Peoria Charter Coach is a high quality business that provides many bus transportation options including daily routine routes to and from Champaign and Central IL to places in the Chicago area including O'Hare and Midway airports. I have personally used the routes from O'Hare to Normal, IL (ISU), and O'Hare to Champaign, IL (UoI). The routes are extremely affordable, dependable, their schedules are easy to find on their website, and tickets are easy to purchase on their website. You get sent an email with your bus pass immediately after purchasing that you will show the driver when they arrive. I grew up in Central, IL, and my school often used Peoria Charter Coach. It has always been a quality company with clean busses, and bus drivers who act professionally. My most recent trip with Peoria Charter Coach was last Thurs (24Jan2019) and the O'Hare to ISR, Champaign, IL, route. I am currently an active duty military member currently stationed in Washington state. I was traveling home for for an unexpected family funeral. My first flight got delayed and didn't arrive to O'Hare until 8:30pm. This caused me to miss my flight to Central IL and left few other options to get there in time to not miss the funeral early the next morning. However, being familiar with Peoria Charter Coach's dependability and affordability, I checked their company's website first, and was ecstatic to realize they had the 10:30pm departure bus to Champaign, IL, which would get me to my family in time. It was extremely quick and easy to purchase my bus ticket through your website. Also, my bus driver, Scott, was extremely professional, kind, and helpful. It was frigid outside, and he still helped me get my suitcase on and off the bus. When we got to each stop, he even double checked that everyone who was supposed to get off at each stop did as most people fell asleep on the way to Champaign. He also gave an announcement a half hour out from Champaign for people to call transportation if they needed it to ensure it'd get there in time for them due to the frigid temperature. Traveling home to Central IL from Washington state is typically fairly expensive and sometimes a logistical headache, but Peoria Charter's affordable O'Hare routes, clean busses, and wonderful drivers have been a stress relief, and really saved this most recent trip. I'm extremely grateful, because their late night route allowed me to make it to be with my family. Lastly, if you want to send an email to Peoria Charter about your bus experience, the email listed on their website for comments goes straight to the owner of Peoria Charter Coach. It says a lot to me that the owner himself takes the time to personally receive feedback both the good and bad about his business. read more

I purchased a ticket from Peoria for a trip from ORD to ISR on June 8, 12:30. My flight arrived earlier (scheduled for 10:15 but arrived at 10:00). I went to the bus terminal on 10:20 and the driver told me that I needed to pay $20 transfer fee. There were plenty of available seats on the bus so I called Peoria customer service. They told me that it was too late to transfer through them so I had to pay the $20 fee to the driver. I rode on Peoria twice before and remember seeing people with tickets on a different time board on buses. My bus from ISR to ORD was delayed for almost an hour -- after driving 30 minutes, the driver drove us back and asked us to switch to another bus. Luckily I did not miss my flight but Peoria did not offer monetary compensation for their delay. My experience shows that Peoria cares little about their customers. read more

Service horrible. Manager told me which ticket to buy, bus driver said wrong one and wouldn't help. Had to pay $60 extra on top of the $45 I already paid just to get to the airport. Instead of $45, it was $105 just to get from Peoria to Chicago airport. VERY POOR SERVICE! Better off spending the extra on a rental car or Urber. read more

We charted a motor coach for a 4 day group hospitality industry work event in the St. Louis area September 2025. We opted to use them vs a local St. Louis company due to cost --it was less expensive even w/paying for our drivers room. Our driver Andy was awesome...on time, super professional, very helpful, knowledgeable on where we were going and more important our group felt safe with him at the wheel. The bus was clean and in good condition as well. I would recommend Peoria Charter Coach and Andy. Thank you! read more

The bus (208) was clean and comfortable. Our driver, Aaron, was very personable and maneuvered smoothly through Nashville traffic. Thank you so much, Mr. Aaron!! read more

if you're on time but there's traffic, still expect them to leave a few minutes early. Even when they always know exactly how many passengers come on and off the bus at each stop, they don't care to leave you. don't book Peoria Charter if you're traveling through the airport - especially for kids/with your kids - even if they are college students. you won't want your kid stranded in Chicago alone. They won't even care to rebook you for the same price, they charge an additional fee. and if they happen to be the late ones -- no problem, no apologies from them. Hypocrites really read more

