Getting Here & Where to Stay
There are no hotels by the stadium, so figure out the sleep and the ride first. Everything else follows.
Highmark Stadium is in Orchard Park, about 10 miles south of downtown Buffalo, surrounded by parking lots and people's front yards. There is no hotel row out here. There's a Red Carpet Inn, and that's about it. So where you sleep and how you get to the game are really the same question, and if you settle both before you book anything else, the rest of the weekend takes care of itself.
Pick the area first and worry about the exact hotel second. My rule for out-of-towners is simple: stay near a Game Day Express stop or plan on driving. And book early. The hotels around here know exactly when the Chiefs are in town, and they price like it.
- Downtown Buffalo is where I send people who want a real weekend out of it. Restaurants, the breweries, Chippewa if that's your thing, and both the Game Day Express and Rally pick up downtown, so your car can sit all Sunday. Figure 25 minutes to the stadium.Essential
- Hamburg and Blasdell are the Southtowns cluster, 10 or 15 minutes from the lots, with a Game Day Express stop right at McKinley Mall. Nothing fancy down there, just chain hotels that happen to be closest to the stadium. They book out first for a reason.Essential
- The hotels by the airport and around the Galleria in Cheektowaga are usually the best deal, and the Thruway Mall shuttle stop is close. Call it 25 or 30 minutes to Orchard Park, most of it on the 90.
- West Seneca and Lackawanna get overlooked, which is sort of the point. From there you can sneak down the back way and skip most of the Thruway mess.Pro Tip
- East Aurora is the prettiest option, 15 or 20 minutes out, and it's where the original Bar-Bill is. Small inns instead of big hotels. If the trip is half about the game and half about seeing Buffalo, stay here.
- One hotel is walking distance from the stadium, the Red Carpet Inn, and I'll just say it has earned its price point. If any other game-weekend rate looks too good to be true, read the last ten reviews before you book. Ask me how I know.Pro Tip
If you're flying in, rent a car. That's the advice. The bus is a solid plan B. Rideshare is how visitors end up standing on Abbott Road in the dark, watching their driver cancel.
- A rental gives you the day on your own terms. Get out early, tailgate out of the trunk, leave when the lot clears, hit Bar-Bill on the way back. The lawns and private lots take $20 to $60 in cash.Essential
- The Game Day Express is $5 one-way, paid with exact cash or the Token Transit app. Seven pickup spots: downtown Buffalo, Niagara Falls, University Station, Thruway Mall, Eastern Hills Mall, McKinley Mall, and Athol Springs. Buses start 2-3 hours before kickoff and head back starting about 30 minutes after the game ends. The new hub is on Abbott Road directly across from the Family Circle entrance, which drops you closer than half the parking does. Routes and times at metro.nfta.comEssential
- Rally (rally.co) is the official fan shuttle now. Actual coach buses with bathrooms, an app that shows where your bus is, and pickups downtown plus Toronto, Hamilton, and Syracuse. It costs more than the NFTA bus. Worth it if door-to-door matters to you.
- Getting dropped off by Uber works fine. Getting picked up is the problem. After the game you're competing with thousands of people for the same handful of drivers, surge pricing does what it does, and an hour wait is normal. If it's your only option, walk 15 or 20 minutes away from the stadium before you request.Pro Tip
- Driving yourself? Be there at least 2.5 or 3 hours early, stay right on Abbott or Big Tree, and have cash for the lawn lots. However long you think the walk in takes, it's longer.
BUF is a genuinely easy airport, and it's close.
- The stadium is about 20 minutes from the airport on a normal day. On a Sunday, give it 90 to be safe.Essential
- Security at BUF moves. Locals roll in an hour before a flight and feel early. Don't build LAX time into your plans.
- The question everyone asks: can you make an evening flight after a 1:00 game? Yes, if you rented a car and you're disciplined about leaving. Out of the lot by 4:45, back at BUF by 6:00, and an 8:30 departure is comfortable. Booking anything before 7:30 is a gamble, especially this season while everybody is still learning the new traffic patterns.Pro Tip
- Check Rochester fares too. ROC is a little over an hour away, and sometimes the savings covers your rental.Nice to Have
The Bills have been Canada's team as long as I've been going to games. Every home crowd has a healthy chunk of Ontario in it.
- Rally runs gameday coaches from Toronto and Hamilton straight to the stadium, which is the easiest way down from the Golden Horseshoe. Book at rally.co.Essential
- Driving down? Peace Bridge or Lewiston-Queenston, and pad an extra hour for the border on game days. Passport or NEXUS. And know your duty limits on the way home, because they will absolutely ask about the trunk full of Bills gear.Essential
- A play a lot of Ontario folks run: cross early, park on the US side in Niagara Falls, and catch the Game Day Express from the Niagara Falls stop. $5 each way beats stadium parking.Pro Tip
- Cross in the morning, eat wings in between, and let the border line die down before you head back at night. You probably know this already.Nice to Have
Got the trip sorted?
Run the planner for a personalized gameday timeline, and grab the checklist so you don't leave the hand warmers at the hotel.