I took a Greyhound bus from New York City to Montréal 4 times this year to avoid airports. It's cheaper and less stressful than flying.

Sarah Belle Lin Aug 27, 2022, 17:17 IST

I'll gladly take a long bus ride over dealing with airports right now.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I took a Greyhound bus from NYC to Montréal four times this spring and summer to avoid airport chaos.
On my most recent trip, I paid $165.98 for a roundtrip fare with Wi-Fi, rest stops, and comfy seats.

I rode a Greyhound bus four times in three months between New York City and Montréal this year. I think it was the best way to avoid possible airline cancellations, delays, and lost luggage.

I took the scenic — and ultimately less stressful — route between Montréal and Manhattan four times this year.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I rode a Greyhound bus four times in three months between New York City and Montréal this year. I think it was the best way to avoid possible airline cancellations, delays, and lost luggage.

Booking a bus was much cheaper than flying.

Greyhound has three fare types.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I arrived at Gare d'autocars de Montréal at 6 a.m., an hour early for my direct ride to New York.

The bus station felt quiet and sleepy when I arrived at 6 a.m.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

The cafe inside the station opened at 6:30 a.m. and I rushed towards the croissants, which is my go-to snack in Montréal.

The bus station cafe offered espresso drinks, sandwiches, pastries, and snacks.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

Around 7 a.m., the bus driver called everyone to the line and started checking passports and bus tickets.

I hopped in line to show my bus ticket and passport to the driver at 7 a.m.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I stored my luggage in the cargo space and brought my backpack on the bus with me.

I usually like to be among the first passengers to stow away my luggage so it's further inside the cargo space.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

Seats are first come, first served and I raced straight for the seats closest to the bus driver.

This bus had 50 seats, one window and one aisle. Each had decent legroom and could recline like airplane seats.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I had a seatmate for half of the bus ride, but sitting in the aisle seat came with advantages.

I used the aisle to stretch out.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

There's only one bathroom in the back of the bus, but I have never seen lines forming to use it.

The Greyhound coach bus bathroom was clean but lacked a hand-washing station.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

We departed Montréal around 7:15 a.m. and arrived an hour later at the US-Canadian border for customs enforcement.

The first stop was at the Champlain–St. Bernard de Lacolle Border Crossing.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

We arrived at our second stop, a Dunkin' Donuts and Mobil gas station, around 30 minutes later in Plattsburgh, New York.

We stopped by a gas station with Dunkin' Donuts in Plattsburgh, New York.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

The next two stops were quick. One was about 15 minutes and the next, just five minutes.

I liked seeing this I Love New York logo painted on the hillside.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

Midway through the ride, my seatmate left and I had the row to myself for the rest of the trip.

I used the foot rests under the seats in front of me.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

We arrived to the fifth stop at the Albany Bus Terminal, which I thought was a little confusing.

I noticed a line forming almost instantly to board after we arrived in Albany.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

I saw Manhattan's skyline around 4:45 p.m.

One of my favorite views in the world is the Manhattan skyline.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

We pulled into the Port Authority Greyhound Bus Station in midtown Manhattan at 5:12 p.m.

The Port Authority Greyhound Bus Station wasn't busy when I arrived.Sarah Belle Lin/Insider

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I took a Greyhound bus from New York City to Montréal 4 times this year to avoid airports. It's cheaper and less stressful than flying.

I rode a Greyhound bus four times in three months between New York City and Montréal this year. I think it was the best way to avoid possible airline cancellations, delays, and lost luggage.

Booking a bus was much cheaper than flying.

I arrived at Gare d'autocars de Montréal at 6 a.m., an hour early for my direct ride to New York.

The cafe inside the station opened at 6:30 a.m. and I rushed towards the croissants, which is my go-to snack in Montréal.

Around 7 a.m., the bus driver called everyone to the line and started checking passports and bus tickets.

I stored my luggage in the cargo space and brought my backpack on the bus with me.

Seats are first come, first served and I raced straight for the seats closest to the bus driver.

I had a seatmate for half of the bus ride, but sitting in the aisle seat came with advantages.

There's only one bathroom in the back of the bus, but I have never seen lines forming to use it.

We departed Montréal around 7:15 a.m. and arrived an hour later at the US-Canadian border for customs enforcement.

We arrived at our second stop, a Dunkin' Donuts and Mobil gas station, around 30 minutes later in Plattsburgh, New York.

The next two stops were quick. One was about 15 minutes and the next, just five minutes.

Midway through the ride, my seatmate left and I had the row to myself for the rest of the trip.

We arrived to the fifth stop at the Albany Bus Terminal, which I thought was a little confusing.

I saw Manhattan's skyline around 4:45 p.m.

We pulled into the Port Authority Greyhound Bus Station in midtown Manhattan at 5:12 p.m.