Great company. The drivers are very friendly and professional. Our trip was great and I am glad we chose Peoria Charter for the service. We will defiantly be using them again in the future read more

one of the bus drivers was fairly rude to me. I was told over the phone by someone who worked in customer service for the company that my small pomeranian dog would be allowed to ride the bus and would be considered a carry on. I have travelled using Peoria charter bus countless times from UIUC to Chicago. As I was about to check in the driver said "oh you are not going to pull this on me, is that a pet?" since I had always rode with my pup I figured it was nothing and I responded with a yes. He then started to talk to me in a passive manner and told me I had to pay for my pet the same amount that I had paid for myself $48. I was confused and told him what the person in customer service told me in a calm manner. He continued to speak to me in an aggressive manner and spoke in a stern manner to me in front of everyone. I felt so uncomfoetable and just paid the $48. I just find it ridiculous the way this bus driver presented himself in this situation. And to pay $48 for a 4 pound dog? is insane to me, Amtrak charges less. read more

My son purchased a ticket from Downer Groves, IL to Champaign, IL at 4 pm on 1/14/2024. We estimated the arrival time should be by 7 pm. However, my son were still at Downer Groves around 7:30 pm. The bus stop on the way around 30 minutes at a gas station until I called company (800-800) 448-0572 without explanation. My son was cold at the bus. Finally the bus arrived at Champaign, IL at 11:45 pm. I call the same number the next day morning but was disconnected when I was waiting for someone to talk to me. There are more than 10 people on the bus at the same time. it should take less than 3 hours for the whole trip but it took almost 8 hours to complete the whole trip. The temperature was -12 degree outside when my son arrived. read more

The Union Station drop-off location is a 15 walk away from Union Station under a viaduct. It's not safe or convenient, especially when it's over 90 degrees outside. read more

Glad it was there when I needed it that's for sure. On both the 1st & 2nd legs of my standby travel insanity I had to take the bus. Not any old bus mind you, but the Peoria Charter Coach. Serving 2 airports, 3 shopping malls a couple of towns and of course Joliet, a prison town. The first time I took it was the first night of my trip, my connecting flight from O'Hare to Peoria filled up from 4 aboard to oversold, rather than be stuck in O'Hare on Christmas morning (yes I flew standby on xmas eve) I opted to spend Christmas Eve driving across middle Illinois to see my 95 year old Grandma, and be with her on Christmas. I slept most of the way as I had a meal mentioned in a previous review at the Hilton and a vodka cocktail before I got on the bus. That was a smooth ride for me. Or maybe it wasn't, and I just didn't know. It was really rainy though. The second leg of my trip of standby insanity began on the 29th at 6:30am. I got a call saying my flight from Peoria was oversold because all the flights from the day before were canceled and that I was going to need to catch the bus if I wanted to make my 11:56am New Jersey connection at O'Hare. OK. I got up and went to retrieve the bus schedule I had foolishly thrown in the trash the night before. The bus I needed to catch to make my Jersey flight left at 6:05am. Well too late for that one. So I got the 10:30am bus. You can see the rest of that story in an American Airlines review I wrote the other day. It was really crowded. I never knew that so many people went in and out of Peoria so regularly. Or any part of middle Illinois for that matter. Somewhere, I think it was Morton Illinois we picked up a bunch of folks. Ya. Folks. Illinois is far and away THE flattest place on earth. This had to be where it was decided that the earth was flat. So, to amuse myself in the mid morning light I took pictures of the endless flatness for my own entertainment. I'd give them 5 stars, but there is sort of a part of me that is resentful they canceled the train to Chilacothe, and now you're stuck on a bus. But I digress. I was so happy to have that bus to ride both times I had to, but I liked the train better. Bottom line here is that it is just really hard to fly in and out of Peoria no matter what time of year it is you have a good chance of riding it if you're trying to get to O'Hare on time. read more

Peoria Charter Coach - the fleet is in - Buses Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

Used Peoria charter last three years for school and it gets worse every year. Poor schedule keeping, regularly an hour+ late and cost has gone up 50% over the last three years. When I started I could go home for $60 now after all the fees costs me $100. If there was any other option I would choose it. read more

We recently hired Peoria Charter as our transportation for our wedding day. With a price that was unmatched, we were beyond grateful to have found such an affordable option. The best part was that we could use the Peoria Charter Coach as our wedding party shuttle as well as our guest shuttle to go back and forth between our hotels and the venue. We had the bus for 12 hours, which made this possible. The bus we rented was their 38 passenger bus, and it had a sleek, black interior with fun lighting. It felt like a fancy party bus. Our driver was professional, on time and very helpful. Thanks Peoria Charter! read more

Peoria Charter is always clean, timely, and pleasant. Their driver Al Martinez is exceptionally nice. Every time I've been on his route he makes an honest effort to make sure nobody is left behind. read more

