Originally Posted by
KraneXL
Can't speak for anyone else, but after doing some research I was told to pack my bike securely in a recycled bike box, which I then shipped cross country.
I watched them as they moved it from bus to bus and they handled it with kid gloves. They even placing it in a separate (tall) compartment upright all by itself. My bike arrived just as I had packed it. Not even the box was damaged. My experience with Greyhound was 5 star.
I'd give them a chance, but even when I contacted the company they insist that I need to use package express rather than check it as a checked bag. I know that when a friend went to the local terminal he got a huge run around and spent 20+ minutes convincing them to let him take his bike with him. He told a sad story about being 18 and stuck in a strange town, probably told them about how he was riding across the country to raise money for a charity (I forget which one), and generally laid on the sympathy thing. They finally relented just in time before he missed boarding his bus. Overall it was a big hassle.
A quick package express quote looks like $73 for JAX to Pensacola in addition to $54 for the fare for the ride. Interestingly I can get a one way rental for a Jetta or similar for slightly less. By the time I buy gas it will be a little more, but if I buy the bike box from Greyhound probably not. Also with the rental there is none of the hassle of boxing up a bike in a strange town (a task I don't mind at home but hate in a strange town on the road). With the rental car I can go when I want and make whatever stops I want. I can avoid packing the bike, eat lunch in a nice place, stop at some nice attractions if I feel like it, or just hurry back to the start point.
If I go the rental car route I'd probably drive my car to the start, park there, do the ride, drive back with a rental, and drive my car home.
If Greyhound service were better wrt checking bikes as baggage, I'd take the bus to the start and then take the bus home. I still could consider doing that using, but a using different shipper like shipbikes or bikeflights. They are a good bit cheaper than package express, but I'd have to involve a bike shop or warm showers host at each end and would have to get from the bus to where the bike was shipped. The thing is that I hate to reward Greyhound with my business when their policy seems to be refusal to take bikes as checked baggage and requiring you to officially jump through the package express hoops and pay the package express rates.
Greyhound Canada accepts bikes as an oversize checked bag (must be boxed or in a case). The charge is either $20, $25, or $30 depending on the distance (0-200 mi, 200-800 mi, or 800+ mi). They also sell boxes for $15, but I am not sure how widely available they are. I can see that as a reasonable policy and would happily pay that price. If they had that as a stated policy in the US and printed it out on their web page like they do in Canada so I could show it to the ticket agent, they'd get my business.
Greyhound US ought to look at doing what Greyhound Canada does wrt bikes if they'd like to get bike tourist's business.