So, you’re looking for the UPS Batavia New York hub. Maybe you’ve got a massive box that won't fit in your mailbox or you're chasing down a "missed delivery" slip that just appeared on your front door. It happens. Dealing with shipping in Genesee County can be a bit of a headache if you don't know exactly where you’re going, because "Batavia" covers a lot of ground between Buffalo and Rochester.
The main UPS Customer Center is located at 2 Apollo Drive, Batavia, NY 14020.
📖 Related: 28595 Orchard Lake Road: Why This Farmington Hills Hub Is Still Such a Big Deal
It’s not exactly downtown. You’ve basically got to head over toward the Genesee County Airport area, tucked away in that industrial pocket off Saile Drive. If you’ve lived in the area long enough, you know the drill—once you pass the fairgrounds and start seeing the warehouses, you're getting close. It’s a functional, no-frills facility. Don't expect a fancy retail experience like you’d get at a boutique shop in the city. This is where the heavy lifting happens.
Why the Apollo Drive Location is Different from a UPS Store
A lot of people get this mixed up.
Honestly, it’s frustrating when you drive all the way out to the airport area only to find out you actually needed a regular retail store. Or worse, you go to a retail store with a giant freight shipment and they tell you to head to Apollo Drive.
The facility at 2 Apollo Drive is a UPS Customer Center. This is an official UPS-owned hub. It’s where the brown trucks live. If your package is "held for pickup" because you weren't home to sign for it, this is usually where it’s sitting. They have specific windows for customer pickups, often later in the afternoon when the drivers return from their routes.
On the flip side, the UPS Store locations—like the one on Veterans Memorial Drive near Target and Walmart—are independently owned franchises. They are great for packing services, buying stamps, or returning those endless Amazon boxes. But they aren't the ones driving the trucks to your house.
✨ Don't miss: Why is the S\&P 500 down today? What most people get wrong about this week's market slide
If you have a QR code for a return that says "No box or label needed," you go to the UPS Store. If you have a 70-pound crate that needs to get to California via ground service, the Apollo Drive center is your best bet to ensure it gets into the system immediately.
Navigating the Hours and Access
Timing is everything.
The UPS Batavia New York center doesn't keep "retail" hours. You can't just stroll in at 8:00 PM on a Sunday. Usually, these centers are open Monday through Friday, with a mid-day gap or early evening closing times. Historically, they open for a few hours in the morning and then again in the late afternoon.
Check the official UPS website before you leave your house. Seriously. Since the 2020 shipping boom, hours at these local hubs have fluctuated wildly based on staffing and volume.
📖 Related: Jonathan Auerbach Hound Partners Explained: What Really Happened to the Tiger Seed
The parking lot at Apollo Drive is shared with big rigs. Be careful. You’ll see the massive "feeder" trucks—the double trailers that haul goods between major hubs—moving in and out. It’s a busy environment. When you walk in, there’s usually a small lobby area with a counter. You might have to ring a bell. You might have to wait a minute while someone comes out from the back where the sorting belts are humming.
Shipping Tips for the Genesee County Area
Living in a place like Batavia means we’re a transit point. We are the bridge between the 716 and the 585. Because of our proximity to the I-90, the UPS Batavia New York operations are actually quite efficient. Most packages coming into the region hit the Buffalo or Rochester hubs first before being shuttled here for final delivery.
If you’re shipping something fragile, do not skimp on the tape. I've seen boxes come through these hubs that look like they’ve been through a war zone. It’s not that the workers are mean; it’s just the reality of high-speed automated sorting belts.
- Use heavy-duty shipping tape.
- Always remove old labels from reused boxes to avoid "looping" (where your box goes back to the sender because an old barcode got scanned).
- If you're shipping to a rural part of the county—like Alexander or Elba—expect the delivery to happen later in the day. Drivers usually hit the high-density "city" of Batavia first.
Handling the "Package Not Found" Stress
It is the worst feeling. You check the tracking, it says "Out for Delivery" in Batavia, and then... nothing. Or it says "Delivered" and your porch is empty.
Before you panic and call corporate, check with your neighbors. In some of the tighter residential streets in Batavia, addresses get transposed. If it’s still missing, the Apollo Drive center is the place that actually handles the "trace." While you usually have to start a claim online, the local supervisors there are the ones who actually talk to the driver to ask, "Hey, where did you put that box on Main Street?"
Logistics in a Small Town
Batavia is unique. We have a mix of heavy industry, like the dairy plants and the Graham Corporation, and wide-open farmland. UPS has to navigate both. This means the Batavia hub is handling everything from specialized industrial parts to bags of birdseed.
Because we are a smaller market compared to New York City or even Syracuse, the staff at the local center often recognize the regular "shippers." There’s a level of local accountability you don't get in a massive metro area. If you go there often enough, you’ll probably start recognizing the folks behind the counter.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Shipment
Don't just wing it.
- Verify the address. Make sure you aren't going to the UPS Store on Veterans Memorial Drive if you actually need the sorting hub on Apollo Drive.
- Bring your ID. If you are picking up a package that was "Held for Pickup," they will not give it to you without a government-issued photo ID that matches the delivery address. No exceptions.
- Check the weight. If your package is over 150 pounds, the regular customer center might not take it. That moves into "UPS Freight" territory, which is a different animal entirely.
- Download the App. The UPS My Choice app is actually decent. It lets you reroute packages to the Batavia center if you know you won't be home, saving you the "missed delivery" heartbreak.
Shipping things shouldn't be a full-time job. By knowing that the UPS Batavia New York hub is tucked away by the airport and keeping your ID handy, you save yourself a lot of driving back and forth across Route 5. Stay ahead of the tracking numbers and you'll be fine.