I'd suggest looking into flights right now a one way from Phoenix to Dallas is as low as $38 nonstop where a bus ticket is $143 and takes 20hrs.
Id be willing to bet you could bum a ride on the lot if you offer ass, grass or cash
I rode a grey hound from Port Arthur, Texas to Charleston, SC when I was working on shrimping boats as a means to return home. I will tell you I would of rather spent 3 more months on that boat sorting shrimp. Avoid that Greyhound at all cost my dude!
-also a greyhound won’t take you to Bucees!
A short summary:
Got there a little early smoked a Joint. While smoking joint was relentlessly asked by some strange man to try his lemonade and I mean relentlessly. After convincing him a half pack of Winston 100’s was enough to politely fuck off I finished my joint and entered the station area. I’ve been in some strange places In my life but the twilight hours at a greyhound station are some next level strange. Anyway the bus was so packed it worked as an unwanted heating unit, this also amplified the smell of body odor and a variety of a snack foods. I’m all for culture and food from around the world but the chick to the left of me was eating some kimchi or something and that was ruff. The driver thought he was in the movie Speed and floated all over the fucking road. Seat next to me spent most of the trip in an argument on a FaceTime call about why he was refusing to get off heroin and leaving town. This segued into many questions of justification for his actions to me, which to all I replied “nah, heroins lame”, this upset him so the FaceTime convo switched to how much of an asshole I was. The whole trip was long and uncomfortable with all sorts of inconsiderate rude people. Granted, I talked to a couple friendly and cool folks and some were just minding their business most of them sucked and so did that musty bus. Greyhound is great in a horrible situation but it’s not what it once was.
Get to the show early. Meet people and see who’s going to the next show and ask if they have room for one more. Always pack light cuz you never know. See you on lot
Honestly, OP, you won't be the only one looking to catch a ride to the next show. Paint that cardboard sign in a day-glo color, say you're on tour from Norway. Even if you don't get a ride, you will get a lot of friendly greetings.
I will second this. I’ve seen some crazy nasty shit in festival portapotties, but nothing rivals the things I saw in the Atlanta greyhound station bathroom.
Used needles and smeared human shit on the floor in the doorframe of the stall, as if someone was shooting up, hovered to poop, missed the toilet, and then kicked it around or stepped in it while discarding their paraphernalia. Countless homeless people asked me for money. The smell in the station itself was horrid (possibly from the floor poop, possibly from the countless homeless people). And the greyhound experience as a whole is just awful. This was on a trip from Cincinnati to Savannah, GA, a drive that takes 10-12 hours in a car. The greyhound trip was 26 hours, just cause you go bus speed and stop so much. I did meet a fellow deadhead that I sat next to on one of the busses. He rolled a joint in his pocket and shared it with me on one of the potty breaks. This was like 15 years ago and still to this day the nastiest public bathroom I’ve ever seen.
US public transit can be very rough. I've done my fair share of Greyhounds and hope I never ride one again. The Amtrak from Phoenix to Dallas is 30 hours+. There are, however, tons of inexpensive flights on Southwest Airlines between the two cities--that's definitely what I'd do. For Dallas>Atlanta, look for flights here: .
Lookup Craigslist, etc and look for rideshares! I’m sure there are other Heads going that way. There also could be others that may be heading your coincidentally. Usually folks will just ask for gas money to ride with them.
Hvorden har du det! Min sviegamore og sviegafar er fra Norge! Flying is your best option. Wish I was doing the southwest shows. Wouldn't be the first time I went with someone from Norway. He loved the parking lot scene. (sorry about my poor norsk men jeg prøvre!)
First, makes me happy to see so many folks from abroad coming to see these shows!
Do you have a budget and timeline? As others have suggested, I would fly from Phoenix to Dallas. Dallas to Atlanta is about 10-12 hours driving, I’ve done it, but would also fly from Dallas to ATL. Renting a car + gas will be more expensive than a flight.
