Getting Around

Easy Access by Car, Bike or Plane

Located along the I-85 corridor between Atlanta and Charlotte, Upstate South Carolina makes it easy to get around—whether you’re off to work, a day-trip or an international destination. On average, Upstate SC residents enjoy a 26-minute commute—about half the national average. Most own a car and drive to work, but many choose to bike thanks to our growing bicycle infrastructure, which includes the first protected bike lane in the state and what was the first bike-share program in the Southeast. For domestic and international travel, GSP International offers convenience and efficiency with direct flights to 17 cities and one-stop connections to the world. And, for some in the Upstate, the CLT Douglas International Airport is less than an hour’s drive. Learn more about getting around in Upstate SC below.

Facts + Figures

1st

PROTECTED BIKE LANE IN THE SOUTH CAROLINA

22

NON-STOP DAILY DEPARTURES FROM GSP

26 Minutes

AVERAGE COMMUTE TIME

145 MILES TO ATLANTA | 92 MILES TO CHARLOTTE

Driving Distance to Major Airports

Upstate South Carolina’s convenient location puts you within 2.5 hours of three major airports, offering connections to hundreds of domestic and interactions locations.

Commute
Airports
Daytrips

Cut Your Commute in Half

While most of the country has a commute of about 30 minutes, Upstate South Carolina residents take an average 26 minutes to get to and from work. Most residents drive to work via Upstate SC’s well-maintained roads and 14,000 miles of highways—and ridesharing apps like Uber and Lyftt—but many choose to bike or walk. In 2011, Spartanburg created B-Cycle Spartanburg, the first bike-sharing program in the Southeast. Today, 40 bikes are available at five stations throughout the city. Greenville soon followed with B-Cycle Greenville and ten bike stations. Greenville is also home to South Carolina’s first on-street protected bike lane. Thanks in part to this new bike lane, the city recorded more than 10,000 commuter trips by bike in 2017. For more information on recreational cycling, visit the Play Outdoors page. Public transportation is also available, including Greenlink Transit, which provides bus and trolley service in Greenville and throughout the Upstate, and SPARTA, which provides bus routes in and around Spartanburg.

Three Airports Within 2.5 Hours

With three major airports located within about 2.5 hours of Upstate South Carolina, traveling across the country and around the world couldn’t be easier.

Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP) is ranked among the most user-friendly airports in the country and serves more than 2 million passengers per year. On average, GSP offers 22 non-stop daily departures to 20 major airports and 17 major cities across the U.S., including Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth, New York City, Washington, D.C. and Miami.

Charlotte (CLT), the sixth-busiest airport in the country by passenger traffic, is under an hour away by car for many residents of the Upstate. CLT offers more than 160 daily non-stop flights and serves as American Airlines’ second-largest hub and the second-largest airport on the East Coast.

Atlanta (ATL) is the busiest and most efficient airport in the world and, by some accounts, the best in North America. Just about 2.5 hours from the Upstate SC region, ATL offers non-stop service to more than 150 domestic and 70 international destinations across Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Africa, and South and Central America.

Take a Daytrip

With its central location on the I-85 corridor between Charlotte and Atlanta, and at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Upstate South Carolina is perfectly situated for daytrips around the Carolinas and beyond. Whether it’s hiking, brewery hopping, shopping or catching a game, you’ll find all kinds of reasons to spend the day—or the weekend—somewhere new. For ideas for your next adventure, visit our Day Trips page.