Megabus Experiences: Is Cheaper Better?

by Josh Lew on

High airfares and high gas prices have had many people feeling like they are stuck in a corner. Or at least stuck at home. For me, a Twin Cities resident with friends and family in Chicago, the $100 round trips of the past (AirTran and NW) made it easy to call The Windy City a second home. Likewise, my Cubs-loving acquaintances were only an hour or two away from watching a team that has actually won the world series in the past 100 years.

But, rising fares have recently made the two neighboring cities seem farther away than in the past. A drive is still doable, if you have a car that gets good mileage. But there is an even cheaper alternative: Megabus. A ride between MSP and Chicago averages around $25, depending on when you buy your ticket. That’s cheaper than one tank of gas. But is it worth it?

Most college students and budget travelers had a certain reverence for the bus line, which is owned by Coach USA. You can’t beat the price. But there were a few negatives:
1. The buses arrived later than scheduled. Every. Single. Time.
2. They offered free wi-fi but it often didn’t work.
3. If you don’t have headphones, you’re in for a noisy ride.
4. The drop off point in Minneapolis is a bit dodgy, especially late at night. Basically, it’s under a bridge, next to a vacant lot.

And, to be fair, the good:

1. Price
2. Dropped off in central locations
3. Price
4. Reasonably comfortable
5. Price

Greyhound in a pinch: It’s cheaper and it gets you there

by Jamie Rhein on

This past Sunday I put my mother on a Greyhound bus. She agreed to get on. I didn’t make her. This was a last minute trip. Last minute on an airplane would have cost $600 plus for round trip between Columbus, Ohio and New York City. Greyhound was $208, tax included. Planning ahead would have made this cheaper than that, but this was last minute.

After considering the price of airfare, the hassle of going through airport procedure nonsense, the chance that a flight would be delayed or canceled, and the added cost of getting from the airport into Manhattan made a plane ticket seem totally not worth it. Without a direct flight available, the trip could have taken several hours anyway.

Driving was nixed because she would be driving by herself which would require many stops and possibly a hotel stay somewhere. At the time we found out she needed to go, it was late afternoon. Plus, there is paying for parking in New York City and the cost of gas. So, Greyhound, in its convenience and thrift, won out.

Here are the pros and cons of the decision to hop on Greyhound in retrospect.

Pros:

  1. Putting her on the bus was easy. She had bought her ticket the day before thinking that she needed to go on Saturday, but it seemed like she didn’t need to go after all after she paid for the ticket. Since the ticket is good for a year, she held onto it.
  2. Once we found out she did need to go, she was packed and at the bus station two hours later ready to take the 7:00 p.m. bus. Although, her ticket was for the day before, she didn’t need to change her ticket or pay an extra fee. She didn’t need to pay for baggage either. She had a carry-on size, a purse and another small bag. All went on the bus with her. If she had checked her bag there would have been no charge.
  3. There was no stress. I got her to the bus station at 6:20 PM in a quick 15 minute drive from where she lives. There was parking right out front, and since it was Sunday, the meter is free.
  4. There was not a TSA experience to deal with or a long trek to a gate. She could keep her shoes on. She had a full water bottle and regular sized tooth paste. She didn’t have a snow globe, but no one would have stopped her if she had.
  5. The bus goes right to Port Authority Bus Station near Times Square so there’s not an extra cost or hassle getting into Manhattan. From Port Authority there are plenty of ways to get to where you need to go. She took a cab.

Cons:

  1. Sleeping on the bus was not easy or restful. My mom said it made five stops and each time, they had to get off.
  2. Although she doesn’t need a car in Manhattan, if she goes to upstate New York like she is planning to, she’ll need a car once she’s there. Plus, there’s the bus trip back.

Solutions to the Cons

  1. She’s planning on taking the bus back during the day since not being able to sleep at night is something she doesn’t care to repeat.
  2. I may drive her car to New York the beginning of next week and use her bus ticket to come back if that’s possible. If not, I’ll get my own one-way bus ticket. I was planning on going to New York later this summer, but I could go now. That way, she has her car and I can take the things she was planning to take if she drove. Otherwise, she’s driving to New York again later on.
  3. She rents a car after she takes a bus to Kingston, takes the Greyhound back here, and then she and I can drive to New York in August when I was planning to go any way. Hmmmm. Now, that’s an idea.

The reason why it is still good my mom didn’t take the plane.

Her return bus ticket is for June 4. She can’t come back June 4 so she would have needed to change her ticket. The bus ticket change costs $15. The plane ticket change would have been at least $100, and probably more as Grant has pointed out.

Busabout: another way to tour Europe

by Jamie Rhein on

I’ve done the Eurail pass travel frenzy for a month and similar rail pass travel in Japan–that time for one week. They were great for making a lot of ground without spending the extra money once I paid for the passes, but they weren’t particularly cheap. There’s another way to go city to city in Europe if you’re on a budget and a backpacker.

“I Want Adventure” and “I Want to Hop-On Hop Off” pops up on the Busabout’s splash page. Designed for the “independent traveler,” Busabout bus trips allow riders to tailor trips to what they want to see with 10 country, 30 city options, and in the time frame they want. You can travel to all countries or just a few. Unlike a train where you’re left to your own devices, Busabout trips have tour guides that point out the good stuff along the way and give you tips on what to see when you get off. When you head out for some exploring, you can also leave your gear on the bus, depending on which option you’ve picked.

The Web site is equipped with Lonely Planet online guides to help you plan your journey. You can start anywhere you want in the network and break your trip up into sections. Depending on the trip options, whether you choose from the Busabout Explorer, Eastern Trekker or Busabout Adventures, you could travel for a few days or months. (Go to each one to see what’s offered.) From the pictures of travelers, it also looks like this would be a terrific way to meet folks. One group is clinking beer glasses. Another is on bikes. Busabout recommends that you book as much of your journey ahead, but you can change your booking if needed. Cancellations need to be within 24 hours for a full refund. There is also help with finding accommodations and a system where you can book ahead while you are on the bus.

