RouteRider
US Midwest · Megabus hub

Des Moines

Des Moines's intercity terminal is east of downtown, near the Iowa Events Center. Megabus operates 27 outbound corridors and 27 inbound from Des Moines, with most departures clustered in early morning and early evening windows.

Outbound corridors
27
Inbound corridors
27
Population
214,133
Region
US Midwest

The Megabus stop in Des Moines

Des Moines Greyhound Station on Cherry Street. This is the primary Megabus boarding location in Des Moines. DART buses connect the terminal across the metro.

Plan to arrive at the curbside boarding location 15 to 20 minutes before scheduled departure. Megabus boards in line order at most stops; first in line gets first pick of unassigned seats. Reserved-seating tickets allow you to board at any time during the boarding window but do not change the queue rules at the curb.

What makes Des Moines a Megabus hub

Des Moines ranks among the top 24 Megabus cities in North America by route count. The hub has Megabus connections to 27 direct destinations, with the most-frequent corridors running multiple daily departures.

The hub is particularly useful as a transfer point — many travelers booking longer trips combine two Megabus segments through Des Moines rather than waiting for a direct overnight bus. Most onward connections at the Des Moines Greyhound Station on Cherry Street have at least 30 minutes between scheduled arrival and the next outbound departure, which is enough time to switch coaches but not enough to leave the boarding area.

For travelers connecting through Des Moines on multi-leg trips, several multi-modal trip-planning tools can flag tighter connections and suggest alternative carriers if a Megabus segment runs late.

Top departures from Des Moines

The most frequent Megabus corridors out of Des Moines, sorted by daily departure count:

Des Moines → Ames
from$5.50 1h 2m 14×/day
Des Moines → Osceola
from$6.00 1h 12m 14×/day
Des Moines → Lamoni
from$7.00 1h 48m 13×/day
Des Moines → Bethany (MO)
from$8.00 2h 18m 13×/day
Des Moines → Cedar Rapids
from$8.50 2h 31m 13×/day
Des Moines → Clear Lake (IA)
from$9.00 2h 35m 13×/day
Des Moines → Iowa City
from$9.00 2h 35m 13×/day
Des Moines → Omaha
from$9.50 2h 51m 13×/day
Des Moines → Albert Lea
from$11 3h 17m 12×/day
Des Moines → Davenport
from$11 3h 35m 12×/day
Des Moines → Owatonna
from$12 3h 54m 12×/day
Des Moines → Kansas City
from$12 4h 12×/day
Des Moines → Peoria
from$14 4h 48m 12×/day
Des Moines → Burnsville
from$14 4h 49m 12×/day
Des Moines → Saint Paul
from$15 5h 6m 11×/day
Des Moines → Minneapolis
from$15 5h 7m 11×/day
Des Moines → Champaign
from$18 6h 24m 11×/day
Des Moines → Chicago
from$18 6h 37m 11×/day
Des Moines → Tulsa
from$22 8h 20m 10×/day
Des Moines → Bloomington (IN)
from$23 8h 36m 9×/day
Des Moines → Indianapolis
from$23 8h 38m 9×/day
Des Moines → Mount Pleasant
from$25 9h 50m 9×/day
Des Moines → Canton
from$33 13h 12m 7×/day
Des Moines → Danville
from$42 17h 8m 5×/day
Des Moines → Monroe
from$49 20h 21m 3×/day
Des Moines → Burlington (VT)
from$51 21h 21m 2×/day
Des Moines → Quincy
from$56 23h 38m 2×/day

Inbound corridors

Megabus runs 27 inbound corridors arriving at Des Moines. The most frequent inbound origins:

Ames → Des Moines
from$5.50 1h 2m 14×/day
Osceola → Des Moines
from$6.00 1h 12m 14×/day
Lamoni → Des Moines
from$7.00 1h 48m 13×/day
Bethany (MO) → Des Moines
from$8.00 2h 18m 13×/day
Cedar Rapids → Des Moines
from$8.50 2h 31m 13×/day
Clear Lake (IA) → Des Moines
from$9.00 2h 35m 13×/day
Iowa City → Des Moines
from$9.00 2h 35m 13×/day
Omaha → Des Moines
from$9.50 2h 51m 13×/day
Albert Lea → Des Moines
from$11 3h 17m 12×/day
Davenport → Des Moines
from$11 3h 35m 12×/day
Owatonna → Des Moines
from$12 3h 54m 12×/day
Kansas City → Des Moines
from$12 4h 12×/day
Peoria → Des Moines
from$14 4h 48m 12×/day
Burnsville → Des Moines
from$14 4h 49m 12×/day
Saint Paul → Des Moines
from$15 5h 6m 11×/day
Minneapolis → Des Moines
from$15 5h 7m 11×/day
Champaign → Des Moines
from$18 6h 24m 11×/day
Chicago → Des Moines
from$18 6h 37m 11×/day
If you ride out of Des Moines regularly, a city-specific transit reference for Des Moines intercity coaches covers parking near the stop, the nearest restrooms, and where to wait dry on rainy days.

How fares work at this hub

Megabus uses dynamic pricing that starts at a $1 floor and rises in tiers as seats sell. The same seat on the same route can be sold at five or six different prices depending on when it is booked. For routes out of Des Moines, the floor fare is most often available 60 to 90 days before departure, with mid-week and Saturday-morning departures the easiest to lock in cheap.

For step-by-step fare-timing strategy, see the Cheap Fares Calendar. For a primer on the Megabus boarding flow, see the first-time rider guide.