Trains, for me. I love the endless click-clack on the night sleeper, couchette or cabin, love it.
Planes are obviously much handier, but the air pressure shenanigans causes me actual physical pain, unfortunately.
I’ve never been on a proper liner, but love being on a big ferry.
Cars are shit for long journeys.
[gay voice]Oh me too![/gay voice]
The thing about boats is that they are perfect if the travel itself is the destination. I took a cruise a few years back and it was pretty awesome.
The biggest consideration for me is my butt. A bus is ideal for a short journey, but over about 2 hours my butt gets really sore. A car isn’t much better. I can’t imagine that a train would be better unless I could walk around and do interesting things. Planes cause butthurt, but it usually doesn’t last long.
It’s a tough choice for me between train, plane, and boat (i.e. cruise ship). I love all three. In the end I picked plane because all of my most exciting trips have been by plane – to other continents. And I don’t mind plane travel, for the most part.
I really dislike car travel though, so unlike a lot of posters I hate road trips. Especially if I’m the one driving. I hate having to be alert and to pay attention so I don’t get in an accident. I have to do that enough on my commute to work. I like to relax on pleasure trips!
Train on land routes, ocean liner for overseas travel. If rigid-airship was an option I’d probally pick that.
Private plane.
I would totally rock a train ride. Never been on one, due to time and money constraints. I’ve heard train rides are a vacation in and of themselves!
How about a motorcycle?
I’ve been cross country a couple of times, and it’s always fun.
Tierra del Fuego, here I come!
Totally depends on where it is I’m traveling.
Europe: train
North America: car
Anyplace else: plane, and a good international carrier at that
I’ve done that (on the old QE2) and it is awesome.
East to West is best - you gain an hour every day, instead of losing an hour like we did.
My order is:
Boat. You are rested and relaxed when you arrive, and have had another nice vacation getting to your destination.
Car: Assuming you don’t push it, the weather is decent, and you have time for side trips.
Rail: Maybe. Rail in Europe is good. I haven’t been on long distance rail in the US for a while. It was okay in 1977 (though Amtrak froze my hamster, which directly led to me getting married) I’m not sure about now.
Plane: Unless I can get one of those massive seats of rooms shown in the ads, getting worse all the time.
Call me crazy, but I’m a fan of long-distance bus rides. I love having a good block of time just to look out the windows and think my thoughts.
Trains are nice, too, but busses are more flexible (you probably don’t have to plan ahead to buy tickets, boarding is less of an ordeal, etc.), and have a sense of privacy that trains lack.
I’m sure there’s not a story behind that.
We don’t want to know.
It depends on to where. Getting to NYC sucks. It’s overcrowded and sells out fast. To Wood’s Hole, though, is a pleasure. There’s always room, and it’s a nice ride. (Both of these from Boston, BTW.)
Airship all the way.
I’ve done a long distance motorcycle trip each of the last 4 summers. Trips ranging from 3 to 7 thousand km.
I love the whole experience of the journey from planning to execution to reflecting on the memories.
I’m going to cross the Rockies and travel down the west coast this summer.
It looks like there’s only a couple of people who know how to travel. That of course is by motorcycle. I’ve gone cross the US a couple of times, or at least most of the way across. I’ve also done a trip around Europe. There is no better way to travel and you get to meet all sorts of people, especially when you breakdown in Hungry.
Actually, I want to know. Voyager, do tell…
(bolding mine)
Could you explain this? On a sleeper train you can get an actual sleeping compartment w/ a door. Sometimes a private toilet (or even a shower) is an option.
If sailing vessels had been broken out as a separate category I’d have been tempted to go for that, though I’ve only been on one notable trip under sail. But the experience of being between wind and water is phenomenal, and arriving at a new city by way of its harbor is a fantastic introduction.
In a similar way, rail travel usually brings you right into the heart of places. Its just much nicer than the highway approaches, at least for all the bigger towns. Wandering road trips through tiny towns and back country are great, but I’d be fine if I never had to drive into a city again.
So put me on the train.
Teleportation