It may seem that this is not the most obligatory item of expenditure, and if desired, you can cross it out. However, it will be very difficult for you outside of large cities (and even not all of them!) Without a car. And how you will get to the national parks, I have no idea at all. Therefore, there is nothing to do without a rented car in the USA, and the rental is quite cheap here.
We have a lot of articles on our site dedicated to driving on American roads, and if this topic is new to you, check out the article “Driving in the USA – Main Features of American Traffic Rules”.
We will rent a car for 10 days, just for a trip to national parks and Los Angeles (there is no way to survive without a car). A normal sedan or a small crossover for such a period will cost about 20,000 rubles…
But this is not all the expenses associated with the car, because it still needs to be refueled. Fortunately, gasoline in the United States is not as expensive as it is in Europe, and a liter of gasoline in America costs about 55 rubles (when converted from gallons and dollars). The rental cars are modern, which means that their consumption is about 8.5 liters / 100 km in mixed mode. And we are going to drive 5,000 km.
Total:
1. Car rental for 10 days – 20,000 rubles.
2. Gasoline – 55 * 8.5 * 50 – about 24,000 rubles (this point is rather subjective).