Scotiabank Arena is next to Union Station, so a GO train from Hamilton gets you to the door cheaply. The problem is the ride home: concerts and overtime games often end close to or after the last convenient Lakeshore West train, and the platforms are packed. For a group or a late finish, a booked car home ($270–330 sedan, 68 km) or an hourly chauffeur is the calmer choice.
GO train to Scotiabank Arena: why it looks perfect
Scotiabank Arena, home of the Maple Leafs, the Raptors and most big Toronto arena concerts, shares a block with Union Station; you can walk from the GO concourse to the arena doors without crossing a street. From Hamilton, that makes the GO train the obvious way in: no Gardiner traffic before the show, no event parking. The trip home is where it goes wrong. Our Hamilton to Union Station limo page prices the car option in both directions: a business sedan is a planning range of $270–330 all-in plus HST, about 68 km and 50–75 minutes. This post weighs the two honestly, for concerts, games and the other venues near the waterfront.
The ride in: easy by train
Take a Lakeshore West train from West Harbour, Aldershot or, on the right weekday trips, Hamilton GO Centre, and aim to arrive at Union 60 to 90 minutes before doors: the arena bag check and security lines grow quickly for big shows. Eat near the station or on the concourse rather than trying to get a table on Front Street at 7 p.m. If you are driving to a Hamilton station, arrive early; station lots fill on event days too. Check the event date on the Scotiabank Arena calendar and the train times on GO Transit.
The ride home: the real question
Three things work against the train after a show:
- The finish time. A concert with an opener often ends around 11 p.m., later with an encore; a hockey game with overtime or a shootout can run long. Many Hamilton-bound trips thin out late in the evening, and after the last train the corridor switches to slower GO buses.
- The crowd. Twenty thousand people leave at once and a large share heads for Union. Platforms fill, and you may not make the first train even if you run.
- The last leg. A train to West Harbour or Aldershot at midnight still leaves you with a ride home, up the Mountain or out to Ancaster.
Our post on the last GO train to Hamilton explains how the evening service tapers and what the late buses do.
Cost per person: train vs car
| Group | GO both ways | GO in, booked sedan home | Hourly sedan whole evening |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | Lowest by far | Sedan $270–330 all-in + HST | 5–6 h at $120–145/h |
| 2 people | Low | About $135–165 each for the ride home | Split two ways |
| 4 people | Low, plus 4 last legs | About $68–83 each for the ride home | Split four ways |
| 6 people | Low, plus 6 last legs | Executive SUV, about 65 % more, split six ways | SUV $190–235/h, split six ways |
Our figures are planning ranges before HST; GO fares are set by GO, so check them. The pattern is clear: alone, take the train and plan the backup; in a group of four or more, a car home costs little more per person than the hassle is worth.
Plan A: GO in, booked car home
This is the most popular hybrid. You take the train in, enjoy the show, and a car waits for you afterwards. The trick is the pickup point. Do not try to meet a car on Bay Street as the arena empties; traffic barely moves. Book the pickup a short walk away, west toward York Street or at the Union Station Bus Terminal level on Bay Street, where the chauffeur can load quickly. Our guide to Union Station pickups explains each exit. Book the time as your best estimate of the finish plus 20 minutes; the chauffeur holds nearby, and you message when you are at the door.
Plan B: an hourly chauffeur for the whole evening
For a birthday, a client night or a family outing, keep one car all evening. Our lead product is the hourly chauffeur service: business sedan $120–145 per hour, executive SUV $190–235, Sprinter $330–385, all-in plus HST, 3-hour minimum. A typical concert night is pickup in Hamilton at 5 p.m., dinner downtown, drop at the arena, the chauffeur waits nearby, pickup after the show, home around midnight: roughly seven hours. A 4-hour sedan booking is $480–580. With six friends in an executive SUV, the per-person cost is modest and nobody watches the clock.
Plan C: the train both ways, done right
If you are going by train both ways, do it deliberately:
- Check the last trains to your Hamilton station for the date, and the late GO bus times as a backup.
- Buy or load your fare before the show so you do not queue afterwards.
