The way to really fly
Flat-screen TVs, granite lavatories and reclining seats give new cachet to bus travel

By Mel Novit
Special to the Chicago Tribune
Published December 3, 2006
Reprinted with permission

Want the ultimate in pampering for vacation travel?

How about hot and cold running food? Flat screen satellite TV? Luxurious bathrooms and "scenic view" cameras that display what lies ahead?

This is not the domain of the jet set, rather it's standard fare to passengers of many vacation tour buses.

"The buses we are using today for vacation travel are veritable limousines; today's motor coaches are sleek, elegant, comfortable and high-tech," said Tom Armstrong, corporate communications manager of Tauck World Tours in Connecticut.

Scenic and sightseeing tours accounted for $2.3 billion of the $9.6 billion dollar bus industry revenue in North America in 2005, according to the American Bus Association's Impacts of the Motor Coach Industry on Society and the Economy study in 2006.

And about half of the 2.39 million highway miles logged in the U.S. and Canada are tours and sightseeing, according to Peter Pantuso, president and CEO of the American Bus Association (ABA) in Washington, D.C.

Pantuso added that approximately 600 million people, more than those traveling by air and train combined, (according to a 1999 ABA census) had traveled by bus in North America in 2004, the latest year for which ABA census numbers are available, yet many had never experienced vacation this way. "We wanted more people to become familiar with comforts of bus travel for vacations," he said.

Once crowded, uncomfortable journeys in torturous seats, tour buses have come a long way since 1925 when Tauck World Discovery Tours, one of the largest tour operators in the world, covered 1,100 miles, 900 on unpaved roads through the U.S. and eastern Canada, said Tom Armstrong, spokesman for Tauck World Tours in Connecticut.

"In the mid '70s, motor coaches used for vacationers were like lumber wagons," added Patricia Ziska, vice president of corporate marketing for Motor Coach Industries, Schaumburg, the largest manufacturer of motor coaches in the U.S. and Canada. "They didn't even have a radio [except for the driver], and they were very utilitarian -- just a basic form of transportation to get vacationers from point A to point B."

In the last three decades, greatly improved suspension systems have smoothed the rides and better insulation has reduced road noise. Coaches also have gone to 102 inches wide from 96 and to 45 feet long from 40, according to Ziska.

"The buses we are using today for vacation travel are veritable limousines," said Armstrong. "Today's motor coaches are sleek, elegant, comfortable and high-tech."

Take, for example, the state-of-the-art MCI® E4500 used by Free Enterprise, an Indianapolis tour and charter company. It has leather seats like those found on private jets that recline electronically into beds. There is a 50-inch plasma TV and six or so 10.4 inch LCD screens, and passengers have access to satellite radio. There is also a seven-point surround-sound system equivalent to a movie theater, tiered seating to better see the TVs and a galley and lavatory finished in granite.

"Consumers, once satisfied with basic travel, are now much more demanding -- and there are many people who simply will not fly," said David Lang, president of Tri-State Travel in Galena, which conducts 200 vacation tours a year.

That translates into choice, said Pantuso. Even for two- to three-day trips, tour-bus operators are offering options rivaling those of cruise ships with hotels, theater and shopping experiences and meal selections at each destination.

The latest technology is a laptop video system hookup that allows travelers to conduct a meeting.

And more innovation is on the way. The United Motor Coach Association convention in New Orleans Jan. 16-20 will feature 115 exhibitors showing what's new in comfort, entertainment and safety, according to Victor Parra, CEO and president of the association in Alexandria, Va. "We're expecting new technology in entertainment, Internet connection and interactive media whereby our passengers can select their own form of entertainment," he said.

Safety has been enhanced with fire suppression systems in the engine compartments and rear wheelwells and systems that place radio frequency identification tags in critical locations throughout the coach to facilitate pre- and post-trip inspections.

There is also "black box" type of device that records sudden stops, speeding and other manuevers that could endanger passengers.

"Newer global positioning satellite systems are being introduced to track a bus in the event of an act of terrorism or hijacking, although such events have happened only rarely," said Parra. "We are also going to be seeing more sophisticated GPSs that can interact with theaters and restaurants. We can determine at a last minute how many seats may be available."

Tour buses also are increasingly accessible to the handicapped. Besides being equipped with wheelchair lifts and special handrails, many buses now "kneel," literally lowering their front end to the ground to make it easier for passengers to enter and exit. "It's much easier [for the disabled] than trying to get through an airport," said Parra.

Copyright © 2006, Chicago Tribune

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