Birdy Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 I have never gone to Hamilton so I'm looking for some suggestions for how to do so on a budget. Is it better to fly into Toronto and take the train to Hamilton or fly directly to Hamilton? My interview is on the 22ed and I will probably try to fly in direct on Saturday morning so I'm there well ahead of time. Are there cheap places to stay near the building where interviews will be held? Would you suggest renting a car or dealing with cabs? How is the driving in Hamilton? My cabs in St. John's ended up costing more than a rental would have, which is why I am inquiring. Help is appreciated. I'm sure there will be others traveling in who also have questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MathToMed Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 I'd recommend flying to Pearson and taking the GO Train or express bus to Hamilton. From Hamilton GO, there are several busses which head right to the McMaster Campus. There are also a few hotels a few blocks away in the heart of downtown Hamilton. There's nowhere to my knowledge near campus that you can stay at, you'll be at least one bus ride away in downtown. Driving is not too bad, but there are many one way streets that can be a bit of a headache if you don't know your way around. Congrats on the interview! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 I have never gone to Hamilton so I'm looking for some suggestions for how to do so on a budget. Is it better to fly into Toronto and take the train to Hamilton or fly directly to Hamilton? My interview is on the 22ed and I will probably try to fly in direct on Saturday morning so I'm there well ahead of time. Are there cheap places to stay near the building where interviews will be held? Would you suggest renting a car or dealing with cabs? How is the driving in Hamilton? My cabs in St. John's ended up costing more than a rental would have, which is why I am inquiring. Help is appreciated. I'm sure there will be others traveling in who also have questions. Cabs are expensive here. It took me 10 bucks to drive down main street once. Wasn't happy. As far as flying, a GoBus trip from Toronto to Hamilton costs $11 each for a total of $22. If the plane trip to Hamilton costs less than $22 more than it would take to fly to Toronto, then it would be cheaper to fly to Toronto. Traffic can be bad on the way to Hamilton too. For your convenience, I would recommend flying to Hamilton's domestic airport, but if it costs substantially more then commuting from Toronto is no big deal either. I live in Hamilton so I can't help you on hotels or anything, sorry - hopefully someone else can chime in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ameltingbanana Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 Cabs are expensive here. It took me 10 bucks to drive down main street once. Wasn't happy. As far as flying, a GoBus trip from Toronto to Hamilton costs $11 each for a total of $22. If the plane trip to Hamilton costs less than $22 more than it would take to fly to Toronto, then it would be cheaper to fly to Toronto. Traffic can be bad on the way to Hamilton too. For your convenience, I would recommend flying to Hamilton's domestic airport, but if it costs substantially more then commuting from Toronto is no big deal either. I live in Hamilton so I can't help you on hotels or anything, sorry - hopefully someone else can chime in there. Hamilton's domestic airport is pretty far from Mac as well - a cab from there to McMaster would probably run $40-50. As for places to stay, there's quite a few hotels downtown, and you can grab a city bus to get to Mac. The route 5 or 51 will take you right across from MDCL (where your interviews will be) and runs fairly often. There's no app for bus times, but it is synced with Google Maps on phones (just hit the bus icon when looking for directions). If it were me, I would fly into Toronto via the cheapest flight, stay the night in a hotel somewhere downtown and bus/cab over to Mac's campus the morning of the interview (disclaimer - no idea what the current prices are like for a flight to YYZ vs Hamilton). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5th time the charm Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 Congrats Birdy. The closest hotel I am aware of to Mac is the Visitors Inn. It's about a 5 minute cab/drive from Mac. Phone #905-529-6979. Its located at 649 Main St W. Its just past the outskirts of Westdale Village. As for where to fly into between Toronto or Hamilton I don't know which would be better. Take into account though there could be bad weather so it may be best to fly direct to Hamilton? in the event the highways are a mess. Leave yourself lots of time and all the best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted January 22, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 Hamilton's domestic airport is pretty far from Mac as well - a cab from there to McMaster would probably run $40-50. As for places to stay, there's quite a few hotels downtown, and you can grab a city bus to get to Mac. The route 5 or 51 will take you right across from MDCL (where your interviews will be) and runs fairly often. There's no app for bus times, but it is synced with Google Maps on phones (just hit the bus icon when looking for directions). If it were me, I would fly into Toronto via the cheapest flight, stay the night in a hotel somewhere downtown and bus/cab over to Mac's campus the morning of the interview (disclaimer - no idea what the current prices are like for a flight to YYZ vs Hamilton). How much would it cost to take a bus and/or cab from downtown TO to the campus (ballpark)? I have only been to Toronto (outside the airport) a couple of times so I have zero familiarity with this. I can make my way around Ottawa blindfolded, but Toronto and the nearby regions are pretty much a mystery to me. I wonder if anyone from Toronto is driving over there that morning for an interview. I may try to arrange a carpool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 How much would it cost to take a bus and/or cab from downtown TO to the campus (ballpark)? I have only been to Toronto (outside the airport) a couple of times so I have zero familiarity with this. I can make my way around Ottawa blindfolded, but Toronto and the nearby regions are pretty much a mystery to me. I wonder if anyone from Toronto is driving over there that morning for an interview. I may try to arrange a carpool. It's $11 a ticket from Union Station in downtown Toronto to McMaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recoil Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 It's $11 a ticket from Union Station in downtown Toronto to McMaster. There is also a route from Pearson Airport to downtown Toronto (Union Station) Via the TTC (our public transit). It would involve a bus, a subway, and then a transfer to a different subway line, but it would only take about an hour and costs 3 Dolla! