Four Itchy Feet

July 26, 2025. Tacoma, Washington. Day 66 of 170

We’ve now completed the first phase of our trip, or 66 of 170 days. This is the third installment of our travel budget series, and the news isn’t good. We gave budget updates on days 10 and 31. If you recall, our goal was to remain under $350 per day. This estimate was based on prior travels, but we simply didn’t account for the inflationary pressures facing the world, and more importantly, how expensive the state of Washington is.

Not only is the state expensive, but the Seattle area is particularly burdened by heavy taxation. Sales tax on hotels, Airbnbs, and restaurants is over 11%. Gas taxes are also astronomical, making gas almost five dollars per gallon. We even discovered, looking closer at our restaurant bill, a “S/C Hospitality Fee” that added 3% to our total.

We expect the next phase of our trip—ten days in Seattle, followed by 60 days in Japan—to bring us back under our desired budget. We no longer have two non-stop eating machines in the form of teenage grandkids with us and won’t be driving as much (we’ve driven over 8,500 miles in 66 days!). This also means smaller Airbnbs and hotels, and reduced grocery and restaurant expenses.

These numbers are cumulative and reflect our expenses to date. As you can see, accommodations account for more than half of our expenses, transportation a quarter, and the last quarter is left for food and entertainment. We hope that you find value in these numbers as you plan your trips to the West Coast of the United States. We have 104 days to go on this particular trip before we return to the East Coast of the United States. Stay tuned for updates!