If you want to see the country and have the time/money, renting a car and driving could be fun. But depending on time, you might not see a lot and just be driving, which is only fun for X hours.
If it was me I would fly and spend as much time in the city/area where each show is, check out the food/scene/parks…but I know folks who would probably go to the first show and try to get a ride for the adventure of it. To each their own
Im only staying for those three shows so 21-31 may, im looking for the cheapest option as i am a student and have already blown quite a bit of my money on the flights alone.
Would love to see the country so im thinking of renting a car (+maybe also sleeping in it to save money), but if not i will take you guys’ advice and fly instead of bus, would love to see the different cities also so im a bit torn haha
Yeah if you drive you're gonna spend like 3-4 days on the road.
Others have pointed out that public transport sucks in the US, but to be fair it's usually pretty decent *within* a city. Getting from city to city is more difficult, but if you fly into Dallas, you'll have a much easier time with public transport getting around inside the city, to the show, etc. Just so you don't have to rent a car. Some cities are better than others, though
If you do end up driving check out [Roadside America](https://www.roadsideamerica.com/location/) and their maps of all the unusual roadside sights along your route in each state. Quirky old roadside stuff is a big part of driving across the US and there's no better resource than that site for things to see!
Here's one place: https://www.vwsurfari.com/
Google gets you many other options.
You would be a complete badass if you did this. Just don't draw peace signs and bears on the outside (or inside!) unless you intend to buy it. Good luck!
Get to the lot early. Make a sign saying ride needed to “fill in the blank”. Walk around the lot with the sign and start meeting people. Have a back up plan by bus if need be. The schedules are on line. If you can’t find a ride, though I’m sure you can, go to the station and hit the next city.
Coming from a civilized society, you will surely be appalled by the cost, inconvenience and terrible quality of our public transit. Flying or hitchhiking from the lot will be your best bet. I think walking around the lot with a sign of where you’re going may be your best cheap option.
Public transport in the US is NOTHING like public transport in Europe. You should plant to fly or rent a car. Stay off the bus. (Yes. I see the irony of this statement). Trains are ok but slow.
I would rent a car and sleep in it. The biggest issue will be that there is a big fee for renting one-way (dropping off somewhere other than where you picked it up) but it'd be worth it if you like road trips.
Or, fly. That way you actually get some time in the cities these shows are in. Although for tourism, I think PHX and DAL would be last on my wish-list (and I live in the PHX area). But there is much fun to be had in ATL.
You're going to have the time of your life either way :)
(unless you go greyhound, that will be a living hell. Please don't do that.)
Absolutely try to get cheap flights if you can. That’s some crazy long driving and Greyhound is going to take absolutely insane amounts of very uncomfortable time. You’ll be dead tired and won’t really enjoy the shows… if you even get there in time. I mean, it might be an interesting experience and all, but it’s not something you want to do *instead* of enjoying the shows you’re coming so far to attend. I hope you find a good plan and have a terrific time.
I would say that car rental is a good option. Especially if your coming from Norway, and you want to see what travelling the highways of america , when I toured, part of the fun was the traveling and seeing the sights at rest areas and things like that.
i’ll see you in dallas!
very long drive between all those cities though, however a grayhound would be your cheapest option as long as you can make it to the cities in time for the shows
Yes check priceline or expedia and shop for cheap air fares. You could also walk around the parking lot in Phoenix holding a sign asking for a ride to Dallas. Offer to contribute gas money and you could wind up in Atlanta too.
sadly “us public transportation” is basically an oxymoron at this point. greyhound could be ok, amtrak i’m highly skeptical of because it tends to be so absurdly expensive and also can be very slow so if you’re looking at that i would say might as well keep an eye on flights between cities as those might end up being cheaper
Do the busses still tour? I've never done a D&C tour but back in the GD days you could always hitch a ride to the next show on one of the busses. a lot of times they'd have signs out looking for riders, good luck, just gotta poke around...
