Apex Bus

First off, this is near the CHINATOWN/​GALLERY PLACE METRO not the ones listed.
I have taken it a few times (Eastern or Apex or some other name under this same company) and usually it is OK. But on 4÷4÷12 I had a ticket for the 7:30PM coming back to DC from NYC and it was the worse. It was packed to the rim.
There was an accident (which of course is not the bus companies fault) but we also STOPPED for a rest break even though we were two hours late! We were supposed to get back into DC at 11:30PM. We got back after 1AM. If anyone knows the metro system, on weekdays it closes at midnight so a whole lot of people were calling friends trying to get rides since the METRO was closed. It was terrible. And they kept the overhead bus light on so it was hard to sleep. Why they didn’t turn it off, I don’t know. Megabus keeps that green fluorescent light on all night as well. BOLT is the best. I’m sticking with Bolt.

This company gets a extra star from me after reading so many Unilocalers write about buses hitting cars and going without no a/​c. Being a student in nyc at the time, I rode/​ride this bus back and forth from baltimore to nyc. Lets be honest, with a price of 20 bucks and 35 round trip, I wasn’t expecting to ride in the lap of luxury. My first time ever riding the grand ‘ol Apex bus was a adventure into the unknown. My bestfriend had referred to it as the chinese bus and I had no clue as to why, until I boarded the bus and it was nothing but chinese people. Can you say awkward.
Anyway…I always get the bus at the travel plaza in baltimore and no matter how early or how late i leave, the bus is always crowded. And if it isnt crowded when you first board, you will be waiting to leave until it is! The bathrooms have either been smelly and dirty, dirty but not smelly or clean but smelly. its never quite just clean. My first experience with Apex, was the first and only time that our driver put on a movie both to and from nyc (I was lucky enough to have the same guy a week later!) and who stopped at a rest stop. I havent had that luxury any other times :(
If the bus doesnt become filled by a certain time (usually 30 – 40 minutes AFTER scheduled time) than it stops in Delaware to pick up more people.
I have always had working a/​c and my buses have never had a car accident that left us on the side of the jersey turnpike.
Lucky i suppose.
I know that a 35 round trip is a good deal, but honestly I never buy my tickets in advance and instead pay my 20 bucks after boarding because as many have already written, buses either show or dont and the word REFUND is not in Apex’s vocabulary. I also don’t purchase tickets online because at the travel plaza as well as at penn station in nyc, numerous different china buses to dc/​baltimore leave at the same location and cost the same so I can just board any thats leaving when I arrive. Which is something you cant do if you have a printed pre-​paid ticket
Verdict: Great price to travel to and from nyc on any given day. Dont expect 5 star service from the little rude chinese guy waiting for you to pull a 20 out of you purse. Use the bathroom with caution or to be safe not at all. Pay when you board because even with a *reservation* that last seat on the bus will only be reserved for the person waving a 20 in the air. OH and never i mean NEVER plan a timed event around riding the apex bus because 10 times out of 10 you WILL be late arriving.
Whether good experiences or bad, Apex is sure to leave a memory that in your older age will be a story for the family.
Happy Riding

DO NOT RIDE THIS BUS.
1) Bus CAUGHT ON FIRE 2 hours from our destination (DC). We evacuated in the dark in the middle of nowhere and had to find our own way home!
2) Apparently another bus would eventually pass by for the stragglers, but with only 9 seats. Quote from the bus driver: «I don’t know how you gus (60 of us) will decide who gets on.»
3) No communication with passengers whatsoever. The bus was originally an hour late, and no one informed us of anything.
I don’t mind the absolute filth of their bathrooms, or even lateness as long as it is communicated. I would even forgive the catching on fire and deserting us in the middle of nowhere part if they would just apologize and refund our tickets. As of yet I’ve requested a refund and have been completely dodged.
Bottom Line: Nobody’s perfect and mistakes happen, but these guys act like they’re herding cattle. Please don’t support this company; someone needs to teach them that honesty and integrity matter!

