What It’s Like Taking the Night Bus from Calgary to Vancouver

April 28, 2025
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Did you know that you could take the night bus from Calgary to Vancouver and vice versa? I didn’t until recently. So, here is my full experience for anyone else finding themselves in this situation.

A week ago, I needed to get from Calgary to Vancouver pretty last-minute and flights had gotten super expensive. This was around the long Easter weekend, so lots of people were travelling.

I watched flight prices for a few days and while they did go down closer to the date of travel (sometimes that hack works, sometimes it backfires), they weren’t right for me. There are a few other ways to get from one city to the other, such as driving or taking the train, both of which would have cost me even more money than the flights.

In the end, I decided to go with my backup option – the bus. Specifically, the Rider Express bus which appears to be the only overnight bus from Calgary to Vancouver. The reason I wanted an overnight one was honestly to save a night on accommodation.

So, if you find yourself in a situation where you need to take the bus or simply like night buses (definitely let me know if that’s you, I’m fascinated), here is my entire experience taking the Rider Express night bus.

Table of Contents

My Experience with the Rider Express night bus from Calgary to Vancouver

Booking the bus

Booking the bus was pretty straightforward. You go to the website, select your departure and destination city and date and then choose the bus. For Calgary to Vancouver they have a day and a night bus. What I found surprising here is that you do not get assigned a seat. It is first come first serve – more on that later.

Website: Rider Express
Cost: $170.00 CAD with tax ($122/108€)
Travel time: 12.5-13.5 hours

Getting on the bus

I actually ended up getting on the bus in Canmore which is one stop after Calgary. The journey between the two takes about 50 minutes. My bus was 50 minutes late. I could follow its journey through a link they provided and it looked like it left on time but then just drove a circle around Vancouver, meaning it didn’t leave central Vancouver for over an hour.

It was a bit annoying as the bus was already scheduled for 11.40pm and pickup was at a gas station slightly outside of Canmore, so not the safest place to be hanging about with a bunch of luggage for 50 extra minutes. In Calgary they pick up by a mall, so it may be a little safer.

I was also worried as my ticket said one address (The Petro Canada station in Canmore) and one of the website links went to a different petrol station, but the address on my ticket was correct. So, the process of making it on the bus was definitely not seamless.

Once the bus arrived, the driver was nice and helped me with my luggage. The bus had a big Rider Express logo so even in the dark, it was super easy to spot.

Seating on the bus

One of the other things I was worried about was seating. As a female, solo traveller this is something I am always a bit wary of and having no reserved seats feels unsafe.

That being said, my bus had a maximum of 10 people on it, so there were so many seating options. It only got busier at around 6am the next day in Kamloops, and even then I had a whole row to myself. During busier months, this could certainly be an issue though, especially if getting on later.

The seats themselves were reclinable (a little at least) and pretty comfortable. Space was very average for a bus. There was a charger and technically Wi-Fi, though this only worked as long as there were only a couple of people on board.

My experience during the overnight ride

I have taken a lot of night buses in my time and unfortunately, this one was one where I slept the least. There were SO MANY stops (about one every hour) and every time the driver announced it loudly, turned the lights on and left the bus door open. The roads were also pretty rough at times which didn’t help.

I got some sleep between Lake Louise and Kamloops as we didn’t need to pick anyone up, but as a lighter sleeper, this was not a sleeper bus. There was also a lady on the phone at like 3am, so maybe night bus etiquette isn’t really a thing here.

There were also frequent longer breaks of about 25 minutes about every two hours, which I am assuming is the law for the drivers. Once again though, he did not let us sleep through those but turned lights on etc.

I did feel safe throughout the journey and the driver made sure everyone was back on the bus after breaks which was nice. There is also a toilet on the bus and every stop had toilets too.

Luggage and arrival

I got a luggage tag when I dropped of my luggage and it seemed the first driver enforced this and checked people had their bag. The second driver didn’t. In Vancouver, my bag was chucked on the street in a pretty dodgy area until I made it off the bus. Not my favourite way to deal with it, but I got my luggage back fine.

We did arrive on time at Vancouver Pacific Central Station.

My overall thoughts on the night bus with Rider Express

I thought the bus ride was okay for what I paid for it. I have been on plenty better (and worse) buses, I’d say this one was somewhere in the middle. I did not get much sleep but felt safe and there were plenty of snack and toilet breaks.

If you can find a cheaper flight, do that instead. Otherwise, it is an okay option that will get you to your destination and save a night of accommodation.

There are so many things to do in Canmore. From the hikes and trails mentioned in this article to great food spots to activities. In the winter that includes snowshoeing, nordic skiing, iceskating and more. In the summer, there are fishing trips, Lake Minnewaka cruises, cave tours and more.