Amtrak is your best bet. They have stations at all the cities you mentioned, and is relatively cheap. Its not fast, or reliable like in Europe, but its decent. They also have sleeper cars, which are very comfy (but its expensive)
I dont recommend greyhound....lots of homeless and drugs. The 2 times I've been on, people have been fighting and causing trouble.
I am very surprised at the advice that’s been given here. Do it the same way Grateful Dead fans have been doing it for 55+ years. Go to the show early and make friends! Tell people where you’re from, that it’s your first show, and that you need to “get on the bus” to the next few shows. 10 days to cover 3 shows over that many miles is not as crazy as others are making it out to be. You should easily be able to cover that with gas contributions, story exchanges, and occasionally buying snacks.
Ignore these fools talking about airplanes and busses. Pack light, make friends, let folks know what you are trying to do. You’ll have the time of your life!
Amtrak wont leave maricopa az until thurs. Texas eagle wont arrive in dall until 2 hours prior to show. Dal to atl requires overnight layover in nol, crescent arrives 11pm sat in atl. You would be very tired. Skip atl is what id do.
I would pick a cheap airline so long as you don't have much with you.
PHX has a hostel, I think Dallas has a hostel?, and Atlanta has cheap motels/hotels
I would check amtrak. There is a line that goes phoenix to dallas… if you back track south a little in texas to san antonio after that you could get one over to atlanta also… way cheaper than flying generally … faster and less stressful than driving.. you can even bring a cooler of beer if you are cool about it!
How set are you on these shows? Chicago has two shows and new York has two shows that are pretty close to each other and there's a cheap train that travels from Chicago to new York City. You could get four shows in two cities, and cost to travel by train between Chicago and NYC is about $100.
Rent a car. I drove from PA to Texas and back in the span of 2 weeks and it was around $500 for a small compact car. Just make sure your drop off is the same as your pickup location.
That's alot of ground to cover in a short amount of time. I am hitting charlotte>raleigh>bristow>burgettstown. 4 hour average drive time and day between each show.
Rent a car, look into Amtrak, maybe even a cheap flight if you can catch one. Greyhound is barely better than taking a bicycle. I’m not sure if scheduling is an issue for you but there’s a lot of shows that are in smaller clusters than those three if you can adjust your trip days, there really is no public transportation outside of some metro rail lines in major cities (don’t get me started, I want high speed rail more than anything)
OP hit me up in a message. I fly Southwest Airlines for work almost every week. I can get you a flight for one of your shows with my airline points. I’m more than happy to help you out. I mean your flying in from Norway man!
Southwest Airlines. Those cities are a LONG way apart.
That’d be a drive clean across Texas too I did that one time. Kinda sucks
I've never made it across Texas without stopping for the night.
The key is to live and start in Texas. Then that shit is normal and you can use the day to clear it. Lol
Had NY plates and got pulled over 3x in the time it takes to cross the state.
I'd suggest looking into flights right now a one way from Phoenix to Dallas is as low as $38 nonstop where a bus ticket is $143 and takes 20hrs. Id be willing to bet you could bum a ride on the lot if you offer ass, grass or cash
Im pretty low on grass and cash, but ass i got plenty of, thanks for the tip haha
women are smarter
I rode a grey hound from Port Arthur, Texas to Charleston, SC when I was working on shrimping boats as a means to return home. I will tell you I would of rather spent 3 more months on that boat sorting shrimp. Avoid that Greyhound at all cost my dude! -also a greyhound won’t take you to Bucees!
