Travel Planning Challenge!
October 24, 2016 2:02 PM Subscribe
I'm in grad school in New York, he's working in Wyoming. We've got from Dec 16-Jan 1 to plan an awesome adventure. I love planning. He hates planning. He'd like a option presented to him in full detail that he can happily agree to.
I'm on a grad school budget. Need to keep all costs per person under 1000 dollars. At the end of this trip, I need to be in Seattle to visit my family. He'll be going back to work in Colorado.
We like travel that has active things build into the day. We are terrible at sitting on a beach for more than one day. Yoga, climbing mountains, skiing (though traveling with our skis seems tricky), fishing, etc. We are willing to do slightly wacky things to save money and have fun.
I would love to get out of the country, but flights seem so pricey. I think being in Mexico City over the holiday would be amazing, but the flight is over $600... He has a truck, so I could fly to Denver to meet him, but so many outdoor activities are in their in-between time...too early for much good skiing, but too cold for fun canyoneering. Could do something from my home base in Seattle, but the December gray-ness has me baffled.
We are both Jew-ish.
There must be things I haven't considered! Help me figure them out?
I'm on a grad school budget. Need to keep all costs per person under 1000 dollars. At the end of this trip, I need to be in Seattle to visit my family. He'll be going back to work in Colorado.
We like travel that has active things build into the day. We are terrible at sitting on a beach for more than one day. Yoga, climbing mountains, skiing (though traveling with our skis seems tricky), fishing, etc. We are willing to do slightly wacky things to save money and have fun.
I would love to get out of the country, but flights seem so pricey. I think being in Mexico City over the holiday would be amazing, but the flight is over $600... He has a truck, so I could fly to Denver to meet him, but so many outdoor activities are in their in-between time...too early for much good skiing, but too cold for fun canyoneering. Could do something from my home base in Seattle, but the December gray-ness has me baffled.
We are both Jew-ish.
There must be things I haven't considered! Help me figure them out?
It is too early to say what the snow conditions will be like during the last half of December. I've gone many times and had tons of snow and there are other times where there is far too much visible green grass. With that said, there will be snow and you could always take up snowshoeing. That would be far cheaper thing to do than go resort skiing.
posted by mmascolino at 2:33 PM on October 24, 2016
posted by mmascolino at 2:33 PM on October 24, 2016
Best answer: I'd go to New Mexico -- skiing, hiking, exploring Santa Fe and Albuquerque.
posted by flourpot at 3:36 PM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by flourpot at 3:36 PM on October 24, 2016 [1 favorite]
Flights anywhere are going to be pricey that time of year. Check out Yosemite, which has plenty of adventuring available, and is breathtakingly beautiful. Maybe plan a route to road trip towards Washington by either camping or staying in cabins along the way near good hiking /kayaking / cross country skiing areas.
posted by ananci at 6:45 PM on October 24, 2016
posted by ananci at 6:45 PM on October 24, 2016
Best answer: As you've noted, travel (and to a lesser extent lodging) can eat through your budget in a hurry.
Flying to Denver and letting the weather dictate your trip in the mountain west/southwest wouldn't be a bad way to do it. Pack the truck full of all of your gear, and check out what the weather's doing a week out. Snowing hard? Go skiing and maybe check out availability at 10th Mountain huts. Gonna be warm? Get to Grand Junction/Fruita or Moab and camp and rent mountain bikes and ride some classic trails. Or if the weather is going to be snowier (or drier) to the south, drive down to Taos or even the Grand Canyon; you've got plenty of time. Camp and cook to save cash and spend your money on raft trips or bike rentals or however else you want to spend your days.
But if you want to get out of the country, if you jump on the right flights, you can get down to Cabo for under $400, which gives you enough money for bus fare and a sea kayak rental and you can do a long sea kayak tour around Espiritu Santo. It sounds like you're both pretty adventure-savvy, so skip the guided trip and rent a tandem kayak for a week for under $250 (or longer, you'll just need a water resupply). You may also need to pay for a boat ride to the island if the channel is rough. My buddy and I did this trip during grad school and had a blast, and it's possible on a shoestring budget.
posted by craven_morhead at 6:49 PM on October 24, 2016
Flying to Denver and letting the weather dictate your trip in the mountain west/southwest wouldn't be a bad way to do it. Pack the truck full of all of your gear, and check out what the weather's doing a week out. Snowing hard? Go skiing and maybe check out availability at 10th Mountain huts. Gonna be warm? Get to Grand Junction/Fruita or Moab and camp and rent mountain bikes and ride some classic trails. Or if the weather is going to be snowier (or drier) to the south, drive down to Taos or even the Grand Canyon; you've got plenty of time. Camp and cook to save cash and spend your money on raft trips or bike rentals or however else you want to spend your days.
But if you want to get out of the country, if you jump on the right flights, you can get down to Cabo for under $400, which gives you enough money for bus fare and a sea kayak rental and you can do a long sea kayak tour around Espiritu Santo. It sounds like you're both pretty adventure-savvy, so skip the guided trip and rent a tandem kayak for a week for under $250 (or longer, you'll just need a water resupply). You may also need to pay for a boat ride to the island if the channel is rough. My buddy and I did this trip during grad school and had a blast, and it's possible on a shoestring budget.
posted by craven_morhead at 6:49 PM on October 24, 2016
Response by poster: Just to give an update: We went to New Mexico last winter (skied at Taos). And the fall before that, we went to Baja and hitch-hiked from Cabo to San Diego (with a stop for a short sea kayaking trip.) Three years ago we bopped around Utah and did some canyoneering. What we settled on for mid-December to New Years is a trip up from Wyoming, through BC, and landing in Seattle for some family time. We bought Mountain Collective passes, and will string together 8 days of skiing (hoping for snow!) with ice skating, hot-springs, and visiting friends along the way. I'm going to ask a follow up question about places to stop and eat/stretch/take pictures. Thanks for your answers.
posted by grinagog at 11:39 AM on October 31, 2016
posted by grinagog at 11:39 AM on October 31, 2016
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posted by rabbitbookworm at 2:28 PM on October 24, 2016