FlixBus, way better than you'd expect!

Up this week, we take a look at FlixBus, and the surprisingly good service they offer.
Date of Travel: August 2023
Vehicle: Neoplan Tourliner
Operator: FlixBus UK
Coach Number: 073
Origin: Kirkgate, Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom (England)
Destination: John Dobson Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom (England)
Cost of ticket: £4.99 ($6.30, €5.85)
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[@michaausleipzig]

Love how the road signs just say THE NORTH. Hope that road doesn't lead to a giant wall made of ice! 😂

[@paultidd9332]

In Leeds the magnificent church, near the bus stop, is Leeds Minster completed in 1841 replacing a medieval building. The railway embankment you see was completed, I think, in 1869. The Flixbus stop in Leeds is a point of contention with locals, like myself who live near it, as the waiting passengers block the pavement not only with themselves but often the large amount of luggage they have. Megabus used to stop their too and following complaints to councillors was moved into the bus station.

[@TheSpotify95]

Wowee! Really can't complain about that - I would take that coach every single time if I needed to make such a journey, because it would cost more than £4.99 to drive (in terms of fuel) and the train would also be more expensive - if the trains are even running a service at all, that is! (On the day of writing this comment - Sep 1st, 2023 - there are absolutely no train services at all.) Thanks for sharing this experience!

[@Fan652w]

Interesting video, but one important point needs to be corrected. As is the case elsewhere in Europe including its home country of Germany, Flixbus does not own the coaches which operate on the routes which it organises. It (in effect) hires in coaches from coach operators, in this case 'Belle Vue'. I suspect that Belle Vue sent out the vehicle you travelled on because a vehicle painted in Flixbus green was not available.

[@stevenmontoya9950]

Same thing goes for FlixBus operations in the States. A company called Tour Coach handles bus operations on the San Diego-Los Angeles (and eventually San Francisco) route I take. Many passengers look confused when buses going towards LA pull into their bus yard in the city outskirts to switch drivers, thinking it's the actual LA stop.

[@railnut21]

I believe Belle Vue are using this plain vehicle temporarily until they can get it in the paint shop to make it meet the flixbus standard

[@johnp139]

*organizes

[@jgsburnett9532]

Actually a very similar system in is use with National Express who contract out their services.

[@andrewwilson6240]

Flixbus in the East Midlands use Tiger European Coaches. They are pretty good.

[@barrieshepherd7694]

👍👍A significant cost saving over the train and no changes en route - journey time seems comparable as well. I guess this is a route where the bus wins!

[@John_Fugazzi]

This was something different. The bus was nicely uncrowded and the journey seemed quiet and comfortable. The green plain around the River Tees was especially good scenery.

[@pixelfederationcom]

The cost is an absolute bargain! And that snoring at Middlesbrough only proves it's comfy :) Thanks for your honest reviews and travel inspo

[@andrewwilliamson4356]

Bellevue coaches of Manchester operate this service. I certainly rate this service. The coaches are new and fresh. There are three journeys from Newcastle to Manchester. The other two services are operated by Stanley taxis. Great vlog.

[@Tbpker22]

Interesting!

[@RushfanUK]

As you are not actually travelling on a Flixbus any and all info about the coach itself is irrelevant, I did check on LNER and you can get a single ticket from Leeds to Newcastle on the 8.30am service tomorrow for £13, it will take 1 hour and 37 minutes getting into Newcastle at 10.07am, I would prefer the train over the price myself and I certainly wouldn't want to be hanging around on an open street like that in the middle of winter in the rain.

[@shahedmc9656]

Great video - agree with bringing on the FlixTrain to the UK.

[@tamsparris-bah8283]

I paid £49 per ticket for myself and my young daughter for a flixbus service from Edinburgh to London. The bus was also delayed by two hours. It was because of this that I discovered how bad the customer service is with Flixbus. No apologies, no refunds (even though this is their policy), only a rubbish excuse. Worse customer service EVER!!!

[@redademe]

07:25 The audible speaks for itself, 5/5 seat comfort-wise.

[@samstravelvlogsinthenorthe9818]

great video, as im from newcastle, i cant wait for your tyne and wear metro review

[@harrierjames7727]

Hahahaha the snoring at Middlesbrough made me laugh... thought someone might have broken wind at first!!

[@neilcoram3495]

Great video, fantastic value for money and a great looking coach.

[@nicholasrusson8978]

Thanks for the brief glimpse of Middlesbrough. It's nearly 20 years since I last visited and I imagine it's changed a lot since then (I certainly hope it has ... it wasn't doing all that well at that time).

[@TheSitruc46]

Enjoyed the video!