This is the only bus company I trust to get me to Chicago Airports from the Champaign/Urbana area. Although they have a restrictive schedule, I often change my travel arrangements so I can use Peoria Charter instead of the other bus companies in the area. Their busses have always been punctual, their prices reasonable, and they have very friendly staff. It takes a transfer or two to get from the CU area to O'hare, but its worth it for their reliability, price, and service. read more

5 star rating service. If i ever had to choose between suburban express or peoria charter, i might actually pay double a standard price. I am a survivor of a suburban express horror story. A long story short; suburban express uses archaic systems that lacks efficient technology for our current day and age. Peoria charter has technologies suburban express lacks and offer more services for a competitive price. (i can charge my phone while i type this!) I'm giving 4 stars because i accidentally ordered my ticket via phone for a time spot earlier than what i could make. I caught the mistake maybe 5 minutes later when I got the confirmation email. I called back and i had to pay a $10 fee to move my ticket to a later time spot. Better than paying for a full ticket but still kind of an inconvenience. Probably should have a grace period for stuff like that. Ended up paying $70 dollars total to go one way. 30 lost to suburban express. 30 for peoria charter to save me and 10 to cover my mistake. Edit 1-- Protip for people using the ohare bus stop. Follow the arrivals directions There is a sign that says "harris/ shuttles" Should be past terminal 3 There is a small blue sign on your right side that says "regional" near the end of the shuttle area my bus was in front of that sign. read more

After initially using suburban express as a student at UIUC, I switched over to Peoria Charter after witnessing and reading some of the horror stories of how suburban express treats their customers. I have not been disappointed with PCC at all. I've use there buses to travel to and from Champaign/Chicago Suburbs and Champaign/Peoria. Each time the driver was extremely friendly and seemed to genuinely love their job (not the case with all suburban express drivers I encountered). Once, they emailed me a coupon code and I had trouble using it. After emailing the company they quickly assisted me in making sure I was able to utilize the coupon code rightfully. On a more neutral note, one or two of the times I have taken a bus it arrived late to pick me up or to drop me off but it was a small price to pay for the happier atmosphere I traveled in. I STRONGLY encourage everyone to use Peoria Charter so they are able to expand there business and offer more times and destinations. They understand what a transportation business is like and put in a lot of effort to make sure there customers are happy! read more

We took a charter bus to Las Vegas for a work conference. The AC stopped working on our way there. After supposedly "fixing" it, it still would shut off. They said they can't do anything about it. We asked if we could get some money back because we payed so much money for this, and they said they can't do that. Their bus is just way too old to handle a 24 hour bus ride to Las Vegas in the sweltering heat. Our driver the whole time in Vegas wasn't very easy to work with either. He acted like we were a burden every time we told him when or where to pick us up. I do not recommend using them for long road trips at all. read more

Going into my senior year at UIUC I've taken the bus services to school a bunch of times. The Peoria charter is great. In price it's comparable to the other options (SubEx) but is much nicer. The busses all have outlets and wifi, they let you bring on more baggage (2 checked bags, one cary on and a personal item) and allow you to show them your ticket on your phone. (although they have a list of names so most of the time they just check you off the list. I was able to buy the ticket off my phone the morning of taking the bus which was really nice since I didn't have acess to a printer. Also I believe you can pay with cash and just show up to the bus although I've never done that before. Only con is that they never really have discounted prices or coupons but their service is nicer so it's fine. read more

Peoria Charter Coach - View from my seat - Buses Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

Even after 3 years since my last review, Peoria Charter still remains a great bus company! I recently had to go back down to Urbana for recruiting and the bus departed on time and arrived ahead of schedule. The driver was also professional and courteous! read more

I am going to be flying into Illinois for business and I was looking for transportation from ORD and came across this bus company. I had the pleasure of speaking with Corey who is based out of the Champagne, Illinois office. This guy has management skills written all over him. He was kind, courteous and told me about the town. He was extremely helpful. Provided me more information than I expected. This is the kind of customer service people appreciate. I hope the owner or management recognizes Corey for doing a great job. This is the kind of guy you want to be working for your business. Most customer service representatives can't wait to hang up the phone and call it a day. It was like talking to my friend for advice. Best of all he secured my business. He made me feel comfortable enough that I will be using this company on a regular basis. read more

Awful. Late in bound and out bound trips and the weather isn't even bad today. Rude driver too. It's a shame there aren't more options available for students. read more

Nice price, clean bus, always on time, friendly staff. You get all you need for a good bus service. However, it will be better if they can have higher frequency of bus services. read more

