Transportation options:
Air Travel:  Detroit by air is an easy trip from most Midwest cities. The Detroit Metropolitan airport is a hub center for Northwest Airlines and is serviced by most major carriers. Check out their website at: www.metroairport.com/links/. Transportation services are available from the airport to the Atheneum Hotel. The airport is located 18 miles west of downtown Detroit. More information about these options will be forthcoming.

Travel by Train. Detroit is serviced by Amtrak. Several trains run on a daily basis from Chicago to downtown Detroit, with stops in several cities in the southeastern portion of the state. If you are looking for an affordable option from Northern Ohio, Indiana or Illinois, you may want to visit the Amtrak web site at: www.amtrak.com. You may be able to drive to one of the stations, park your car and take the train to the downtown Detroit station. From there it is a short cab ride to the conference hotel.

Travel by Car: Home of the automotive industry, Detroit is well serviced by major highways in and out of the city. Detroit is an approximately 5 hour drive from Chicago, 3 hours from Cleveland, Ohio, 5 hours from Cincinnati, Ohio and  approximately  4 hours from Indianapolis,  Indiana. 

Travel by Megabus: Megabus is an economical way to travel when going great distances. A roundtrip ticket from Union Station in Chicago to Grand Circus Park in Detroit was $9 when selected on 7/7/08. However, the cost of the ticket increased to $18 when selected on 7/21/08. This is proof that the sooner you purchase/reserve your seat, the more inexpensive it is. Megabus is ticketless and reservations can only be made from their website (megabus.com). When you make a reservation for a megabus.com trip you are given a reservation number. Take this with you and present it to the driver when you travel…it’s as simple as that! Please note: reservations can be changed (at least 24 hours in advance), but cannot be refunded.

Additional Megabus information:

Departure times
Approximate travel times offered each day: 8:30am and 4:30pm
The cost of a morning reservation is approximately half the cost of the afternoon fare.

Travel time
The approximate time the trip would take from Union Station in Chicago to Grand Circus Park in Detroit is 5.5 hours.

Luggage Standards
Megabus.com will accept up to one piece of luggage per passenger.  This should be no more than the size of a standard suitcase and should not weigh more than 50 pounds.  Passengers can also take on board one small piece of luggage that fits in an overhead storage compartment. 

How to get to Atheneum Hotel from Grand Circus Park
Option 1: People mover (Grand Circus Park-stop 13 to Greektown-stop 10), cost $0.50
Option 2: Cab (Checker cab-313.963.7000 or Yellow cab-313.961.3333), est. cost for
traveling from Grand Circus to Atheneum Hotel $8.21

Additional questions
You can also reach megabus.com customer service by calling 877-GO2-MEGA (877-462-6342) between 6:30 AM and 10:00 PM CST Mon - Sat, or 6:30 AM and 8:00 PM CST on Sundays