- Leave during the encore if the last good train is tight; the platform queue is the bottleneck.
- Know your last leg: a taxi number, a family member, or a car booked from West Harbour GO or Aldershot for the short hop.
The other venues near the waterfront
The same logic applies to the Rogers Centre for the Blue Jays and stadium concerts, a short walk west of Union along the SkyWalk and Bremner Boulevard; check the Rogers Centre schedule. BMO Field and the Exhibition grounds have their own stop, Exhibition GO, on the Lakeshore West line, which Hamilton trains pass; check the BMO Field event page and whether your train stops there on event days. The outdoor amphitheatre at Ontario Place is further along the waterfront and needs a walk or a transfer. For all of them, the car pickup is easiest a few blocks from the venue, not at the gate.
What about shows in Hamilton instead?
Plenty of tours play TD Coliseum on York Boulevard in downtown Hamilton, reopened in 2025 after its renovation. For Hamilton residents that removes the train question entirely: a car from the Mountain or Ancaster to York Boulevard is a short, cheap ride, and the chauffeur can collect you after the show without the Union crowds. If the same artist plays both cities, the Hamilton date is often the easier night out.
Game days: Leafs, Raptors and the playoff factor
Hockey and basketball games have predictable start times but unpredictable ends: overtime, shootouts and playoff games that go late. Playoff nights also bring crowds outside the arena who are not at the game. If you are going by train, check the last train and assume the game runs long. If you book a car, book the pickup 30 minutes after the scheduled end and let dispatch adjust; the chauffeur waits nearby, and waiting beyond the included time is billed in 15-minute blocks with a message first.
Winter shows and bad weather
A January concert means an outdoor platform at midnight, or a late bus on a snowy QEW. Our chauffeurs run winter tires all season and check Ontario 511 before long evening bookings. If the forecast is poor, the car's value rises sharply: door to door, warm, and no missed connections.
Staying the night downtown
Some Hamilton fans skip the ride home and book a room near the station, then a sedan back to Hamilton the next morning. The downtown Toronto hotels page covers lobby pickups around Union. It turns a rushed night into a relaxed one, and the morning drive outbound is usually quick.
A concert night, timed out
Here is a real plan for four friends from Ancaster going to an arena show that starts at 8 p.m. The train way: a 5:15 p.m. drive to West Harbour, a train around 5:45, Union by about 6:45, dinner on the concourse, doors and security by 7:30. After the encore at 11:05, the crowd reaches the platforms by 11:20, and the question becomes whether a Hamilton-bound train is still running and whether there is room aboard. Home, with the last leg up the Mountain, perhaps after 1 a.m. The car way: an executive SUV collects all four at 5:30, drops them on the west side of the arena at 6:45, and waits at a holding spot. At 11:15 they walk three minutes to the car. Home by 12:20.
Corporate boxes and client nights
Companies hosting clients in a suite at the arena often want the evening to start and end smoothly. A first-class sedan or an executive SUV by the hour collects each guest, waits through the game and returns everyone home or to their hotel. For several cars, a coordinator prices the job in writing. Our corporate car service can put it on a monthly account.
Proms, birthdays and special nights
For a teenager's first big concert, many parents prefer a booked car to a late train. The chauffeur holds a named adult contact, alcohol is not permitted in the vehicle for minors, and the pickup point is agreed in advance. The same rules apply to our prom limo bookings. For an adult birthday, a stretch limousine from our vetted partner network can be arranged, with a 4-hour minimum.
The late-night GO bus as a backup
If the last train has gone, the GO route 18 buses along the lakeshore still run a few late trips, ending at Hamilton GO Centre. They are slow and they drop you downtown, but they are a real backup. Check their times on GO Transit before the show, not on the platform at midnight.
Book direct
Book on HamiltonLimo.net's own reservation engine: a one-way car home with your estimated pickup time, or an hourly booking for the whole evening with the venue in the notes. You see a fixed all-in fare before you confirm; there is no surge after the show. Cancellation from scheduled pickup: more than 72 hours, no charge; 72 hours or less, 10 %; 48 hours or less, 50 %; 24 hours or less or a no-show, 100 %.
