While there are too many cities to go in depth for each place I’ve visited, I figured I could talk about transportation for a few that I’ve been to. Of course, your first thought might be to drive. And while you can do that, sometimes it’s not the most cost-effective or convenient to do so, especially if you are flying into cities.

I know most people who are reading this probably live in the U.S., but you might not have traveled to these places, or used the same method as transportation, so you could always learn something new! Feel free to comment if you have other suggestions as well.

I would say that in most major U.S. cities, you can get around using public transportation. You’ll just have to research what it is, how to track routes, and what form of payment to use. Of course, you could always rent a car and drive around, but that can be a bit pricier with rental cost, gas, and parking fees. For all of these places, I used Google Maps and chose the public transportation route to know which line, train, or bus to take, and it was always accurate.

The issue with public transportation in the U.S. comes into play when you’re traveling outside of a major city. For example, public transportation in rural areas doesn’t really exist. But then again, when it comes to taking trips, it’s not often that people are choosing rural towns to visit. And while you can ride a train or bus to different states, I would warn that it’s not the most time-efficient, and there are limited options within the schedule.

Here’s a list of public transit I’ve used and how each one works:

New York City, NY – I’ve mostly used the subway here, but there are also buses. You don’t have to buy a Metro Card as long as you have a contactless debit or credit card. The fare for most subway rides and select bus rides is $2.75.

Chicago, IL – Similarly, you have the option of using a contactless credit or debit card instead of buying a Ventra card. You can ride the L or buses, as they are all readily available. A few friends of mine who live in the city prefer buses, but both a fairly reliable unless there is construction on the tracks.

Austin, TX – I downloaded an app called CapMetro. I believe you can pay on buses with cash, but you might need exact change, and who wants to fiddle with coins and bills while panicking at holding up the people behind you? It’s also cheaper to use the app to purchase passes rather than paying for single rides. For local (which is what I used) a single ride is $1.25, while a day pass is $2.50 and a 7-day pass is $11.25. I will admit that I spent a lot of time waiting for buses during my trip, but it was a heck of a lot cheaper than renting a car, and the traffic is reported to be fairly bad as well.

New Orleans, LA – Similarly, I downloaded an app called Le Pass, and purchased a 3-day pass for $8, which granted unlimited rides on buses, streetcars and ferries. Definitely worth the purchase, and we didn’t spend all that much time waiting for the buses or streetcars. Another option is to pay with exact change for each ride, but the passes save you money in the long run.

Atlanta, GA – You will have to get a Breeze transportation card, or pay cash for each bus or train ride. These are located at vending machines at train stations. Using the Breeze card is also cheaper, at $2 a ride with free transfers, instead of $2.50 for cash with no transfers. You can choose to load a specific number of trips on the card, or purchase day passes. You can also download the MARTA app for route information, but Google Maps might be simpler.

Detroit, MI – To be honest, I’ve never ridden a bus in Michigan before, since I live here and always have had a car available. But I do know there are buses available, if you ever need to get somewhere! Just download the Token Transit app, purchase whatever pass works best for you and use Google Maps to direct you. You can also ride the People Mover, which is more limited to downtown areas. You can use cash for this, each ride is $0.75, or purchase a People Mover pass or token.

Los Angeles, CA – My mom and I rented a car, which I would probably advise. It would probably be cheaper just to use public transportation, but we determined it would be more time-efficient to rent a car. If you are planning on staying within the downtown areas, I would probably suggest public transportation, but we traveled to Santa Monica and other destinations on the outskirts of the city that took us 30 minutes by car, but would have taken well over an hour via bus.

If you are traveling between cities and don’t want to fly, you can take the Amtrak train. You can download the app, and you gain points with each purchase. As a warning, there are some unforeseen delays – during one trip we hit a car parked on the tracks on the way to Chicago and on the way back – but statistically speaking, the odds aren’t likely that it would happen to you. It is probably cheaper than renting a car, but if you have your own car and depending on your route, in my experience gas is about the same price as your train ticket. The train does have WiFi though, so you can always spend your time working remotely, which is what I normally do.

Hopefully this is helpful to other fellow travelers, or at the very least interesting! Thanks for reading. Stay safe and stay happy.