[@andynorris3537]

Did Flixbus overnight from London to Glasgow. Horrible night! Used them in Europe and they've been fine

[@luisstransport]

Great trip report Dylan

[@rezaalan3991]

Great trip. Overall nice coach.

[@deco983]

Great video

[@cecilia6496]

I've taken most of the bus services to travel from Scotland to England. Hands down Flixbus is the best so far. For overnight rides, I would pay extra to reserve the seat next to mine. The total price would be just the same as one regualr seat for Megabus.

[@s125ish]

Even when you reserve a seat next to you you still get people trying to sit in the seat.

[@neilburns8869]

No matter how nice it is, its still a bus/coach. It still means that you are sat in the one position for a few hours. At least on a train or a boat/ship/ferry you can get up and walk around. Sorry, I don't really mean to rain on your parade but I am just stating the facts.

[@pal2011]

In my (American) city flixbus dont stick to schedules and cancels buses all the time.

[@bridgethuggett1052]

Thats the Newport Bridge n Middlesbrough, not the transporter

[@timweather3847]

I saw it, a very brief glimpse a second or two after the Newport Bridge.

[@Marcsharp82]

I've never used Flixbus, A few months ago I'd booked a Leicester to London ticket and then National Express return, from and to St Margarets Bus station, a couple of days before departure I got a notification that the Flixbus had been cancelled and no replacement service would be provided. No reason given at all, they have since pulled the majority of their services from St Margarets bus station so I've never used them and highly likely never will

[@s125ish]

They are coming back to the bus station in Leicester with a different operator.

[@amandanowicka4009]

Used Flixbus in Austria. Great journey. Easy, efficient, and on time. Be sure you book seats if you use them in Austria.

[@nowaymuller6643]

Here the Train is cheaper, faster and way better than any Bus!

[@TripsonBudget]

Flixbus is such a dynamic product and the condition differ from route to route(and even on the same route depending of luck), so it's hard to say that is better or worst. Depends of luck.

[@nowaymuller6643]

Es in Portugal for example the Toilet is always locked.

[@sebastianbaxter3761]

If you take London to Brussels route you can look forward to a driver with heavy valoise accent explaining in great details what to do and not to do in the toilet (no.1 oui - no. 2 no, no and no - and if you are a man you can only do no.1 sitting down, not whils standing and shaking😂)

[@samaniyya]

I booked a flexibus in San Remo to Nice airport. The time was 3pm arrival but never arrived and only updated the new expected time at original expected time . This happened every 15 mins. I ended up having to get a taxi which cost 180 euros otherwise I would have missed my flight Flexibus refused to refund the ticket or towards the taxi. Check the refund policy before you book

[@MrTryxxter]

Flix trains in the UK could be a real game changer and not necessarily the obvious routes, but linking more of the cities around the UK, like Liverpool, Leeds, Cardiff, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh directly with each other (altho there are good links already with some of those cities), rather than the obvious EC and WCML north and south routes into and out of London. Bring it on I say,. Connectivity for all 😃

[@scrsucks1470]

theres no free paths on the WCML, Virgin Trains tried to comeback as an open acess operator but there is no free paths so they suspended their operator request

[@iiBus]

Service can often vary between the companies that operate services for Flixbus.

[@zombiefreed]

Yep, London to Newcastle (return). Good all round. Busy, but good.

[@BritishGuyOFFICAL]

i swear i miss you every time im around leeds. but i always miss you URGH

[@MissShark8383]

It’s nice to see how other countries operate with flixbus. They only been USA for a while. My only complaint is location for stops. I was scared coming back to Detroit at night. Why no traffic or streetlights. Great ride.

[@oliverzhao1005]

COOL

[@Ron_TTE]

You just convinced me to buy a flixbus ticket for 1.99 to bristol :) thanks

[@nowaymuller6643]

WOW the Toilet is not Locked as common on other Flixbus Route!

[@dimanimatedtakes]

I've heard great things about FlixBus. I don't know if they were in other countries besides the USA but it looks like they expanded. I will say, unfortunately, the route I was interested in in the US for them was shortlived but it looks like according to the website the route is back but I'm not sure if it's fully back or just a fluke. Either way I'll take it. I've wanted to take something better than Greyhound for a while.

[@keithparker1346]

After seeing many travel videos i would urge users to expect wifi not to be working or good as useless, and charge points not working either

[@baseballfan99]

I love this route North of Leeds on the A19, much more picturesque than the A1. From Manchester I can take National Express, Megabus and FlixBus on this route. Generally prefer National Express as they bypass Leeds. In any case all much better value than TPE.