A technology feature I find interesting, particularly for parents who have high school age students or sons and daughters in college who are heading off alone, the Busabout system keeps track of where people get on and off the bus. If you haven’t heard from Junior or Juniorita for awhile, the company may be able to give a possible location. Last place seen–Paris.

Thanks to Intelligent Travel for pointing this company out. Spend some time poking around Busabout’s Web site and you’ll be imagining all sorts of possibilities. If this company comes up with trips for families, I say they are REALLY onto something.

Greyhound bus line expands its priority boarding system

by Jamie Rhein on

Back in November, Catherine wrote a post about Greyhound’s $5 extra per ticket priority boarding, seat assignment system. After a month of trying it out, the system must be working well because it was expanded in December to include a large portion of Greyhound’s departure cities. (see news release) Not all trips from the departure cities are elibible for priority boarding, however.

The main purpose, I think, from the passenger’s perspective is to help allieviate the stress of wondering if you’ll get a seat on the bus at all, or have to wait for another. Also, you have more likely a chance to get your choice of either an aisle or window seat. Since the system lets you pick your actual seat, say goodbye to the risk of getting stuck next to the bathroom. If traveling with kids, it helps guarantee that you’re not going to need to ask a passenger if he or she would move so you can sit with your child.

Less stress means you’ll be more likely to take the bus which can be a real economic deal. For the bus company, $5 for a passenger isn’t all that much, but put all those $5 together and you have a money boost.

However, as Catherine pointed out, you can’t get the priority boarding over the Internet. It’s only available at the bus station which does mean waiting in line at some point unless you head to the bus station during a non-busy time. If you happen to live in or near a town or city with a Greyhound station, you can go 30 days in advance or less to purchase the priority boarding. If you want to take your chances, you can purchase priority boarding 20 minutes before your trip.

In order for your priority seating to be honored, you need to be at the gate 20 minutes before your departure time.

If the bus station is as packed as it was when my dad attempted to take the bus from Columbus to Cincinnati, having priority boarding would have assured him a seat if I had gone to the bus station a day or so earlier to get it. The day of the trip would have been too late, although he was traveling the day before Thanksgiving so bus travel was at a high. If you’re traveling in the summer, I bet it’s a similar situation.

The thing is, you can’t get priority boarding yet out of Columbus, but all buses out of Cincinnati and Cleveland have the option. Still, if there’s a smoother way out of those two cities, it should translate to an easier time in Columbus. My dad’s bus was delayed for hours in Cleveland which is why he never managed to actually take the bus.

For a list of all the available priority boarding cities, click here.

Skybus $20 promotion ended on the 5th and someone I know snagged a ticket

by Jamie Rhein on

No, I’m not the one who got the promotional price. And here’s why. On January 2, just before I was heading out of town with my husband and kids for jam-packed excitement in Cincinnati with friends, I got an email from Skybus announcing $20 each way flights to a few locations–one to Newburgh, New York. Since packing for the trip at hand, instead of planning for a trip in the future, was a priority, I put the deal on hold.

Two days later some of these flights on the weekend were still available. I went as far as picking the flight and starting to put in credit card information, but I choked. Here’s why:

1. I waffled about bringing my son. Should I or shouldn’t I? On one hand it would be fun. On the other hand, a solo trip would be great, but then that would leave my husband with my son for the weekend which is no big deal, but is it fair? I already won’t give my husband the left hand window seat of an airplane if we are sitting together. Wouldn’t leaving him with our highly energetic son on a weekend when he needs to get grading done be pushing it?

2. The weather in February, when I was planning to go, is so unpredictable. I could get stuck at my dad’s unable to get out. Being stuck in Columbus would be no big deal. I’d just eat the cost of the ticket, but the idea of being stuck on top of a mountain in upstate New York was not a happy thought. I spent my adolescence feeling stuck up there. No thanks.

3. Then there were thoughts of Skybus’s winter holiday snafus with the planes not working. Again, I could get stuck not being able to leave Newburgh. Without anyone to call how would you know if there was a problem? If there was a problem, does that mean that you have to stay in Newburgh until the problem is fixed? Does the airline inform people when the flights are going if you give someone a phone number? They do through the internet, but my dad doesn’t have internet. Again, there was fear of being stuck on top of a mountain, possibly forever.

4. If I couldn’t get out that would mean I couldn’t do any of my jobs which would mean a lack of income. A cheap ticket becomes expensive.

So, I decided to sleep on my decision-making. As what happens every time I wait on decision-making with Skybus, the ticket prices went up on the weekend that was the most convenient for me to travel, therefore I have decided to wait for the next round of cheap tickets. Once a price goes above $100, unless I have a specific reason to go on a trip, there’s a lot of things $100 will pay for. Psychologically, there’s something about not getting the cheapest deal that gets in the way.

Now, who is getting the cheap tickets.? My dad. I called him about the deal when I found out it was not good for me, Getting out of Newburgh was still cheap for him. He’s coming to Columbus for roughly $56.00 round-trip. Who wouldn’t?

I just looked at Skybus ticket prices. The days that used to cost $20, now cost $35, but they are mostly during the week. If you fly to Newburgh on this afternoon’s flight, it will cost you $35. That’s not a bad deal in an emergency. If you wait until tomorrow, it will cost you $180.

Here’s friend of mine’s take on SkyBus. Tom Barlow ‘s post “SkyBus: How cheap is too cheap,” at WalletPop reflects some of my concerns.