Now that I have formulate the things I really want to do on our Charleston roadtrip & the accommodations are booked it’s time for the next step of planning: scheduling & budgeting!
This is still in the early stages & I don’t feel the need to schedule the life out of every moment of this trip (that’s the beauty of road trips anyways!) but I do need to have a general idea of where we’ll be and when and how much it might cost us. I’m trying to do this trip very budget friendly (I think that’s actually always my goal…) because we are still in the middle of house renovations with an expensive bathroom renovation coming up, and we’re hosting Christmas for my family.
Please feel free to comment with any ideas for us, just don’t get offended if I don’t listen to your advice. 🙂
P.S. This is the type of budgeting I do for every trip (excluding small weekend getaways), it’s really not that much work now that I have a template. All prices on the budget are for 2 people.
2019 Charleston Road Trip Planning: Scheduling & Budgeting
| EVENT | TIMES/ADDRESS/NOTES | ESTIMATED COST USD | ACTUAL COST USD |
| Friday, November 22, 2019 | |||
| Oviedo, FL to St. Marys, GA | |||
| Drive from Oviedo, FL to St. Mary’s, GA | ~2.5 hours | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| St. Marys Accommodations: Riverview Hotel (2 nights) | check in 2:00 pm & check out 11:30 am | $300.00 | $220.18 |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $365.00 | $220.18 | |
| Saturday, November 23, 2019 | |||
| DAY TRIP: Cumberland Island | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Ferry from St. Marys to Cumberland Island | check in 8:00 am – ferry at 9:00 am ; 45 min ride (price for there & return) | $70.00 | $67.80 |
| Bike Rental on Cumberland Island | price for 2 bikes (or Will can bring his from home) | $32.00 | $0.00 |
| Picnic Lunch (packed by Hotel) | sandwiches, water, chips, cookie, & cheese stick | $35.00 | $20.00 |
| Ferry from Cumberland Island to St. Marys | check in 3:45 pm – ferry at 4:45pm (price included in previous) | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Walk around St. Marys | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $202.00 | $87.80 | |
| Sunday, November 24, 2019 | |||
| St. Marys, GA to Beaufort, SC | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Mass: Our Lady Star of the Sea | 11:00 am (walk from hotel) | $5.00 | $0.00 |
| Drive from St. Marys, GA to Sunbury Crab Company | ~1 hr 25 min | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Lunch: Sunbury Crab Company (recommended) | 541 Brigantine-Dunmore Road; Sunday hours 12:00 pm – 8:00 pm | $40.00 | $0.00 |
| Drive from Sunbury Crab Company to Beaufort, SC | ~1.5 hours | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Afternoon/evening in Beaufort, SC | To Do/See: Gullah Culture of St. Helena Island & Antebellum Houses | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Beaufort Accommodations: AirBnb (1 night) | check in 4pm; check out 10am (the reason for the big price difference is that I was originally going to get us a fancy B&B) | $250.00 | $45.48 |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $380.00 | $65.48 | |
| Monday, November 25, 2019 | |||
| Beaufort, SC to Charleston, SC | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Morning in Beaufort, SC & surrounding areas | To Do/See: Gullah Culture of St. Helena Island & Antebellum Houses | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Lunch | $35.00 | $0.00 | |
| Drive from Beaufort, SC to Middleton Place | ~1.5 hours | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Middleton Place | General Admission $29 (9:00 am – 5:00 pm) + House Museum Tour $15 (12:00 pm – 4:00 pm) | $88.00 | $0.00 |
| Drive from Middleton Place to Charleston, SC | ~30 min | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Charleston Accommodations: staying with friends (5 nights) | FREE | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $208.00 | $0.00 | |
| Tuesday, November 26, 2019 | |||
| Charleston, SC | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Morning in Charleston** | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Lunch | $35.00 | $0.00 | |
| Afternoon/evening in Charleston** | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $140.00 | $0.00 | |
| Wednesday, November 27,2019 | |||
| Charleston, SC | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Morning in Charleston** | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Lunch | $35.00 | $0.00 | |
| Prepare for Thanksgiving/hang with friends | $0.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $130.00 | $0.00 | |
| Thursday, November 28, 2019 | |||
| Charleston: THANKSGIVING DAY | |||
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Friday, November 29, 2019 | |||
| Charleston, SC | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Morning in Charleston** | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Lunch | $35.00 | $0.00 | |
| Afternoon/evening in Charleston** | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $52.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Miscellaneous | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $105.00 | $52.00 | |
| Saturday, November 30, 2019 | |||
| Drive from Charleston, SC to Oviedo, FL | |||
| Breakfast | $20.00 | $0.00 | |
| Drive from Charleston to Magnolia Plantation & Gardens | ~30mins | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Magnolia Plantation & Gardens | November to February 8:30 am – 4:30 pm | $40.00 | $0.00 |
| Lunch | $35.00 | $0.00 | |
| Drive from Charleston, SC to Oviedo, FL | ~5hrs | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Dinner | $40.00 | $0.00 | |
| Snacks | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Average Gas Cost for the Whole Trip | $200.00 | $0.00 | |
| SUBTOTAL | $350.00 | $0.00 | |
| TOTAL | $1,880.00 | $425.46 | |
**The following are things we are looking to do/see in Charleston (don’t know yet WHEN we will do them or if we’ll even do it all):
- Ft. Sumter
- Old Slave Mart Museum
- Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon
- The Battery
- White Point Gardens
- Nathaniel Russell House
- Unitarian Church Cemetery (friend recommendation)
- French Huguenot Church (friend recommendation)
- Husk Restaurant (friend recommendation)
- Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum (friend recommendation)
Well that’s if for now! In the next few weeks I’ll do some more research on the history of the places we’re going to so that I can a) narrow down our “must” see list & b) be an informed traveler.
JMF