I’m posting my review under Hola Bus and Apex Bus because I really have no idea which company took me from DC to Union City, NJ and back this weekend. I booked on
, and my ticket said both Hola and Apex.
My trip was great. I didn’t have any of the problems that other reviewers had. The bus was clean, didn’t smell (I sat in the front and didn’t venture toward the bathroom), and left on time. I was super surprised about that last one because there were only 12 people on the bus going to NJ at 9:30 Friday morning, and only a few more coming back today (Sunday) at 1:15. I thought for sure they’d delay departure until a few more got on, but they left right on time.
We got to NJ about an hour late on Friday not through any fault of the company but because of a bad accident that shut down the highway. The trip today took the estimated 4 hours. We made a rest stop on Friday but not today. There were no movies played which was fine with me.
I suggest taking the bus earlier in the day if possible, to avoid lateness and rush hour traffic.
One thing: they will drop you off in Union City at an address different from the one on your ticket. They dropped me off at 30^th closer to Palisade, a few blocks from the Domino’s. But they will pick up at the Domino’s.

I haven’t taken the Apex bus in awhile, so quite honestly, I don’t remember that much about them. I just know that only Apex and New Century service the DC-​Philly route and each time I took the Apex I ran into trouble — and I think I probably only took Apex those times because of a more favorable time schedule. Each time I took the New Century Bus, things were A-​OK. Yes, its a standard Chinatown bus. The buses are old, and Fenny L., I actually do understand a bit of what you mean with the Chinese nostalgia to a certain extent :) However, there are several other Chinatown buses and they deliver better than this one does.

I had to come to the defense of Apex (more specifically Hola) because my bus experience was great. I’m only giving it a 4 stars because they driver they chose on Labor Day had never driven to DC before and stopped multiple times along the highway to figure out which exit he had to get off on (though we still made it earlier than scheduled.)
The Friday of Labor Day weekend I had a 6:30pm ticket, but got there early and they let me on the 5:00pm bus that was waiting there and was practically empty (strange for a weekend on the Chinatown bus). It was freezing, but I had underprepared and it was better than a hot bus.
We got there in about 4.5 hours, which is a bit longer than expected, considering we didn’t stop in Baltimore (huge perk because I don’t see the point in stopping for 1hr+ there.)
It was comfortable, clean, and not foul smelling on both ways. I even had multiple seats to myself on the drive back on Labor Day.
I was really scared to get on this bus line given these reviews, but if you try to get tickets for Hola specifically (part of Apex) you should have a decent trip :)

I don’t feel so bad dissing this bus line, I just wish I had read the reviews first. A friend of mine wanted to ride this line specifically and since she was offering the crash pad later that night, I didn’t argue. I did think it was puzzling though because there are so many other Chinatown busses and I usually don’t go by company, I just pick whichever bus fits my schedule and budget.
I have ended up taking this bus line 4 times now — 2x as Apex, 1x as Eastern, and 1x a year ago as what I don’t remember but it was at the same bus stop.
So far, it’s 2 for 4, with the 2 misses happening as Apex which is NOT a good average.
Our bus going to Philly from DC was delayed 1 hour. Our delayed bus came at the same time as the next bus (which was on time). We waited in the hot sun and I wish they had been more upfront about the delay (it was «just 2 minutes» and «it’s coming now» for 45 minutes) so I could have waited in the shade and gotten something to eat. The bus itself was rundown and smelled like the bathroom air freshener.
The Apex bus going from Philly to NYC also broke down and I had to get another bus ticket from New Century (or Century 2000?) which has an office around corner from the parking lot.
I rode Eastern this week to get to NYC, and that bus was nicer than the Apex busses but it still smelled funny.
I have nothing against Chinatown, it’s better than walking, and you get what you pay for,
BUT — NOOOOO will I ride on this corporation of Megabus/​Eastern/​Apex. I’ve had better experience with Eastern but ultimately they are all owned and operated by the same company.
I did call the number AND e-​mail the manager at Apex to get a refund. When I e-​mailed a second time saying I’d dispute the charge if I didn’t get a refund in 24 hours, he responded and said it had already been given to me.

Recently this company was bought out by Coach USA, the company that owns Megabus, and merged with Eastern and Todays Buses. I have always hated this bus company, which I ride to get to NYC, because they sometimes stop in Philly on their DC-​NY route. This detour can easily add an additional 1 ½ — 2 hours to an already long trip.
With the new management, they continue their DC-​Baltimore-​Philly-​NY madness. This company is not worth the $ 20 for a ride to NY. Maybe it is fine to go to Philly, but probably not.

