have you taken one of the cheapie buses from here to NYC? (Fairfax: school, live)

[peanutrach]

I have taken Vamoose once. Got picked-up/dropped off from the Rosslyn location. The bus was nice and clean and the seats were fine. The issue that I ran into was the traffic. Both the traffic coming and going was horrible and it took us longer than 7 hours each way. I could have driven and made way better time! Since then we have driven. I enjoy the flexibility of being able to stop and have found an alternate route that cuts out a lot of the traffic and tolls. I would also consider taking Amtrak in the future, even though it is more expensive. I think my time is worth more than the frustration.

[sjankis630]

I've done both Vamoose and BoltBus...both were great.

I spoke to someone who worked with Greyhound and apparently BoltBus is owned by Greyhound. I was surprised by this.
I found out about these cheap buses when a few years ago one of my Project Managers used one of them to go see his son in New York. I was flabergasted and asked him why. He said they were clean, on time and cost so much less than driving (no gas and tolls)
A woman I work with from NY has her two adult (young) daughters take them numerous times and they seem to love it.

[danguyf]

I have enjoyed my trips on BoltBus.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by sjankis630

He said they were clean, on time and cost so much less than driving (no gas and tolls)

Plus, it's much more relaxing to surf the internet or read a book than drive on 95.

[Carlingtonian]

I've ridden several. Generally, they're not bad. You're sacrificing time to save on the cost, because they all take way longer than they should because they insist on a stopover on the Jersey Turnpike. They usually take over 4 hours to get there--count on it taking 4 and a half--and I've done it by car in 3. (That's driving faster than I should, but you try going less than 80 on the Jersey Turnpike!)

One time, the bus--I think it was Vamoose--broke down just outside NYC, so they had another one come pick us up.

The train, by contrast, is much faster and so much more comfy. And you see neat stuff out the window. But it's more than double the price.

[RusUs]

Originally Posted by NYerinLondon

...The last time I went to NYC on my own dime, I took Amtrak. Very expensive, and we stopped in a field, inexplicably, for over an hour. The next time I went to NYC (on someone else's dime), and on an Acela, no less, we stopped for nearly two hours in a field to take on stranded passengers heading Southbound. Their train had gone kaput. Amtrak is a far cry from its glory days (if there ever were any glory days); I would pay a premium if it were dependable, but unfortunately, that hasn't been my experience.

NYerinLondon, sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience with Amtrak. We just took it ("regular" train not Acela) a week ago and it was great. Clean and quick - ~3.5 hours from NY Penn Station to DC. We also took Amtrak train a couple years ago and our trip was smooth, as well. We bought our tickets in advance, and it was 49$ p/p one way.

We have not tried DC-NY buses yet. But I heard both good and bad reviews.

[RUSDC]

Family took it multiple tipes, the VAMOose line, from Rosslyn.
Positive experience both times.

[peanutrach]

Originally Posted by NYerinLondon

The last time I went to NYC on my own dime, I took Amtrak. Very expensive, and we stopped in a field, inexplicably, for over an hour. The next time I went to NYC (on someone else's dime), and on an Acela, no less, we stopped for nearly two hours in a field to take on stranded passengers heading Southbound. Their train had gone kaput. Amtrak is a far cry from its glory days (if there ever were any glory days); I would pay a premium if it were dependable, but unfortunately, that hasn't been my experience.

I have taken Amtrak numerous times and have never really had an issue, thank goodness. However, I try to avoid it during the holiday season as people will run you down to get a seat once they announce the track. I have never seen anything like it! I was thinking about taking my elderly grandparents on it around Christmas but am hesitant due to my previous experiences.

[gtempress]

I've personally never taken any bus rides, but I heard that tripperbus is pretty good.

[joiseygirl732]

Originally Posted by sjankis630

I spoke to someone who worked with Greyhound and apparently BoltBus is owned by Greyhound. I was surprised by this.
I found out about these cheap buses when a few years ago one of my Project Managers used one of them to go see his son in New York. I was flabergasted and asked him why. He said they were clean, on time and cost so much less than driving (no gas and tolls)
A woman I work with from NY has her two adult (young) daughters take them numerous times and they seem to love it.

It's certainly the most affordable option, although its not a time-saver like driving on your own, or amtrak (unless your destination is The City). I can do a round-trip for under 40 bucks total. i have a car, but I found a trip cost calculator online, and I could not justify spending over 100 dollars when I could get an entire round-trip for less than half the cost of gas and tolls. And being able to use wi-fi makes it less painful to be on a bus.