After reading the reviews mentioning the creepy area and possible rape, I was nervous to go to this station. But honestly, I didn't feel threatened at all. I walked across the street from the MARTA station, and into a small building. This review will compare the Greyhound station, and the Megabus stop that is also downtown.
Building comparison:
Greyhound is inside, so you're out of the rain and the temperature is much better than it would be if it were hot or cold outside.
The Megabus stop is outside and doesn't even have its own building. All you'll get is an awning that can block rain, but does absolutely nothing to block the cold or the heat.
Homeless comparison:
People complained about homeless people cavorting around the Greyhound station, but I actually saw an employee turn a homeless person away. I think it just depends on who is working that night.
Because Megabus is outside, homeless people are everywhere. 9/10 times I've been accosted outside the Megabus stop for money, food, or drugs. Homeless people are likely to be spread out on the ground at this stop.
Transportation To/From comparison:
Both have MARTA stations across the street from them.
Employee comparison:
Greyhound has several employees. There were at least half a dozen people in vests milling around, and someone was helpful to me when I had a question. They were curt, but they answered my questions without rolling their eyes.
Megabus employees tend to be only one or two people, also in vests, who you'll only see when it's time to board. They walk up and down the street telling people to line up.
Boarding comparison:
Greyhound boarding is weird to me. Every destination has a letter grade A, B, etc. and a corresponding line, like at the DMV. You wait and then your letter is called on the tinny speaker, you go to the door and you get your name checked off, and then everyone files back out the door and then they board.
Megabus boarding is leaps and bounds simpler. There are less buses, so you simply line up along the street when your bus comes, show your boarding pass, and get onto the bus.
Stopping/transferring comparison:
My Greyhound ticket claimed there weren't transfer stops. Apparently, they don't count stopping in Alabama, getting a transfer ticket, waiting in the Alabama Greyhound terminal station, and then getting on another bus as a transfer.
Greyhound is more straightforward. They'll let you know if you get off the bus for a transfer, or if you stay on it the whole way there. Almost every single Megabus is a straight shot. In the years I've ridden Megabus, I only had to transfer once (Cleveland, on the way to NY) and they were clear about that.
Bathroom comparison:
Greyhound bathrooms in the building are disgusting. The trash was overfilled, and there were beer bottles stuffed into it; wet toilet paper clung to the floor. They were also out of soap and paper towels, so I'm glad I had hand sanitizer. The bathroom on the bus itself was... as okay as you would expect. There are less people on the Greyhound, so I would say the bathroom was cleaner.
Megabus doesn't have any bathrooms, because it is on the side of the road. The Megabus bus bathroom is pretty standard emergency-use only, and in a bit worse shape than the Greyhound bus bathroom.
Seating comparison:
The Greyhound station has seats. Yes, they're full of people, and most of them are old, rusted, and peeling, but they exist. The seats on the Greyhound itself were comfy, and could be adjusted. Greyhound seats are larger than Megabus.
The Megabus "station" seats consist of the sidewalk pavement, or the awning where homeless people sleep that you have to jump up onto. The Megabus seats are small, even for a petite person.
Character comparison:
Both have some wacky, weird characters. Megabus has the people that look and smell homeless, and Greyhound has the people that dress like wizards pretending to be muggles, in weird flowery clothes and crop tops, with old jeans and two different boots on their feet. I've said this before and I'll say it again: people who ride buses are a species of their own.
THE VERDICT:
This is not the type of experience you purchase and expect to be treated like you're a clean individual with a steady job, like most other people are who are at the airport. Most of the people here are looking for simple, budgeted accommodations, and that's what you'll get. You get the college students living out of a backpack, and the homeless person who has managed to scrape up enough cash to purchase a ticket out. You get the single moms with four kids, and you get the people like me who don't mind going to sleep and waking up in another city.
Tips:
BRING A BLANKET OR JACKET! On the Greyhound, you cannot control your temperature, and the air is freezing. Wrapped up in a hoody, the tip of my nose was cold and I shivered through most of the trip. Megabus is only slightly better, since you have your own air control, but it's still extremely cold. read more