The Coolest Travel Site You’re Not Using

I first discovered Rome2Rio several years ago, and it’s been one of my favorite “go to” sites for travel planning ever since. 

The concept is simple: you plug in where you’re starting from and where you want to go, and it tells you all the options for how to get there (planes, trains, ferry, driving). 

It’ll also tell you how long each route takes, and if you put in a date, an estimate of how much it costs. 

 Example 1: Austin to San Juan Island 

My wife loves whales, and we heard there were orcas in the San Juan Islands, so we decided last August to go to the biggest of the islands, San Juan. I knew it was off the coast of Seattle, but wasn’t sure how to get there. 

Using Rome2Rio, we found out that it takes a combination of a flight (Aus-Sea, 4.5 hours), drive (from Seatac airport to Anacortes; you can rent a car or take a shuttle; 2 hours and 45 minutes), and ferry (1 hour from Anacortes to Friday Harbor). If you click on the individual links on Rome2Rio, it will give you flight/ferry times and cost estimates. 

We had an amazing time; the islands are beautiful and serene, and even the ferry ride was stunning. And yes, we saw orcas! Plan ahead (3-6 months) if you can, because the tourist season is really short and good accommodations (and even the ferry) can sell out. 

Example 2: Austin to Paris 

I like to use Rome2Rio to see the various ways to get to Europe and how many stops it takes to get there. For this example, because there are still Covid travel restrictions, I chose a random date in the Fall (October 27th) and found out that the cheapest one-way fare to Paris is $285 (!). It takes 19 hours and 5 minutes, with 2 stops. (In case you’re curious, you'd take Spirit airlines from Austin to Newark, United airlines from Newark to Porto, and Tap Portugal airlines from Porto to Paris). 

When I search the same date on Google Flights (one of my favorite flight search engines; more on that in a future post), the cheapest I found was a two-stop Jet Blue + Tap Portugal itinerary for $508. So Rome2Rio gives you a great place to start, as well as comparison prices. 

Example 3: Paris to London 

When I’m traveling in other countries, I like to figure out the best way to get from one city to the next so I can see what’s reasonable to add to my itinerary (spoiler alert: I cram in as many cities as I can because I figure, “I’m all the way over there already”). 

Things are wacky now because of Covid (train schedules are especially limited), but you’ll find that the train from Paris to London takes 2 hours and 36 minutes ($66 is the lowest fair on July 10th). Rome2Rio tells me that the cheapest flight on that same day is $48 on British Airways and takes 1 hour and 36 minutes. Not that you’d want to given these great prices, but you can also take a 7 ½ hour bus ride for $62. 

"Big Ben" (not Roethlisberger)

p.s. If you need help finding the best hotel room for you in any city, check out this post: https://professortraci.blogspot.com/2021/04/

 Hope you enjoy Rome2Rio as much as I do! 

 Good luck, and happy travels!