Does time in transit limit how and where you travel? Or does the destination, the experience, carry the day?

 

For me it's not a matter of how or where I travel but it most certainly affects the time I will be staying at the destination. For Vegas, my flight time is somewhere around 13 hours but there are no direct flights so it's always with at least one layover. For example my upcoming trip this month. Our first flight leaves at 9:00 am, I live a bit more than an hour away from the airport so I need to leave the house around 6:00 am to be safe. First flight is a short one but it's followed by 5 hour layover and then it's 10,5 hours to Vegas. Will arrive in Vegas at ~4:15 pm local time which would be 2:15 am my time. Add baggage claim, US border and taxi to hotel, it's 5:30 pm easily (3:30 am)

So 6 am - 3:30 am, that's 21,5 hours from door to door. Add jetlag to the mix, would it be worth it for a few days in Vegas? Even though the flights take for ever, I don't mind it that much, the feeling of being closer to Vegas every minute helps.

That said, the long hauls aside, I absolutely hate layovers and refuse to travel within Europe if there's no direct flights.

 

For me, yes it does. I can hardly take a week off of my work and that is why I take a bunch of 3-4 day weekend trips.

Im finally taking a week off from my work at the end of the month and will just spend it at the beach with my wife, daughter and neighbors. It will only be a 3 hour drive.

 

I was just going go reply saying yes it does for us as the 6 1/2 - 7 hours it many times takes us to travel to vegas does limit how many times we go.. but after reading this, I have no leg to stand on to reply like that. That is a killer commute Kolmeseiska. So to answer Ken, yes, travel time and hassles with commute does impact our decision most times, no matter the destination,

 

Two questions, two answers.
Time in transit is definitely a factor in how I travel. If it's 10 hours or less to drive and I want or need a car at the destination I drive. It's not really a money thing, I'm 6'9" and cramming my self onto a plane twice for a 1 hour hop to a hub, then a 2+ hour flight that takes me a minimum of 7 hours to execute doesn't work for me.

On the other hand, for my annual baseball trips and Vegas trips, where I want to go and driving is not really an option I'll bite the bullet and fly.

 

With a 3 year old and 1 year old, we will only fly somewhere that has direct flights. No way I'm adding a layover to an already stressful flight. Fortunately I fly out of NYC so between the 3 airports most places have direct flights though I prefer LGA where possible since its a bit closer (live in CT)

 

Time has nothing to do with it. Money does. I would love to go to Bora Bora or Australia and would be happy to allow 24 or 36 hours travel time, but I simply can't afford it.

 

We're probably like most folks, time and money do dictate the where and how long; every trip can't be a six weeks in duration in far-flung locales, but travel time is not a deal killer in and of itself. If we want to go see family in Oz, for instance, we don't let the travel time stand in the way. Other things will dictate how long and how often, but not the time in the metal tube in the sky.

 

Yeah, I would say I factor it in, but really only relative to my total time for the trip. For example, have looked at a Myrtle Beach road trip with the guys as opposed to more local ones before. But they all want to be away 4 days (5 max) and with 2+ full days of driving I simply don't find that worth it.

As to 'how' I travel, certainly. I do my very best to avoid connecting flights.

But there aren't any dealbreakers. It just has to make sense in the context of the larger trip, and has to feel worth the bother.

 

One thing we need to also factor in is the time to get to a full (or international) airport. Santa Barbara works well for a few routes we frequent, but most of the time we have to run the plus/minus on LAX v. SJC (typically, for the Bay Area). That adds hours before we even toe a jetway.

I like road trips, not one who is averse to the all-American private vehicle. I did that several-thousand-mile epic western golf road trip late last summer, and will pilot the Ridgeline again during this year's Oregon/Bend golfapalooza. But the last time I went to Bend I flew. I had different needs that time.