Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Nov. 01, 2014	Nov. 28, 2014 Common Stock	Nov. 28, 2014 Class A Common Stock
Entity Registrant Name	BON TON STORES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000878079
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Nov. 01, 2014
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--01-31
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		17,480,523	2,951,490
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3