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Fly or Drive?
The Travel Tightwad · April 29, 2002

Fuel prices are on the rise again, but that doesn't seem to be keeping us off the road. Travelers like Howard Paulman say it's going to take a lot more than higher gas bills to force him back on a plane.

"There was a time when the ability to book a flight on-line, check-in with an e-ticket, and travel with nothing more than a laptop and carry-on made flying very desirable for any trip over 100 miles," says the finance manager. "But those days are gone." Now he drives to any place within 250 miles of his home office, and often as far as 400 miles, "especially when the amount of luggage that I do not want to check is excessive."

He's in good company. People seem to be shrugging off higher prices at the pump and staying away from the airport. The American Automobile Association says the run-up in rates is normal - it's triggered by government announcements that the United States is no longer in recession and industry predictions that some blends of reformulated gasoline may be in short supply this summer.

Apart from Paulman's reasons, why are so many people opting to drive? Easy. They're saving money, if not time, by getting behind the wheel. But if that's not enough, here are a few more reasons:

• It's fun. "My husband and I love road trips," says Nicole Wood, a tax professional. "We live in Boston and 16 hours to Chicago is reasonable for a week's trip, and we are currently considering a 7 hour drive to Washington DC for a long weekend." Sure, traveling by car is statistically more dangerous than flying, but with the right traveling companion and a collection of good tunes, a road trip can be a real adventure. When's the last time you said that about air travel?
  
  
• It'll save money on your … flight. Douglas Johnson, a retired social worker, sometimes drives from his home in Orem, Utah, to Las Vegas, "because it's cheaper to fly to Europe from Las Vegas, and the drive only takes about five or six hours," he says. He even drove to San Francisco in order to catch an inexpensive flight to Turkey once. "But I would not do so again because of the problem of storing my vehicle for a couple of weeks," he notes. It's true: airlines like to bilk travelers who don't live near a major airport. Your car can save the day.
  
  
• It lets you stay flexible. "When I drive, I don't have to worry about flight schedules or missing a flight if a meeting runs longer than expected," says Jerry Ehrilich. "I'm not crushed into a seat that is too small and I get to eat more than peanuts." Indeed, with the exception of the occasional traffic jam (easy to avoid if you plan ahead) you're not at the mercy of the airlines' inflexible, and often inconvenient, schedules. You can come and go as you please. What can be better than that?
  
  
• No rental car to worry about. Martin Eastman used to fly from Boston to Philadelphia regularly and then rent a car and drive 60 miles to Atlantic City. Now the drive takes an extra two hours, "but it saves me from having to rent a car," he says. That means no insurance, no surprise taxes and no surcharges to be concerned with, either.
  
  
• Take Fifi with you. "The cost of transporting pets has suddenly increased significantly," says Crystal Elder, a supervisor for a New York law firm. "If you carry a pet on the plane, it counts as your one piece of carry-on luggage and the carrier must fit under the seat just like any other luggage. But the airlines charge you extra for doing this, even though you do not get to bring anything extra on the plane with you." Solution: she recently decided to drive 16 hours to her parents' house. Best of all, no one gave her a hard time about her pet.

Christopher Elliott is a travel commentator based in Key Largo, Fla. All e-mailed questions may be edited, condensed or republished at the site's discretion.