ESCONDIDO, Calif. – Did they all really have to spend the night? And if they really did, could they have stayed in some less expensive hotels?

It’s really not very far from Escondido, California – located near San Diego – to Palm Springs, California.

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A quick Google search tells us that the two cities are about 109 miles apart, and it takes about 2 1/2 hours to make the drive.

That actually seems a little long. If you’re driving at least 70 mph, and traffic isn’t heavy, it should take about 90 minutes. But when is California traffic ever light?

In any case, it’s a straight shot north to Riverside, then a quick jaunt east to Palm Springs.

It sounds like a nice day trip. Even if you have to be there for business, the drive there and back on the same day would not be too taxing, and certainly worthwhile to save money on pricey hotels.

But in fiscal year 2016-17, the Escondido school district had 23 hotel transactions in Palms Springs, totaling $18,902.59. That averages out to about $821 per transaction.

School personnel apparently spent their share of nights at some pretty nice places in Palm Springs, including the Palm Mountain Resort and Spa (seven transactions for $4,753.33, for an average of $679 per transaction).

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There were also three transactions at the Hard Rock Hotel in Palm Springs ($5,166.86), four charges at the Renaissance Palm Springs ($3,383.96), and a single transaction at the Doubletree by Hilton Golf Resort ($2,487.60).

The school district even dropped a notable amount at the Motel 6 in Palm Springs – three transactions totaling $946.73.

The Palm Springs stays comprised about one-third of the Escondido district’s complete hotel tab for 2016-17, which totaled $52,877.84. That amount was spent in 73 transactions, for an average of $724 per charge.

There were quite a few other hotel stays in not-too-distant cities, and they kept getting closer to home.

Anaheim is about one hour and 45 minutes from Escondido, yet the school district had six transactions at hotels in that city, for a total of $4,458.89. That averaged $743 per transaction.

Riverside is about 90 minutes away, and the district had two charges at hotels there for a total of $777.90.

Costa Mesa is about an hour from Escondido, yet the school district had three hotel charges there for a total of $3,275.20. That comes out to $1,091 per transaction.

There was one charge at the Westin in San Diego – about a half hour away – for $258.07.

And you really can’t get any closer than the Las Brisas neighborhood in Escondido itself, where the district had a single charge of $1,306.05 at the Best Western.

And so we ask one more time … did they all really have to spend the night?