Old buses and horrible service - would not recommend. The driver turned off the AC halfway during our ride from Midway to Champaign, and would refuse to turn it back on despite multiple requests. For a $61 RT bus ticket, you would expect to not be trapped in an old bumpy bus with no air conditioning. Incredibly uncomfortable journey. read more

Trustworthy service. On time. Ride is comfortable. Seats are well cushioned. Big windows gives you a nice view of the vicinity. I frequently use it for back and forth between peoria and ohare airport. Things that could be improved. This winter, traveling early morning in the bus was very chilly despite the air conditioner. I wasn't prepared for it. So had to suffer. Also the timings of the morning bus from ohare can be altered. Air india flight arrives at 7.30 AM and the bus leaves at 7.30 as well. Next bus is at 1.30 = 6 hrs wait time. Morning times could be changes to 8.30 read more

Hands down THE best way to get between Champaign and O'Hare. Great customer service, reasonable charges if you need to reschedule your bus, and allow you to get on without printing out your ticket. They are truly kind and pleasant to ride with, unlike Greyhound or Illini Shuttle. While I'm at it, Illini Shuttle is truly awful, everything about them is rude and nasty -- from the way their ticket is written to their terrible purchase / refund policy to the fact that they try to undermine Peoria by handing out coupons at Peoria stops to Peoria's waiting customers. What jerks! I've even heard they sue international students for silly reasons. You can't get worse customer service than suing your customers!! read more

This review is in regards to Peoria Charter Travel, affilitated with Peoria Charter. My friend and I booked a tour that was to take place this May - paid in full. We were notified that the tour was cancelled by Peoria Coach in March. We received our "refund" mid April to find we where charged approx $35 per ticket for "Administration Fees". To be clear, Peoria Charter charges YOU administration fees when THEY cancel your trip/tour. Upset? Yep, and was told to take it up with owner Bill Winkler. Good business practices? Think not! Let you be warned. Also, "Travel Bucks"? LOL..... No thank you.......... read more

We've used Peoria Charter several times. It isn't always easy (or cheap) to fly out of Peoria. Sometimes we travel to Chicago. By the time we pay for gas and pay to park our car, we could've bought another plane ticket. For the meager price Peoria Charter charges, we can grab the bus going either way. We can sleep, read, watch videos..basically anything but drive and worry about traffic. The drivers are always friendly. We were being dropped off in Bloomington one night (very late) to get our car from the train depot. I was going to be alone on the side of the street while my hubby walked a mile to get our car. The very nice driver went off his route and drove us both to the train depot. He definitely didn't have to, but it was greatly appreciated. He said he didn't feel right leaving me by myself, and that the company is always concerned with their customers safety. I hightly recommend Peoria Charter. read more

The bathroom is dangerous. The light turns off when the bus moves or rattles, so you are thrown around a dark box when it turns or brakes. When I told the driver, he said he had told the office...looks like they had continued to operate a bus where passengers can get hurt. Secondly the driver mentioned during a conversation with a passenger that he never turned on the WIFI. With no explanation. Thirdly, he was relying on a passengers to spot turns since his office had not given him the eight directions. Lacksadaisical attitude overall. read more

Great customer service, on-time, and wifi! Granted it takes a few stops, this service runs frequently and is priced well. As an alternative to AMTRAK that actually picks up from the airport, I would highly recommend. Also Paul the driver on the line to Champaigne was terrific, friendly, and an excellent driver. Glad I found you guys on yelp! read more

jut got back from a cards-cubs game last night. Bus picked our group on time and driver kept us updated for a quick pickup at stadium after the game. over all a great experince read more

