A mitzvah weekend moves people in every direction: out-of-town family at a hotel block, the service at the synagogue, a party at a venue across town, and a group of thirteen-year-olds who all need to arrive at the same time and leave at the same time. Glyde runs guest shuttles for bar and bat mitzvahs across North Jersey, the five boroughs and Long Island — a clean executive mini coach or coach with a professional driver, sized to the people actually riding. One vehicle for the whole guest list or two running different legs, and a kids-only shuttle with a chaperone from your family. Rates run $200 to $300 per hour with a 5-hour minimum; the quote comes back within a day.
The three legs
Out-of-town guests picked up at one or two hotels before the service and dropped at the door. Nobody navigates an unfamiliar town on a Saturday morning or hunts for parking at the shul.
After the service and kiddush, the guest list moves together to the reception or party venue. One arrival, on time, instead of forty cars trickling in.
At the end of the night, the bus takes guests back to the hotel block. Grandparents, cousins who flew in, and anyone who had a glass of wine all get home the same way.
When the party is Saturday night and the service is Saturday morning, one booking often covers both. When legs overlap, a second vehicle runs them in parallel. We lay it out on the quote.
Classmates and friends
The most common request we get for a mitzvah is a bus for the kids: pickup at the school, the synagogue or one parent’s house, drop at the party, and a ride back at the end so parents are not running a carpool at 11 PM. A Sprinter takes up to 14, a mini bus up to 29, a mini coach up to 39.
A chaperone rides. On any vehicle carrying kids without their parents, one adult from your family or party rides along. The driver’s job is the road; the chaperone’s job is the group — headcount at each stop, who is getting off where, and the call to the driver if a pickup time moves. Tell us who that person is and the driver gets their number the night before.
Not a party bus. If you searched for an alternative to a party bus, this is it: forward-facing seats, a professional driver, a vehicle that looks right pulling up to a synagogue or a hotel entrance. Kids ride together and arrive together; the party happens at the party.
Set to your schedule
Most mitzvah shuttles run one of three ways: a Saturday-night party pickup that starts after sundown, a Saturday-morning hotel-to-synagogue run with a return after kiddush, or a Sunday celebration on a normal daytime clock. Tell us which legs need a bus and when the first guests need to be where; the schedule is built from that, not from a fixed start time. Winter Saturdays end early and summer Saturdays end late, so the evening pickup moves with the calendar.
Saturday is the same rate as any other day. The quote states the full window the bus is reserved — the drive to your first pickup, every leg, and the return — so there is nothing to work out on the night. The quote you approve is the invoice you get.
8 to 55 seats
Count the people riding each leg, not the guest list. A hotel block of 40 usually puts 25 to 30 on the bus; a class of 60 kids fills a full coach or two mini coaches.
| Vehicle | Seats | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Sprinter Van | 8–16 passengers | from $200/hr |
| Mini Bus | 23–29 passengers | $200–300/hr by size |
| Mini Coach | 35–39 passengers | $200–300/hr by size |
| Full Coach | 55 passengers | up to $300/hr |
Rates are $200 to $300 per hour by vehicle size with a 5-hour minimum per vehicle, billed garage-to-garage: the drive to your first pickup, every leg, the wait between them, and the return. Every quote includes 10% gratuity and a 5% fuel charge up front; tolls are itemized at cost. Days that run past 10 hours switch to a full-day rate. Exact per-vehicle rates are on the Pricing Guide.
Related: Private celebrations · Wedding guest shuttles · Fleet · New Jersey charters
Four steps
The date, the synagogue, the venue, the hotels, and how many people ride each leg. A rough schedule is enough to start; the kids-only run can be added later.
One itemized number: base hours, 10% gratuity and 5% fuel already in, tolls listed at cost. No account, no deposit to see it.
Approve the quote and place the deposit; the vehicle and driver are reserved. The balance is due seven days before the trip.
You get the driver’s name and cell by email the evening before, with every pickup restated. The chaperone on a kids-only run gets the same information.
FAQ
The date, the stops and how many ride each leg — that is all we need to price it.