[@praisane]

They actually refunded you for a seat booking? When my bus (which I ended up not taking as it was 4 hours late) got an equipment change and my seat got changed to something completely different they only gave me a voucher in the same amount...

[@MrBusley_123]

Do more coach videos!

[@johnp139]

I didn’t see any horses. This was a BUS!

[@SeverityOne]

How fast are these coaches anyway? With a 2:25 total travel time and 15 minute stopover in Middlesborough, for 109 miles, that's around 50 mph average speed. Which is quite speedy for such a large vehicle.

[@thomas-xj1hs]

Different, thanks

[@TheSpotify95]

Also, regarding FlixTrain, a lot of the older rolling stock (in particular, most of the MK3s that were used with HST sets) were scrapped at various scrapyards (including Sims Metals Newport) not long after the HSTs were pulled from service, so that option should have been considered before the rolling stock was removed from mainline service.

[@MercenaryPen]

on top of that, while Open Access operators do exist in the UK rail market, it seems to be very difficult to get started and to remain operational, especially for open access routes not using the East Coast Main Line

[@samtrak1204]

How does bus travel time compare to the train on this route?

[@heidirabenau511]

Train time is around 90 minutes.

[@seyley2901]

Is there such a thing as a luxury coach travel service in the UK?

[@calebmumby5803]

Well if you can't rely on train then rely on buses a cool video

[@Ishaanbiniwale]

Still I would take train it's just more fun and these bus are quite cramped usually

[@DennisHemsley-bj9fw]

Unfortunately, flixbus cancelled our coach to London one hour after it should have left!!

[@TitanicTARDIS]

Lovely to see you come to Newcastle. It really is a beautiful city. I look forward with interest and trepidation to your review of the Tyne and Wear metro. I've lived in Newcastle all my life and I know unreliable and bad it can be

[@iandrew6347]

Great video Sir I think the person behind you enjoyed it be the sound of it with him snoring 😂😂😂😂

[@Meme_lord41]

I love your video

[@harryelliott4310]

FlixBus

[@joermnyc]

£5 for a ride that long is a good deal, curious how much more it cost if you started in Manchester.

[@s125ish]

Probably not much more if any

[@johnp139]

The shoulder or emergency lane along the A1 seems to be RIDICULOUSLY NARROW!!!! Can any vehicle actually fit there?

[@barrieshepherd7694]

Pretty sure only the A1 M has the full Emergency Lane - the AI is just another dual carriageway - minimal or no shoulder but in many places standard laybys.

[@tonymcdonnly6492]

Hey Dylan! What's up, Bro? Stop copying me, Dylan!😄Funny you should profile Flix bus. I took this bus 3x during my trips in August 2023 from Lisbon to Madrid. Then from Frankfurt to Maastrict. Then round trip from London to Leeds. (Due to the rail strike, I was forced to take the bus again.) I did a day trip in Leeds. The ride was easy and relaxing. Got off at Kirkgate street. Funny to see it again. However, my ride back to London was highly unsafe due to a male passenger who allegedly took drugs. He started getting disruptive and violent. Twice the bus driver stopped. Police were called. This man got arrested for damaging the interior of the bus where he was sitting. The bus driver should have pulled over and removed this passenger at the first emergency stop. Flix has offered me and the other passengers a 10% discount on our next travel if we book before 28-11-23. Overall, I highly recommend using Flix bus. The buses are clean and the seats are relaxing. Their on time arrival and departure is over 90% on time according to their reviews.

[@philipwalton4877]

Do you have a KZbin channel mate

[@Charlizzie]

7:24 I remember recently that I slept at the very front row seat in a coach from Baguio to Manila. It took 40 minutes for a conductor to tell me I should move at the back because I snooze a lot. Probably the front row seats are comfy to sleep on. Too bad the coach spend two hours more than the usual if not by rainy weather here. I was among just 10 passengers that time.

[@AndrewG1989]

I have been on some long coach trips but I’m still no big fan of them. And sometimes they can be so uncomfortable.

[@markswishereatsstuff2500]

Never thought of traveling the UK via bus instead of trains. Will keep it in mind.

[@JISJ1964]

What´s the story of usage of seat-belts on coaches in the UK, I think I understood it like you didn´t use it?

[@markcollinson5665]

Did you film this on a weekend as Leeds looked awfully quiet for that time on a weekday?

[@smogmonster1876]

Don’t mean to be picky but this is a review of someone else’s coach NOT Flixbus.

[@s125ish]

Flixbus don’t really own any coaches themselves

[@Delta-pantages]

Only one 'O' in Middlesbrough - a common error. But still brought back happy memories of living in the area.

