Things To Know Before You Go

Congratulations, you reserved a motorcoach with Windstar Lines! Below is some information to help you prepare for your transportation.

*Provide an itinerary as early as possible prior to your departure date. (21 days prior is preferred.)

What information do I need to put in an itinerary?

Time, date, and location you would like the motorcoach to arrive to pick up your group.
Time you plan to depart and arrive for each event.
Name of all of your stops for the duration of your transportation, including: hotels, attractions, and restaurants.
Times of all of your stops for the duration of your transportation, including: pick up time, hotels, attractions, restaurants, and time you plan on returning home.
Point of contact name and cell phone number riding the motorcoach. This would be a person that the driver can stay in contact with for the duration of your transportation.

Information to tell your driver:

Will you need the motorcoach with you the entire time or will the driver have some down time that they will not be needed?
Do you have any passengers with a particular special need?
Is there anything in particular the driver should know about the group?

Make sure your driver is taken care of:

Did you book the driver’s room? Keep in mind, if there is more than 1 bus, each driver will require their own hotel room. (Example: If there are 2 motorcoaches, 2 individual driver rooms are needed)
When booking hotels for your group, make sure the hotel has adequate parking for a 45-foot long motorcoach. In downtown locations such as Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, or San Francisco, this is very important. Keep in mind the travel distance from the driver’s hotel to the group’s hotel may affect the price and the driver’s available hours of service.
Your driver’s name and phone number will be available 24 hours prior to departure in most cases.
Tipping your driver: a gratuity to the driver for a job well done is very much appreciated. A rule of thumb is 10% of the trip cost or $2 per person, per day of the trip.

Plan ahead with drive times:

Department of Transportation hours of service allow a driver to drive 10 hours in a day, which will equate to 500 miles, if there is no side touring. The driver may only be able to drive 300 miles if there is a lot of extra driving or shuttling. If the driver were to exceed 10 hours, a relief driver may be required. If your trip requires a relief driver, please allow 30 minutes for any relief driver switch.
Windstar Lines motorcoaches are governed at 68 mph. Google Maps is an excellent tool, but keep in mind the travel time is designed for automobiles traveling the speed limit. A good rule of thumb is to allow 10% more time than Google Maps states. (Also, to get an idea of bus travel time, for every 8 hours of travel on Google maps, add 1 hour)
If your trip has you traveling into Canada, please know that Canada has different driver’s hours of service laws than the United States does. Talk with your Account Specialist about how this may affect your trip.

Motorcoach Amenities:

DVD players are available on all motorcoaches; feel free to bring along some movies to watch. The DVD players play standard DVDs, no blue-ray discs.
WIFI service is available for a small fee, but reception may be limited in certain areas of travel. WIFI service is not allowed on trips going into Canada or within 50 miles of the Canadian border.
Select coaches are equipped with advanced WIFI and Movies on Demand. Additional fees apply – be sure to ask your Sales Rep if interested.

Things to Avoid:

Driving on dirt or gravel roads is not acceptable without special permission from your Account Specialist. Please bring this up at the time of booking if you think your group may need to travel down a gravel road.
Alcohol is not allowed on the motorcoach without special permission. Please check with your Sales Agent prior to booking to discuss how this can be handled.

Questions?

Feel free to contact your Account Specialist or visit with Dispatch. 888-494-6378 or info@gowindstar.com. We look forward to serving you!