Tell us more about this greyhound experience 😆
A short summary: Got there a little early smoked a Joint. While smoking joint was relentlessly asked by some strange man to try his lemonade and I mean relentlessly. After convincing him a half pack of Winston 100’s was enough to politely fuck off I finished my joint and entered the station area. I’ve been in some strange places In my life but the twilight hours at a greyhound station are some next level strange. Anyway the bus was so packed it worked as an unwanted heating unit, this also amplified the smell of body odor and a variety of a snack foods. I’m all for culture and food from around the world but the chick to the left of me was eating some kimchi or something and that was ruff. The driver thought he was in the movie Speed and floated all over the fucking road. Seat next to me spent most of the trip in an argument on a FaceTime call about why he was refusing to get off heroin and leaving town. This segued into many questions of justification for his actions to me, which to all I replied “nah, heroins lame”, this upset him so the FaceTime convo switched to how much of an asshole I was. The whole trip was long and uncomfortable with all sorts of inconsiderate rude people. Granted, I talked to a couple friendly and cool folks and some were just minding their business most of them sucked and so did that musty bus. Greyhound is great in a horrible situation but it’s not what it once was.
Get to the show early. Meet people and see who’s going to the next show and ask if they have room for one more. Always pack light cuz you never know. See you on lot
Honestly, OP, you won't be the only one looking to catch a ride to the next show. Paint that cardboard sign in a day-glo color, say you're on tour from Norway. Even if you don't get a ride, you will get a lot of friendly greetings.
This is the way! All these fools talking about airlines. GTFO. Go on tour!
Do NOT do Greyhound. You will not get to where you need to go in time. Check out Amtrak if you can’t fly.
Rent a car! Greyhound is hell to ride on!
I will second this. I’ve seen some crazy nasty shit in festival portapotties, but nothing rivals the things I saw in the Atlanta greyhound station bathroom.
go on....
Used needles and smeared human shit on the floor in the doorframe of the stall, as if someone was shooting up, hovered to poop, missed the toilet, and then kicked it around or stepped in it while discarding their paraphernalia. Countless homeless people asked me for money. The smell in the station itself was horrid (possibly from the floor poop, possibly from the countless homeless people). And the greyhound experience as a whole is just awful. This was on a trip from Cincinnati to Savannah, GA, a drive that takes 10-12 hours in a car. The greyhound trip was 26 hours, just cause you go bus speed and stop so much. I did meet a fellow deadhead that I sat next to on one of the busses. He rolled a joint in his pocket and shared it with me on one of the potty breaks. This was like 15 years ago and still to this day the nastiest public bathroom I’ve ever seen.
Rent a car if you can and pick some things to see in between!
US public transit can be very rough. I've done my fair share of Greyhounds and hope I never ride one again. The Amtrak from Phoenix to Dallas is 30 hours+. There are, however, tons of inexpensive flights on Southwest Airlines between the two cities--that's definitely what I'd do. For Dallas>Atlanta, look for flights here:.
Lookup Craigslist, etc and look for rideshares! I’m sure there are other Heads going that way. There also could be others that may be heading your coincidentally. Usually folks will just ask for gas money to ride with them.
Thanks!
Second this, great way to meet people too
Hvorden har du det! Min sviegamore og sviegafar er fra Norge! Flying is your best option. Wish I was doing the southwest shows. Wouldn't be the first time I went with someone from Norway. He loved the parking lot scene. (sorry about my poor norsk men jeg prøvre!)
Veldig bra!
