Dear all,
I'm considering driving to the convention in my 8 passenger van with
little luggage room, 5-6 passenger with lots. It will take about 7
leisurely hours. The boat begins boarding at noon for a 5:30 departure.
If we leave here at around 5AM to beat the rush hour traffic as we get
out of town, we will be there around noon. The cost of driving at $.65
per mile (I believe the IRS ave cost estimate) is about $550 round trip
including gas plus the cost of parking in LA. I will expect lavish
treatment in exchange for my driving both ways. No one else will be able
to drive the car as it has diplomatic plates. We would arrive in SF late
afternoon Monday just in time to fight the bay area's rush hour traffic.
If we flew, we could avoid this.
Flying Southwest from Oakland to Orange County is about $100 each way
plus taxi fare from the airport to the port (I estimate that to be $100)
It is about 45 miles and will take about an hour. We can probably only
get about 3 people in a taxi with luggage so we'd be looking at about
$80 per head taxi cost.
Driving will save money ($300 vs. $100 with 5 passengers) but add time
and I will arrive very tired and grumpy after both trips. It might be
worth it if it helps get someone to the convention that might not be
able to afford it otherwise.
Any comments? Phil Berg and I will be traveling together for sure one
way or another.
Mike