USA - Get Around

In the US the car may be king, but the plane is presidential.

Forty-eight states hemmed in by Canada, Mexico, the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans – plus Alaska stretching towards the Arctic and mid-Pacific Hawaii – make up the union. The East Coast and West Coast are, in the main, dominated by large, more or less prosperous cities. Along each coast runs an impressive, north-south mountain range. In between is the heartland. Mostly flat and rural, the Great Plains are the country's breadbasket.

The USA's vast distances make plane travel the transport of choice for most visitors. With fierce competition, it shouldn't break the bank either. Pre-boarding security measures have added to the time required before boarding, so make sure you arrive plenty of time ahead of your flight.

The car helped make America the gas-guzzling powerhouse it is today, and the US highway system – and relatively cheap gas prices – make car travel convenient and a great way to see the country and get off the beaten track. In some major cities, prepare for possible parking shortages and occasional gridlock.

The public transport method most Americans prefer is the bus. Operated by private companies such as Greyhound, buses serve just about every place in the US, from major cities to the smallest town in the boondocks. Often the bus is your only option, and sometimes it can be good value too.

The Amtrak train network isn't as well-developed, as efficient or as good value as its European counterparts. But it remains a useful option, especially in travelling between major cities within a few hundred kilometres of each other.

The US heartland is crisscrossed by an extensive river and canal network. It's possible to travel some of the more famous rivers, such as the Mississippi and the Missouri, by boat.

The minimum driving age is 16. Don't worry too much about recent events – travel writer Bill Bryson claims that at any given moment there are about 200,000 passengers flying in the skies above the USA.

USA rail Amtrak website

USA bus Greyhound website

You can visit a 1,000-year-old Native American village in Taos, New Mexico, or revisit the days of Hispanic colonisation in California at a Spanish mission. Return to colonial times in Virginia's Williamsburg, see lives mostly unchanged since the 18th-century in Pennsylvania's Amish country, and relive the Civil War at Antietam in Maryland.