Actually he's refreshingly frugal. Public transit + inns + hiking is cheaper per day than a lot of parts of the US, and competition among the low cost carriers

Actually he's refreshingly frugal. Public transit + inns + hiking is cheaper per day than a lot of parts of the US, and competition among the low cost carriers means that you can find roundtrip tickets from some American cities for <$600 in the summer and <$300 in the winter (emphasis on some -- NY, SF, Newark, Fort Lauderdale).