Budget Travel - Greyhound WAS->NYC

So I started off looking at the Chinatown bus and I ended up with greyhound based on schedule and i figured they were a more established bus company. So I am doing a one day r/t leaving at 6:30a and returning at 7:00p on a Saturday. I am going as part of the 'mystry traveler' program which gives you 1/2 of your ticket back in return for filling out a survay online after the trip. So the $35 becomes $17.50, I also signed up for the one month free trial for student advantage for $1 which gives me a $10 rebate on my trip. So in call I am going for $8.50 r/t. Can't beat the price, however...

I have never taken a long distance bus like this. I found some reviews online and am a little scared. How safe is it, how likly am I to be ontime, and what time should i get to the station (I have an e-ticket)?

In my younger days I've done Dallas - NYC, and in even younger days a real doosy: Philadelphia to Calgary -- that would be three days and two nights on the bus. And of course Oklahoma to Calgary, with an overnight in Billings, MT (IIRC, it was somewhere in Montana). Much happier collecting FF miles these days, if for no other reason because I don't have that much time anymore :rolleyes:

The only downside to this journey would be the bus stations -- Greyhound tends to have them downtown, and usually in less than desirable part of town :( But the times you are traveling you should be OK.

EmailKid

Its only about an hour longer each way than Amtrak my alternative. What kind of ontime performance can I excpet. Since I am only going for the day a delay will be a major blow.

Amtrak is a lot more expensive... My brother takes Greyhound from Manhattan to 'local' points such as DC and Boston and he doesn't mind it, lot of well-off city dwellers take it around the NE corridor.

Daytrip is a rush, but my understanding of Greyhound is that there really would be no issue w/ ontime performance, especially to/from NYC because they're constantly shuttling buses in and out of there.

Only real on-time issue is the excitement in the DC metro called the Beltway and then the NYC tunnel traffic.

Alright, well I guess I'll be ok and for $8.50 r/t i don't think there is a cheaper option.

I took Greyhound to BOS once because the friend I was traveling with had read some article about rival Chinatown bus operators torching each others' buses. Even though I hadn't previously been immolated on these buses, I agreed to try out the apparently safer alternative. The driver was surly, the bus was dirty, and I was glad when it was over. Subsequently, I returned to taking my chances on the Chinatown death buses.

Going to WAS, I usually take Vamoose Bus (vamoosebus.com). The buses are generally clean and on time. There is no security check, so you can arrive not too long before the bus is scheduled to depart, though if you get there earlier you can be closer to the front of the boarding line and be able to choose your seat earlier in the boarding process.

when i mentioned security i was refering to bus vandalism, muggings, and other things like that. Anyway, unless i find out that the busses are never ontime i am going to take it.

I take Greyhound all the time from Boston to New York. Maybe because I am cheap but you can’t beat going to NYC for $30 round trip. The buses run pretty much on time. The only times we have not made in the City as scheduled has been due to traffic and the bus drivers seems to be familiar with shortcuts they can take approaching Manhattan. I have found that the majority of the traffic are college students but that may be different out of Washington. I’d rather take the train but at more than three times the price I can live with the bus.

Have taken the WAS-NYC bus several times and the bus is perfectly fine and usually on-time. I try to take Amtrak whenever possible, since it is much faster (especially if you hit traffic on the Greyhound) and more comfortable, but Greyhound is a perfectly good option.

Never been to PABT, then...well now...:D

Nobody has mentioned this yet:

Some of the "Greyhound" departures are operated by Peter Pan Bus Lines (you can tell by the designation when greyhound.com lists the schedule.

I haven't been inside a Peter Pan bus before, but I want to say they offer movies. Greyhound never ever offers any movies or entertainment on buses in the US.

Maybe others can speak to the distinction between Greyhound vehicles and Peter Pan vehicles.

as for movies sometimes i wouldn't want a movie. the last thing i want on my 6:30 am bus a is a load obnoxious movie.

Nobody has mentioned this yet:

Some of the "Greyhound" departures are operated by Peter Pan Bus Lines (you can tell by the designation when greyhound.com lists the schedule.

I haven't been inside a Peter Pan bus before, but I want to say they offer movies. Greyhound never ever offers any movies or entertainment on buses in the US.

Maybe others can speak to the distinction between Greyhound vehicles and Peter Pan vehicles.

I find the Peter Pan buses to be in better shape than the Greyhound stock, I do opt for those runs instead of Greyhound stock if the schedule fits. Also, in my experience they are less prone to running behind schedule. And yes, Peter Pan does offer a movie.

When i mentioned security i was refering to bus vandalism, muggings, and other things like that. Good God, you're not in the Sudan. It's perfectly safe on board the bus. The only security flag I would throw up would be re: arriving at the Washington DC depot in the middle of the night -- it's in a dodgy, deserted block. But even the PABT is OK in the small hours; plenty of cops around.

As a teenager I did a couple of long bus runs, Boston-Key West on Greyhound and Boston-Little Rock on Trailways, and I really enjoyed them! I was just noodling with greyhound.com today, thinking about another one sometime... a la recherche du temps perdu and all that...

You'll be fine.

Plus the depot it is only 3 blocks or so from Union Station. I have walked from there to Union Station to catch the Metro at around midnight a few times. A little unpleasant, but not really scary.


Good God, you're not in the Sudan. It's perfectly safe on board the bus. The only security flag I would throw up would be re: arriving at the Washington DC depot in the middle of the night -- it's in a dodgy, deserted block. But even the PABT is OK in the small hours; plenty of cops around.

As a teenager I did a couple of long bus runs, Boston-Key West on Greyhound and Boston-Little Rock on Trailways, and I really enjoyed them! I was just noodling with greyhound.com today, thinking about another one sometime... a la recherche du temps perdu and all that...

You'll be fine.

as for movies sometimes i wouldn't want a movie. the last thing i want on my 6:30 am bus a is a load obnoxious movie.They don't broadcast the soundtrack on the PA, you plug in your own set of headphones (if you have them).

There is usually adequate padding built into bus schedules to compensate for traffic. My only major bus delay was an Elmira, NY-Washington, DC Trailways trip which was delayed 2 hours due to a major snowstorm.