A great way to transport people to a variety of places is to have a charter bus company. A lot people have invested in charter buses to help them to arrived in their desired destination, affording the riders as much comfort and luxury as possible. DVD players, movie watching, onsite restrooms, and comfortable seating these are the amenities of charter buses to help pass the time away while in route.
When it comes to planning special trips a charter bus company can also be useful. For example, many schools have opted to use charter buses to take them to amusement parks in different cities, even states or also known as for their educational tour. You hook up with a charter bus company and they offer discounts that allow this fun to take place.
For many of these kids, this is their first trip without their parents and they are able to hang out with their friends so, they need to picks their group up and have fun with their peers.
After these enjoyments the charter bus begins with good conversation and the entertainment of a PG movie. At the end of the day, the kiddos tire out and they sleep through the night. Along the way home, the charter bus in trekking across the state lines and getting ready to take your group to a day filled with fun and memories.
To take different groups on sightseeing adventures is the other reasons of a charter bus company. An example, you have a group from Florida who wants to take a trip to see the West Coast. They may choose to take charter buses from destination to destination to take in all the sites of areas like California and its coastline, sunny Phoenix, and/or the coolness and beauty of Oregon. The opportunity to sightsee and enjoy their trip the charter bus company has afforded these kinds of services.
A great place to check out for trips are for church folks to travel in style to concerts or basketball games is the highest reasons of a charter bus company would be. Usually larger churches choose to invest in charter buses of their own so they can transport their members to and from these places easier and the profit will help for their incoming projects.

Whenever travel on the highways is involved safety should be a top priority. That is no less so when selecting a bus company for your tour. Several elements are involved in the issue of safety when bus tour companies are concerned. They are: The condition of the bus itself The driver The length of time a tour bus company has been in business and that company’s safety record A bus tour company’s understanding of laws and regulations A company’s involvement in such organizations as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Its compliance to U.S. Department of Transportation and Department of Defence regulations

The Bus

One issue that is up front for you to actually see is the tour bus itself.

The age of the fleet of buses used by a tour bus company should be considered. It should be obvious that the latest models of buses should be in the fleet. The latest, the better. Many companies like USA Bus Charter says that they replace their buses after 10 years of service. They also point out that there are bus companies that own buses that are as old as 25 years. In short, you don’t want the transportation you will be using to be too old. Inquire with the Bus Tours company about the age of their fleet.

If at all possible, go to the tour bus company and inspect their buses. Check the interior, the exterior and underneath. Look at the tires including the tread depth and examine the seat covers, dents, bumps, scratches and cleanliness. If all of that is not up to your standards, then it is possible that the company is not concerned with safety and appearance as a top priority.

If things look good after a visual inspection, don’t be afraid to ask questions concerning things you don’t see.

And that would be how often the buses are analyzed by the company’s mechanics. It is not uncommon for well managed tour bus companies to have their mechanics inspect things every time a bus returns to the garage.

The Driver

The driver of a tour bus, not the president of the tour bus company, is probably the most important employee.

When push comes to shove, it is the skills of the driver that assures that the bus gets to its destination on time and that the trip is safe.

Of course, you would expect that the driver has experience. Industry standards call for the driver to have at least three years experience. Some companies are stricter than that and call for them to have a little more.

This could be as much as five years or more. Of course, the more experience they have, the more skilled they are in driving the bus. But they are also knowledgeable of the routes they are expected to drive and would be well seasoned to be able to find alternative routes should the need arise.

An important element in assuring that you get to the destination on time.

You will want the driver to be emotionally balanced. It’s been said that there are three types of drivers (not necessarily bus drivers): the passive, the aggressive and the hostile. Of course, you want a driver who is passive. You would expect him to keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front, not speed, slows down when it is raining, drive with caution at night, etc.

You also want the driver to be alert when he is driving and drug free. To assure that drugs are not an issue there are laws the require companies test prospective drivers during the hiring process and then to administer random drug tests.

You want the driver’s schedule to be such that it doesn’t change his sleep patterns.

Commonly, drivers are expected to drive 10 hours. A driver who has a schedule of sleeping at night should stick to that. He should not be expected to drive all night. It is better to be safe and permit the driver to either share the duties with some one who could drive at night or allow him to pull the coach into a motel where he and the passengers can get a good night’s sleep before proceeding on a gruelling trip of let’s say 1,000 miles without rest.

Making certain that the passengers of the bus – that means you — stays on their best behaviour is another perhaps overlooked responsibility of the driver. How you act can be a safety issue. It is not a bad thing for the driver to pleasantly remind passengers of such etiquette as remaining seated when the bus is in motion, move to the restroom by holding on to overhead racks,

handrails or headrests to assure good footing, never stand up before the bus has come to a stop, and activity that could prove to be distracting to the driver be minimized if not totally avoided.

A Company’s Record

The longer a company has been in business the better chance that it will be well managed and have a good safety record. The companies that don’t have a good safety record won’t be in business for any length of time.

One entity that assists you in the research of a company’s record is the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov).

The organization’s website includes a safety and security page that provides you with all sorts of information including a safety database, a snapshot or profile of particular companies and safety initiatives.

Moreover, the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Department of Defence have regulations that tour bus companies are expected to follow. For example, the Department of Transportation requires tour bus companies to assure that their drivers are fully qualified. Companies that comply urge that their drivers have a current commercial driver’s license with a passenger endorsement, undergo a thorough physical and hold a valid medical certificate.

You can find out more by visiting the U.S. Department of Transportation website at http://www.ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/Passenger/home.asp.

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) is involved in regulating motor coach safety because these companies are often used by military personnel and the DOD wants to make certain that their troops are safe. The DOD monitors the bus industry through the Military Traffic Management Command (MTMC). This part of the DOD implements and maintains a “pre-qualification” process.

