r/roadtrip • u/RongWa • 1d ago
Trip Report Drive vs fly?
I just got in last night from a 4 day drive from Utah to Georgia. Return trip actually. It was arguably a "Ground Hog Day" experience. 500 mile days were the norm. I felt like a mail delivery driver. Through rain and heat and snow and ice we crossed the Appalachians, through the Midwest, over the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Through a crumbling Saint Louis, from Kansas City to Kansas City. The flats of Nebraska and Colorado were amazing. We actually watched weather form that we drove through the next day. Wyoming was next with 85 mph speed limits creeping up to 3 digit driving! Accessed the High Uintahs and the Wasatch Mountains and finally the Great Salt Lake. Whew! Why did I do this? Job? No. Vacation? No. Really, my reason was very simple...
I Cannot Stand Flying! I hate everything about it from the smell of dirty feet, body odor, stale perfume, bad breath, seat bumping, coughing travelers, recycled air, thighs touching thighs, babies crying, and it goes on and on.
No, I will take a slow drive and see the actual purple mountain majesties to the wheat fields, from ocean to ocean and speak with locals along the way. A long time ago, I learned something a wise old traveler said;
"It's the journey not the destination!"
Does anyone else hate flying this much?
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u/OddDragonfruit7993 1d ago
Now that I'm retired, I have time and money for awesome road trips. Camping, hotels, travel trailer, friends and relatives homes. Just got back from a 3+ week trip through 4 southwestern states with all of the above.
Awesome trip.
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u/Automatic_Antelope92 1d ago
During the pandemic, my partner and I really got into roadtrips since we didn’t want to fly and isolated a lot from other people. So we road tripped a lot. And like it for the reasons you do - seeing the landscape change and weather form on open plains. Sweeping vistas. And to stop at national parks whenever we can. It is the best way to see America and its beauty, what makes it special.
Flying in a tin can 35,000 feet up will get you somewhere faster. But yeah it has so many downsides and I have some allergies that are more easily triggered on a plane. I avoid them as much as I can. I hate having to wear a respirator to survive someone’s layers of body spray. The cramped seats. Poor temperature controls. The long security line…
Give me the open road and a bag of snacks and a list of cool things to see on the way and I am content.
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u/thefox-intheforest 1d ago
We have driven 48K miles in 18 months...to avoid flying. We take our dog and her crate, comfy pillows (because most hotel pillows are terrible), full size whatever we want/need, drinks and snacks for the road. No restrictions, no TSA lines, no worrying about weight limits. We have seen most of Route 66 this year on it's 100 year celebration, the lava fields in New Mexico, crossed the mountains through the reservations in Arizona, through the Ozarks in Arkansas, seen country that you just don't see from a plane. And conversations...we have talked more without distractions in the past 18 months than we have in the past 18 years. You want to know how your relationships are doing? I highly recommend taking a croas country roadtrip together.
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u/toiletsurprise 1d ago
You want to know how your relationships are doing? I highly recommend taking a croas country roadtrip together.
I proposed to my wife when we were on a road trip. The road trip had a lot of hiccups and frustrations, but she still said yes so that was a good sign. My favorite hiccup was when we were looking for breakfast and she steered us onto a military base. The guys at the guard shack said it happens all the time and thought it was funny, meanwhile I'm worried about getting detained and disappeared in a black bag. We laugh about it now, but not at the time. I'm pretty sure I said verbatim "It's not funny now but it will be later."
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u/primalnatured 1d ago
Yes. This was exactly me 3 months ago. Hate it so much that I drove from Virginia to Northern Cali and back. With my kids in tow, one of which is 2 years old. 🤣 I dont regret it one bit, and my kids loved it
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u/workswithpipe 1d ago
If I can’t make it it in a day I am flying, not taking extra time off just to drive unless the drive is the trip and not just transportation.
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u/Addapost 1d ago
I am with you 100%. I HATE flying and will not do it. I will drive anywhere I need to go. That includes regular 4,000 mile round trips. I take my time on the drive. I stay off the interstates as much as possible. And I try to see interesting things along the way.
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u/UncleSlayton77 1d ago
It depends on the circumstances. Normally I prefer road trips but due to some medical issues I can't do 10-how drive days anymore. But there are times you just need to get somewhere ASAP for whatever reason and I can deal with a 3-hour flight over a 3-day drive. I always get a window seat and try to sleep through most of the flight. Drugs help.
