See how you can save at the pump before you hit the road to work or play

With gas prices soaring well above the highest price Americans likely have ever imagined, it’s hard to consider spending that federal rebate check on anything but fuel to get from home to work and back again. In fact, many Coloradans – like other Americans – are rethinking their vacation destinations this summer in light of travel costs, according to AAA Colorado.

The organization reported the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas in Colorado hit $3.52 on May 1. And Colorado doesn’t have the most expensive gas, either: it tied with New Hampshire with the 12th cheapest average price for regular unleaded in the nation, compared with Colorado having the 21st lowest price the previous week. Wyoming has the cheapest average price in the nation at $3.43 per gallon, while California has the most expensive average price at $3.92, followed by Alaska at $3.83.

While gas prices are impacting where people are traveling, they’re not impacting overall plans to travel somewhere, said Debbi Lardinois, communications specialist for AAA Colorado. “What we see is that people, to conserve money, make up the difference by staying closer to home, eating at less-expensive restaurants and staying at less-expensive hotels. I don’t think we’ve seen any reductions in travel. People are just going to be traveling closer to home.” That means the tourism industry’s patrons may not see a big reduction in business but rather just a change in from where their business is coming, Lardinois said. “Americans are just not willing to give up their vacations – we get so few of them compared with other countries,” she added.

How can you make sure that the gas pump doesn’t suck up all of your federal rebate check, whether you’re on vacation or going about your daily business? Make your first stop the World Wide Web, where tips are plentiful:

• http://autos.msn.com/everyday/gasstations.aspx?zip_&src=Netx gives you the current gas prices in your area when you type in the zip code of your home, work or other destination.
• http://www.aaa.com/aaa/006/Press/AAAFuelGuide.html?zip=80521 provides AAA’s Fuel Price finder and Fuel Cost Calculators, among other valuable tools gas cost-cutting tools.
• http://www.howtoadvice.com/savinggas offers 30 gas-saving tips, including not warming up your engine too long (which is easier to do, now that the morning’s are quite so cold) and how and when to buy gas.
• http://www.fueleconomy.gov/FEG/drive.shtml includes advice about combining and planning trips as well as vehicle maintenance and choosing a fuel-efficient vehicle.