Battle of the buses. Boston - New York

Fung Wah vs. Lucky Star vs. Megabus vs. Bolt
Boston: All buses leave and arrive at South Station.
The trip takes 4 hours - 5 hours and has a 10 min break in between.


Traveling between New York to Boston is simple and relatively cheap. Now there are multiple buses to get you there.

From Boston, you can get on any of these buses at the bus terminal at South Station. Depending on where you need to get to in New York will cost around $15 to $25 one way.

Bolt bus

New York
Number of Stops: 3
New York 33rd and 7th by Sbarro (To DC or Balt.)
33 St. & 7 Ave NY, NY 10018

Description: This is an outdoor stop at the northeast corner of the intersection. The bus will stop in the designated bus stop area on 33rd Street in front of a Sbarro’s Italian restaurant.
Connections: MTA subway lines A, C, E (8 Ave), 1,2,3 (7 Ave), B,D, F, V (6 Ave)
New York 34th and 8th by Tick Tock (Phil. or Bos.)
34 St. & 8 Ave NY, NY 10001

Description: This is an outdoor stop at the northwest corner of the intersection. The primary landmark is the New Yorker hotel and the Tick Tock Diner. Along 34th there are designated bus stops from the Tick Tock to the entrance of the Manhattan Center. This is where our bus will pickup.
Connections: MTA subway lines A, C, E (8 Ave), 1,2,3 (7 Ave)
New York 6th Between Grand & Watts (To DC or Phil)
Canal St. & 6 Av. NY, NY 10014

Description: This is an outdoor stop at the northeast corner of the intersection a little north on 6th.
Connections: MTA subway lines A, C, 2, 3


Price sort of varies between $15 - $23.00 or more, and though there are a lot of buses running, they tend to sell out. This is a good way to get to B&H in New York, but otherwise, its main cost is the Wifi and Plug in. If you don't need to plug in, why pay extra?

I don't feel the service any better than the others.

Pros: Wifi, Electric Plug In
Cons: Pricey


Fung Wah Bus

Your old school Chinatown - Chinatown bus.

Maps : Location

Fung Wah runs regularly with very solid schedule every hour. In fact Fung Wah Bus service is running every 15mins during the rush hour on Nov 24 and Nov 28.

It is always $15 (except the 2am bus) and it seemed fantastically fast!

There are lots of news about Fung Wah getting into accidents though, but heh, accidents do happen right...

Pros: $15 most of the time, every 30 mins during peak hours, can book at the boarding area. FAST!

Cons: May get into accident?


Megabus

The Megabus offers Free Wifi,

Leaving New York, NW Corner of 9th Ave and 31st St.
Arriving New York, 7th Ave & 28th St.

I feel that this leaving and arriving does get confusing at times, and I've been on this bus twice back from New York, and as it always pass by Yankees Stadium, the traffic jam sometimes makes traveling time unbelievably long! (I was stuck at a location there for 1 hour before)

The Megabus is also pricey. Costing $13 - $25 online, it costs $25 at the bus stop.

This bus stop is great for leaving B&H as it is just across the road from it.

Pros: Free Wifi
Cons: Expensive and slowest. Confusing stop locations in New York.



Lucky Star

Lucky Star is yet another Chinatown - Chinatown bus.

Location: 55-59 Chrystie Street (Chinatown)

Strangely, this $15 bus also offer free wifi, and the wifi feels pretty fast compared to Bolt and Megabus. It just feels like Fung Wah, less fast (less dangerous?) and with free wifi.

Pros: $15 bus. Wifi
Cons: No plug in.

After trying out all the services, I feel that Lucky Star is the way to go if I want to get to Chinatown and move from there. It has a short rest stop in Connecticut for 10 mins, and the wifi seemed great.

I was on the Megabus and Bolt, and the NYC staff seemed uninterested and I feel that they do not really answer your question, and the locations to board are pretty "questionable" off the street.

Fung Wah and Lucky Star has a store in Chinatown where you buy tickets and board. And since they are very near each other, if a bus is full, you can always get on the next.

Compared to flying, this is a much cheaper way, and you don't need to be at the airport 2 hour in advance.

-- Robin Low