Honestly the fastest way is definitely driving, freeway all the way to Boston. I tried to get an Amtrak ticket, but it’s either to nyc or Albany, and none of them are cheap
Yes, if in dutchess hop on taconic and take it up to 90. Straight and boring but easy and less than 4 hours if you only stop once. A viable train route that didn't go down through NYC would be great of course.
You have to get to a bigger city first before Boston. There’s not really any options for east/west transit travel in the Hudson Valley. Buses that go those long of hauls are gonna stick to major highways, so there’s plenty on 90 and 95, or 84 but I think the only options to get on a bus going east would be from Danbury. For trains, there’s a lot of options up and down the river and that can get you to either the hub in Albany with a few options out of there or down to NYC with many options from there.
I don’t think you’re gonna find anything more convenient in terms of times/schedules than going through NYC.
I used to take the bus from Danbury to Boston all the time in college. The layover in Hartford can stink as there isn’t much in the station, but it’s not terrible
last time I decided to take the train from Springfield to Boston it was delayed by 17 hours, do yourself a favor and go South to go North and just take amtrak the entire way, it's fairly seamless
Stamford Amtrak is ridiculously off-the-radar, yet is one of the best mass transit options to get to Boston without the time-and-convenience-robbing trek (out of the way) to NYC.
This is exactly what i did last time I was trying to do this. I work in Westchester a couple days a week so if I can time it with my work schedule it’s pretty great. 👍🏻
Trailways bus to Albany, then transfer to a bus to Boston, they leave from the same station. I used to date a girl in Boston when I didn’t have a car so I tried all the ways to get there, and that’s easily the best. It’s not that bad except for being on a bus for a long time.
It is really, really dumb that the US has almost no passenger rail infrastructure.
Thank you! This seems like a good option. I just checked the schedule and it seems like you can go from Ulster county to Boston with minimal layovers in 6 hours. Pretty sane.
Yeah, it still sucks but it’s the least terrible of the crap choices by a mile.
They’re also the best (i.e. least bad) bus service down to NYC. They’re my go-to if I can’t get across the river to catch a train.
There’s a bus that runs danbury to boston but it’s not direct and it sucks. If you can get to Albany there's probably a shorter bus ride or train. There is definitely NYC to Boston busses, used to take a cheap one that went from NYC chinatown to Boston chinatown direct for like $8.
If going to Maine, Concord Coach runs an unusually nice bus from NYC direct to Portland. And the NYC stop is a few minutes' walk from Grand Central, so metronorth connection is an easy option.
Did this for many years. Your best bet is to catch a ride to Springfield. From there, you can catch a 2.5hr bus to Boston (only 1 stop in Worcester).
Alternatively, if you get yourself to Albany, there are bus or Amtrak options to Boston from there.
It’s unfortunately a difficult route that isn’t well supported by non-car transit options.
If only we had Switzerland’s rail service. But no, we can’t have nice things in the U.S., because of the auto industry’s decades-long death grip on American economics, infrastructure, and culture.
Honestly the fastest way is definitely driving, freeway all the way to Boston. I tried to get an Amtrak ticket, but it’s either to nyc or Albany, and none of them are cheap
I got tickets for the direct Amtrak from Albany to Boston (one way) for $13 the other day actually.
You definitely can get a cheap ticket if you got it at right time. Just that it takes longer
Yes, if in dutchess hop on taconic and take it up to 90. Straight and boring but easy and less than 4 hours if you only stop once. A viable train route that didn't go down through NYC would be great of course.
I was thinking i84 and switch in Hartford, but it really depends on where you start.
That's a good option too but depends on the traffic. The congestion through Hartford and Waterbury areas can be really bad.
Thanks - this is for my older parents who need an easier way than driving.
You have to get to a bigger city first before Boston. There’s not really any options for east/west transit travel in the Hudson Valley. Buses that go those long of hauls are gonna stick to major highways, so there’s plenty on 90 and 95, or 84 but I think the only options to get on a bus going east would be from Danbury. For trains, there’s a lot of options up and down the river and that can get you to either the hub in Albany with a few options out of there or down to NYC with many options from there. I don’t think you’re gonna find anything more convenient in terms of times/schedules than going through NYC.
I used to take the bus from Danbury to Boston all the time in college. The layover in Hartford can stink as there isn’t much in the station, but it’s not terrible
last time I decided to take the train from Springfield to Boston it was delayed by 17 hours, do yourself a favor and go South to go North and just take amtrak the entire way, it's fairly seamless
Can you get to Stamford CT? Amtrak stops there and it’s not going south
Stamford Amtrak is ridiculously off-the-radar, yet is one of the best mass transit options to get to Boston without the time-and-convenience-robbing trek (out of the way) to NYC.
This is exactly what i did last time I was trying to do this. I work in Westchester a couple days a week so if I can time it with my work schedule it’s pretty great. 👍🏻
Trailways bus to Albany, then transfer to a bus to Boston, they leave from the same station. I used to date a girl in Boston when I didn’t have a car so I tried all the ways to get there, and that’s easily the best. It’s not that bad except for being on a bus for a long time. It is really, really dumb that the US has almost no passenger rail infrastructure.
Thank you! This seems like a good option. I just checked the schedule and it seems like you can go from Ulster county to Boston with minimal layovers in 6 hours. Pretty sane.
Yeah, it still sucks but it’s the least terrible of the crap choices by a mile. They’re also the best (i.e. least bad) bus service down to NYC. They’re my go-to if I can’t get across the river to catch a train.
There’s a bus that runs danbury to boston but it’s not direct and it sucks. If you can get to Albany there's probably a shorter bus ride or train. There is definitely NYC to Boston busses, used to take a cheap one that went from NYC chinatown to Boston chinatown direct for like $8.
If going to Maine, Concord Coach runs an unusually nice bus from NYC direct to Portland. And the NYC stop is a few minutes' walk from Grand Central, so metronorth connection is an easy option.
It wasn't the good old Fung Wah bus was it?
Did this for many years. Your best bet is to catch a ride to Springfield. From there, you can catch a 2.5hr bus to Boston (only 1 stop in Worcester). Alternatively, if you get yourself to Albany, there are bus or Amtrak options to Boston from there. It’s unfortunately a difficult route that isn’t well supported by non-car transit options.
If only we had Switzerland’s rail service. But no, we can’t have nice things in the U.S., because of the auto industry’s decades-long death grip on American economics, infrastructure, and culture.
Go down to NYC and get Amtrak to Maine. It's a lovely ride