Drive or Fly?
Mar 15, 2014 | 3:49 pm
#18
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: LAX
Programs: F9 Gold, peon and loving it everywhere else
Posts: 4,018
Drive or Fly?
For me, living in a "spoke" city that's centrally located and easy to get to by road (RIC) I will generally drive if the trip is less than 8 hours, and if flying there involves a connection. PIT, CMH and SAV are all cities that fit that bill from here. I love to fly but I don't mind long rural drives.
Mar 15, 2014 | 3:51 pm
#19
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: ZQN
Posts: 3,238
Drive or Fly?
Well, it isn't drivetalk, but when you travel, you have to be involved in some sort of driving, whether it is yourself or somebody else driving.
My factors:
1. Location
2. Time of travel
3. Traffic situation
4. Cost difference
5. Number of people traveling
I am increasingly sick of driving to the point where I will fly if the price us reasonable. For example, ROC to NYC will force me to fly, but ROC-EWR will prompt me to drive, simply because of the flight schedule to EWR is not good. I also would not wait for two hours at the bridges or tunnels to NYC with a $20 toll if I travel alone.
The best part of flying is you can actually do some work or rest in the plane while you have to pay full attention to traffic and weather on the road. I love multitasking, but multitasking on the road has gotten so dangerous.
My factors:
1. Location
2. Time of travel
3. Traffic situation
4. Cost difference
5. Number of people traveling
I am increasingly sick of driving to the point where I will fly if the price us reasonable. For example, ROC to NYC will force me to fly, but ROC-EWR will prompt me to drive, simply because of the flight schedule to EWR is not good. I also would not wait for two hours at the bridges or tunnels to NYC with a $20 toll if I travel alone.
The best part of flying is you can actually do some work or rest in the plane while you have to pay full attention to traffic and weather on the road. I love multitasking, but multitasking on the road has gotten so dangerous.
Mar 15, 2014 | 5:47 pm
#20
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: SIN / CNX / SFO
Programs: UA GS, SQ PPS, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, Accor Gold
Posts: 1,253
Five or six hours is my break even point. I used to do Cleveland to Chicago or DC a lot, which are both around a ~5 hour drive. Flying, I figured on ~30 minutes to the airport, 45 minutes of waiting around at the airport, 1:15 flight, 15 minutes to get out of the airport, 15 minutes on the car shuttle, 10 minutes to get a car and get out, and ~40 minutes to get to my meetings.
Add in the potential for delays, particularly in the winter, and I almost always ended up driving. Not to mention that $0.54 a mile in reimbursement makes for some nice extra pocket change: at around 750 miles round trip, that means a $400 check.
Add in the potential for delays, particularly in the winter, and I almost always ended up driving. Not to mention that $0.54 a mile in reimbursement makes for some nice extra pocket change: at around 750 miles round trip, that means a $400 check.
Mar 15, 2014 | 6:30 pm
#21
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: CHI / SFO
Programs: UA*G, AC*S, Marriott LTP, National Exec
Posts: 3,893
Generally, I'll drive if it's less than about 4 hours. I live just under 4 hours away from Chicago and it's just about bearable. With that being said, back when I used to work in aviation and I visited offices at/near airports, I'd fly even if it was only a 3 hour drive just because there was no need to deal with rental cars, etc. I've done some 6 hour same-day turns driving and that's just way too much.