Why not? Musk specifically stated during the revelation of the Superchargers that it would be possible to travel from LA to NY in a Tesla car for free in 2 years.
Cheaper? Not sure about that. I've done a couple 3000+ mile drives and the price was pretty comparable to a flight (in terms of fuel). If you have more than one person in the car, it's cheaper than flying.
And these are electric cars we are talking about. I would imagine they would beat the cost of flying every time.
Hotels, food, etc. If the goal is the destination rather than the journey, I imagine airlines will be the most efficient form of long distance travel for the forseeable future.
It's not appropriate for people who want to do cross-country trips, just like a pickup truck isn't appropriate for a single college student with nothing to haul.