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Africa - The Cradle of Humankind
World-renowned archaeologist Professor Phillip Tobias once said
that "Humanity was a gift from Africa to the World". Many
scholars believe Africa to be the birthplace of mankind and with
the substantial archaeological findings in their favour...
Sightseeing In Savannah
Treat the kids (and yourself) to a history lesson by visiting Savannah, Georgia. Established in 1733, “Georgia’s First City” is rich in history and offers an eclectic mix of celebrated elegance and contemporary flair sure to please everyone in...
The Pearl of the Orient in a Glance
The Philippines, also known as the pearl of the orient, is an
archipelago located in southeast Asia. It consists of about
7,000 islands; a little more if it's low tide. It's quite hot
all year round, and it seems that the heat only...
Travel To South America: How To Start
You set your mind and you're ready to travel to South America, a magical place of immense beauty where myth and legend continue to walk hand in hand. I've traveled 18 months in South America and can give you some tips on how to prepare yourself for...
Vacationers… Did you know?
(NC)—The long-awaited vacations of 1.3 million Canadians may be ruined every year by Travellers' Diarrhea, also referred to as Montezuma's Revenge. While rarely life threatening, Travellers' Diarrhea has a way of disrupting a perfectly planned...
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Bus Travel in the US--an Overview for Visitors
Bus travel takes a different role in the car-driven culture of
the United States than it does in most countries. Because the
area of the US is so vast, flying is often the most attractive
transportation option for traveling between cities and can be
priced quite competitively when factoring in time and
convenience. For shorter distances driving is usually the first
choice for US domestic travelers. However, for routes that are
under five or six hours, the bus is almost always the most
economical and often the most convenient form of travel.
Furthermore, as Amtrak (the national rail service) continues to
see cuts in government funding, bus service is often the only
ground transportation option for many destinations. Visitors who
are planning to stick to major cities will most likely find
having a car to be inconvenient, expensive, and unnecessary.
Therefore, taking the bus between destinations is a great option.
Many Americans view traveling by bus with some trepidation, and,
whether deserved or not, bus service in the US often has the
reputation of being rather basic. In truth, the level of service
varies greatly among bus carriers. Some carriers, like LuxBus in
California or Transfloridian in Florida, offer deluxe buses and
feature services that are rarely even found on airlines today,
such as on-board entertainment and complimentary food and
beverage service. Still, standard bus service is generally more
on the budget level and offers few amenities. Food options are
more likely to be a ten minute stop at a roadside fast food
restaurant than on-board meal service.
The bus industry in the United States is dominated by Greyhound,
which is the only remaining nationwide bus carrier. Several
other companies such as Trailways and Coach USA are made up of
independently owned bus companies that share marketing functions
and branding. In addition there are several strong regional
players in the bus industry. While these companies compete with
Greyhound, they often end up sharing service on routes that do
not have enough traffic to sustain two carriers. This is similar
to "code sharing" in the airline industry.
The most recent development in the U.S. bus industry has been
the "Chinatown bus" phenomenon. Several years ago a few
enterprising business people in New York's Chinatown started
running buses from Chinatown in NY to Chinatown in Boston,
charging less than half of what traditional bus companies did
and a fraction of what it cost to take the train or fly. They
targeted Asian immigrants who wanted to shop or visit relatives
and needed inexpensive and convenient transportation. Although
the buses were modern and
comfortable, the service was bare
bones--no advertising, customer service, or bus stations.
Customers simply went to the bus stop, waited for the bus, and
paid the driver upon boarding. For those willing to do without
frills, these companies offered virtually the same service as
Greyhound at a substantially lower price. Before long, word
spread about the service and all kinds of travelers started
using these bus lines. They became especially popular with
students, budget travelers, and people for whom the service was
simply more convenient.
Soon more bus companies duplicated this model and started
offering service in other markets. Now you can find this type of
bus service in Philadelphia, Virginia, Washington DC, Los
Angeles and San Francisco. At this point the term "Chinatown
bus" is used more loosely to describe this sort of
low-cost/low-frills service. Many, if not most, of the company's
do not have Chinatown as there main location and may not cater
to the immigrant population at all. When these companies first
started operating, concerns were raised about safety standards.
There is still controversy within the industry about whether
these low-cost bus companies are complying with the same
regulations as the traditional companies. Nonetheless, all bus
companies operating in the U.S. must undergo the same inspection
standards and must comply with the same rules.
Finding information about scheduled bus service is not always
easy for visitors to the US. Historically bus companies have
sold tickets at on-site ticket booths. Many now sell through
their own websites as well. Whereas for plane travel there are
many online booking sites that allow travelers to compare
different carriers, it is more difficult to find route
information for bus service. GotoBus.com is a centralized
booking site focused on bus travel. It offers search capability
similar to Expedia or Travelocity and sells tickets for many
different bus and tour companies.
Overall, the bus is a great option for visitors to the US who
are looking for transportation between major US cities. For most
cities, a car is not necessary and will be inconvenient and
expensive. In metropolitan areas there are more choices for bus
service today than at any time in the recent past. Particularly
for shorter distances, it is the best way to go for the budget
minded traveler.
About the author:
Lila Kahn is the Marketing Manager of GotoBus.com, the leading
online marketplace for bus tickets and tours in the USA. You can
find out more information about the company and contact
information for the author at: http://www.GotoBus.com/
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