Web Sites to Lighten the Stress Load on the Highway

Despite gasoline prices that have topped $2 a gallon in some parts of the country, millions of American vacationers will still be putting the pedal to the metal on a driving trip this summer.

“All this noise over high gas prices reminds me of America’s fascination with dieting,” says William S. Norman of the Travel Industry Assn. of America, which estimates that the average family traveling by auto will spend 5% of its vacation budget on gas. “We may complain about the calories in a scoop of ice cream, but who can resist it on a hot day?”

If you’re among those who can’t pass up the lure of the open highway, you’ll find plenty of online resources to help chart your journey and save a few bucks at the pump.

* Curious about the cost to fill your tank for a 600-mile run to Grandma’s house? Check out the Gas Price Calculator at ABCNews.com’s travel section (https://abcnews.go.com/sections/travel). Using figures supplied by AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report, this handy tool spits out an estimated cost based on mileage, type of vehicle and area of the country.

* One of several new sites aimed at steering consumers to the lowest gas prices, PriceHive.com (https://www.pricehive.com), lets users search for bargains by ZIP Code, area code, city or state. Since the service’s launch in March, visitors have posted more than 1,000 prices at more than 400 locations across the U.S.

* To allay vacationers’ worries about high fuel costs, several travel companies are offering financial incentives to hit the road. Among them: Hotel Reservations Network (https://www.hoteldiscounts.com), which promises to rebate up to $30 in gasoline charges to customers who book at least three nights at hotels in any of 50 major cities. The offer is good through Sept. 4, and hotels must be booked online.

* Rand McNally’s comprehensive site (https://www.randmcnally.com) sells luggage, travel accessories, software and games geared to avoiding those “Are we there yet?” whines. But one of its most useful features is the “plan a trip” section. Drivers can locate a specific address, get door-to-door directions and check the weather forecasts along major interstates. Road construction alerts are updated twice a month.

* Along with steering motorists from point A to point B in the U.S., Canada and a dozen European countries, Mapquest (https://www.mapquest.com) supplies airport maps, live traffic reports and DigitalCity destination profiles for major U.S. cities and hotel and restaurant recommendations from Mobil Travel Guides. A new national park feature integrates driving directions to or from the selected park. But it falls short by supplying only brief descriptions.

What free spirit wouldn’t envy Chuck Woodbury? As editor and publisher of Out West, a quarterly devoted to quirky characters, great grub and the joys of the road less traveled, he’s managed to make a living by spending most of the past 12 years roaming the West in a 24-foot RV. The Web version of his enterprise, https://www.outwestnewspaper.com, offers highlights from past issues, including “the West’s Best Hamburgers.” It offers particular value to RVers, thanks to the listings of free, easily accessible campgrounds.

Electronic Explorer appears the second Sunday of every month. Laura Bly welcomes comments; her e-mail address is LSBly@ aol.com.