Night Bus Transport with FLIXBUS USA (Review)

I went from New York to Niagara Falls on one day and came back the day after, via the bus. It was a 9 hour + journey, with a number of pick up points along the way, but only one rest stop to get off. It was an interesting experience and probably not one I would personally recommend but it was an experience nevertheless. 

The journey there was perfect. I managed to get a few hours sleep, the chair reclined, there was plenty of leg room and I had no one sat next to me. The journey back was a different experience entirely. It was so frustrating because on the way back, it was a night bus and with a busy day planned either side, I really wanted to be able to sleep. 

First, I was sat next to someone which is always hard. I was stuck by the window seat so couldn't move easily, but there were spare seats and the person next to me just refused to move, even though I suggested it multiple times. I had two friends in front of me who just talked the whole time. I just felt it was quite selfish and rude, given they knew people would be trying to sleep. Plus, the girl kept farting and it stunk, alongside the toilet which smelt bad too every time the door was open, so I was in a great spot. To top it off, I had a large man behind me. He was large in terms of both size weight and height. His knees kept digging into my seat, so I couldn't recline the seat to get comfortable either, because that would just make it worse. He would also move frequently, so just as I was getting settled, I would be jostled awake again. It was also really cold, despite multiple people asking the driver to turn the air conditioning down and the bus was an hour late on the way back, so I didn't have time to go out for breakfast as originally planned. As you can see, it wasn't the best. 

Yes, it was a lot cheaper than a flight would be, at around $30 total, vs $300, but it was longer. The flight itself is around an hour, but of course, that's 40 minutes to the airport either side and arriving 2 hours early so about 5 hours in total. In reality, I would have probably got a flight but plans changed due to the cruise changing, so originally I was getting the bus one way, then train to Toronto and flight from Toronto to Vancouver. Nevertheless, it got me safely there and back so I can't complain too much, it was just not the plan I had.