Green Tortoise
Encyclopedia
The Green Tortoise is a bus tour company founded by Gardner Kent in 1974 and based in San Francisco, California
that hosts tours
in North America, mostly within the United States
. It operates a bus line and two hostel
s (in Seattle and San Francisco). They cater particularly to backpackers: generally young adults, and many foreigners, particularly Europeans.
or Amtrak
. Passengers work together to cook most meals, which are often vegetarian, and include fresh produce. There are usually opportunities for camping during a Tortoise trip. Itineraries prioritise stops at places of natural and cultural interest, such as hot springs, over the traditional tourist sites.
Green Tortoise has historically made trips to a number of destinations in the USA including Alaska and regular summer coast-to-coast routes from San Francisco to Boston and back. Special trips are also arranged to popular festivals every year, including a Mardi Gras
trip to New Orleans, the Oregon Country Fair
and Burning Man
, where they also operate a shuttle bus from the event into nearby Gerlach
and Empire, NV
.International trips have included Mexico (including the Yucatán peninsula and Baja), Guatemala and Belize.
hostel shares its space with the bus line headquarters.
It is located at 494 Broadway in North Beach, close to Chinatown
. Similar to the hostel in Seattle, Washington (see below), it has free dinners three nights a week, live music every Sunday, free internet and free daily breakfast, and guided pub crawl
s every Thursday and Friday. It operates 365 days a year, has more than 40 rooms with over 200 beds, and is typically filled to capacity.
hostel is located centrally at 105 Pike Street, adjacent to Pike Place Market
. The hostel has approximately 120 beds, some in dormitories and some in private rooms, and operates 365 days a year. Visitors must have a valid government-issued ID from outside King County to be checked in (such as a passport or a driver's license). Individuals involved in the Alaska
n fishing industry
frequently stay before or after expeditions along with younger people and foreign travelers. As with the San Francisco hostel, free dinners are offered three nights a week (Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 7:00 PM). Free breakfast is also offered every morning.
The hostel employs an event coordinator who runs several free tours around the Seattle area. Visit http://www.greentortoise.net/calendar.php for the most current event calendar.
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
that hosts tours
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
in North America, mostly within the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It operates a bus line and two hostel
Hostel
Hostels provide budget oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex, although private rooms may also be available...
s (in Seattle and San Francisco). They cater particularly to backpackers: generally young adults, and many foreigners, particularly Europeans.
Buses
Green Tortoise buses are customized so that passengers can lounge around informally or sleep on bunk beds while the bus is moving. This is done at night so that a new destination can be reached during the day, saving travelers both the cost of hotel/hostel and the time of traveling so that sights can be seen during the day. The social environment on Green Tortoise buses is more communal than other carriers, such as GreyhoundGreyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and...
or Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
. Passengers work together to cook most meals, which are often vegetarian, and include fresh produce. There are usually opportunities for camping during a Tortoise trip. Itineraries prioritise stops at places of natural and cultural interest, such as hot springs, over the traditional tourist sites.
Green Tortoise has historically made trips to a number of destinations in the USA including Alaska and regular summer coast-to-coast routes from San Francisco to Boston and back. Special trips are also arranged to popular festivals every year, including a Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
trip to New Orleans, the Oregon Country Fair
Oregon Country Fair
The Oregon Country Fair is an annual three-day fair held in Veneta, Oregon, United States. Located in the Willamette Valley, the site is about west of Eugene along the Long Tom River. Annual attendance is approximately 45,000, and the fair has around 350 booths each year...
and Burning Man
Burning Man
Burning Man is a week-long annual event held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, in the United States. The event starts on the Monday before the American Labor Day holiday, and ends on the holiday itself. It takes its name from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy on Saturday evening...
