So I've been pretty much banging my head against the wall for the past few days, trying to find the cheapest route between London and Pittsburgh.
Oh, how I wish I was hardcore.
Put all of my stuff on a self storage place (or sell everything, buy a laptop, give someone all of the documents and things I can't carry with me and take everything else in a bag) and hitchhike my way to Pittsburgh over the course of 2 months, pretty much on a budget of 0.
And maybe I would some day, but not right now.
I have my hotel reserved from the 25 of June to the 30 of June.
My actual vacation dates are not set in stone.
I came up with 3 travel options so far:
1. The Lazy Man Trip
A flight from London to some US state, a layover of 2 hours or more and a connection flight to Pittsburgh airport landing on the 25th.
Cons:
Time well spent: Earliest flight landing at 17:00, so I'm losing most of my first day (last day is alright, since I can take a late flight).
Price: roughly 380 pounds (~$750)
2. Let Sleeping Cats Lie
A flight from London to some US state, a layover of 2 hours or more and a connection flight to Pittsburgh airport landing on the 24th just before midnight. After landing, checking into a super cheap airport hotel, departing to the Westin on the 25th, late morning.
Pros:
Time well spent: a whole extra day! Weeeeeee!
Cons:
Price: roughly 400 pounds (~$790)
3. On the Road Again (or: NEW YORK! NEW YORK!)
A flight from London to NY (which is super cheap at ~280 pounds[~$554]) landing on the 24th nighttime, followed by a coach to New York city, followed by a bus ride to Pittsburgh.
Pros:
Time well spent: A whole day in Pittsburgh, plus the time on the bus which can be enjoyable.
Price: Hard to tell because of all the factors involved (see below) but... 340 pounds(~$673)?
See the world!: Or rather the way between New York and Pittsburgh while riding a bus, but still...
Cons:
Huh?: Plane-coach-bus-cab-AC-cab-Bus-coach-plane. I suspect confusion and headaches.
Rejected ideas:
*Stranded at the Airport - Pretty much plan #2 without the hotel.
*Hitting the rails - Plan #3, with a train. Problem is, couldn't find a nighttime train.
*Ridesharing - I was raised to believe any person willing to give me a free ride is a rapist or a murderer.
Or at least most of them ¬_¬
Any new ideas or ways to improve are welcomed
Noy
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Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
You could take Air Canada to either Montreal or Toronto. This runs you for $199 Canadian i believe. (only 100 quid) though it may be "economy" class. in other words; the shit-hole seats.
Then you can get to Pittsburgh from there by using Amtrak, which is offering 10% off their prices for Anthrocon antendees. To get from either Toronoto or Montreal this way will run you $100+ Canadian (50+ Quid)
From there, you could possibly find someone else who's going to AC to get a lift with to the convention itself... or not because of your paranoia.
But this will cost you less than half of any of your other plans.
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permalinkIt actually took me several minutes of research to find the logic behind your insane plan:
London, England.
Noy
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permalinkWebsite: [Link]
Actually you don't need a lift from the Amtrak stop in Pittsburgh to the con. You can SEE the con from the Amtrak stop. The difficulty of plane to train is getting from the airport to the train station to start with.
Coming into another US city by plane and hopping on Amtrak is a nice option to. If you're coming from DC, Philly, or New York, there's really only one Amtrak train that goes to Pittsburgh. (New York & DC will route you through Philly's rail terminal)
It's a nice ride and because it IS the only train across, ALL the East coast furries coming to the con by train are on that train. There's practically a furry car. There were folks watching movies on laptops, playing games, drawing, and showing off their con badges to each other on that route.
On various long haul trips I've done in the US on trains I've seen LOTS of europeans, so check and see if any of the international plane carriers offer a discount rail pass. Some do.
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permalinkI eliminated the rail option quite earlier on.
The problem is, all the trains that arrive at Pittsburgh start their journey in the morning or early afternoon, and end it in the evening, so I'm losing a day.
The buses are just a lot more convinient and cheaper...
Noy
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permalinkLocation: Mystic, CT
Blog: [Link]
I will say that furries offering to give you a free ride to a furry convention are very, very unlikely to be rapists or murders. Of course, they probably want you to chip in for the petrol.
Option #3 sounds like the most fun potential option, but also the most risky. If you had more time to play with- say, flying out a day earlier, and having some time to wander NYC? I'd recommend that. Otherwise, #1 or #2.
Also, did you check prices to fly to Philadelphia, and bus/train from there? I imagine NYC will be cheaper than Philly, but that's also a possibility.
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permalinkAnd just like that, we have a new plan:
4. A Statewide Ride
A flight from London to Philadelphia(which is cheap at ~300 pounds[~$594]) landing on the 24th nighttime, followed by a coach to the city, followed by a bus ride to Pittsburgh.
Pros:
Time well spent: A whole day in Pittsburgh, plus the time on the bus which can be enjoyable.
Price: Hard to tell because of all the factors involved (see below) but... 340 pounds(~$673)?
See the world!: Or rather the way between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh while riding a bus, but still...
Cons:
Huh?: Plane-coach-bus-cab-AC-cab-Bus-coach-plane. I suspect confusion and headaches.
Noy
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permalinkWebsite: [Link]
Fly to Phillu, take the train if you can make the connection. The train that goes across Pennsylvania is a nice ride and all the furries between Boston and DC that take the train end up on that line.
There's a variety of discounts available for Amtrak, including a con specific one.
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permalinkAgain, double the price, all rides end in the evening, losing a day, bummer...
Noy
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permalinkplay around with amtrak's setups, there is alot of of times they have available.
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