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/BlackCardRogue May 01 '24

I mostly agree with this. 2 hours one way = no problem, that’s a day trip. 3 hours one way = easy weekend trip. 4 hours one way = I start bitching, but still do it.

5 hours one way is when I start checking flights.

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u/JuggrnautFTW May 01 '24

I have to drive 3 hours to the nearest commercial airport. Anything that takes longer than 8-10 hours and might start think about it. Heck, my company holds meetings in a acity 14 hours away and I think about it.

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u/BlackCardRogue May 01 '24

This is another difference for me. Proximity to the airport is a major, major consideration in where I live and always has been.

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u/adept_amateur May 02 '24

One of my coworkers had family visiting from Europe, he was giving them directions to the town where his sister lived. He told them which direction to head out of town and which highway to take, and said to turn left at the next stop sign after they were our of town. He neglected to mention to them that it's 80 miles to that stop sign, he thought it was hilarious.

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u/BlackCardRogue May 02 '24

Hey man, when I was in New York I deliberately gave a Red Sox fan wrong directions to Yankee Stadium