Considering I'd rather be dead than hop aboard Suburban Express/Illini Shuttle (owned by the same crazy guy), the options of traveling between UIUC and the rest of the open world are limited depending on where you want to go. This was my first time taking a bus rather than Amtrak because I forgot to book in advance so all train seats were sold out. Luckily, Peoria Charter had open seats and they were all for a flat rate of $30! (Compare this to Suburban which starts at $30 assuming you have working coupons.) No gimmicks, no tricks, and no lies. Just fork over $30 and you're good to go! My bus was on time exactly where and when it said it would be and the drivers were very nice people. I can't recall my driver's name but he was an old African American man and greeted passengers with Mr. and Miss before their names. He called me Miss Diana! Old-fashioned, but I found it cute. I also think their uniforms are nice and professional - they remind me of sea captains. Another employee helped me move my bags into storage and I was able to board quickly. I admire Peoria's efforts to become technologically friendly because you don't have to print a ticket as long as you have it on your phone or have something to prove you bought one. They do ask to confirm ID, so have that iCard ready, but otherwise, they'll also perform a final check with a passenger list that the driver has. The bus itself was really clean - no gum wads, sticky patches, or grossness. They have TVs, WiFi, and the little panels that let you change the AC. There was a bathroom on the bus, so bless them. Assuming your fellow passengers aren't gross, that was also clean. My seat was fairly spacious and I had plenty of leg room. After arriving at other pickup spots on time, we were ready to go! Peoria has a lot of stops, but I'm not too familiar with them besides O'Hare, Midway, and downtown Chicago. For the suburban students, I believe the downtown Chicago bus drops you in front of Union Station because I've seen Peoria Charter buses parked in front of it. The bus ride itself was very relaxing and our driver knew what he was doing. I never encountered any swerving, heard any honking, or found myself shaken during the entire ride and even fell asleep. Somehow we arrived a lot earlier than expected - like half an hour earlier! Peoria Charter is a really awesome, cheap, and friendly bus service that operates almost daily to drive between Chicagoland and UIUC, and I definitely recommend them. read more

Went on a trip with Peoria charter and was fabulous. Marci made our trip so much nicer and comfortable and the price was fabulous. Will definitely go to Mexico or wherever they set up their next vacation.Love love love how they made us feel so special. read more

Very pleasant, smooth ride both going and coming. CS Operators whenever I called with questions could not have been nicer! Would use again!

I have been a long customer of Peoria Charter since my freshmen year at the U of I. They have a very friendly staff and the boarding procedures are very convenient. However my recent experience with Peoria Charter has made me consider switching to other coach companies. I waited for the bus at the same stop that I always have, the o'hare bus shuttle center, 10 minutes before the scheduled arrival time of 3:00 pm on the ticket. During the time I did not see the bus at all. After waiting for 25 minutes, the time was 3:15 pm, I called the customer center to ask them what happened to the bus. They told me that the bus has left. It seems that the bus has left the stop at 2:50 pm. I just don't understand why the bus leaves the stop 10 minutes earlier than the indicated time. Most passengers plan to arrive just on time, not too early and not late but just on time. It's not the first time I have seen this with Peoria. On another trip, i got on the bus 15 minutes earlier than the time indicated. Then the bus driver just left 10 minutes earlier than the indicated time on the ticket. I did not care since I was already on the bus, but I could understand how other passengers would feel, to come to the stop just on time and find out that the bus had left early. I won't stop riding peoria charter since there aren't much choices for me on campus but I just hope that they see this post and do something about it. Experiences such as this has destroyed the good reputation that peoria has built over the years. read more

I bought a ticket to Midway from ISR. Living in ISR, this was very convenient since I just had to walk outside and get on the bus. Since there was so many people traveling, they brought in another bus that would skip the planned stop and go directly to Midway. We got to the airport about an hour ahead of schedule. The Wi-Fi actually worked when my cellphone 3G connection failed, which was surprising. It was raining heavily, and a couple drops of water were dripping through the emergency exit door up top, but it wasn't serious enough to make me point it out to the driver, considering the drive was only about 2 hours. I recently had to transfer my returning ticket to earlier day. I called their office, they picked up promptly and e-mailed me the new ticket with no hassle. read more

Basically, over the last 3 years no real problems or concerns. Only had one instance where the bus was 30 minutes late due to a traffic accident on the highway. Buses have been clean and in working order, drivers have been nice. No complaints. read more

Always late, rude drivers, and always somehow sold out but I'll get on this bus and throughout the whole trip, you will see the same seats empty. They supposedly work with the school and have some type of terms but after further review I think UIUC has to come up with a better option. The school has enough funds and can find us a better option. It is always a hit or miss with this charter company. Do not get me wrong, they have nice seats and some perks but it's always late, "sold out", some of the drivers I've came across were very rude and etc. I will be approaching something new to the school with other students and parents. read more

Thank you so much for being at the airport when my flight was cancelled back to Peoria. I had been in flight when we flew into rain and storms and I know how Chicago O'hare is about cancelling flights when it storms. Sure enough, when I landed, my flight to Peoria had been cancelled. I had to wait a couple hours but I at least can count on Peoria Charter to be there when I need a ride home. I was able to pay cash to the driver and ride in comfort all the way home. Thank you Peoria Charter for being a company that can be counted on not to cancel. We love you! read more

The Peoria charter drove straight passed the stop, despite having customers with purchased tickets, who were there on time. After immediately calling the main office, they refused to have the bus turn around. The man with me had to miss his flight because of this. read more