Minnetonka Charter Bus Rental FAQs
About Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com
Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com is an advertising and quote comparison website that lets you compare bus rental options and pricing from a network of bus companies serving Minnetonka through a national booking company. Fill out one quick form and you are taken straight to a results page showing vehicles, packages, and pricing for your actual trip — No waiting for callbacks to get pricing, no account, and no calling five different companies to get five different answers. Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com is an advertising and referral website and does not own or operate vehicles. What it does is put your request in front of a whole network of providers so you see more options and better pricing than you would find on your own.
No — Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com is a comparison and referral website. You use it to compare vehicles and pricing from a network of independently owned bus companies serving the Minnetonka area, and the transportation itself is carried out by those independent operators. Think of it as the fastest way to see what is available for your specific trip: you share your details once, the network responds with many options, and you choose the vehicle that fits the group.
The company that carries out the trip is confirmed once the booking is made.
When you search on your own, you call one company, get one price, and hope they have something available. With Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com, you fill out one form or make one call to 651-333-4235 and you are looking at vehicles and pricing from a whole network of providers serving Minnetonka in seconds. More options, different price points, and no waiting on callbacks.
Companies in the network are competing for the booking, which works in your favor. That is the difference between one yard and a whole market.
An independently owned transportation company serving Minnetonka. Once you submit your trip details, you are taken to a national booking platform where you choose the vehicle that suits the trip — a specific bus at a specific price. What you are choosing is a vehicle, not picking a company off a list.
The transportation company assigned to the booking is confirmed to you after the reservation is made. The platform works with different operators serving the area so there is more than one option to compare.
Booking a Charter Bus
Fill out the form on this page — or call 651-333-4235 — with your pickup location, destination, date, group size, and trip times. As soon as you submit, you are taken to a search results page on a national booking company's website. That booking company partners with independent operators serving the Minnetonka area, and their site shows you what is available for your trip.
What you are choosing there is a vehicle and a price. Book the one that works for your group directly on their site, and you are done.
At minimum: your pickup city, where you are going, how many people are riding, and how many hours you need the bus. That gets you a quote. The more detail you add — your specific stops, start and end times, any luggage or equipment, and the amenities the group needs — the more accurate the quote comes back and the better the match between your trip and the vehicles that come up.
More detail means fewer surprises.
Right away — there is no waiting on a callback. As soon as you submit the form, you go straight to the search results page on the booking company's site and see pricing for your actual trip immediately. You are not filling out a contact form and waiting for someone to call you back the next morning.
If you would rather go through it with someone, call 651-333-4235 and a live agent will walk you through the options.
The earlier the better for a popular date, and a larger group or a specific vehicle type goes further ahead. That said, because Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com puts your request in front of a whole network of providers serving the area rather than one operator with one yard, short-notice trips are often still workable — and that is a real advantage over calling a single company and being told no. Submit the request or call 651-333-4235 even on short notice.
The network has more to offer than any one fleet, and you will know what is available in seconds rather than after a round of phone tag.
All of those can be requested. Hourly or as-directed keeps the vehicle with the group for a block of time — useful when the itinerary is not fully fixed or the group needs the bus on standby. A one-way transfer moves the group from one point to another.
A round trip brings them back. A multi-stop itinerary runs a set route with several stops in sequence — a brewery loop around Lake Minnetonka, a wedding shuttle between a hotel and a venue, a team trip with multiple pickup points. A multi-day booking covers a trip that runs across more than one day, like a charter to Chicago or a group heading up the North Shore to Duluth.
Which format fits depends entirely on the trip, and a multi-stop or overnight itinerary should be laid out in full with the request so the quote comes back timed and priced correctly.
Charter Bus Pricing
A charter bus costs $205–$385+ per hour on weekdays, $225–$410+ per hour on weekends, and $1,650–$2,950+ per day. Those are the ranges — your actual price depends on the bus type and size, the date, the route, and how long the vehicle is in service. A Vikings game-day shuttle from Minnetonka to U.S. Bank Stadium on a Sunday afternoon prices differently than a Wednesday airport run to Minneapolis-Saint Paul International (MSP).
The ranges are where to start, not where to stop. Fill out the form and see pricing for your actual trip in seconds, or call 651-333-4235 — going through the trip with someone can surface packages and options you would not find on your own.
It depends on the trip, and all three are used. A short run of a couple of hours — say, a round-trip shuttle between Minnetonka and downtown Minneapolis for a Twins game at Target Field — is usually priced hourly. A trip that covers real distance, roughly past the 100-to-200-mile mark or heading well out of the metro, may carry a per-mile charge instead.
