Getting Home For The Holidays: What's The Best Way For You?

By Francine Fluetsch on March 28, 2014

image via www.bookghostwritingblog.com

When you do not live close to school, deciding how to get home for breaks can be a tough decision. There are many things that factor in, the main one being money, but you also have to consider time, convenience, traveling conditions and so on. Here are some modes of transportation for you to consider for your next trip home.

image via www.lossofprivacy.com

Plane: This is probably one of the first things people rule out because they just automatically dub it expensive. No, plane rides are not the cheapest, but if you plan ahead (like really far ahead) you can actually get some pretty good deals. According to this article by Adam Pash, you should be booking your flight eight weeks in advance.

Pro: You are going to save lots and lots of time, and to me, this is a very important factor. If you are visiting for your short spring break, you don’t want to waste a bunch of time simply getting to your destination. A plane will bring you home promptly, and you’ll be able to spend more time with your friends and family.

Con: Flights can get delayed or cancelled, which will hinder your traveling time. Just make sure to check your flight schedule ahead of time and plan accordingly.

Pro: You can sit back, relax, and not have to worry about knowing the directions or taking pit stops.

Con: Planes raise prices during breaks because they know that’s when most people fly. You’re really going to have to know your schedule ahead of time and make sure that you can book your tickets way in advance, or else you will be paying a lot more than you would like to.

Pro: Bathrooms! If you are driving on a long freeway, finding a pit stop may be a tedious task, especially if you are driving with others. On a plane, you have restroom access available to you the whole time.

image via www.international-driver.com

Drive: Can someone say road trip? If you have a car, this option may appeal to you (depending on how far away you are from school).

Pro: If you do it right, it can be cheaper than flying. Bring snacks from school (so you don’t have to pay more for snacks on the road) and carpool with some friends who can pitch in for gas. You’ll have road trip buddies, can switch off driving and save a lot of money.

Con: If you are carpooling, realize that whenever you deal with other people, things can get messy. Just make sure that whoever you are riding with is someone you know.

Pro: There is more leg room in a car, and if you’re not driving, you have the option of putting your seat back, so we can say that a car ride (for the most part) is going to be more comfortable than a plane ride.

Con: A car ride is going to take a whole heck of a lot longer. For me, I can fly home in about an hour and ten minutes, whereas driving would take me roughly eight hours (ain’t nobody got time for that). If getting home quickly is a top priority, you may want to rethink driving.

Here is a Fly or Drive calculator if you want a second opinion!

Busing it: Everybody sing! “The wheels on the bus go round and round”… no? Okay.

image via www.metrotransit.org

Pro: Taking the bus will definitely be cheaper than driving or flying. A lot of the time, schools provide special buses for students for big holidays (we have the Turkey Express for Thanksgiving, and a winter break one as well) that will bring you to your destination (or pretty close to it) for a good deal.

Con: If you thought driving was slow, maybe the bus isn’t the best option. Taking the bus takes foreverrrr, especially since you will have to stop frequently. Some have bathrooms but it is not very likely, the seats are pretty cramped, and we all know that there can be some sketchy people on buses.

Pro: You don’t have to worry about knowing the directions like you do in a car; you can sit back, do some homework (ha!) and just wait to get home.

Con: You will have to know all the bus schedules, where to get on and off, and have someone pick you up if the bus drop-off is not that close to where you live. The Turkey Express would drop everyone off an hour and a half from where I live, so then I would have to wait for someone to get me and then keep driving in a car … no bueno.

Jessica Wellmen, a third year biology student at UC Santa Cruz, said “I usually take the bus for longer breaks, like winter break, but if I only have a weekend then I fly home.”

Still don’t know if you should bus or drive? This article will help you sort out your thoughts.

image via www.refo500.nl

Train: If you have a train nearby that is going to your destination, this is another option to consider.

Pro: This will be faster than the bus for sure. Trains usually stick to stricter schedules (don’t be late!) meaning that the stops they have to make will be fast and won’t delay you all too much.

Con: Taking the train, though very similar to the bus, is going to cost more. How much more is going to depend on where you are going and where you live.

Pro: Trains are usually cleaner and more comfortable than buses. Many if not all will have bathrooms, and if there are sketchy people, you can easily move to a new spot since trains have more room than buses.

Con: Though the train will be faster than the bus, it is still going to be slower than flying or driving.

If teleportation was just invented already, we wouldn’t have to make these though decisions; wouldn’t that be great? Whatever you choose, make sure to map out the time, cost and traveling conditions, and figure out which aspects are the most important to you before making a decision. Happy traveling!

 

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Get Top Stories Delivered Weekly

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format