bachslunch

There are four heavily discounted Boston to New York bus lines: Megabus, Bolt Bus, Lucky Star, and Fung Wah. Am wondering if anyone here has ridden several -- perhaps all -- of these and can make an informed comparison as to which is the best. Sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp seem mixed on all these options, though Fung Wah seems to have a weaker safety record compared to the rest.

Important considerations: safety, on time record, cleanliness, legroom.

yk

bachslunch -

Don't take Fung Wah due to its repeated safety violations.

I have taken MegaBus (Boston/NYC) and would take it again.

BoltBus is similar to Megabus and my friend takes BoltBus all the time between Philly and NYC.

I think pricing-wise, Megabus may be cheaper as tix start at $1. Both offer free wifi on board.

Lucky Star is okay, no safety issues AFAIK, but I think it only stops in Chinatown in NYC, which is too inconvenient for me.

Also, one of them (can't remember which, but NOT Megabus) mentions a Rest stop on the way. I personally would NOT choose that company as I'd rather get there sooner than have a rest stop.

Hope this helps.

Anonymous

Fung Wah and Greyhound both took breaks for a total of about 10 or 15 minutes. Many people just don't want to use the onboard resources, or get hungry. You can get round-trip tickets on Greyhound for $36. IIRC Mega and Bolt have onboard WiFi.

Anonymous

It's impossible to compare accident records, since Bolt and Megabus were both founded long after Fung Wah, and Lucky Star has a much lower volume. In fact, Fung Wah's last at-fault accident (March 2007) might have been before Bolt and Megabus even began service.

yk

True, there haven't been any recent at-fault accidents by Fung Wah.

My concern with that company is that Fung Wah has a history of repeated safety violations. Perhaps it has cleaned up its act now, but I just don't like to trust my life on a company which didn't seem to think safety is the most important issue. A safety violation rarely leads to actual accidents, but given the number of alternatives these days, I'd choose a more respectable company.

MegaBus belongs to MegaBus UK, which has been around for years in UK.

BoltBus is a subsidiary of Greyhound.

rkkwan

Who came up with the name "Bolt" first? Greyhound/Peter Pan or Disney?

gail

Disclaimer - I have never taken anyh of them. A friend at work puts her teens on Fung Wah several times/yr to visit relatives in NY - she and kids are Asian and she started doing this when Fung Wah was a little quirky transport company used almost exclusively by Asians. It was then "discovered" by students and others with limited income as a cheap transport option.

If it were me, I would skip Fung Wah - it is the only one I have read about repeatedly in Boston papers with accidents, safetly violations, non-English speaking drivers. While this may be true of other discount lines as well, this is just what papers have reported.

happy_train

I have recently taken Mega Bus and was quite pleased. I think Bolt Bus is very similar.

I would NOT recommend Fung Wah, for the same reasons previously mentioned. There is a culture of safety-violations with that company, and they have a bad reputation around town.

MFNYC

My daughter travels this route frequently. She has recently used both the bolt (run by greyhound) and the megabus (run by coach). She's never used the chinatown buses. SHe's also used the greyhound, buying e-tickets for the best deals. The mega and bolt buses are cheap if you buy tickets well in advance, but my daughter has bought tickets last minute and they were still no more than $5 more than the chinatown buses, same is true for the tickets she bought to come home for Thanksgiving.

Bolt has electrical outlets for at the seats which can come in handy, especially if you are using a laptop. Mega didn't have the outlets. They both have wifi.

She prefers either of these over greyhound. As far as on time record, regardless of what bus company, if there's traffic, it will be slower. She's never complained about any of the buses being dirty, but I never asked. If it were bad, she'd definitely say something. Legroom-wise, I think they're all the same. Naturally she prefers an empty bus, where no one sits next to her, but she's rarely that lucky.

thedaveoflife

Hey Cap, I've taken all these buses!!! If you have the luxury of booking in advance, I would recommend the bolt or megabus.... these are very similar in quality as well as price, but the further in advance you book the cheaper it will be as the more seats they sell, the higher the price(i've gotten a ticket for $5 b4).

the fung wah is a little lower in quality but cheaper if you need the ticket now. I have never had a problem with their service but it tends to be cramped and a little uncomfortable (full of chinese tourists). that being said, if you are looking for comfort, pay a little extra and take the train. Hope this helps!