NEVER use apex bus! They recently switched owners and the service (which was never great) has plummeted. I’ve been using apex for over a year and am used to the smells/​yelling/​etc. However, the new owners take bad service to a ridiculous level.
One a recent trip to Philly, my bus was an hour late. Ordinarily that was be bad, but I felt lucky because the bus to NYC (scheduled to leave an hou before mine) was just boarding.
One my «return trip», I received a phone call. 30 minutes before my trip informing me that my bus had been cancelled.
Another apex trip resulted in a 4 ½ hour trip to philly, an hour and a half longer than expected.
If you’re looking for a cheap bus, use 2000 coach. You’ll still get the yelling and bad service, but they’ll get you where you need to go and only charge you $ 15.

I don’t know why people ride this bus. And I certainly don’t know why people buy tickets online. haha. I get on the bus and THEN pay. Why? Because there are NO reservations. (for ANY chinatown bus) and because you might not get on if it’s a busy day and if you’ve already paid you’re SOL.
I take 2000 century. Its the best out of all of them in my opinion and here’s why Apex is not.
1. No refunds EVER. These people hold onto money tighter than a witty metaphor can explain.
2. Sometimes their busses just dont’ show. They disappear and you’re stuck with a ticket to a bus that ain’t coming any time soon.
3. Their website is never updated with times but their paypal on there sure works. So you buy a ticket for a 3:00 bus and guess what? That bus don’t exist but yep you paid. Refund? Not happenin.
Do yourself a favor and hit up the 2000 bus.

Heh. I love how everyone complains about the Apex Bus. Don’t get me wrong — the Apex is probably the scuzziest, slimiest, slowest, and most foul smelling bus that runs between DC and NYC, but there is something is perfectly Chinese about how horribly run — yet still so efficient — the Apex is, that I have to admit, I gave it an extra star just for the «ambiance». I know, this isn’t making a lot of sense.
The Apex runs out of Chinatown, DC, and has stops in Rockville (in front of Bob’s 66), and up at the Baltimore Travel Plaza. The Apex has been around since the beginning of time — and the buses and the attitude reflect that. Yes, by American standards, the Apex is horrific and disgusting. However, for anyone that has spent any time in Asia — especially China — you will see that the Apex isn’t really disgusting or horrible… it’s just run the Asian way. They will try to squeeze in as many people as they possibly can into the bus — for maximum profitability. There really isn’t any timetable, because the bus stops are so far away from other NY/​DC/​MD buses, that once you arrive at their bus stops, you aren’t likely to leave. The buses are smelly (if you can, arrive early, just so you won’t have to sit in the back), and the seats are a little sticky and slimy.
One time, on our way up to NYC, we pull into a rest stop (In Delaware, I think). We all get out to use the facilities and grab some water. When I came back, our bus driver was swatted behind the bus… smoking a bong. Now, I’m quite sure that it was tobacco (at least that’s what I told myself)…but still, it was a very inspiring sight, and made every weave between the lines more interesting (I didn’t even need my ipod… I was alert and fascinated for the entire ride!).
Another time, on our way back to DC, we got on the bus, and it was already filled to capacity with people. We were told to just «stand around», because the Apex staff was hoping that they could get enough people crammed onto this one bus, to justify two buses. Fortunately, there were enough people to justify the second bus… but I always wondered what would have happened if there weren’t? Would I have been forced to ride back down to DC standing up? I’m almost a little saddened that I will never find out.
Or there was the time on our way back to DC, when we got on the bus 20 minutes before it was supposed to depart… and sat there for nearly an hour, while the Apex staff was outside, pounding on trashcans to try to drum up more business… because there were still 3 empty seats on the bus.
Heh. I know, I know. This is making you a little sick now, right? But for those of us who were born or raised in Asia… who remember riding rickety buses with our grandmothers to go to temple… who sneer at calling the over-​sanitized food-​carts that line DC and NYC as «street food»…for anyone who has ever found the smell of raw-​sewage reminiscent of «home»…the Apex bus is for us.