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted January 22, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 There is also a route from Pearson Airport to downtown Toronto (Union Station) Via the TTC (our public transit). It would involve a bus, a subway, and then a transfer to a different subway line, but it would only take about an hour and costs 3 Dolla! I'm from PEI. I can *walk* across Charlottetown in an hour - that is not something I consider a short transit time, hah. I may see if one of my friends is available to drive me that bit. Bus to subway to subway sounds like a little much for me. I booked my flight to and from Toronto since the only one I could find for Hamilton was $800 one way. Definitely not saving anything over using the go train. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearded frog Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 You can get a TTC bus to square one from Pearson and a go bus to downtown Hamilton or McMaster pretty easily and relatively cheaply ~$14 each way, if you can't find a ride with anyone else. A cab from downtown Toronto would be $100+ also they wouldn't take you. There are shuttle services from Pearson to Hamilton but they are ~$90. Hotel situation isn't great either. Transit from a downtown hotel to campus is pretty easy though and a cab ride would be reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bakercyclist Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 If you're comfortable driving, I feel like renting a car could be done pretty cheaply. Then you could drive from Pearson straight to a hotel in Hamilton, drive to your interview in the morning and drive back to the airport when you're done. You'd save time and probably money over trying to take transit from the airport. I hate driving and I'd probably even choose that option. If you're around in the afternoon on the 21st let me know if you want to grab coffee or dinner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamtimothy Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 what do you mean cabs wouldn't take you, that was my plan to go bewteen toronto to mumc and mumc to toronto, since i have about 3 hours between interviews. You can get a TTC bus to square one from Pearson and a go bus to downtown Hamilton or McMaster pretty easily and relatively cheaply ~$14 each way, if you can't find a ride with anyone else. A cab from downtown Toronto would be $100+ also they wouldn't take you. There are shuttle services from Pearson to Hamilton but they are ~$90. Hotel situation isn't great either. Transit from a downtown hotel to campus is pretty easy though and a cab ride would be reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cats5ever Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 what do you mean cabs wouldn't take you, that was my plan to go bewteen toronto to mumc and mumc to toronto, since i have about 3 hours between interviews. You can take a cab from Pearson straight to Hamilton, it'll cost ~90-100$. Renting a car is definitely cheaper if you're only staying a couple of days. HSR is annoying on Sundays, reduced schedule so plan ahead. I personally would fly into Toronto and rent a car just for convenience and ease of mind, not having to rely on transit. Not too much more expensive either. Also, if there's traffic take the 407. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boysneutral Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 I haven't posted here forever, but here is what I did last year. It depends where you are flying from since the Hamilton Airport has so few routes. However if you CAN fly into Hamilton I would recommend it. I flew into the Hamilton airport and took a cab to my hotel that was downtown (Sheraton on King). The cab including tip was less than 35$. I didn't rent a car or anything, I just took a cab the morning of the interview to Mac, which was less than 10 minutes and less than 25$. If you're okay taking the bus in your fancy clothes, the routes 5c and 51 both pass directly outside many hotels on King and will drop you off outside MDCL (where the interviews are happening). Don't worry so much about staying at a hotel "close" to mac. Hamilton is a smaller city and al of the downtown hotels are close enough. Visitors Inn is expensive and not worth the 2 minutes you'd shave off your trip to campus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearded frog Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 what do you mean cabs wouldn't take you, that was my plan to go bewteen toronto to mumc and mumc to toronto, since i have about 3 hours between interviews. I mean if you hail a random can in downtown Toronto they won't drive to Hamilton. You might be able to arrange something from Pearson though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamtimothy Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 ya i am coming straight from pearson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fleming Posted March 10, 2015 Report Share Posted March 10, 2015 Do you have to book a GO Bus ticket ahead of tim? Or just show up on the day and purchase at the station? Also, how far from the Airport in Toronto is the bus station? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ygella Posted March 10, 2015 Report Share Posted March 10, 2015 Do you have to book a GO Bus ticket ahead of tim? Or just show up on the day and purchase at the station? Also, how far from the Airport in Toronto is the bus station? You can purchase a GO bus ticket from the station. I looked it up on google maps, the bus station is a little far from the Pearson airport. It looks like you have to take the miway (Mississauga transit) bus #7 to the Square One GO bus terminal and then from there take the Hamilton-York University GO bus to McMaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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