Next time you catch yourself complaining about your 4-hour bus ride from Boston to New York City, consider this: the longest ever bus ride took almost 400 days to complete.
We’ll go back to our record-breaking mammoth of a journey in a moment but, first, let’s take a look closer to home.
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America’s Longest Bus Rides
America is the world’s 4th largest country with a surface area of 3.5m square miles. This means there’s a lot of ground to cover if you want to travel from coast to coast.
Jack Kerouac did it in the 50s and there still is an air of romanticism to traversing the nation by bus. If you’re looking to find yourself and discover the country, there is only one way: by bus.
It might take long, but, oh, my friend, it will be worthwhile. While Kerouac, Cassady, and friends did it without the extra legroom, bus WiFi and other amenities that have become the norm nowadays, you might even be able to turn your ride into money by working remotely from your seat.
Without further ado, America’s longest bus rides:
1. Miami, FL to Seattle, WA – 88 hours (3 days and 16 hours)
The route is offered by Greyhound and has 45 stops. Among the stops are: Orlando, FL, Atlanta, GA, Nashville, TN, Indianapolis, IN, Chicago, IL, Minneapolis, MN, Sioux Falls, SD, Rapid City, SD, and Buffalo, WY.
2. Miami, Fl to Portland, OR – 82 hours (3 days and 12 hours)
There are 48 stops between Miami and Portland, OR. Your bus will go through the heart of America. Among the stops are: St Louis, MO, Topeka, KS, Denver, CO, Cheyenne, WY, and Salt Lake City, UT.
3. Bangor, ME to Los Angeles, CA – 85 hours (3 days and 10 hours)
You will need to stop 42 times to get from Bangor, ME to Los Angeles, CA. In the process you’ll see: Boston, MA, Buffalo, NY, Cleveland, OH, Memphis, TN, Dallas, TX, El Paso, TX, Tucson, AZ, and Phoneix, AZ
4. San Francisco, CA to Miami, FL – 81 hours and 45 mins.
50 stops separate Miami and San Francisco. You’ll be able to see the majestic Mid-West on your way to the East Coast.
Things you can do in 88 hours |
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The Record-breaking Bus Ride
Still wondering how America’s longest bus rides compares to the world’s longest routes? One 54-thousand-mile journey took place from November 1988 till December 1989, departed from London, England, and went through 18 countries and 5 continents.
The cities visited? Here is the complete route:
London, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Milan, Istanbul, Dubai, Lahore, Bombay, Singapore, Perth, Sydney, Rio, Santiago, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Liverpool, London.
How they went from Sydney to Rio, we have no clue but we hope the Guinness Book of Records can clarify!
Another contender is the Transoceánica bus route in South America.
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