, where they also operate a shuttle bus from the event into nearby Gerlach
Gerlach-Empire, Nevada
Gerlach-Empire is a census-designated place in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The combined population was 499 at the 2000 census. A former company town for United States Gypsum Corporation, Empire was once home to more than 750 people. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan...
and Empire, NV
Gerlach-Empire, Nevada
Gerlach-Empire is a census-designated place in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The combined population was 499 at the 2000 census. A former company town for United States Gypsum Corporation, Empire was once home to more than 750 people. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan...
.International trips have included Mexico (including the Yucatán peninsula and Baja), Guatemala and Belize.
Hostels
According to the Seattle Times Hostelworld named the Green Tortoise as one of the top ten hostels in North America in its 2009 annual awards.San Francisco
The San FranciscoSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
hostel shares its space with the bus line headquarters.
It is located at 494 Broadway in North Beach, close to Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
. Similar to the hostel in Seattle, Washington (see below), it has free dinners three nights a week, live music every Sunday, free internet and free daily breakfast, and guided pub crawl
Pub crawl
A pub crawl is the act of one or more people drinking in multiple pubs or bars in a single night, normally walking or busing to each one between drinking.-Origin of the term:...
s every Thursday and Friday. It operates 365 days a year, has more than 40 rooms with over 200 beds, and is typically filled to capacity.
Seattle
The Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
hostel is located centrally at 105 Pike Street, adjacent to Pike Place Market
Pike Place Market
Pike Place Market is a public market overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront in Seattle, Washington, United States. The Market opened August 17, 1907, and is one of the oldest continually operated public farmers' markets in the United States. It is a place of business for many small farmers,...
. The hostel has approximately 120 beds, some in dormitories and some in private rooms, and operates 365 days a year. Visitors must have a valid government-issued ID from outside King County to be checked in (such as a passport or a driver's license). Individuals involved in the Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
n fishing industry
Fishing industry
The fishing industry includes any industry or activity concerned with taking, culturing, processing, preserving, storing, transporting, marketing or selling fish or fish products....
frequently stay before or after expeditions along with younger people and foreign travelers. As with the San Francisco hostel, free dinners are offered three nights a week (Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 7:00 PM). Free breakfast is also offered every morning.
The hostel employs an event coordinator who runs several free tours around the Seattle area. Visit http://www.greentortoise.net/calendar.php for the most current event calendar.
External links
- Bus Line and San Francisco Hostel Info- Emerald Island in a Turquoise Sea (Part 5) - Photo-narration of GT Mexico Trip, attempt at becoming Tortoise driver (in Part 5)
Further reading
- It was, like, real; Green Tortoise tours delivers intimate views—of your fellow travelers. (Travel) Kelly Wilkinson. The Washington Post, June 21, 1998 pE01
- Slow, but steady: with the Green Tortoise Bus line, getting there is half the fun. (adventure tours bus line) Steve Wilson. E, May–June 1998 v9 n3 p46(2)
- Tortoise on a desert run: relive the days when getting there was half the fun. (Green Tortoise bus tours) T. Kelly Rossiter. Vegetarian Times, Sept 1995 n217 p92(3)
- A 1990's road trip worthy of Kerouac. (Green Tortoise bus tours) Lynda Edwards. The New York Times, November 14, 1993 v143 s9 pV8(L) col 1 (43 col in)
- A day camp on the road. (Green Tortoise offers travel and living in a bus) Eric Hubler. The New York Times, March 8, 1992 v141 s5 pXX41(N) pXX41(L) col 1 (27 col in)
- Trip on the Tortoise can be hair-raising if you aren't hip; rolling remnant of the 1960s, a bus unlike Greyhound, still plies the West Coast. (Green Tortoise a gypsy bus line) Bill Richards. The Wall Street Journal Western Edition, January 14, 1991 pA1(W) pA1(E) col 4 (29 col in)
- Touring with Green Tortoise; this California-based company offers the ultimate in adventure travel by motorcoach. (Green Tortoise Tours) (Focus: Group Travel) Susan O'Gorman. Travel Weekly, March 31, 1987 v46 p54(3)
- A personal narrative about GT Baja trips. Permafrost (newspaper), Summer 2009.