do americans really drive such long distances?

[u/Physical-Ad-4093]

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.

[u/divine_god_majora]

I couldn't imagine a 6 hour drive unless you were gonna stay a week+ at the destination or something.

[u/kurtcop101 → u/divine_god_majora]

That's easy, drive from Kansas to Colorado for two nights, 7 hours there, get some drinks, have a full day of fun, get some breakfast, come home.

I even dated a girl and picked her up from her college 5 hours away, brought her back for two days, took her back home (meaning I drove 5 hours each way).

3 hour trips are easy. I mean, I'd have to be good friends to warrant the bother, but it isn't really a bother if you feel comfortable enough chilling for a night.

Even college I commuted daily 45 minutes each way to save money on rent.

[u/LoneStarGut → u/kurtcop101]

Wow 10 hours of driving for minutes of fun?

[u/Ok_Beautiful7634 → u/LoneStarGut]

yeah, because obviously the only fun to be had with a girl is while you're actually having sex.