A long day, generally around eight hours or more, often comes back as a day rate rather than stacked hours, simply because the vehicle is booked for so much of the day. Submitting the actual trip is what determines which structure applies — the form captures enough detail to price it correctly.
The type and size of bus, how long it is booked for, the date and day of the week, the distance and route, the number of stops, and how busy that date is locally all move the quote. Sunday through Thursday prices lower than Friday and Saturday. Daytime prices lower than those same nights.
Booking the size the group actually needs beats over-booking capacity. And grouping riders into one or two pickup points in Minnetonka instead of five separate stops cuts the hours on the clock — and the price with it. On the demand side, summer weekends near Lake Minnetonka, prom weeks in late April and May across Minnetonka and the surrounding school districts, Vikings home Sundays at U.S. Bank Stadium, and the 12 days of the Minnesota State Fair in late August and early September are the stretches when the whole western suburbs market gets taken early and pricing reflects it.
Book those dates ahead. Every other date, submit the trip and see what comes back.
About Charter Buses
A charter bus is a full-size passenger coach that a group hires for its own trip — its own route, its own schedule, its own pickup and drop-off points — rather than riding a fixed public route. It is built for moving a large group over a distance in one vehicle and seats roughly 40 to 56 people depending on the make and model.
Outside, a full-size charter bus is a tall coach body — high windows running the length of both sides, luggage bay doors along the underside, and a smooth exterior that runs about 45 feet from bumper to bumper. The finish is usually white, silver, black, or a solid color, though some coaches are wrapped in an operator's own graphics, so the vehicle that shows up will not always look the same. Inside, you are looking at forward-facing seats arranged in pairs on either side of a center aisle.
Seat fabric is cloth or leather depending on the make and model — a Prevost H3-45 tends toward a more finished interior than a standard MCI J4500 in fleet configuration, though both run the same basic layout. Overhead parcel racks run the full length of the cabin, and a restroom sits toward the rear. The interior is designed for a group that is going somewhere together, not for sightseeing through the windows.
Some of the amenities available on charter buses include reclining cloth or leather seats, individual climate controls, onboard restrooms, overhead parcel racks, undercarriage baggage bays, WiFi, power outlets and USB charging ports, a PA system with a wireless microphone, and TV monitors. Features may include any of those depending on the make, model, and operator — what a specific coach carries is confirmed during booking rather than guaranteed across the board. If the group needs a particular amenity, note it with the trip details when you submit the request.
That narrows the vehicles that come back to the ones actually equipped for the trip.
Generally 40 to 56 passengers, depending on the make and model, with 56 the most common build on a full-size coach. The MCI J4500 seats 56 as standard and is built for up to 60. The Van Hool CX45 is the same — 56 standard and up to 60.
The Prevost H3-45 seats 56. Shorter 35-foot coaches seat closer to 44. What changes the count on the same coach is configuration: extra legroom takes seats out, and a wheelchair position does the same.
Because Minnetonkacharterbuscompany.com works with a network of providers, the exact coach on any given trip depends on what is available for the date and route. Submit the trip or call 651-333-4235 if the group needs a specific capacity confirmed.
A 56-passenger coach runs 14 rows, with two seats on each side of a center aisle — forward-facing, paired seating, one aisle down the middle. The row count drops on coaches built with extra legroom or a wheelchair position, since those configurations take space that would otherwise hold a full row. Some coaches tier the front rows slightly for the view, which does not change the seat count but changes how the front of the cabin feels.
A full-size charter bus is 45 feet long and 8.5 feet wide. To put that in terms most people can picture: roughly three cars parked end to end. That is the number to keep in mind if the group is working out whether a coach fits a particular loading area or venue approach.
Shorter coaches exist — most commonly around 35 feet — and those are sometimes the better call when the route involves tighter urban streets or a venue with limited staging space. The 45-foot coach is the standard full-size vehicle.
A full-size charter bus stands about 11 to 12 feet tall depending on the model, and traffic engineers design for 12 feet as the standard clearance. A useful comparison: a little taller than a single story of a house. That is the number to check against any parking structure, covered loading bay, or low bridge on the route.
If the trip involves a venue with a covered entrance or an underground garage, the clearance is worth confirming before the coach arrives.
WiFi is one of the amenities available on charter buses, and many coaches on the road are equipped with it. One thing worth knowing before the trip: onboard WiFi runs off a cellular connection and is built for light use across a full coach — phones, messaging, and browsing — not for 50 or 60 people doing heavy work simultaneously. It is an equipment option a coach is built with rather than something every coach carries, so whether a given vehicle has it varies by make, model, and operator.
If the group needs WiFi, note it with the trip details when you submit the request. That filters the results toward coaches that are actually equipped with it.