This is hard to give a ratng to. I want to give this a 5 star rating because as far as cheap chinatown to chinatown travel, frequency, and number of destinations, this busline does it well, although I can’t say they exactly do it right. More on that in my NYC Apex review.
You have to be pretty accepting that other people riding this bus can be retards. Okay before you lambaste me, let me explain. People without money are quite often the kind of people that lack common sense or courtesy such as not slamming the bathroom door, chewing with your mouth closed, letting your kids run willy-​nilly, talking quietly on your cellphone or otherwise making loud irritating noises, pressing your knee into the seatback of the person in front of you, etc.
I am again writing this review on this wifi enabled bus on the return ride, this bus is a lot newer, cleaner and quieter. Don’t expect breakneck broadband speeds though. Leaving the NYC bus station was very irritating (again more on my review of the NYC Apex Station).
Anyway returning on Thanksgiving Day was surprisingly a mad house. I figured no one would be travelling, but it was a zoo at the NYC station. We were able to catch an earlier bus back home to DC.
Despite all the negatives. I must say I am a fan of Apex, because although the service can be hit or miss, it saves me more money than driving up myself, and saves me the aggrevation of dealing with traffic and parking in NYC, and allows me to catch up on my sleep.

This time it kinda smelled like urine. Also, they didn’t pick us up at 88 E Broadway and continued to circle around Chinatown several times to pick up other passengers in random spots. One woman on the bus informed me that she had been on the bus since 11AM (it was 1:30PM)! Sorry Apex, you won’t be getting my buck again.

First, Apex bailed me out on Friday night after I found that I couldn’t use Bolt Bus to go from DC to Philly. At 8pm on a Friday night, they still had tickets for the 9pm bus. The ride was uneventful, I had a nice conversation and didn’t mind the 20 min. delay in Baltimore.
However. Sunday’s return was a night mare. First, I bought a round trip ticket on Friday (make sure to always do this!!!). I checked the times on Sunday buses on Saturday night and found the 4:50pm bus was sold out.
Sunday-​1pm, me at Apex office in Philly… me: I have a round-​trip ticket, can I go on 4:50 bus? Agent: Sure, you can ride
4pm– I don’t see a bus
4:30– After going to local bar, I return to office and find that the 4:50pm bus is filled with only e-​ticket passengers and that I couldn’t get on, since I didn’t book online. They assure me of another bus coming… but when???
6pm– I finally board a bus for DC… one mistake, I sat near the rank smelling bathroom, which had no flushing capabilities and seemed to stink to high heaven. Two chairs in front of me were broken.
10:20– Due to bad traffic and weather, it takes almost 4 hours to get back to DC. I felt bad for the people who were getting on the bus, when we arrived, as they would be getting in really late to their destination.
Basically, it is hit or miss with this bus line… they work, but something strange always seem to happen… when will vamoose or bolt bus step up to the plate and do philly-​dc runs?

Perhaps I am more tolerant than other Unilocalers, Apex is fixing things due to more competition, or I just lucked out. My friend and I wanted to do a day trip to NYC, without having to say in a hotel. Apex was the only line with a schedule that allowed us to leave early enough (3:30am) and leave late enough (11pm) to have a full day of city enjoyment — without a hotel stay.
We didn’t have the problem of leaving late at all. The doors on the bus closed at 3:30 am and we were in NYC about 7:40, which is less time than the advertised 4.5 hours. At the end of the day my friend and I were tired, so we wanted to get the earlier bus back. We showed up and they gladly let us on. Remarkably this bus did stop at Philly and Baltimore on the way home, but we were still standing on I street at 1:30 am. A mere four hours after leaving NYC. We were stunned.
The seats were not the most comfortable, but I didn’t expect them to be. This is a case of getting what you pay for. Apex is probably hit or miss – fortunately this trip, it was a total hit.
Also the sign on the bus station door «Get Bus in Alley» made us laugh.

