We all know that the obvious cost are for the food, but I’m finding that a lot of people travel far during Thanksgiving, and those people are the ones that incur the real costs.
flying
I’m fortunate in that the expense for gas as I drive on two separate days to both my of our parents isn’t really that bad. I estimate that the cost runs close to $25. For my sister it runs at least double that number. She lives 2 hours from my parents and a good distance from her in-laws…
I don’t have the stats., but it would be interesting to see how much the cost of traveling is overtaking the cost of the food and preparation. Just in my little example, it’s obvious that the expense of traveling can cost as much as the food itself. Then again, perhaps Thanksgiving has always been about traveling far to meet family? I’ve always lived close to my family, so while I still enjoy Thanksgiving, it’s really not a rare event since my sister and I meet our parents often.
I have to admit, it is fun watching football on TV, and having “The Christmas Story” play in the background as we all eat. These are what I call soft traditions in our family. They are soft because some years we do them, while other we don’t.
Here’s wish everybody in the US a Happy Thanksgiving!
MR
Happy Thanksgiving Don!!! I hope you enjoy the football and the turkey 🙂
Same to You!!
Here’s wishing you the best!!! 🙂
I am jealous of you! My fiancee lives in the south and I’m here on the west coast. I had to forgo flying out there this Thanksgiving because of how astronomical flights are. My parents ended up paying for me to come home to see them, but I couldn’t swing the $600 flight for Tennessee to go see my girl. I wish we all lived in closer proximity–it definitely is a strain on the wallet.
Happy Thanksgiving. My food is infinitely more expensive than my traveling costs, but that’s just because I’m not traveling at all ($50ish/0 = infinity, right?) haha.
Nice, I’d rather not travel either. 50/0 = undefined, it’s not possible to divide by 0.
Hope you had a great turkey day!
Happy holidays to you too. Enjoy the game. I have to make sure I check my fantasy team before tomorrow. Hoping for some good numbers.
drat, I forgot to check my fantasy football team lineup!
Normally, I don’t think about the cost because I value the experience more than the cost. For a few years we all go to a friends house for Thanksgiving.
My holidays are always local so the costs are fairly low. But I did notice the lines at O’Hare or the lack of lines for those flying this year. Seems the travel costs are starting to weigh on holiday traffic. Happy Thanksgiving!
This year we’re hosting. I haven’t even looked at the grocery receipts. Just by looking at the overstuffed fridge and pantry gives Frugal-Me a headache. But screw it, it’s Thanksgiving, a time for feasting and sharing in celebration of our good fortune.
Happy Thanks Giving MR!
We usually host on Christmas where our grocery bill grows long very fast!
Thanksgiving day means just to take off from work and gather with near and dear ones and enjoy delicious food. But if our near and dear ones live far away so I think travelling become the indispensably part of Thanksgiving day.