Yes — an onboard restroom is standard on full-size charter buses. It sits toward the rear of the coach. The honest expectation: it is there so the group does not have to stop every hour, and on a long run the trip is still usually planned with real rest stops along the way.
If an onboard restroom matters for the trip — a long haul up to Duluth or a charter to Chicago — note it with the trip details so the right vehicle is matched to the group.
Yes — charter buses are built with 110-volt AC power outlets, and coaches are commonly fitted with them at every seat, some with a USB port built into the same outlet. This is an equipment option rather than something every coach carries, so it varies by vehicle. In practical terms, a group can keep phones and laptops charged across a long run without hunting for a plug.
If the group needs outlets — a corporate trip, a student group with devices, a long-distance charter — note it with the trip details when you submit the request.
Yes, in two places: overhead parcel racks inside the coach, and undercarriage baggage bays underneath it. A full-size coach carries roughly 460 cubic feet of underfloor baggage space and around 100 cubic feet in the overhead racks. Across a full 56-passenger load, that works out to roughly 8 cubic feet per person underneath and under 2 cubic feet overhead — in practice, about one checked-size bag each below plus one small carry-on above.
What changes that math: a coach fitted with a wheelchair lift gives up some baggage bay space, and bulky gear like instruments, sports equipment, or event supplies takes the space of several standard bags. A group heading to a tournament, a wedding with décor, or a multi-day trip with full luggage should state that with the trip details so the right coach is matched to the load. The undercarriage bays are the real workhorse — the overhead racks are for day bags and small items, not checked luggage.
Charter Bus Service in Minnetonka, Minnesota
Any group that needs to move together. Airport transfers to and from Minneapolis-Saint Paul International (MSP) are one of the most common requests — one bus handles the whole party instead of a caravan of cars on I-494. Corporate travel and employee shuttles serve the major employers along the Minnetonka and Eden Prairie corridors.
Weddings and private events use shuttle loops between hotel blocks and Lake Minnetonka venues. Concerts and sporting events at U.S. Bank Stadium, Target Center, and Target Field pull strong demand from the western suburbs. School and church group trips, government and military moves, brewery and winery tours around Lake Minnetonka and the surrounding area, prom, and long-distance travel to Chicago, Wisconsin Dells, Duluth, and beyond are all handled through the network.
If the group is going somewhere together, there is a bus for it.
The network serves Minnetonka and the surrounding western suburbs, including Wayzata, Plymouth, Eden Prairie, Hopkins, Minnetrista, Excelsior, Chaska, and Minneapolis. Those are examples, not the edge of the coverage area. Enter the full route in the quote form or call 651-333-4235 to check a city that is not listed — the network covers a wide area and short-notice routes outside the immediate suburbs are often still workable.
A few dates pull the whole western suburbs market at once. Minnesota State Fair runs 12 days ending Labor Day — late August through Labor Day weekend — and demand for bus transportation from Minnetonka and the surrounding suburbs is enormous for all 12 days. Vikings home Sundays at U.S. Bank Stadium run September through January and consistently take the market early.
Prom season across Minnetonka, Hopkins, Wayzata, Eden Prairie, and the surrounding school districts falls in late April and May, and the whole cluster of dates books out fast. Wedding season on Lake Minnetonka runs June through September, with the most in-demand venues booked 12 to 18 months out. Graduation in May and June, the Wayzata 4th of July celebration on Lake Minnetonka, and New Year's Eve round out the calendar.
On any of those dates, the practical move is to book as far ahead as possible. Short-notice requests are still worth submitting — the network has more options than any single operator — but the earlier, the better.
Planning Your Minnetonka, Minnesota Charter Bus Trip
The primary airport for Minnetonka is Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) (4300 Glumack Dr, St. Paul, MN 55111), approximately 18 miles and 25 to 35 minutes southeast of Minnetonka via I-494. MSP is a major hub served by most national carriers and handles the overwhelming majority of commercial group travel to and from the area. It operates two terminals: Terminal 1 (Lindbergh) and Terminal 2 (Humphrey).
For a charter bus pickup, the coach meets the group outside the terminal at the designated area that MSP designates for buses and larger commercial vehicles, following the airport's own ground transportation guidelines. Have everyone together with luggage in hand before calling the bus forward — that keeps the pickup clean and on schedule. I-494 eastbound runs heavy during morning rush (7–9 AM) and afternoon rush (4–6:30 PM), so build in an extra 15 to 30 minutes on those runs.
The major venues serving Minnetonka groups are all in Minneapolis and St. Paul, a short drive east. U.S. Bank Stadium (401 Chicago Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55415) is home to the Minnesota Vikings and approximately 18 miles from Minnetonka. Charter bus drop-off runs on 4th Street S between Chicago Ave and 11th Ave S, with buses staging off-site during the game.
