we were traveling. I cringed every time I saw a price above $4 per gallon! I know that gas prices where I live at one time hovered around $4, but they have dropped so much recently that it was just a shock to see a $2 per gallon price difference.
Food costs.
Food spending on our trip was a little out of control and I didn’t eat too healthy either. I always seem to find it hard to eat healthy meals on vacation. It is something I need to work on.
We spent around $350 on food. I had a Target gift card and I stocked up on about $100 worth of drinks and snacks before we left, and that is not included in the $350 amount.
My favorite place we ate at was Crossroads Cafe in Joshua Tree. We ate there last time we went to Joshua Tree and visited two more times on our road trip. Their food is amazing and I definitely recommend it if you are in the area.
Another yummy place we ate at (also a favorite!) was Adobe Grill at the La Quinta Resort we stayed at. It was delicious and the food was very fresh tasting. If you are staying at the resort, it is a must!
What trips do you have planned? How much do you think you will spend on trips in 2015? Do you like to splurge on vacations?
P.S. I included links above just for reference since this is a travel-related post and some of you might want to visit some of the same places.
Below are pictures from our road trip:
diane @smartmoneysimplelife says
I reckon you’ve earned a few nights in nice hotels!
Some amazing scenery captured in those photos. I’d love to visit Utah one day. Hopefully, the next time I get to the US, I’ll be able to have a road trip of my own. Not sure how I’ll go with you guys all driving on the wrong side of the road though… 🙂
Where/when’s the next road trip?
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Utah is amazing! I never knew how amazing it was until last year.
I’m leaving on Monday for a trip to Orange Beach/Gulf Shores!
Clarisse says
Obviously you had a perfect time Michelle! I love all the pictures and also, I have the same design of your sleeveless! 🙂
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
The “I Love Life” tank? I love it! 🙂
Will L. says
Man, what are the chances San Diego would have bad weather during your trip?!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
I know, RIGHT!?
Kemkem says
These are my favorite kinds of posts..travel and a little finance. Looks like you had a great time! I stayed at that La Quinta a while ago, and agree that it is a very nice resort. Your pictures look very nice!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Thanks! Yes, that resort is AMAZING 🙂
Laurie @thefrugalfarmer says
Seems like you got LOTS for your money, Michelle! The LaQuinta sounds beautiful! SO worth it to splurge on a great resort/hotel once in a while, you know? How long was the trip? $1200 to do that much seems like a beautifully frugal deal to me. 🙂
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
It was an 8 day trip. Thanks Laurie!
Trisha says
Your pictures are absolutely amazing! I’m from the Midwest and we obviously don’t have scenery like that! Visiting that part of the country is on my bucket list and you’ve definitely given me hope that we can make it happen relatively inexpensively. Thank you!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Thanks Trisha!
carol says
Hey Michelle! Interesting and inspiring recap and absolutely gorgeous photos. May I ask what kind of camera/device you used to shoot these?
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Just my phone 🙂
carol says
W o W ! iPhone?
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Yup! I used my husband’s iPhone 5S for pretty much all the photos.
Amy @ DebtGal says
Beautiful pictures, and I absolutely think you’re entitled to splurge a little.
We haven’t taken a vacation in a while, but this summer we’re going to Maine for five days. We won’t splurge much, since it’s a family trip. 🙂 My husband and I might take more of a splurge weekend getaway in the fall, for our 10th anniversary. Nothing too crazy, in terms of hotel, but we’ll probably get massages and have a nice dinner.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Thanks Amy! I hope you are able to have a great family trip 🙂
Kayla @ Femme Frugality says
That sounds like an amazing trip! Unfortunately, the next couple of trips I’ll be taking will be for my FT job (training) and FinCon. They won’t be the most relaxing by any means, haha. I can’t wait for a real vacation!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
FinCon is fun so it will be like a vacation! 🙂
Sarah says
What a fun vacation!!! Road trips are the best!! Your photos make me miss the west coast 🙂 We’re from AZ and my husband and I always took trips to Colorado, Vegas, Laughlin and San Diego!
Actually, we’re headed to AZ tomorrow and I’m SO excited!! We’re flying which I’m a little nervous about since our little ones are coming. My husband and I are also doing our own solo trip to Sedona on the trip 🙂 This will be our only main vacation this year and I’m sure we’ll spend close to $2,000 or more when all is said and done (flights were $1400). I hope to take mini trips here on the East Coast the remainder of the year!
Glad you had fun!! Beautiful photos 🙂
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
I hope you have fun! Take photos!
Jayleen @ How Do The Jones Do It says
We loved Zion National Park when we visited a few years ago! There were so many fun trails to explore and the views were amazing! We are hoping to take a road trip to Canada this year. Gotta get to work on that one! We definitely splurge on vacations. Thank you for sharing the fun pictures!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
We are hoping to go back to Zion soon. It was amazing!
Fervent Finance says
Wow great pics! And you were able to do it on the cheap. Good job!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Thanks!
Jason B says
Wow. Looks like you all had a great time. I have a couple trips planned. I’m also going to FinCon.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
See you at FinCon!
cece says
I don’t even realize how expensive CA gas is anymore because I live here and have gotten used to it. Sorry San Diego did you wrong on the weather. We are having quite a gloomy May but we seriously need the rain. Looks like a fabulous road trip vacation. I so want to do one like that soon!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Yeah, the rain was definitely needed there so we weren’t too upset 🙂
Jessica says
It sounds like you guys had an amazing trip. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the La Quinta Resort. It sucks that you didn’t really get to enjoy San Diego though. We tend to have crappy weather here in SoCal in May and June. I’m really wanting to go on a road trip. I think we might go to Palm Springs in July. We’re definitely going to San Diego in October and Mexico in November. I’m also debating going to FinCon and if I do, we’ll probably road trip to Charleston, SC while we’re on that side of the country. I love having so many trips on the horizon!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Yes, the La Quinta Resort was amazing. Definitely going back one day.
Kaolee says
Awesome pictures! And my father in law just mentioned about a pass like that, and I’m glad you talked about too so I can get one!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Yes, you should!
Brittney says
I am really impressed with how much you were able to do and still keep your overall costs quite low! We have only visited the Grand Canyon in terms of National Parks, but would love to visit more. We will have to look into an annual parks pass.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Yes, you should! It’s a great deal.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
Awesome!
Jayson @ Monster Piggy Bank says
Michelle, I will definitely get my national park pass if these are what I can get. I would like to visit Nevada to see how beautiful the Hoover Dam, Mob Museum, and Great Basin National Park are. And, I am planning to hopefully spend less than $500.
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
All national parks and national recreation areas are included in the pass. It’s a great value!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner says
That is insane!