This is a serious matter that we need to address.  You hear people say it all the time, “are you feeling the pain at the pump?”.  Unless you’re rich and gas money is basically pocket change to you, yes, the obvious answer is yes.  The real question should be, “are gas prices affecting your quality of life?”.  Just the other day I realized, yes, it is and it doesn’t make me happy.

With Easter coming up, we are trying to get our plans together and we got an invitation to dinner with my family who lives an hour away.  Why was my first thought how much gas that would cost me?  What a horrible way to think about visiting family on a holiday.  As I sat there calculating the cost of the trip, I was reminded how I haven’t seen my grandparents since Christmas.  This is not acceptable, but it is completely true.  Gas prices have prevented me from visiting my grandparents!  I only have two left, I shouldn’t let this bust my budget.

My point is to not turn this into something political, but to put aside the fears of “how much is this going to cost me in gas” by looking at ways to keep the trips as fuel efficient as possible.  I, like many I’m sure, don’t have the best car in the world as far as fuel efficiency goes, but there has to be a way to get a few more miles out of the tank.

Here are a few tips that I got from AAA to make traveling this Easter weekend a little more bearable:

• Consolidate trips and errands to cut down on travel time and miles
• Avoid quick starts and stops
• Slow down, the faster you go the more fuel you burn
• Get rid of unnecessary objects in your car, especially very heavy items
• Keep your eyes open for low fuel prices but don’t drive too far to save a few cents
• Stick to a routine maintenance schedule

Click here to view the entire Gas Watcher’s Guide, it has a lot of great tips that maybe you never thought of or have forgotten.  AAA also posts a weekly gas article on their website so you can get a better understanding as to why fuel costs what it does.  There are also great websites out there like gasbuddy.com that will point you in the direction of the best fuel prices.

Hope that helps, and safe travels this weekend!