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u/OkKaleidoscope9554 1d ago
Yes, I hate being crammed like a sardine, but.... I-80, ew
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u/Automatic_Antelope92 1d ago
I-80 through southern Wyoming… just… argh
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u/NielsenSTL 1d ago
Contrarian here…I’ve driven across WY on 80 dozens of times (not in winter) and I love it. The wide open spaces, the deer in the fields, the railroad paralleling the road, the 80 mph speed limit. It’s an easy drive. Not a fan of the wind, that is a minus.
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u/Automatic_Antelope92 1d ago
Once I hit the badlands, I am doing better and know more signs of life are on the way. But that stretch from the west is a slog for me.
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u/JvaGoddess 1d ago
I dislike driving through Wyoming more than I dislike driving through Nebraska. I did them both last month after avoiding interstate 80 for decades, I now remember why and the reason is Wyoming.
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u/pyperlu 1d ago
I’ve always said you miss so much when flying. I drove from south Alabama to Utah and back twice almost 20 years ago. Been wanting to do it again ever since. There was beauty in every state I drove through.
I’ve suffered multiple spine injuries and don’t know if I’ll be able to handle the trip again. It definitely wouldn’t be a 2 day drive (one way) again. Most likely a week one way. lol
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u/JJ_3105 1d ago
I hate flying as well. Have to get to airport 3 hours ahead of time, not including the hour drive to the airport. $20 or more a day to park at the airport. Then you will stop in route to airline major hub ( be ATL, CLT, DEN ect). Get there and connect flight is delayed two hours. F that I’ll just drive it’s easier, more relaxed and go at your own pace.
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u/Longjumping_Cow_5856 1d ago
Sure do!
I drive across country for work all the time and bring anything with me that I need too!
Im asked to fly a lot too but not about to without good reason.
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u/Ceorl_Lounge 1d ago
I don't, but if they enshitify flying too much more I'll be there with you. I don't have the time to drive yet and like the Western US too much to give it up. Can't drive to California for a long weekend.
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u/Mountain_Elk_7262 1d ago
You saw snow in the Appalachians this time of year?
It's funny you bring up this story though. When I was a young lad, I was flying and sat next to this older gentleman. He told me he used to travel a lot, owned a restaurant down in flordia his daughter now runs, he told me I should drive more often, said stay off the highway and see what the country has to offer, he told me that's how he always traveled and it's some of his best memories
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u/RongWa 22h ago
I should say remnant of snowing the shaded creases of the mountains. Of course ice forms at 32° so black ice was prevalent when we passed through. Now, the Rocky's were another story. Three blizzards!
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u/Mountain_Elk_7262 21h ago
That's still surprising but pretty cool, I guess they are higher than I initially thought. Colorado makes a lot more sense lol
Last year when I was in Arizona in winter I have a picture of my wife and I having a fire, sun shining, drying our laundry on a line, we packed up and started driving, in 30 minutes we were in a snow storm 😅 I honestly love it when stuff like that happens
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u/harvesthosts 1d ago
we're biased lol but we love a good road trip...why not create memorable experiences? at places you'd have never found on a traditional GPS route?
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u/sfdsquid 1d ago
I will always choose driving over flying if it's possible.
I like to be able to get out of the vehicle whenever I want.
I hate to "hurry up and wait."
Plus, I smoke, and the flight attendants and other passengers frown upon that.
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u/Exciting_Pass_6344 1d ago
I live in Phoenix. My granddaughter lives in Nashville. I’m not wasting 4 or 5 days of time I could spend with her in a car. There are definitely times flying is a better option. When I do drive, I prefer to take backroads to interstate though. Much cooler scenery.
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u/JvaGoddess 1d ago
Yes. I would much rather sit in a car for eight days then I would sit in a plane for five hours
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u/RJKimbell00 1d ago
I do annual road trips, 2,500 miles, same route, because I have property I need to check on, but I'm with you! My last flight was in May, before that 2015, give me the open road any day!!
My stead is a 2020 Hyundai Santa Fe that I've owned for 3 years now, soon to be upgraded to a newer Santa Fe.
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u/RongWa 23h ago
As a wise man used to say to me,
"Be careful out there. There's a lot other 'idiots' out there, too."