OVERVIEW:
Pros: cheapest deal around
Cons: everything else (roaches on buses, extremely late, bus hits cars, no A/​C, no seats even with reservations, etc… read on for details)
I can chalk things up to coincidence, but I have taken this bus 4 times in a row, and every single time I have had problems. Here is a quick summary:
Trip 1 (DC to NY):
Saw a roach on the bus, I asked the roach for its ticket but it claimed it had a right to my seat. I said, no ticket, no seat as I put the roach out of its misery. I discovered the roach around halfway to NY. The lady next to me was like, «Thank you so much!» On a side note, when the bus take a break for 10 minutes, they really mean ten minutes… the guy sitting behind me got left behind (WITH HIS BAG IN HIS SEAT!)
Trip 2 (NY back to DC):
Bus was a bit late (supposed to leave at 9:00 PM, left about an hour late), but for the price, no big deal. Was sleeping soundly when around Baltimore a jolt wakes me up. Apparently the bus hit 2 cars. In a movie-​like scene the two cars who were hit, surround the bus and force us over to the side of the road. We sit there for god knows how long until the police come, do their thing, assess damages, etc. Ended up arriving in DC around 2:30 — 3 AM. I have to say, even though the trip was long (~ 6 hours) AT LEAST THEY HAD THE A/​C TURNED ON… more on this in the next trip.
Trip 3 DC BACK to NY (the very next weekend)
Made it to the bus, HOWEVER, it was 90 degrees outside, and the bus HAD NO A/​C TURNED ON. NOT ONLY did the bus leave late, (~20 minutes late this time) but imagine a PACKED BUS IN 90 DEGREE WEATHER WITH NO A/​C! Eventually someone asked the bus driver to turn on the A/​C, but I think the driver ignored him since I didn’t notice anything. The only saving grace was that it started to RAIN soon after which cooled things down eventually. About 1 ½ hours into the trip, I think the driver actually turned on the A/​C and I (as well as the rest of the sweating bus) was able to stop the torrential volumes of sweat from flowing off of our foreheads. This, tacked on to the fact that I think the driver got lost, My scheduled leave time was 5:30 PM and we arrived in NY at 11:30 PM. So far that is 2 trips that took 6+ hours and 1 trip that took 5 hours. Better sandbag your arrival time when taking this bus so far…
Trip 4 (NY back to DC)
This one is the real kicker. I purchased an online reservation from NYC back to DC on Sunday, June 29^th, 2008 (so these experiences happened in the past 2 weeks) and was thoroughly disappointed. I arrived at the bus stop 30 MINUTES in advance (the bus was scheduled to leave at 5:30 PM from Penn Station), and was told that the bus was full and could not get on. Their website states:
«NO RESERVATION, NO GUARANTEE SEATS»
What you website should really say is «Even with reservations, there is no guarantee you will have a seat.»
In either case, the gentleman from apex told us that the next bus would arrive in 30 minutes. So of course, me and several other people WAITED IN THE RAIN until 6 PM. 6 PM turned into 6:30 PM, then the gentleman came back and told us 7:30 PM. Needless to say, this story repeated itself over and over again. I of course asked for a refund, to which the gentleman said, «NO REFUND!»
I ended up taking Vamoose that day (as did several other people who followed me) and had an incredible experience. I understand that Apex is cheaper, however, it is worth the extra $ 5/​ticket if I have the risk of standing out in the rain for 2 extra hours for a bus that MIGHT appear when the guy says it will appear, especially when I have a RESERVED SEAT AT 5:30!
CONCLUSION
It is an extra $ 5/​ticket to ride Vamoose, I strongly suggest you do so. The buses are MUCH nicer, MUCH more frequent, and pretty much ALWAYS ON TIME WITH WORKING A/​C. It is worth $ 5 a ticket to ensure the following:
— No Roaches on bus
— A/​C is working on bus
— Bus leaves on time
— Bus doesn’t take 6+ hours to get to my destination
— I have a reservation on the bus and not get left out in the rain for 2 ½ hours
— Buses are much cleaner
— Bus doesn’t hit any cars on the trip
Of course, I prefer Boltbus over either of them, (can plug in your laptop AND free wireless, and the buses are nicer/​ontime/​etc) but it is usually difficult to book trips on them unless you know you are going way in advance.
Also, I should mention that forget talking to anyone about getting your money back. They will conveniently ignore you and just sit back in their air conditioned offices (not buses) and take your $. Forget writing emails to
or
, not going to get you anywhere.
I hope this review helps people avoid the horrible experiences I have run into on
, but like I said, if it is worth saving the extra $ 5/​ticket, take your chances, because they are the cheapest ticket around, but you certainly get what you pay for.

