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Hello Jack.  My name is Joe.  I live in West Virginia and work for a small part of a national company.  Coach USA is the national company.  I wish I could give you tons of advice but I have been driving a tour bus for a little under 2 years.  I came here in a round about way from driving school bus.  What I did learn almost right off the bat.  Get rest when you get the chance. 

When I first started driving I wanted to see the sites or watch the ballgame if I hauled a ballteam.  I paid for that.  Up all day and then drive all night.  I learned real fast, get my sleep while I can get it. 

The next thing.  Keep track of places that "comp" the drivers meal.  I don't know about your company, but the one I work for does not pay for our meals, therefore if the restaurant that we stop at does not give us free eats, it can get expensive. 

Have fun.  Keep alert.  And watch out for the "4 wheelers" out there.  LOL.

God Bless 

JWS (Joe)

Hey there Jack.  Glad to "meet" you.  I think you will enjoy this business.  My company pays different ways.  The best is by the mile… IF.. we are on a long trip and loaded.  We are paid different.  Loaded and unloaded miles.  If we are setting waiting for a day, such as if we drop someone off one day and have a couple of "down days" we are paid a flat daily rate.  And the third, if we don't drive very far, less than 50 miles, we are paid by the hour.  Or something like that.  I am not really sure I understand the whole package.. LOL.  I do know, they pay us the larger of the sum.  What makes it the pits, if we take a group to something like a zoo and it is a medium drive, we set there all day not getting paid, but we get paid miles. 

In other words… each one of us would love to have long trips on every run we make.  But we have to have the short ones along with the long ones.  Not every customer wants to travel 600 miles.  LOL. 

Keep it safe and have fun,

Joe

Jack.  Watch your money.  Remember everything you buy when on a trip comes out of your profits.  Keep track of your expenses getting to the yard and back home.  That counts too.  Always check on your pay.  My company direct deposits my paycheck.  I'm not saying they make mistakes on purpose but people being people make mistakes. 

Get you a little woven basket to put on the dash and fill it with candy.  Then put a couple of bucks in it.  Everybody grabs the candy and it reminds them to tip you.