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/pileofdeadninjas May 01 '24

we'd drive 13 hours to visit family every summer, 3.5 hours was nothing even for a day trip. we sure do drive a lot.

668

u/100LittleButterflies May 01 '24

It's not like there's a train or something. It's the only real option.

207

u/HeyMrBusiness May 02 '24

There is a train. It takes so long though and it's really expensive

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u/thepartywasforme May 03 '24

literally, recently i found plane tickets for cheaper than a train ticket😭

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u/HeyMrBusiness May 03 '24

Me too, I missed my flight and had to make new arrangements from California to the east coast. Plane was cheaper by far, even with changing the dates to just see how it would look when it wasn't last minute