[@castlehighschool]

You really don’t want FlixTrain in the UK believe me. In Germany one of their franchise partners went into bankruptcy as FlixMobility did not pay them enough. For example during covid FlixMobility cancelled all their Flixtrains and their franchise partners did not get any money at all. Now that Flixbus entered the UK market better watch out for your other companies as Flixbus tents to destroy the market to become a monopolist.

[@linesided]

I don't know about the bus, but I'll offer you 100 bucks for that mega set of hair :)

[@keithparker1346]

Your comment cheered me up for some reason

[@garethsmith2250]

99p refund would cost you more in effort to get that refund

[@johnnyboy3949]

A flix train in the UK with say a class 87 and mk2 coaches with a DBSO on the rear would be amazing!!!!!

[@barrieshepherd7694]

I doubt if there are any MKII coaches in existence now - and even if there were they would probably fail mechanical inspection and safety approval as well as all the other approvals necessary (retention toilets, PA & Visual display systems, locking doors etc.)

[@iandrew6347]

Hi Young Sir

[@walterfillingham]

Unbelievable price, they go to Aberdeen, wish Inverness next as we only have Scottish Citylink which is run by the dreadful Stagecoach who have a monopoly in North Scotland snuffing out any competition whilst running a dreadful dismal service

[@Zuuu40]

Add subtitles to your videos

[@jameswoodward2641]

Belle vue will run 2 services soon ik cos I work there glad you liked the coach we do have a green one but was off

[@Abnerbandanovotempoinscrito1mi]

Boa tarde Dylan Boa viagem flysbus 0:42

[@arthurvasey]

Middlesbrough - not Middlesborough!

[@MartinBrez]

@FlixBus are shite. Tonight I was kept waiting at Leeds for two hours. 2 hour delay from Leeds to Nottm

[@servisquartz6676]

McGills operate the Flix service

[@RicciChoi1109]

I'd like ask that is Megabus also a low-cost coach operator, and is it as good as Flixbus? I'm interested in their transfer-free Manchester city centre to Heathrow Airport service. It would save me some money if I can get it to Heathrow by coach rather than flying the BA connecting flight...

[@harrisonsnazel7482]

A few things. Number 1. Are you coming down the country for every video. Number 2: Why was you speaking so quietly. Finally, Number 3 on the cards at the end of the video I am not mentioned. I have signed up for channel membership. Can you fix this when you have a chance, please

[@DylansTravelReports]

Hi, only Sleeper and First Class Patrons and Channel Members get their name features; 2nd Class is only ad-free access. I hope this helps 😁

[@harrisonsnazel7482]

@DylansTravelReports ok thank you. I didn't realise that I that I was second class and if there was first class on channel members. I know about first class and sleeper on patreon. It was too expensive after trying out first class, so I went back to the second class. Don't worry I am still supporting you

[@SteveSmithRailways]

£4.99.......that company is either getting subsidized or they are making a helluva loss. Only time will tell I guess.

[@jgsburnett9532]

Long distance coach travel in the UK is crazy cheap. I often use National Express from Swindon to Heathrow or London. From £4 one way to London. Often only a handful of passengers on board - even during a rail strike. I don't understand why there are not more.

[@GodAtum]

sometimes it not safe, especially using the night. lots of rapes and sexual assaults onboard

[@s125ish]

By who and what type of person

[@elijade99]

Please find one credible source for that accusation

[@buz_iness]

nah dude flixbus sucks. i did a 12 hours trip during the night from rome to milan and it s impossibile to sleep on them even with the recline. our seat sent from the ground a burning air, probably we were under the engine. we had bugs in the space between the window wall and the window (never saw such a creatures in 20 years of live and they were a colony). the bathroom was dirty, super small and there was no water. then it was the latest flixbus made and i expect to find wi fi on board but no there wasn t. btw i padroni 28 euros for this shit and as i already know: train>>>>>>everything

[@smurfman6377]

Very impressive. Taking a long distance bus in the U.S.A. id dreadful. Dirty, smelly. uncomfortable with the odar of un washed bodies, vomit and cheap wine.. a=At a much higher price. You can guess about the condition of the toilet. plus the police boarding to arrest a fleeing felon, or being robed, America is far behind the UK.

[@golledgestravels326]

A review of a coach journey which wasn't Flix despite the title. How irrelevant. Bit like reviewing Coca Cola whilst drinking Pepsi.

[@alang5764]

What a stupid comment. He clearly travelled with Flixbus.

[@amanda-we9fv]

but this is a flixbus service??

[@MattyMonk]

First! not