Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Getting to Kingston

At the Kingston Bus Terminal :)

Nearest Big City/ International Airport:
Toronto, Pearson International Airport. I took Korean Air which flew from Singapore to Seoul, then to Toronto. It took about 23 hours excluding transit time of 1.5hrs and cost me $2.6k for a return trip (SGD).

Does Kingston have a domestic airport?
The Norman Rogers Airport.

Getting to Kingston through a Domestic Flight from Toronto Pearson Airport: ($400)
What I know is, international students seldom choose to fly there because the cost of flying directly into Kingston is alot more (400 CAD from Toronto) as compared to taking the Megabus (35 CAD). Besides, the Norman Rogers Airport is 15mins from Kingston's downtown area (I have never seen it on my map in my 4 months there) and you'll have to spend an additional 25 CAD taking a cab to get to your place if you live a 2km radius near Campus.

Is it recommended to arrive Kingston through Norman Rogers?
Not unless your flight is a domestic flight. (ie. You came from Vancouver, or Halifax etc.). One night when it snowed real bad, a friend's flight got delayed more than 12 hours. Its not accurate to judge an airport based how long it got delayed but it might be

Getting to Kingston from Toronto Pearson International Airport: ($52 - $60)
There's a bus to get you from Toronto Airport to Kingston directly without going into downtown Toronto. This bus is operated by the Coach Canada company. If I am not wrong, tickets can be purchased at the airport, but its best to get your tickets online if you are sure of the travel date. Check the timing because this bus only runs twice a day if I'm not wrong.
Check out megabus too I think they recently started the bus service between Pearson and Kingston too and it might be more affordable.

Getting to Kingston from Downtown Toronto: (About $35)
Its a 2.5 hr ride on the Megabus from the Toronto Coach Terminal in Downtown Toronto (Near Dundas). Megabus tickets have to be bought prior to the day of travel, meaning you can't buy it at the counter on the day you're traveling cos chances are, you won't be able to board the full bus.

Getting from Kingston Megabus Coach Terminal to Downtown Kingston: (Free!)
If you take the Megabus into Kingston, there'll be public buses, 2 or 18 you can board to get you to downtown Kingston. It can be very confusing at first because buses run on fixed schedules. However, don't hesitate to ask the bus drivers about getting to your destination cos' they're always so friendly and ever ready to help.

Psst. If you're a Queen's student, all Kingston city buses are free! Meaning you won't have to pay for taking bus 2 or 18. to get downtown.

Note: Prices stated are all estimates cos' Megabus tickets can get really cheap or expensive depending on the demand. Also, they tell you there's wifi on the bus but on the Toronto to Kingston route I've never got connected. So do all your admin and map loading before you leave the station. :)