I’ve been on some baaaad buses in my day and I’ve been on some luxurious buses, and Apex falls squarely in the middle of the spectrum. The ride is not uncomfortable, but it’s not terribly easy to fall asleep, either. The bathrooms work, but they tend to be less-​than-​pleasant. The seats do recline a bit, and the windows don’t shake, and the armrests go up or down. The buses occasionally leave very late — I’ve been waiting up to 30 minutes — or pretty early — my friend missed hers because it left 10 minutes early and she was busy buying a snack in the corner store. There is limited overhead storage, and very limited under-​seat storage. Pack with this in mind. (There is under-​bus storage, but I’ve never used that.) It’s mildly dirty and the floor is sticky. The bus can be very hot or very cold. Pack with this in mind.
If you search around, you can find $ 1 one-​way trips to NY from DC. I’ve done it via
. This bus is definitely worth a $ 2 roundtrip ticket.
However! The management can be CONFUSED. While in NY one weekend, we called to see if we could take the 8 PM Chinatown bus instead of the 6:30 PM Penn Station bus. They said, «No. You have to take the Penn Station bus.» So we trucked it up to Penn Station in the pouring rain to find that the bus was full and we couldn’t take it despite the fact that we had reserved seats. So we called Apex again and asked what we should do. He said, «Oh, just take the Chinatown bus at 8 PM.» … In other words, we could have stayed in Chinatown and enjoyed our dim sum instead of hauling back and forth from Penn Station in the rain. (They didn’t even check our tickets in Chinatown. We just boarded at 7:55 with our Penn Station tickets and were on our way.) Thank you, Mr. Apex Bus Man. Minus two stars.
Overall: A decent, cheap way to get from one metropolis to another. Show up ten minutes early, bring a book, an ipod, a sweater to use as a pillow, some hand sanitizer, and some snacks, and you’ll be fine.

The buses aren’t 100% reliable as far as times go, probably due to the distances involved and unpredictability of Philadelphia, Baltimore, and DC-​area traffic. Worse yet, the demand for the inexpensive Chinatown buses ($ 15−20/one way depending on destination) can mean long lines and no guaranteed seat when the bus actually arrives. Still, I don’t know a CHEAPER way of getting to DC from NYC or Philadelphia, and hey, it works as advertised.

As of this last weekend, tickets are still DC to NYC route $ 20 one-​way/​$ 35 round-​trip.
Any payment or ticket problems? no.
Bus quality? Passable, but I should’ve known better than to put my bag on the ground under my seat on the way there, so it was soaked for my wearing pleasure when I got to NYC. Overhead space was very limited (and the bus driver was grouchy about people breaking it) on the way there, but roomy on the way back. Opt for the external storage compartments.
Entertaining?
DC to NYC (stop in Baltimore on the way): Bringing Down the House and White Girls, we also stopped at a Conoco for gas («The official gas of Nascar»!) and fastfood gluttony.
NYC to DC (Baltimore stop too): Cliffhanger and The Great Debaters.
The trip there, the driver admitted the movie was also to keep him entertained, so I refrained from shooting myself since I couldn’t get away from the movies. The trip back they let us vote on the 2^nd movie, which is how we got to watch a better one. yay.
Fellow passengers were mostly reasonably polite and respectful of personal space. If you’re traveling in daylight and want your own entertainment, consider bringing a bag that can hang comfortably on the small hooks on the back of the seat in front of you. I had a canvas bag for this, but ended up watching the movie and sleeping most of the way home since it was dark. Mmmm, sleep: the best time warp ever.
Stops? It’s a chinatown bus that actually stops in Chinatown, DC (2 blocks from the metro), and conveniently at Penn Station in NYC. I have no clue where the hell we were stopped at in Baltimore, but it wasn’t a fun place.
I’d be satisfied to take this bus again in the future.

Your typical Chinatown bus company. Busy DC to NYC route $ 20 one-​way/​$ 35 round-​trip. Had no problem paying online and printing out the ticket. I caught the 3:30 am to NYC which was just over half full. Fairly quiet ride because of the time, the occasional Chinese being heard from the front of the bus. We stopped about half-​way to NYC at a gas station/​convenience store. Trash bags conveniently located on the aisles. Arrived in Chinatown at 88 E Broadway around 7:40 am, maybe 5 blocks from the Fung Wah/​Lucky Star buses to Boston. No complaints, would’t mind taking it again if I had to.