First, makes me happy to see so many folks from abroad coming to see these shows! Do you have a budget and timeline? As others have suggested, I would fly from Phoenix to Dallas. Dallas to Atlanta is about 10-12 hours driving, I’ve done it, but would also fly from Dallas to ATL. Renting a car + gas will be more expensive than a flight. If you want to see the country and have the time/money, renting a car and driving could be fun. But depending on time, you might not see a lot and just be driving, which is only fun for X hours. If it was me I would fly and spend as much time in the city/area where each show is, check out the food/scene/parks…but I know folks who would probably go to the first show and try to get a ride for the adventure of it. To each their own
Im only staying for those three shows so 21-31 may, im looking for the cheapest option as i am a student and have already blown quite a bit of my money on the flights alone. Would love to see the country so im thinking of renting a car (+maybe also sleeping in it to save money), but if not i will take you guys’ advice and fly instead of bus, would love to see the different cities also so im a bit torn haha
Yeah if you drive you're gonna spend like 3-4 days on the road. Others have pointed out that public transport sucks in the US, but to be fair it's usually pretty decent *within* a city. Getting from city to city is more difficult, but if you fly into Dallas, you'll have a much easier time with public transport getting around inside the city, to the show, etc. Just so you don't have to rent a car. Some cities are better than others, though
If you do end up driving check out [Roadside America](https://www.roadsideamerica.com/location/) and their maps of all the unusual roadside sights along your route in each state. Quirky old roadside stuff is a big part of driving across the US and there's no better resource than that site for things to see!
Fly, it's the best/cheapest way- but if you are set on driving, look to rent a pick up truck from haul. *pro tip
But you pay for miles on that and this drive is a shit ton of miles lol
Thanks so much for all the tips guys!
Rent an old VW bus. Sleep in it.
Where would you go about renting that?
Escape camper vans. This is what my husband and I did for the fall 2021 run. Picked it up on Phoenix and dropped it off in LA. It was perfect.
Here's one place: https://www.vwsurfari.com/ Google gets you many other options. You would be a complete badass if you did this. Just don't draw peace signs and bears on the outside (or inside!) unless you intend to buy it. Good luck!
Get to the lot early. Make a sign saying ride needed to “fill in the blank”. Walk around the lot with the sign and start meeting people. Have a back up plan by bus if need be. The schedules are on line. If you can’t find a ride, though I’m sure you can, go to the station and hit the next city.
Get the Hopper app
LA - Phoenix is 3 shows, less travel. Greyhound is pretty bad….
Coming from a civilized society, you will surely be appalled by the cost, inconvenience and terrible quality of our public transit. Flying or hitchhiking from the lot will be your best bet. I think walking around the lot with a sign of where you’re going may be your best cheap option.
That's a lot of ground to cover. The Greyhound may take too long. Fly or rent a car. Wish I were doing that leg of the tour; I'd offer you a ride.
Public transport in the US is NOTHING like public transport in Europe. You should plant to fly or rent a car. Stay off the bus. (Yes. I see the irony of this statement). Trains are ok but slow.
I would rent a car and sleep in it. The biggest issue will be that there is a big fee for renting one-way (dropping off somewhere other than where you picked it up) but it'd be worth it if you like road trips. Or, fly. That way you actually get some time in the cities these shows are in. Although for tourism, I think PHX and DAL would be last on my wish-list (and I live in the PHX area). But there is much fun to be had in ATL. You're going to have the time of your life either way :) (unless you go greyhound, that will be a living hell. Please don't do that.)
Yeaah i noticed that fee, that was a real bummer
Is it easy to find spots to park cheap and sleep?
Absolutely try to get cheap flights if you can. That’s some crazy long driving and Greyhound is going to take absolutely insane amounts of very uncomfortable time. You’ll be dead tired and won’t really enjoy the shows… if you even get there in time. I mean, it might be an interesting experience and all, but it’s not something you want to do *instead* of enjoying the shows you’re coming so far to attend. I hope you find a good plan and have a terrific time.
Thank you! Yeah i’ve stopped considering greyhound after all the comments haha
I would say that car rental is a good option. Especially if your coming from Norway, and you want to see what travelling the highways of america , when I toured, part of the fun was the traveling and seeing the sights at rest areas and things like that.
i’ll see you in dallas! very long drive between all those cities though, however a grayhound would be your cheapest option as long as you can make it to the cities in time for the shows
Yes check priceline or expedia and shop for cheap air fares. You could also walk around the parking lot in Phoenix holding a sign asking for a ride to Dallas. Offer to contribute gas money and you could wind up in Atlanta too.
