Traveling by coach buses, motorcoaches, or charter buses is a great way to get to your destination safely and comfortably while saving yourself money and cutting down on your carbon footprint. Motorcoaches take 751,000,000 passenger trips every year, and they get 206 passenger miles per gallon. Single passenger cars only average out at 27 miles per gallon, and an air flight costs 44 miles per gallon.
Carter buses aren’t just energy efficient: they’re also good for the economy. The motorcoach industry is largely small business: 3,400 of them nationwide, actually, with a fleet of 33,400 vehicles. Every motorcoach that spends a night in a place generates an average of well over $11,500 for the local economy.
At this point, you might be convinced to make a trip by motorcoach; but what how to travel comfortably on a bus? Here are five tips to help you find the right way to travel comfortably on a bus.
- Don’t forget your blanket, neck pillow, earplugs, and eye mask. You’ll be glad you did. It can get pretty cold on the bus with all the air conditioning, and since vehicles with a lot of people overheat easily and are hard to get cool again, no one’s likely to turn it down for you. The earplugs will help if the bus makes stops for passengers to get on and off when you’d rather be sleeping, and the eye mask will let you sleep in the day or if a fellow-passenger wants to stay up all night reading.
- Bring hand sanitizer, hand wipes, and extra toilet tissue. Public restrooms are public restrooms no matter where you go. They aren’t worse on a bus than a plane or train, but they’re not going to be better either. Have tissue in case they run out before the end of the trip and use disinfecting wipes not only after a bathroom trip, but also to disinfect your area after you sit down.
- Bring snacks and water. Buses makes stops for people to buy food, but you may prefer to sleep through that stop, or you may not like the choices when you get there. Having your own snacks and water will save you money, too.
- Don’t forget entertainment. If you want to travel comfortably on a bus, don’t forget to bring a book or device along so you can read, play games, connect to the bus Wifi, or just take the opportunity to catch up with friends and family by phone.
- Do little things to make it easier to travel comfortably on a bus. You could take off your shoes (don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!), and be careful to choose a seat in the middle rather than in the more bumpy back. Also be sure to get up and stretch. Your spine will thank you.
It’s entirely possible to travel comfortably on a bus while getting the best combination of savings on time, money, and eco-impact of any form of travel. If you’ve got a long trip ahead of you, consider the benefits of bus travel and then follow these tips to travel comfortably on a bus!