First Post: The Low Down: How to get cheap bus tickets

Hey everyone,

First of all, thanks for checking out this blog.  Here's the jist of it, you can tour the Midwest USA for only $25.  I'm counting travel and board, the rest is up to you.  How am I doing it?  Megabus, Greyhound Express, and Couchsurfing.  Let's begin.

Megabus is owned by Coach USA, who wanted to rival Greyhound low fares and they introduced Megabus, a discount bus line (originated in Chicago) to achieve exactly that.  How it works: Megabus offers the first 10 seats of every trip for only $1 (plus .50 cent reservation fee), so if you're quick, and you book in advance (usually 3-4 weeks early helps) you can buy these cheap seats.  Megabus offers power outlets, free wi-fi, and never oversells seats.  Cons: Can arrive late (with no way to check status of bus), no Megabus station (yes you may wait outside in the snow), and limited travel routes.

http://megabus.com/landing.php

Greyhound noticed Megabus stealing their sales so they recently introduced Greyhound Express: offers cheap seats (some for $1, how about that?) to limited locations in the Midwest.  Due to previous negative experiences with Greyhound: lost baggage, horrible customer service, bus failure, oversold bus seats, I tried to avoid booking trips with them.  However, Greyhound travels further and more frequently, has a physical location, reputable (?) name, and usually quite punctual.

http://www.greyhound.com/Express/default.aspx

Last option is rideshare:  look on Craigslist and you will find this under community.  It's basically organized hitchhiking.  Someone will post: "Hey driving to Detroit tomorrow, anyone want to join me and split gas?"  I haven't explored this option because something tells me I'll spend more than $1 on gas, hence comprising my trip, however, if you're in a bind, this might save you're life.  Cons: It's Craigslist (not the most reliable), might spend more for gas, could be stuck with a weirdo.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/

Ok, we made it past travel, now board.  There is a wonderful website called couchsurfing.com.  You simply sleep on strangers couches in different parts of the world.  It works almost like a dating site: you make a profile, and then look for a place you want to go, find people there who wouldn't mind having to crash their couch for a few day (free, of course), and then write them a message.  They should respond promptly with a yes or no.  If no, move on to the next couchsurfer to host you.  So, I got places to visit: one dollar fares and free board, what's the itinerary?

http://www.couchsurfing.org/

Next post,

Phil Biedron