[Travelandtourism] The Vonlane Difference

[Peter Donahue]

Hello Jana and everyone,
	If you travel by bus help may be on the way if it hasn't arrived in your area yet. Several years ago a new luxury bus service called Vonlane began operation in Texas. Currently it operates in Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. Their service is definitely a cut above Greyhound, Megabus and crew but at a premium price. We're talking about fewer passengers per bus (About 26 in the main bus area) plus a conference room in the back that seats six. Think of Vonlane and luxury bus services like it as a "Private jet on wheels." Rather than pick you up curbside like Megabus or in filthy dirty terminals like Greyhound Vonlane contracts with several hotel chains to serve as their terminals Hence before you board the bus you could have a steak and eggs breakfast or save your appetite for after you're on board. These busses have travel attendents who provide the same services as airline flight attendents. After boarding they'll hang up your coat and help you store your belongings as well as serve sandwitches, snacks, and drinks brought right to your leather reclining seat complete with your own entertainment center.

	Vonlane's service was designed for business travelers who want to avoid the hassles of airtravel but want to make unproductive time productive. Since their current cities are within 3 or 4 hours of each other this is a much valued service. Being a cut above the likes of Greyhound and Megabus premium service will come with a premium price. Vonlane currently operates a route between San Antonio and Houston. The last time I checked I believe that the one-way fare was around $80.00 per person. On the surface this may ssound steep but practicallity must rule in some circumstances. For example we have an event that occurs in Texas each October. Let's say for the sake of argument the event called "Pursuit" is held in Houston at the Grand Hyett Vonlane's Houston terminal it would make more sense just to pay the extra fare and be brought directly to your event venue instead of fighting Greyhound and Megabus wars and receive the kind of treatment some of us have received from these carriers. And once you arrive at the Greyhound and Megabus stops in your destination city there's the task of getting from these terminals to your final destination. If Pursuit 2018 is held at the Houston Gramnd Hyett we'll have to have our own Vonlane experience and will be able to share what we find out with other blind travelers.

	The only issue we have with Vonlane is that not all of their cities are connected to each other. For example we can only use them to get to Houston from San Antonio and back but not to Austin. Austin is only 2 hours away. Vonlane claims that such a route would be unprofitable for them to operate with their current equipment. They've failed to produce evidence to prove their claim nor have they considered that San Antonians may wish to travel from here to Dallas and Fort Worth and wouldn't mind their making a stop in Austin to drop off and pick up more passengers before reaching Dallas or Fort Worth to make such a route profitable and so those wishing to travel by bus between all of these cities who are willing to pay the price can have a far superior experience to those offered by Greyhound and company. Vonlane passengers wishing to travel between Dallas and Fort Worth also face the same dilemma. It's our hope that Vonlane and other luxury bus services will connect all of the cities they serve to grow their served destinations and to offer over-the-road bus passengers a superior experience.

	If you want to learn more about Vonlane here is their Website: http://www.vonlane.com

	All the best.

Peter Donahue