Target Center (600 First Ave N, Minneapolis, MN 55403) hosts the Timberwolves and Lynx, with bus drop-off on the 6th Street N side. Target Field (1 Twins Way, Minneapolis, MN 55403) is home to the Minnesota Twins, with charter bus drop-off on 5th Street N and bus parking in Ramp B or Ramp C arranged in advance. Grand Casino Arena (199 W Kellogg Blvd, St. Paul, MN 55102), formerly Xcel Energy Center, hosts the Minnesota Wild.
Traffic on I-394 and I-94 tightens significantly around all of these venues on event days — build in extra time, and plan the pickup window before the post-game rush hits.
The Minneapolis Convention Center (1301 2nd Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55403) is the primary large-scale convention and trade show venue for the region, approximately 18 miles east of Minnetonka, with bus loading on the 13th Street S side. Mystic Lake Center (2400 Mystic Lake Blvd NW, Prior Lake, MN 55372) is a major convention and entertainment venue attached to Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, approximately 25 miles south, hosting concerts, conventions, and trade shows. For local civic events, the Minnetonka Community Center (14600 Minnetonka Blvd, Minnetonka, MN 55345) serves the immediate area.
Large venues have designated bus loading areas separate from the main guest entrance — a repeat shuttle between a hotel and a convention venue should have its full schedule laid out with the request so it comes back timed and priced correctly.
Yes, any wedding venue in the area. The Lake Minnetonka corridor has some of the most in-demand venues in the Twin Cities metro. Minnetonka Orchards (18260 Apple Rd, Minnetrista, MN 55364) is a rustic barn and orchard venue on the water.
Lord Fletcher's on the Lake (3746 Sunset Dr, Spring Park, MN 55384) is a waterfront dining and event venue on Lake Minnetonka's south shore. Wayzata Country Club (200 Wayzata Blvd E, Wayzata, MN 55391) sits lakeside in Wayzata. Baker Near the Lake (2935 Park Rd, Maple Plain, MN 55359) is a barn and outdoor venue about 12 miles west.
The most common wedding transportation setup is a shuttle loop between the hotel room block and the venue — guests get picked up, delivered, and returned without anyone managing their own car on a summer Saturday night on Lake Minnetonka. Give the exact venue address with the request and the right vehicle gets matched to the route.
Minnetonka School District (ISD 276) is the primary district, with Minnetonka High School (18301 Highway 7, Minnetonka, MN 55345) as the main secondary campus along with Minnetonka Middle School East, Minnetonka Middle School West, and several elementary schools. Adjacent districts including Hopkins (ISD 270) and Wayzata (ISD 284) are also served. For higher education, Normandale Community College (9700 France Ave S, Bloomington, MN 55431) is approximately 12 miles southeast, and the University of Minnesota main campus is approximately 20 miles east in Minneapolis.
Field trips and team travel are typically pickups at the school or campus itself. Student trips should include the exact headcount plus any chaperone or accessibility needs with the request — that gets the right size and configuration matched to the group.
The Lake Minnetonka area has a strong local circuit. Wayzata Brew Works (294 E Lake St, Wayzata, MN 55391) is about 5 miles north of central Minnetonka. Excelsior Brewing Company (421 3rd St, Excelsior, MN 55331) is about 8 miles west on the lake's south shore.
Steel Toe Brewing (4848 W 35th St, St. Louis Park, MN 55416) is about 8 miles east, a common addition to a western suburbs brewery loop. For wine, Schram Winery (8785 Airport Rd, Waconia, MN 55387) is about 18 miles southwest — a popular half-day trip. For casino nights, Mystic Lake Casino Hotel is about 25 miles south and is the largest casino in Minnesota.
A multi-stop route is timed by how long the group stays at each stop — list the stops and how long at each one when you submit the request, and the hours and the price come back accurately.
Yes. Groups travel regularly from Minnetonka to Chicago (approximately 410 miles, 6 to 6.5 hours via I-90/I-94), Milwaukee (approximately 340 miles, 5 hours via I-94), Wisconsin Dells (approximately 250 miles, 3.5 to 4 hours — a popular waterpark destination), Duluth (approximately 155 miles, 2.5 hours via I-35 for North Shore trips and fall color tours), and Des Moines (approximately 245 miles, 3.5 to 4 hours via I-35). Closer, Mall of America in Bloomington (approximately 15 miles south) is a common group shopping trip.
A long-distance trip is usually booked as a one-way transfer or a multi-day trip rather than by the hour. Overnight trips need the full itinerary — departure time, stops, overnight location, and return — laid out with the request so the quote comes back correctly. Call 651-333-4235 for any multi-day trip and an agent will work through the details with you.