RAGBRAI^® TRANSPORTATION
Driving Yourself

Drive Yourself • Have Someone Drop You Off and Pick You Up in the Ending Town
Have Someone Drop You Off in the Starting Town and Pick You Up in the Ending Town

Drive Yourself
Approximate Total Cost - about $510.00 to $645.00
To drive yourself from Chicago you would need to drive to the RAGBRAI ending town, park your car there for the week, and have another charter service transport you, your bicycle, and your baggage to the start of RAGBRAI. We estimate that it would cost you between about $485.00 to $575.00 to do so.

After the ride you would also need to drive yourself back to Chicago which could be very dangerous. You will be very, very tired, having ridden both that day as well as every day for almost 500 miles the entire previous week.

Gas - about $100.00
The shortest, fastest driving distance from Chicago to Burlington is about 250 miles by following I-88, I-74, and US 34. Assuming gas is about $4.00 per gallon and your car gets about 20 miles per gallon, the cost of gas would be about $50.00 each way, or about $100.00 round trip.

Tolls - about $10.00 to $20.00
If you follow I-88 from Chicago to Burlington you would need to pay $5.10 in tolls each way using an I-Pass, or $10.20 round trip (double the tolls if you pay cash).

Week Long Parking - $100.00 to $150.00
You would need to park your car in Burlington, and long term parking last year in Davenport during the week of RAGBRAI was between $100.00 and $150.00.

• Click Here for more information about parking in Davenport during the week of RAGBRAI

Charter Service to the Start of RAGBRAI - about $200.00 to $250.00
Because RAGBRAI is a one way ride, you would still need to transport yourself, your baggage, and your bike to the start. To do so, you would need to use another charter service and they cost about $200.00 to $250.00 on average per person.

Hotel at the Start of RAGBRAI before the start of the ride - about $100.00 to $125.00
Most charter services depart the RAGBRAI ending town very early in the morning, typically around 7:00 or 8:00 am. Considering the drive from Chicago to Davenport is roughly three hours (not including traffic and breaks for food, gas, and restrooms), you would probably want to leave the night before and spend the night in a hotel near there. In addition, from our experience hotel rooms also charge a premium rate due to the increased demand that night.

Otherwise you could leave Chicago VERY, VERY early in the morning in order to be sure to make it on time, but we don't think it would be a good idea to start your vacation or such an already physically challenging week in such a demanding way.

Have Someone Drop You Off and Pick You Up in the Ending Town
Approximate Total Cost - about $520.00 to $565.00 and a BIG favor for your driver
If you did not want to park your car in the RAGBRAI ending town during the week, you could have someone drop you off and pick you up there. We estimate that it would cost you $480.00 to $525.00 to do so and you would owe the driver a BIG favor.

Gas - about $200.00 and Tolls - about $20.00 to $40.00
The amount you would have to spend on both gas and tolls compared with driving yourself would double. This is because you would have to get dropped off and picked up both before the start and also after the end of the event.

Charter Service to the Start of RAGBRAI - about $200.00
You would still need to use another charter service to transport you, your baggage, and your bike to the start of RAGBRAI.

Hotel Room at the Ending Town before the start of the ride - about $100.00 to $125.00
Before the start of the ride, you and your driver would still need to either get a hotel room near the ending town or leave Chicago VERY, VERY early in the morning.

A BIG Favor for Your Driver
Whoever drives you would need to drive over twelve hours total over at least two days - about six hours each way there and back both before the start and after the end of the event, not to mention the time and hassle getting in and out of the ending town with all of the others rider there. You would definitely owe them a BIG favor.

Have Someone Drop You Off in the Starting Town and Pick You Up in the Ending Town
Approximate Total Cost - about $420.00 to $465.00 and an ABSOLUTELY ENORMOUS favor for your driver
If you had someone initially drop you off in the starting town instead of the ending town you would not need to pay for parking in the ending town or a charter service to the start of RAGBRAI. We estimate that it would cost you about $425.00 to $445.00 to do so and you would owe the driver an ENORMOUS favor.

Gas - about $300.00
The shortest, fastest driving distance from Chicago to Glenwood is about 480 miles by following I-88, and I-29, and from Chicago to Burlington is about 250 miles by following I-88, I-74, and US 34. Assuming gas is about $4.00 per gallon and your car gets about 20 miles per gallon, the cost of gas would be about $300.

Tolls - about $20.00 to $40.00
If you follow I-88 from Chicago you would need to pay $5.10 in tolls each way using an I-Pass, or $10.20 round trip (double the tolls if you pay cash).

Hotel Room at the Starting Town before the start of the ride - about $100.00 - $125.00
Considering the drive from Chicago to Sioux City is about eight and a half or nine hours each way (including breaks for food, gas, and restrooms), your driver would definitely need to spend the night in a hotel near the starting town before driving back to Chicago.

An ABSOLUTELY ENORMOUS Favor for Your Driver
You would definitely owe an ABSOLUTELY ENORMOUS favor to whoever drives you because they would need to drive about twenty four hours total over at least three days - at least eight hours (each day) each way to and from Sioux City and at least six hours (one day) after the end, not to mention the incredible time and hassle getting in and out of the ending town with all of the others riders and support personnel in both the starting and ending towns.