The DOD will not allow any bus company to transport military personnel until its buses have been inspected by the MTMC. The MTMC also analyze a carrier’s performance, reliability and responsiveness. The MTMC has a rating system using a scale of 1 to 5.The best rating is 1 and the worst is 5. Companies rated from 1 to 3 are approved to transport military personnel. More on the MTMC can be found at their website.

Finally, nothing is perfect. Things go wrong. The best companies, however, provide a mechanism to make the wrong right. To assure that such a remedy can take place, you should find out who to contact in the company when something does go wrong. Some companies equip their drivers with cell phones that permit them to call the company to help solve a problem that the driver can’t. Later, if you have a complaint or a comment you can call the designated employee who you can alert to a problem and who work with you to solve it.

The mission of a tour bus company is to provide you with a service that will make your tour as pleasant as possible.

Whether you have been on a packaged bus tour or not, you probably think that the tour managers at the bus company simply pull out a map and plot out a route via interstate highways and local roadways. Trace the route in a magic marker color and give it to their drivers.

In fact, the package tours created by the bus company are very elaborate and are based upon alliances that the bus company has with a variety of entertainment attractions, restaurants, hotels and other service providers.

If you book a tour from a bus company that takes you some distance from home, then that tour needs to include restaurants where the bus can stop so that you and your group can have meals; hotels that will provide you lodging as well as meals; and even special attractions that might be a part of the tour package because they are on the way or within easy access from and back to the route.

A large independent bus company may be independent but it may have also been able to negotiate alliances or partnerships with entertainment attractions, restaurants, hotels and other service providers on their own. I feel save in saying that depending on how big that individual bus company may be may have an influence as to the reach it has beyond its headquarter city. For example, a bus company in Montreal, Quebec, Canada may have reach only into the suburbs of Montreal. So it can provide you with a great tour of Montreal taking advantage of alliances or agreements it may have worked out with restaurants and sites of attraction, but is unable to go beyond that boundary.

Other companies are large and have offices in many regions of the country so they have a longer reach and can provide you with a choice of more restaurants, special entertainment attractions, hotels and other service providers.

Then there are alliances like International Motorcoach Group. International Motorcoach Group is an alliance of 50 bus companies in Canada and the United States and each has access to the entertainment attractions, restaurants, hotels and other service providers that the alliance has been able to partner with.

Let’s face it. An alliance of many companies which can include large and small bus companies have more strength than one bus company. And it is an alliance that can negotiate partnerships with a better standing than say one large company.

What does that mean to you the traveler? It can mean stays at top rated hotels, meals at top rated restaurants, appearances at top rated entertainment attractions all across the country.

International Motorcoach Group partners with 41 entertainment attractions which include:

Andy Williams Moon River Theatre

Branson Variety Theater

Crazy Horse Memorial

Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theatre Complex

Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede

Dollywood

Graceland/Elvis Presley’s Heartbreak Hotel

Grand Ole Opry/Gaylord Attractions

IMAX Entertainment Complex

Jamestown/Yorktown Foundation

Jim Stafford Theatre

Longwood Gardens

Lookout Mountain Attractions

Newseum

Quebec Casinos

Ripley’s Aquarium

Sands Casino Resort — Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

The New England Aquarium & Simons IMAX Theatre

And more.

International Motorcoach Group has partnerships with 20 hotels and resorts including:

Allenberry Resort Inn & Playhouse

AmericInn International

Beau Rivage Resort and Casino

Best Western Oceanfront

Country Inn of Lancaster

Country Inns of America

Fairfield Inn Properties of the Smokies

French Lick Resort & Casino

Hiltons of Branson

Quality Inn Gettysburg

Turning Stone Resort & Casino

Wyndham Hotel Group

Then International Motorcoach Group has an alliance with Tour Operators who have access to entertainment and other special sites in their region. These Tour Operators include:

Branson Vacation Company/Edgewood Receptive Services

Northeast Unlimited Tours

Ozarks’Kirkwood Tour & Travel

Smokey Mountain Tour Connection

Sweet Magnolia Tours

The Maine Tour Connection

The restaurants with which International Motorcoach Group is associated include:

Branson Best Restaurant.com

Dandy Restaurant Cruise Ships

Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre/Prather Entertainment Group

Hershey Farm Restaurant & Inn

Finally, International Motorcoach Group has ties to 44 convention visitors bureaus that stretch from the East Coast to the West Coast with a large number in the middle of the country too. These visitors bureaus include:

Adirondack Coast Visitors & Convention Bureau

Branson (Missouri) Lakes Area Convention Visitor Bureau

Chattanooga Area Convention Bureau

Explore Minnesota Tourism

Gettysburg Convention Visitors Bureau

Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association

Louisville Convention Visitors Bureau

Maryland Office of Tourism Development

Memphis Convention Visitors Bureau

Mississippi Gulf Coast Convention Visitors Bureau

Pennsylvania Dutch Convention Visitors Bureau

Philadelphia Convention Visitors Center

Valley Forge Convention Visitors Bureau

Vermont Tourism Network

Virginia Tourism Corporation

VISIT Milwaukee

Visit Pittsburgh

So, again the question is what does all of this mean to you? Well, regardless what your interest, you can find package tours that fit it at International Motorcoach Group. Interested in gambling? As you can see, there are connections with gambling resorts. Interested in ante-bellum housing and pre-Civil War or Civil War history, International Motorcoach Group and turn you toward a bus company that can satisfy that. Interested in good old American family entertainment? You can get that too.

Go to imgcoach.com and check out their lists of entertainment sites, resorts and casinos and visitors bureaus. Click on any listing and you will be guided to the website of that listing.

It’s a great way to hone in on a particular tour you may want to take.