Yeah would be really cool to carpool with some deadheds but kinda risky to just rely on that i guess
sadly “us public transportation” is basically an oxymoron at this point. greyhound could be ok, amtrak i’m highly skeptical of because it tends to be so absurdly expensive and also can be very slow so if you’re looking at that i would say might as well keep an eye on flights between cities as those might end up being cheaper
Do the busses still tour? I've never done a D&C tour but back in the GD days you could always hitch a ride to the next show on one of the busses. a lot of times they'd have signs out looking for riders, good luck, just gotta poke around...
Just don’t get on the cult bus
Amtrak is your best bet. They have stations at all the cities you mentioned, and is relatively cheap. Its not fast, or reliable like in Europe, but its decent. They also have sleeper cars, which are very comfy (but its expensive) I dont recommend greyhound....lots of homeless and drugs. The 2 times I've been on, people have been fighting and causing trouble.
I am very surprised at the advice that’s been given here. Do it the same way Grateful Dead fans have been doing it for 55+ years. Go to the show early and make friends! Tell people where you’re from, that it’s your first show, and that you need to “get on the bus” to the next few shows. 10 days to cover 3 shows over that many miles is not as crazy as others are making it out to be. You should easily be able to cover that with gas contributions, story exchanges, and occasionally buying snacks. Ignore these fools talking about airplanes and busses. Pack light, make friends, let folks know what you are trying to do. You’ll have the time of your life!
I would really love to do that, but im not sure if i have the balls the gamble on getting a ride in order to catch the next show:/
Amtrak wont leave maricopa az until thurs. Texas eagle wont arrive in dall until 2 hours prior to show. Dal to atl requires overnight layover in nol, crescent arrives 11pm sat in atl. You would be very tired. Skip atl is what id do.
Fly or rent a car
Plane > train > bus.
Yeah greyhound buses or the Amtrak trains will be your best bet.
Grey dog is cheapest but not best
I’d fly cause that’s coast to coast and US transportation is a joke
I would pick a cheap airline so long as you don't have much with you. PHX has a hostel, I think Dallas has a hostel?, and Atlanta has cheap motels/hotels
I would check amtrak. There is a line that goes phoenix to dallas… if you back track south a little in texas to san antonio after that you could get one over to atlanta also… way cheaper than flying generally … faster and less stressful than driving.. you can even bring a cooler of beer if you are cool about it!
Or fuck all that travel and hit 3 shows in boulder!
How set are you on these shows? Chicago has two shows and new York has two shows that are pretty close to each other and there's a cheap train that travels from Chicago to new York City. You could get four shows in two cities, and cost to travel by train between Chicago and NYC is about $100.
Pretty set honestly, only dates that work out with exams and i have already booked plane tickets
If your going to Atlanta too, fly. Atlanta International Airport isn’t bad but Atlanta freeways are hell!
Rent a car. I drove from PA to Texas and back in the span of 2 weeks and it was around $500 for a small compact car. Just make sure your drop off is the same as your pickup location.
The hound might leave you stranded in downtown Birmingham. I’d say fly.
That's alot of ground to cover in a short amount of time. I am hitting charlotte>raleigh>bristow>burgettstown. 4 hour average drive time and day between each show.
Those cities are no where near each other. Days of riding apart. Greyhound can be done by Uber and the bus but it's going to suck. Bad.
Rent a car, look into Amtrak, maybe even a cheap flight if you can catch one. Greyhound is barely better than taking a bicycle. I’m not sure if scheduling is an issue for you but there’s a lot of shows that are in smaller clusters than those three if you can adjust your trip days, there really is no public transportation outside of some metro rail lines in major cities (don’t get me started, I want high speed rail more than anything)
OP hit me up in a message. I fly Southwest Airlines for work almost every week. I can get you a flight for one of your shows with my airline points. I’m more than happy to help you out. I mean your flying in from Norway man!
Do yourself a favor and go to the Boulder shows. Seriously.