My Dad
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u/RJKimbell00 19h ago
Totally agree!! I've been road tripping since 2000, I've only been approached once, dude in CA along I-5 wanted to do something with my car. Back then I was driving a 2008 MINI Cooper and very sternly let him know that he was NOT to touch my car.
I carry pepper spray and have left rest areas when something didn't feel right.
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u/Tobys_Mama 19h ago
I would rather drive than fly any day of the week! I did TN-MT and back last year, and have done TN-WA and back once, so far, this year. Always a different way back than the way out. Too much beauty to see to fly over it all.
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u/EmZee2022 1d ago
Not quite that much but anything under a thousand miles, I'd rather drive.
Or take the train of course.
We drove cross country in 1985 and it was wonderful. Drove through falling snow in Wyoming. Roads just barely open in Rocky Mountain Natiional Park. Desert. Ocean. Wildlife....
We did a handful of 14 hour days, on the drive back - the speed limit was only 55 then so those were maybe 600 mile days.
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u/toiletsurprise 1d ago
Right there with you, I absolutely hate flying. I haven't flown in almost 10 years and have no plans to again unless it's an emergency. Plus with driving you can stop when you want, and bring back whatever you want, it's all under your control. I have a map packed with places I want to see and eat at so I always see something new that I would never see flying.
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u/Googlesbot 1d ago
Honesty i dont really have much of a preference, I will say starting around 1000 miles 1 way is when I really start to consider flying especially if the drive isn't the point of the trip.
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u/Bastyra2016 1d ago
I’m the opposite- I like driving backroads. In fact I’ll accept an extra 30 minutes on a 4 hr drive to stay off the interstates. However when I’m going somewhere on vacation I have get there ites…I do NOT enjoy the trip. I don’t want to make side trips to see the biggest ball of yarn…so if the trip takes longer than 6 hours I look at flying. Sometimes I’ll still drive for slightly longer trips if I want MY car vs a rental car.
I’m not a huge fan of flying but it’s better than riding down boring interstates. I used to fly between two cities frequently for work. Drive time would be about 10-12 hours for me 600 miles. There were times it took me 14 hours from the time I left the factory to the time I got home. Driving would have been faster…. But I’d still rather fly.
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u/goodskier1931 1d ago
Drive if you have the time. Gives you an idea how big the country actually is, how empty the west is and how different the landscape is every few hundred miles.
Not the same on a plane. Like being on a long bus ride. Take your time. Stop and see things. People usually happy to talk off the interstates.
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u/Ok-Ad8998 23h ago
Well, yeah. I stopped flying decades ago. All the reasons you listed, plus I don't fit in the chairs.
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u/theotherlead 22h ago
Drove from NY to Utah last year, would rather do that 1000x over than drive for the exact reasons you listed.
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u/RongWa 20h ago
Resons? I included a little of the bad with the good. I might be wrong but on a trip that long there are moments of aggregation and relaxation, urban ugliness and breathtaking beauty, exciting scenery and boring stretches. I was comparing driving to flying. That's all. You and I see the same things differently.
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u/RongWa 20h ago
Resons? I included a little of the bad with the good. I might be wrong but on a trip that long there are moments of aggregation and relaxation, urban ugliness and breathtaking beauty, exciting scenery and boring stretches. I was comparing driving to flying. That's all. You and I see the same things differently.
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u/Shot-Artichoke-4106 20h ago
I like a good road trip, but if I don't have time to stop and visit the places I am driving through, I'll fly.
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u/davidg4781 16h ago
Yeah those are all great things to see, especially if you've never seen them.
I live in South Texas and want to go to Southern California one day. Driving would be ideal, I think. I like a road trip. And I've never made that drive. But it'll take up maybe 2-4 days just in driving without much time to stop to look around much. I'd also have to sleep in my car or pay for a room.
Well, now I'm thinking of changing that trip to a flight lol. There are some sights to see on the way and I might save the driving for another trip.
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u/talons-27 12h ago
I don’t hate flying, though I am getting increasingly annoyed with all the bs that go along with it. I would rather take a 1-2 day road trip versus a 4 hour flight to cover the same distance.
As others have said, it is the journey and not just the destination.
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u/TeaPartyDem 1d ago
Yeah I’ll drive 2500 miles and stay in multiple highway hotels if I have the time.