1. The Price
Okay, weâve all heard the âyou get what you pay forâ mantra before, but do you understand that on an average day, it costs about fifteen bucks to get from New York City to Washington, DC. Thatâs average. You okay with taking a midnight bus? FOUR DOLLARS, BABY. FOUR.
Put that latte down and go to a poetry reading in the East Village.
2. The Sights
Nothing sucks more than having to focus on an endless highway while driving, staring at the asses of 18-wheelers. And, if your car doesnât have cruise control, it can cause some serious foot cramps. On a bus you can sit back, relax, and take a gander at whatever gorgeous, desolate or bizarre vistas you pass on your way from point A to B.
3. The Wi-Fi Is Free (When It’s Working)
And if youâre not on a megabus, itâs probably working. If it isnât, here are some suggestions on what to do with your time:
- read a book (youâre up high so carsickness is lessened)
- write a book
- creep on your fellow passengers
WHICH LEADS TO:
4. THE PEOPLE ON THE BUS.
Riding on buses has taught me more about humanity than practically any other life experience. The kind of people who take buses, especially buses going to weird places at weird times from weird destinations will show you corners of the world youâve never imagined. Some of these revelations admittedly terrifying (like the army of colostomy bags and Betty Boop t-shirts featured on my Grand Rapids- bound Greyhound bus), but sometimes there can be incredible and unlikely connections.
Example:Â I once shared a megabus table with a woman who spoke only Spanish, and was eating kimchi out of a thermos. She was next to an adjunct professor from NYU, who was doing research on black holes and on his way to meet his girlfriend, who ran a doggy daycare in DC. What could the three of us possibly have to talk about? Everything.
Look, Iâm just sayingâin this world where we are surrounded by people and yet so lonely, there is nothing like a bus to encourage random conversations, which can often turn into a really life-affirming, âpeople are so incredibleâ revelations.
5. The Tolls? What tolls?
Your ticket is paid, bitch! Especially if youâre coming from New York City to practically anywhere, the $$ and time saved is astronomical.
6. TSA doesnât have a security line at Union Station.
This means that you can bring your wine key onboard the bus! FINALLY. And, the two hours you âsaveâ by taking an airplane are wasted waiting in line to be stripped searched anyway, so why not just sit on the bus?!
I am fairly certain that This also contributes to the interesting nature of bus characters AKA I am pretty sure everyone on my overnight bus to Pittsburgh was drug dealer.
You do miss out on having sexy flight attendants give you snacks, but itâs a worthy price to pay for being able to keep your shoes on.
7. The smaller carbon footprint
Okay, I knowâbuses are still gas guzzling, Fern Gully villain-esque planet killers. But thirty people in one of these, verses thirty SUVs? If thatâs not a great opening line to a pro-bus, eco-friendly folk song, I donât know what is!
8. The adventure
There is something about catching a bus to somewhere, even if Itâs just for the day, that feels more adventurous than just hopping in your car or reserving a flight. The spontaneity that bus travel allows makes you feel like life isnât just some endless loop of the same old, same old. After all, if youâre in a rut, you can always just hop the last bus to DC and go to a free museum. Or truck over to Cleveland and visit an old friend. OR hop the Canadian border and see what Toronto has to offer! Bus travel has the power to make nomadic bohemians of us all. I mean it. It can be late, it can be a nightmare, it can be dirty and smelly, but eventually, bus travelers learn to just sit back, hold on, and pack light.
Eventually, you arrive at your destination, and you are always happy that you took a little bit more time getting there.
Iâve taken buses in New York, New Jersey, Washington DC, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Canada Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and a particularly odd journey from Sevilla to Cadiz, where I just wept on a beach and then turned around. I know buses, and I want you to love them
PS: I wrote this on a bus.