My sister and I (both in our 60s) will be traveling from Columbus to Cleveland on Greyhound to catch the Capitol Limited Train 29 at 3 am in August. The bus schedule will land us in Cleveland in the afternoon, so we need to find a place to hang out with or without our luggage until the Cleveland Amtrak station opens at midnight. The Greyhound website indicates that luggage can be stored there, but their website Chat function was unavailable the last time I tried to determine if that's still the case, the cost, and other conditions. Would it be best to hang out in the neighborhood of the Greyhound station or the train station, especially at night given that the train station doesn't open until midnight. It looks on Google like there are restaurant and entertainment establishments near the Greyhound station. There are a lot of museums and the lake near the Amtrak station, but I would imagine all the museums are closed at night when it's dark. I don't know how safe it would be for us 60-somethings to be in a park on the lake around midnight. Can anyone comment?
Cleveland Amtrak and Greyhound stations
- Thread starter Barb Stout
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Downtown Cleveland in the Wee Hours, and the area around the Lake where the Amtrak Station is located, isn't dangerous per se, but it can be like a ghost town.
I'd look into renting a Hotel Room for one night ( use one of the multiple web sites for discount prices) and take a Cab or Ride Share to the Station ( arranged in advance to be sure to getting one at that time of night).
Disclaimer: I havent been in Cleveland since Pre-COVID Days, so perhaps a Local or recent Visitor might have good advice for you.
Another related question. I can't tell by looking at Google maps if
1) There is a way for pedestrians to get from the convention level to the Amtrak station without taking that elevator. The reason I ask is the previous time we had been there, the elevator wasn't working. I only remember major freeway on/off ramps going from the upper level to the lower level and wouldn't want to walk on those with traffic. That last time we were there, that was the only way to get down to the Amtrak station and we had to walk down them because they were closed off to motor vehicles for some kind of marathon. I'm sure glad it was downhill rather than uphill. It was steep!
2) Is there a way to get from the Amtrak station to the lakefront with all the museums without going back "upstairs" either on foot or by vehicle?
1) There is a way for pedestrians to get from the convention level to the Amtrak station without taking that elevator. The reason I ask is the previous time we had been there, the elevator wasn't working. I only remember major freeway on/off ramps going from the upper level to the lower level and wouldn't want to walk on those with traffic. That last time we were there, that was the only way to get down to the Amtrak station and we had to walk down them because they were closed off to motor vehicles for some kind of marathon. I'm sure glad it was downhill rather than uphill. It was steep!
2) Is there a way to get from the Amtrak station to the lakefront with all the museums without going back "upstairs" either on foot or by vehicle?
I would agree with Jim that finding a decent hotel downtown, near Terminal Tower City, would be safer that time of night. Crime rates are not conducive to walking around the area near the bus station after dark. I would cab, Uber or Lyft to Hampton Inn or Drury Inn near the public square and arrange for the same transportation to take you to CLE in the morning. 29 has been notoriously late many times and you can check the online Amtrak to see if you need to leave a bit later. CLE does not open until midnight and although the station is a safe place to wait, the chairs are not that comfortable to wait for 3-4 hours.
