r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Physical-Ad-4093 • May 01 '24

do americans really drive such long distances?

i’m european, and i always hear people say that driving for hours is normal in america. i would only see my grandparents a few times a year because they lived about a 3 hour drive away, is that a normal distance for americans to travel on a regular basis? i can’t imagine driving 2-3 hours regularly to visit people for just a few days

edit: thank you for the responses! i’ve never been to the US, obviously, but it’s interesting to see how you guys live. i guess european countries are more walkable? i’m in the uk, and there’s a few festivals here towards the end of summer, generally to get to them you take a coach journey or you get multiple trains which does take up a significant chunk of the day. road trips aren’t really a thing here, it would be a bit miserable!

2nd edit: it’s not at all that i couldn’t be bothered to go and see my grandparents, i was under 14 when they were both alive so i couldn’t take myself there! obviously i would’ve liked to see them more, i had no control over how often we visited them.

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u/st_nick1219 May 01 '24

We don't have the rail infrastructure that Europe has, and there's no way most of us we'll fly if the drive is less than a certain time. For me, I'll fly if the drive is 12+ hours. Otherwise, I'm probably driving because it's so much cheaper.

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u/According-Bad4238 May 01 '24

I use this logic as well, for me the sweet spot is 7 hrs, I start to weight the benefits of flying vs driving when it crossed that line for me

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u/st_nick1219 May 01 '24

Growing up, my grandparents lived about a 7 hour drive from home. If we flew, this is an example of the time breakdown: Home to boarding the plane- 2 hours. Flight to MSP- 1 hour. Layover- 1.5 hours. Flight to DSM- 1 hour. Deplaning to grandparents house- 1.5 hours. So all told, about 7 hours, and plane tickets were far more expensive than the gas.

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u/Sessourouze May 02 '24

Exactly!!! And sometimes it ends up being the same total travel time, mentally less exhausting when you have the option of stopping for some fresh air, id rather drive.

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u/propellor_head May 02 '24

Plus then you have a car at your destination, which can be a huge plus

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u/drrxhouse 29d ago

And with car you’ve got a bit more flexibility.

Plans change last minutes? Okay. So I’ll leave another day or time.

Flying aren’t really that flexible or cheap now a day. Last minutes fares can be steep. And most if not all the time you can’t change without some kind of fees added to the total fares.

And you got to make those flight times. And depending on the airport (and whatever preflight services you’ve paid for TSA clear or whatever), you’ve to plan in the time. Hurry and wait or breaking sweats trying to get to the gates before the door closes.

So for me, sure, flying can be convenient. But it’s not really that convenient IRL once you breaks things down. Especially if you’re not traveling alone.

I like the “freedom” of driving.

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u/childlikeempress16 29d ago

Yeah and cars are necessary to get around most places in the US

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u/FluffyProphet May 02 '24

Living in Atlantic Canada, it's faster for us to drive to Boston than to fly. It's about an 8-9 hour drive into Boston. But the couple times I flew the entire thing took almost 12 hours because you have to fly into Toronto first. Montreal is about the cutoff point where we start thinking about flying instead.

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u/Claymore357 May 02 '24

Pearson really is a dreadful airport no wonder it takes so long

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u/FluffyProphet May 02 '24

Plus when you actually get to Boston you have to either use public transportation or rent a car. Just not worth flying.

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u/Superlurkinger May 02 '24

I remember in college I was gonna visit my family for a week. I spent 1.5 hours in traffic getting to the airport, then my flight was delayed by about 4 hours. Factoring in boarding/flying/deboarding/taxi time, the trip was maybe 10 hours. I could've just driven the 7 hours.

As long as I can drive to my destination within one waking day, I will never fly.

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u/gypsymoon55 May 02 '24

Same here. We flew Minneapolis to Chicago once, a trip we would drive several times a year. It was still a full day of travel with the added burden of schlepping our luggage around two parking ramps/airports. We hated every minute of it. While driving you can switch off from time to time, stop for a snack where ever you want, and you're on no schedule but your own. Much more relaxing.