Indian Trails Blog

What do you call a town with world-class museums, highly rated outdoor activities, renowned festivals, professional sports teams and well-known craft breweries? Grand Rapids, Michigan!

Detroit is constantly reinventing and reinvigorating itself, and once again has become a popular event destination for everything from professional sports to big-name music concerts. But that’s just part of the story.

The rebirth of a city is a wonderful thing to witness. And the transformation of Detroit may be one of the most dramatic “come-back” stories of any American city in recent history. One visit there, and you can see how the area has rebuilt and preserved a legacy for all to treasure and enjoy.

Not all trips need to be taken by plane, train, or automobile. Bus travel is a great way to get around the state of Michigan on the cheap, whether for a daily commute, a day trip with family or friends, or a staycation in a nearby large city or small town.

If you think driving a bus is like driving a car, think again. While it may not be as easy, with the proper training and practice almost anyone can find success as a motorcoach operator. What many people may not realize though, is how state-of-the-art our buses really are. We wanted to give you a sneak peek into all the features our drivers get to interact with daily, all while transporting large groups of people safely to their destination.

Driving a large vehicle to a new state, in a crowded city, or through the mountains isn’t for everyone. Adding the possibility of carrying up to 56 passengers on top of that may sound even less appealing – when you don’t have the proper knowledge or training to do it. As someone new to the motorcoach industry, you probably have some hesitations about being a motorcoach operator in general. As it turns out, all of our current bus drivers had their own hesitations before and during the application process at Indian Trails. While their hesitations were different, they all have one thing in common: they love driving for Indian Trails. To help answer some questions you may have about the position, we talked to a handful of veteran drivers and asked them to share what they went through before applying for the job.

“People protect what they love, they love what they understand and they understand what they are taught.” Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Protecting the Great Lakes through education is a focus of Inland Seas Education Association (ISEA). (https://schoolship.org/) Through educational opportunities with ISEA, individuals develop a personal relationship with the Great Lakes. Inland Seas inspires people to be curious about the Great Lakes and encourages them to steward this awesome resource. Their hands-on programming takes place aboard tall ship vessels, along the shore, and in the Capt. Thomas M. Kelly Biological Station in Suttons Bay, MI. 

We are back with former driver Becky Smith, a driver with Indian Trails for over 15 years, to find out why she loved her job as a bus driver and why she equally loves her new position as safety and driver education manager at Indian Trails! See our blog From the Driver's Seat: Becky Smith, to learn about her bus driving experience.

Richard Steward started working for Indian Trails in August 2015 at their Kalamazoo garage location. A chef in a previous life, he was looking for a career that got him out of the kitchen and had a more traditional work schedule. While a bus driver’s schedule is not always the same at first, with seniority comes the ability to choose specific routes and schedules. This is how Richard ended up driving on the Western Michigan University campus toward the end of his career as a bus driver, with a set Monday-Friday schedule and more holidays off.

After a long, cold Michigan winter, there’s nothing better than being outside, soaking up the warmth of our surprisingly warm summers. From Lake Michigan to Lake Huron, it’s not hard to find a small town or large city holding various festivals and celebrations from May-August. We’ve compiled a list of Michigan happenings for you, your family and your friends to enjoy. Get out and visit a town you’ve never heard of; you could learn something new and have some fun along the way.