Has anyone taken the MegaBus before??

afloggie · June 2010

My FI and I are taking a mini-moon to Chicago and we were thinking about taking the Megabus (its cheaper than driving ourselves and we can relax on the drive) Has anyone taken the Megabus?

lavril · June 2010

Yes and I didn't have any trouble at all. My girl friends and I took it for my bachlorette weekend. Also, I have a friend in Chicago who uses it a LOT, to both Indy and Cincinnati. She highly recommends it. Sometimes it's kind of crowded, but typically on-time. She did say if it's' a double decker - stay on the bottom floor or you may feel car sick after awhile, lol. Let me know if you have any specific questions and I can ask her for you

afloggie · June 2010

I do get a little car sick sometimes so I am thinking about taking something before to help my stomach. The bus is a double decker so I will make sure we are on the bottom. Did she bring any snacks or anything?

HSchall · June 2010

Yes, I have taken it many times to and from Chicago when flights are way to expensive to justify (I have been in the process of moving from Chicago to Cinncinnati over the last few months). I have never gotten my ticket for less than $39 each way although they advertise $1 fares from time to time. It takes about 6 hours to get to Chicago with one rest stop just before you get to Indianapolis for some reason and then one stop to pick up more people in Indianapolis. I am not sure why it stops so soon after leaving Cincinnati--seems like it would make more sense to stop somewhere in the middle. The clientele is better than Grayhound (I assume, given that I have never actually taken Grayhound) but can be a bit mixed depending on when you go. Most of the time I have been on the bus it is college kids, relatives going to visit people in Chicago and tourists going to Chicago. A few times, however the bus picked up some people in Indianapolis that seemed a bit shady. I find the ride itself to be a bit bumpy and jarring and tend to feel a bit of motion sickness at least once during each trip (nothing serious though). This mode of transportation is by no way luxurious but it does get the job done. If I can find a flight in the $200 range I would always do that instead but if I can't the Megabus gets me there. Oh, and by the way, they advertise free WiFi but it is rarely working--it has only worked one time for part of the trip out of all the times I have taken the Megabus.

afloggie · June 2010

Thanks HSchall!

decobelle · June 2010

Another option is taking the Cardinal (Amtrak train) out of Union terminal. It leaves 3 times a week in the middle of the night. My FI and I did it one weekend last September. I really enjoyed it.
By the way that was the trip he proposed to me at the top of the Ferris wheel on Navy Pier

.

afloggie · June 2010

How much was the train?

efitzsi · June 2010

megabus all the way!

I have taken it many times. It is always on time and almost every time I arrive early. It's great to relax and saves you money. It says only one suitcase per person, but they never check. It also has free wi-fi which is a major plus! I always sit on top and never feel carsick or anything, not bumpy at all. Also, the bathroom is always clean if you need to use it.

If you have any specific questions just ask

HSchall · June 2010

I have definately seen the people checking to make sure that you only have one bag and complaining because bags were too big. That said, however, I have still seen them loan the extra and big bags.

lavril · June 2010

Yes, my friend typically brings snacks, her ipod, and laptop. I think she uses hte wi-fi pretty frequently. She's gotten tickets for pretty cheap before too (like $15 each way), but you have to buy them pretty far in advance to get the cheaper rates.

decobelle · July 2010

Amtrak is approx. $100 round trip to Chicago and back.

tortis · July 2010

My sister goes to school in Chicago and takes it all the time. I took it to see her and I thought it was great! I got one of my tickets for $1 so my round trip was about 25. The ticket prices change based on how many people are buying tickets, so just keep checking. I just slept the whole way or read. If you are going at night there's lights. The ride was a bit bumpy, but its a bus.... I don't really know what people who are complaining about that are expecting from a 30$ bus ticket. For me it was more than worth it to not have to drive, park, pay for parking, etc etc etc. I'd recommend it!

HyperChicaPR · July 2010

I know I'm late on this one but I had a really bad experience with MegaBus. We went to Minnesota through Chicago. The bus meeting us in Cincinnati was over 2 and a half hours late. We missed our connecting bus in Chicago and had to wait for another one. Also, the bus on the way back from Chicago to cincy was extremely crowded and small. We were on top of each other as well as the seats around us. It was very uncomfortable and loud and annoying. It was fine for the price but I would not recommend it for a honeymoon trip. You will not feel very romantic especially if it's as late as ours was and crowded.

Has anyone taken the MegaBus before??

Re: Has anyone taken the MegaBus before??

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