Hi,
Can anyone tell me their experience about Cornell bus? Their website does not really have many details and at least one review on internet said, they cancelled bus service for low ridership. I want to know what dependable transportation options are there for students? I have heard of Zimride and Ithaca airport limo and of course taxi, Can anyone care to comment what worked for you the best? Thank you!
The “limo” company works great. They take your cell # and make sure you get a ride, whether there are 50 people or just 2. They’re not cheap, but they are reliable. D uses it to and from Cornell to Syracuse airport.
Thank you, @Renomamma . Have you ever seen or considered Cornell bus? It looks way cheaper than limo, So, want to make sure I understand this option too. I am not very excited about Zimcar since I don’t know how reliable that would be.
I don’t know about Zimcar. Should try the bus…I think that might only be available certain times. If you leave or arrive a little early, not all the busses are available. …but the limo bus usually is. Reliable transportation is important to me, sending my young angel across the country.
@cd2015
My daughter used Cornell bus last year during Christmas break. Her bus was not cancelled. Where did you see the info about cancellation?
My daughter has also used the Cornell Bus Service on a couple occasions. The below is what I see on the site.
"Bus service to/from Syracuse has ended for this year. Service will resume in Oct. 2015. The 2015-16 schedule will be released over the summer!
D has had great success with both airport limo & the Cornell bus to Syracuse. The airport limo offers door-to-door service, while Cornell bus is just to the campus stop (and only runs on certain breaks). Both have waited for her when flights were delayed but she was close to arriving. Cornell bus is very inexpensive, but fills quickly – and tickets don’t go on sale until about 30 days before the break. Cornell bus also put her on a later bus with no hassles when her flight arrived hours late; I suspect the airport limo would do the same. Since flights to/from Ithaca have been cancelled due to weather several times in the past couple of years, we’ve found using Syracuse is more reliable from an air perspective than trying to fly from Ithaca.
D did have success taking the city bus to Ithaca airport once and that worked out ok, but was awkward with her bag.
@2018dad , it was a yelp review I think. I know … but still had to ask!
@comom2013 and @learninginprog , thanks for the comments. I will keep checking.
@comom2013 - The flight cancellations is one reason for me to look at Syracuse. Another is most flights out of Ithaca are at odd times. Syracuse seems to have better times for flights too.
Thank you all for your suggestions.
D only flew out of Ithaca once in the spring. it’s more expensive for us in the west. I wouldn’t consider Ithaca airport during the colder months as they don’t have de-icing equipment, and flights are often delayed or rerouted to Syracuse.
Oh well, I’m flying my D home for Thanksgiving out of Ithaca. Fingers crossed
@TiggyB62 are you in the west? My D doesn’t come home for thanksgiving 
because it’s such a long trip for just a few days. She goes with friends in the east. Too bad they don’t get the whole week off. Good luck!
@Renomamma we are in Chicagoland. 11 hour drive. So she’s flying from Ithaca to Detroit and then connecting to Chicago. If all else fails and she can only get to Detroit, we have lots of relatives in the area so they can get her and we’ll regroup from there.
Schools with a Direct Flights are key
@Renomamma
Same here with my daughter. She doesn’t come home on Thanksgiving. In all her flights coming home (from Syracuse and Ithaca) her flights either cancelled or delayed creating problem with her connecting flights from JFK/Newark/Detroit/etc., so we don’t want to risk her coming home on that 4 day weekend only to spend 2 or 3 days flying or in an airport. She also spend Thanksgiving with friends.
@TiggyB62 , Thanksgiving should be ok. It won’t snow at that time, so, your daughter will have a safe and uneventful journey; I think.
We got no relatives in the stop over areas, so, it will be tough for us.
Hi, a new Cornell mom here. You guys have me very worried - I’ve got tickets for my son to come home over Thanksgiving, and I really hope he makes it.
I have him leaving from Ithaca and flying back in to Syracuse. What is the best way for him to get to the Ithaca airport? I was thinking that he could call a taxi, but are there other options? What happens if they cancel his flight out of Ithaca? Will the airline (Delta) pay for transportation to Syracuse, so he can catch a plane there?
Coming back to Cornell, he will be flying into Syracuse. Is this the limo service that has been mentioned above: http://www.transportationsithaca.com/ ? The Cornell Bus seems to be run by Cornell (googling Cornell Bus, that is what turned up). Is that the Cornell Bus referred to above?
Has anyone had any experience with flying in/out of La Guardia? Is there bus service to NYC that he could use at some point? LGA has direct flights to our regional airport, so that could potentially be a solution to the travel problem. I really, really wish Ithaca wasn’t so isolated.
@tamara6 - there are a few direct flights to Ithaca from Detroit (delta), Philadelphia (U.S. air) and Newark (United)
Likely the weather will be ok over thanksgiving. It’s winter break when I wouldn’t use Ithaca airport. I believe if they have to cancel, they shuttle you to Syracuse, but I’m not sure. We don’t send D home for thanksgiving because it’s too short of a break and too expensive for us, and winter break is so near.
Yes, that’s the limo.
You can bus to and from NYC (there are a few options) but it takes about 5 hours.
I am surprised they don’t enlarge and improve the Ithaca airport, with such a large university right there.
Yes, it’s a bummer Ithaca is so isolated. But if your student loves it, then hopefully it’s worth it.
I guess what I meant is that there is a direct flight from our airport to LGA. We are not in Detroit, Philly, or New Jersey, so it isn’t possible to fly directly to Ithaca (or even Syracuse) from here.
If flights from Ithaca and Syracuse are prone to being cancelled/delayed, then using La Guardia, despite the long drive to NYC, might be a more reliable option? Just wondering if it is a possibility.
I’m thinking if you couldn’t fly in and out of Syracuse due to bad weather, a 5-hour bus ride from nyc might not be much easier/safer.
But I could be wrong.
D had no problems last year using Syracuse airport and the “limo”. And she usually has to take 3 flights each way.