For Those Who Know NYC

I am traveling to New York City next month on business (specifically, I’ll be in the NYU area) and have never been there before. Is it best to fly into JFK, LaGuardia, or Newark? (US Airways keeps giving me lowest prices for flights into Newark so I’m especially curious about that one, but could use tips on whether to go for/avoid any of the three.)

Any other tips?

10 Replies to “For Those Who Know NYC”

  1. I’ve always gone into LaGuardia as the most convenient airport to Manhattan, but I almost always go into midtown, not downtown. There may be some convenient way to get from Newark into the downtown area, but I don’t know its details. The train will take you from Newark’s NJ Transit/Amtrak station into Penn Station, but at that point you’re pretty far north of where you’re trying to go.

    LaGuardia’s almost certainly the cheapest in a cab. A city cab is almost guaranteed to complain about having to take you out to Newark as well when you go to leave.

    JFK isn’t a good idea under almost all circumstances.

  2. By the time you’re done in NY, your feet might be bleeding from all the walking.

    I wouldn’t suggest waiting in the ginormous line for the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island. It was later in the day by the time we got on the boat (after waiting in line for 2-3 hours), so we skipped getting off to see the Statue and went straight to Ellis Island. I was so interested in everything at Ellis Island but we only had about 30 minutes there until the very last ferry was leaving to go back. It was kind of a bummer. It would definitely be a great thing to do if the line wasn’t so long.

    The Met art museum was amazing. We didn’t get much time there either, but it was definitely worth the hike over there.

    Have a great time!

  3. JFK is about 45 min from the city.
    LGA is the most convenient- it’s just over the bridge in queens.
    Newark is a pain the ass and involves shuttles and trains, so I would avoid it.
    I lived there for a few years, so let me know if you want hints/tips on places to go and things to do!

  4. I’m THISCLOSE to biting the bullet and getting TiVo, and if I do so, it says my referrer (?) can get TiVo points. Do I have your permission to put your name down?

  5. How comfortable are you with spending money on travel after your flight? If you’re attracted to Newark there’s no reason you shouldn’t fly to Jersey for Manhattan. From there you catch a shuttle to either Grand Central or Penn Station. (There’s another to some certain hotels I think but I don’t remember.) From anyone of those spots you can catch a cab or a train downtown. I don’t advise you take a train. It may seem like it’s nice to save the money (if you’re concerned about it) but, really, just take a cab – it’s not likely to be as much as you might fear.

    **Keep in mind: if you take the bus (shuttle) to New York, you’ve really got to be sure to track about how much time it takes you to get from the airport to where you’re going so you can “realistically” plan for how long it’ll take to get to the shuttle and to the airport. (Also, last time I flew into Newark the bus was …shoot, $12 or $21 each way. From just about anywhere along that line (GC, Penn, PA, Times Square – all just about on the same line) it’ll probably about $15 to get you down to where you want to go.)

    Flying into JFK gives you one thing* – the A train. You can catch the A train from there and take it right to Washington Sq. Park/West 4th. That’s it; take the A train and you’re right where you want to me – probably only a 3-5 dollar cab ride from the stop to your hotel tops.
    You just do the same thing back (but be sure you note that you’re going to “Far Rockaway”; it may not tell you its going to JFK; it is). (*Okay, it’s really cool looking, too.)

    If you’re for LaGuardia … tell me about it when you’re back. I may have flown in once but don’t remember the travel to or from at all.

    You’re going right to the heart of the area where I went to school, lived, worked, wandered, wrote, kissed, stumbled around drunk, sang loudly in the streets… Have a good time, Lorie.

  6. When I’ve flown from other parts of the country into NY, it’s always been La Guardia. However, from Virginia, my preference is to take Amtrak right into Penn Station, where I can get to anywhere fairly fast. It beats the airport hassles by a long shot (parking, shuttles, waiting, checkin, security, waiting, finding ground transport, slogging through endless traffic, etc), and you can comfortably read a good book without all the interruptions. http://www.amtrak.com

    And it will resemble an earlier theme on your diary…

  7. JKF always reminds me of “Angel of Harlem”

    “It was a cold and wet december day when we touched the ground at JFK…..”

    oh U2

  8. I would take the train before flying there. It gets you directly into the city without hassle and doesn’t require arriving to the station two hours prior to departure.

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