Traveling Home

An update. I'm coming home for my brother's wedding. I live 360 miles from my school, and gas (as you know) is killer. Before I left home I researched transit options to see how often I could come home to visit the fam and girlfriend and all. (Since I get about 360 miles on a tank of gas I figure the trip by Jeep would be $75 one way - yes, my jeep is a beast.) Flying is actually pretty cheap these days (and quick - I went from St. Louis to Cincinnati to Knoxville, TN in like 1.5 hours), but you gotta make sure you get pretty common flights, which means metro to metro; if you go from a lesser-known airport to somewhere in the country (or visa versa) it gets pricey.

Actually, I figured taking the 5 and a half hour trip home would be cheapest by train. I found round trips for $46 ($23 one way), again, from metro to metro (Chicago Union Station to St. Louis). I live in the suburbs of Chicago - I'm about 45 mins away so I would have to find a way to get into the city, and parking around Union Station is expensive for 5 days. Never fret! I found a tram that goes from a station 4 miles north of my apartment that actually takes me straight to Union Station for only $4.75.. yay! (A lot of stress goes into getting travel arrangements, but its very worth it to do your research.) So $55 for a train trip home instead of $150 in gas (plus a sore butt; remember trains usually let you walk around, and they have a snack car).

Now all I gotta do is figure out how to get from Chicago to Knoxville, TN cheaply to see my girlfriend in college.

What's the farthest you have to travel to get home from school?