Vonlane brings luxury bus travel to Texas
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The interior of a Vonlane bus on a 7am ride. Photo: Nicole Cobler/Axios
I visited my parents in Fort Worth last weekend and — for the first time — opted to get there by bus rather than car.
Details: I've been hearing a lot about Vonlane through friends, who are turning to the luxury bus company for business trips and travel across the state.
- Each ride includes unlimited snacks, drinks, complimentary Wi-Fi and — depending on the time of your trip — a sandwich, salad or wrap. Beer, spirits and wine are available for purchase.
Be smart: Vonlane operates buses out of Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio.
- Typical one-way fares range from $89 to $139. My bus ride to and from Fort Worth cost around $200 total — pretty close to the cost of a Southwest flight.
- Austin buses depart from the Hyatt Regency at 208 Barton Springs Road.
I boarded 10 minutes before my 7am departure to Fort Worth and settled into my extremely plush leather seat.
- There's tons of legroom, a drop-down footrest and a tray table you can connect to your seat.
- The bus left right on time, and roughly 15 minutes into the ride, an attendant came around to ask if anyone needed to borrow noise-canceling headphones, a pillow, a blanket or a charger.
- I had oatmeal and a coffee for breakfast and worked from my laptop most of the ride, and was dropped off in downtown Fort Worth near my dad's office.
Unlike the way up, the bus back to Austin was full, but the big seats gave me plenty of space.
- The attendant offered lunch, snacks and drinks.
The bottom line: It's nice, but pricey.
- The trip each direction took just as long as it would have in my own car — about three hours — and I loved being able to work and read instead of staring down that painful stretch of I-35.
Dig deeper: Texas business travelers turn to buses