$1.50–$2.00 gets you from SAV to downtown in about 30 minutes
Chatham Area Transit Route 100X Airport Express runs between Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport’s Main Terminal and downtown in roughly 25–35 minutes if traffic behaves. It’s the ultra‑budget pick for solo travelers landing mid‑day who are okay trading speed and flexibility for a sub‑$5 ride.
The 100X runs about once every 60 minutes, roughly in a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daytime window, not late at night or at dawn. Locals on Reddit point out CAT sets the schedule around commuter patterns, so early‑morning departures and late arrivals usually have to fall back to Uber, Lyft, or a taxi.
Cash fare runs about $1.50–$2.00 one way, and drivers on CAT buses do not make change. You need exact bills/coins or a preloaded CAT pass, something visitors on r/Savannah say surprises them when they first try to ride from the airport curb.
Figure on a headway of 60 minutes, which means a missed bus can add almost as much time as the 25–35 minute ride itself. One Reddit commenter sums it up: they plan on Uber for the airport unless their arrival “perfectly matches” a known 100X departure time.
How to ride it from Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport
- 1. After landing at the Main Terminal, grab your bag at baggage claim on the lower level and exit to the commercial vehicle side where local buses and shuttles pull up.
- 2. Look for the posted Chatham Area Transit stop used by Route 100X Airport Express; signage is smaller than big-city airport buses, which some Google Maps reviewers call out as confusing.
- 3. Check the latest 100X schedule online before you fly; the pattern is roughly hourly, mid‑day only, but exact times can shift with service changes.
- 4. Have $2.00 or less in exact cash or a CAT pass ready when the bus arrives; the driver won’t break a $5 or $10 bill.
- 5. Ride about 25–35 minutes into town and hop off near the downtown stops used by other CAT routes; budget travelers then walk or transfer to reach hotels in the historic core.
Practical tip: Before you book a ticket into SAV, pull up the 100X schedule and compare it to your exact arrival; if your inbound is after about 5 p.m., plan on rideshare instead of counting on this bus.