Instructions
You and a friend are planning an awesome 4-day trip from Naples, Florida, to Charleston, South Carolina! You have a total budget of $2,500 for the two of you. Your job is to be the trip planner. Use the information below to calculate your costs, make smart decisions, and figure out if your budget is big enough for this adventure. Show your work in the space provided!
Part 1: The Driving Plan
First, let's figure out how much it would cost to drive. You'll be taking your family's car for the trip.
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Gasoline Cost: The round trip distance from Naples to Charleston and back is 1,060 miles. The car gets 28 miles per gallon (MPG), and the average gas price is $3.50 per gallon.
A. First, how many gallons of gas will you need for the whole trip? (Round to one decimal place)
(Hint: Total Miles ÷ MPG)Work: ____________________________________________________
Answer: ____________________ gallons
B. Now, calculate the total cost for gas.
(Hint: Gallons of Gas × Price per Gallon)Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Gas Cost: $____________________
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Accommodation Cost: You will be staying in Charleston for 3 nights. Your hotel costs $180 per night.
Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Accommodation Cost: $____________________
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Food Cost: You need to budget for food for 4 full days. You estimate it will cost $75 per person, per day. Remember, there are two of you!
Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Food Cost: $____________________
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Activities Cost: You and your friend want to do a few fun things in Charleston. Calculate the total cost for both of you.
- Carriage Tour: $50 per person
- Fort Sumter Ferry & Tour: $35 per person
- Historic Mansion Tour: $25 per person
Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Activities Cost: $____________________
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Total Driving Trip Cost: Add up all your costs from Part 1 (Gas, Accommodation, Food, and Activities).
Work: ____________________________________________________
TOTAL DRIVING COST: $____________________
Part 2: The Flying Plan
What if you decided to fly instead? Let's see how the costs compare. Some of your costs (like Food and Activities) will be the same.
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Flight Cost: A round-trip plane ticket from Florida to Charleston costs $350 per person.
Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Flight Cost: $____________________
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Rental Car & Gas: Once you land, you'll need a rental car for 4 days at a rate of $60 per day. You estimate you'll spend an additional $50 on gas for driving around the city.
Work: ____________________________________________________
Total Rental Car & Gas Cost: $____________________
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Total Flying Trip Cost: Add up the costs for the flying plan. Don't forget to include the Accommodation, Food, and Activities costs you calculated in Part 1!
Work (Flight + Rental Car/Gas + Accommodation + Food + Activities): ____________________________________________________
TOTAL FLYING COST: $____________________
Part 3: Budget Analysis & Critical Thinking
Now it's time to analyze your findings and make some final decisions.
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Compare the Plans: Which travel plan is cheaper, driving or flying? By how much?
Cheaper Plan: ____________________
Work: ____________________________________________________
Amount Saved: $____________________
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Check Your Budget: Your total budget for the trip is $2,500. Using the cheaper travel plan, are you under or over budget?
Work: ____________________________________________________
We are ____________________ budget.
Money Left Over / Amount Over Budget: $____________________
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Pros and Cons: Cost isn't the only thing to consider! What is one advantage of driving, besides the cost? What is one advantage of flying?
Advantage of Driving: ___________________________________________________________________
Advantage of Flying: ____________________________________________________________________
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Final Decision: Your friend found one more activity: a ghost tour that costs $40 per person. Based on your budget calculations for the cheaper travel plan, can you afford to add this activity? Explain why or why not using your numbers.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Answer Key
Part 1: The Driving Plan
- Gasoline Cost:
A. Gallons needed: 1,060 miles ÷ 28 MPG = 37.9 gallons
B. Total Gas Cost: 37.9 gallons × $3.50/gallon = $132.65
- Accommodation Cost: 3 nights × $180/night = $540.00
- Food Cost: $75/person × 2 people × 4 days = $600.00
- Activities Cost: ($50 + $35 + $25) × 2 people = $110 × 2 = $220.00
- Total Driving Trip Cost: $132.65 + $540.00 + $600.00 + $220.00 = $1,492.65
Part 2: The Flying Plan
- Flight Cost: $350/person × 2 people = $700.00
- Rental Car & Gas: (4 days × $60/day) + $50 gas = $240 + $50 = $290.00
- Total Flying Trip Cost: $700 (Flights) + $290 (Car) + $540 (Accommodation) + $600 (Food) + $220 (Activities) = $2,350.00
Part 3: Budget Analysis & Critical Thinking
- Compare the Plans:
Cheaper Plan: Driving
Amount Saved: $2,350.00 (Flying) - $1,492.65 (Driving) = $857.35
- Check Your Budget:
We are under budget.
Money Left Over: $2,500.00 (Budget) - $1,492.65 (Driving Cost) = $1,007.35
- Pros and Cons: (Sample Answers)
Advantage of Driving: You have more freedom to stop and see sights along the way. You can pack more luggage.
Advantage of Flying: It's much faster, so you have more time to spend in Charleston. It's less tiring than driving for many hours.
- Final Decision: (Sample Answer)
Yes, you can afford the ghost tour. The tour would cost an additional $80 ($40 x 2 people). The driving plan leaves you with $1,007.35 left in the budget, so you would still have $927.35 ($1,007.35 - $80) leftover even after adding the tour.