Bus From Seattle to LA?

force-10

Hi everyone! I just received the plane costs for my trip to both cities. Can somebody tell me or give me some help on how much a bus ticket costs from seattle to los angeles. And/Or train tickets. Maybe I could save big $$$ rather than flying to LA.

Help very much appreciated!

Blue27

Have you tried the Greyhound website for buses and the Amtrak website for trains?

force-10

Thanks. I just did on greyhound. I tought i wouldn`t have time right now for searching the www. Only 60 bucks! Gonna try for amtrak, thanks for mentioning it!

ECM

Well you're probably looking at a 24+ hr bus trip (esp with all the stops on the way)...

The train is typically more expensive than flying (go figure)....

force-10

Get this everybody and maybe someone else needs this as well. On greyhound 60 bucks and it takes just over 24 hours. On amtrak almost 100 and it takes 35 hours! I thought it was faster on train! Can someone explain. I thought maybe there are train transfers to do, but I didn`t see how the trip goes.

norm

http://www.southwest.com/

$79

mfc2006

norm wrote:

http://www.southwest.com/

$79

wow. i'd say that's the way to go!

jimed14

norm wrote:

http://www.southwest.com/

$79

keep watching southwest ... fares will come down in the near future.

I'm going form the bay area to seattle ... I have a travel agent friend who tells me many of the flights are not near full (for all airlines) ... so, there will be fare sales.

Current'y around $210 round trip ... I'll wait for $160 or lower.

tvismyfriend

force-10 wrote:

Get this everybody and maybe someone else needs this as well. On greyhound 60 bucks and it takes just over 24 hours. On amtrak almost 100 and it takes 35 hours! I thought it was faster on train! Can someone explain. I thought maybe there are train transfers to do, but I didn`t see how the trip goes.

Amtrak also does bus trips. You might have been looking at how long it would take for a bus to get there.

Blue27

I've only taken the bus once. It was around $100 total cheaper than flying, so I figured I'd give it a go. I went from L.A. to Tulsa, OK. It took around 33 hours. It was a nightmare! And the thought of having to spend another 33 hours to come back home made me want to hang myself. =P I'm a very low-maintenance person. I don't care about being uncomfortable, being crammed in small spaces, having to sit around a dirty station, or sleeping in a chair, etc. But that bus trip was really hard to endure.

It stopped MANY times. (Be sure that you don't have to transfer from bus to train because Greyhound and Amtrak do sometimes make you use both for the same trip.) And every time new people got on, they had to fight for seats, especially when they had kids, because you often find empty single seats but not two together. When it would stop at an actual bus station, even if you didn't need to transfer, they would still make you get off the bus (this can happen any time, even 3:00AM, so don't count on sleeping through the night). And getting back on was annoying because you'd have to stand in line (trying to make sure to be among the first so as to not lose your seat) and be checked by security all over again, just to get back on the same bus you were already on. It was next to impossible to get any rest, let alone actual sleep. And you always have to be worried about someone taking your stuff if you don't have it on you at all times or when you're sleeping. I wouldn't recommend going by bus for longer than 24 hours, hopefully less.

If the Seattle to L.A. trip is around that, then I guess you can decide if it's worth the savings. You have to keep in mind, though, that you have to be able to leave a day and a half ahead of time, and then it'll take you an extra day and a half to get back if you're going back to Seattle.

I've never been on the train, but I did look up prices when I went to Tulsa, and it was more expensive, and it took longer. So, it doesn't surprise me that you found similar results. I don't know why that is. Maybe it stops more frequently to account for the extra time. Maybe it's more comfortable to account for the extra cost. I don't know....

If the flight is as cheap as they're saying, then that's obviously the best option. In any case, when you're comparing prices, make sure you know the full cost. Sometimes the inital price quoted isn't the actual total until you see all the extra fees they add on, and that's for both the bus and the plane. It could end up being way more than a $20 difference once you add all the extra fees and taxes (and transportation to/from the airport or bus station).

jimed14

one more tip ...

if you want to check all airlines and travel sites at once ... use kayak.com

NOTE- Southwest cannot be searched this way .. so you do have to do one more search, but, it's the best site to do it.

A satellite forever orbiting

that would be a nightmare of a bus ride--no way in hell i could ever do that.

Pushin Forward Back

just hitch hike dude.

force-10

Alright, I talked with the travel agent and the difference between flying round trip (note that i´m travelling from guatemala) and bus from seattle to LA and then flying back to guatemala, is about 50 "doll hairs".

The plane tickets alone if anyone is curious are above $800.00. Hopefully, I´ll manage to bring it down a couple hundred bucks. This travel agent is really good getting great promotions.

Thanks for the tips. And I will ask her to check for southwest fees from seatlle to LA, and might get even less expensive. Hope this thread helped someone else besides myself.

mookeywrench

"Three coins in a fountain,...each one seeking happiness" ..... "Flintstones! Meet the Flintstones"

restlesssoul

force-10 wrote:

Hope this thread helped someone else besides myself.

it really did!!! made me thankful to be driving my own comfortable car with my own tunes all the way down to LA from Vancouver.....!!! hope you get there safely force-10, and I am buying you a drink in seattle for sure....youll need one....sounds like you have quite the trip ahead of yourself...but its all in the name of PJ!

force-10

Restlessoul:

Drive safely. You are the first here to offer me a drink btw. Thanks!

BRMLAW

Try Amtrack

bazzer

force-10 wrote:

Alright, I talked with the travel agent and the difference between flying round trip (note that i´m travelling from guatemala) and bus from seattle to LA and then flying back to guatemala, is about 50 "doll hairs".

The plane tickets alone if anyone is curious are above $800.00. Hopefully, I´ll manage to bring it down a couple hundred bucks. This travel agent is really good getting great promotions.

Thanks for the tips. And I will ask her to check for southwest fees from seatlle to LA, and might get even less expensive. Hope this thread helped someone else besides myself.

You're not in Guatemala now, Dr Ropata!

Blue27

force-10 wrote:

(note that i´m travelling from guatemala)

Wow! Guatemala. I hadn't noticed that part. That's pretty awesome!

Suerte en tu viaje! Espero que te diviertas muchisimo! Te vemos en Los Angeles!

jammergirl

to anyone who's considering taking the amtrak from seattle to l.a., I have a couple pointers. I took a train from chico, ca to seattle and it took quite a few hours but it was a fun way to see alot of the country I haven't seen before. so, if you can afford the extra couple days and have the $ it might be fun. The train you would want to take is called the Coast Starlight, and its the only direct amtrak route where you don't have to transfer to buses and such. Again, its all about time and money constraints, I'm opting on flying when I go to l.a. this time, but the train can be a fun and novel way to travel. hope this helps anyone!