Estimate the total cost of a family day trip.
A family day out has one cost that is shared and several that are not, which is why the per-person figure behaves oddly. Fuel is per vehicle: 120 miles at 28 mpg is 15 dollars whether two travel or five. Admissions and food are per head and dominate — for four people at 33 dollars each that is 132, nearly nine times the fuel. The practical implication is that distance matters much less to a day trip budget than the attraction does, and that taking a picnic is worth more than choosing a closer destination.
Family Day Trip Budget
Fuel = round-trip miles / mpg x fuel price; food and admissions = members x (admission + meals); total = fuel + food and admissions + extras
Less than people think. Doubling a 120-mile round trip adds about 15 dollars in fuel for a typical car — usually less than one extra admission ticket.
Food, almost always. Taking a picnic instead of buying meals for four saves 40-60 dollars, which is far more than any route or fuel decision.