Travel to NYC, Part 3: Arriving to New York
- Oct 23
- 10 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
The NYC Traveler in NYC: An Introduction to the City of New York (practically speaking!) Part 3: Arrival to NYC
When frequent visitors and locals arrive to New York, you can tell they are familiar with the airport or train station, how to manipulate their way around and how to get out of there on their way to where they need to go. And it can see overwhelming. New York's airports may not be the largest (that's because we have literally almost 6 in the immediate area with dozens of private airports and heliports supplementing those). But that doesn't matter when you're walking almost a mile or more from the gate to the arrivals hall: it feels big. And it's legitimately busy.
Ditto Moynihan Hall at Penn Station or Grand Central Terminal. Even if it is off peak time, everyone looks like they know where they are going and after you read this, hopefully, you will, too.
Remember: The City of New York consists of 5 boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. Public transportation, also called mass transit, are our subways (known as the metro in other countries, the train), buses and ferries.
People also arrive to the NYC area if they are visiting Long Island, parts of the counties north of The Bronx and cities in New Jersey (rather than arriving via Newark Airport). Scroll down for the links to transportation websites.
Arriving to New York:
How to Get to Your Lodging
1. By Car: If you arrive in NYC with your own vehicle, it is best to try to park it for the entire time you're here unless you take day trips (such as to Long Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, upstate or even Baltimore and Washington DC). Yes, those day trips are actually possible.
If you stay in Manhattan and go to the outer boroughs, you can drive but once you get to your destination, for the most part, it will be difficult to park at the most popular sightseeing sites. Some locations have on-site parking, such as the Queens Flushing Meadows-Corona Park complex which includes the Hall of Science, The USTA Tennis Center, Citi Field (home of the NY Mets) and the park itself. And there is a parking lot near the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and Brooklyn Museum combo area.
But getting through traffic from Manhattan to those places are not worth the effort. However, although it may cost money to park in a garage, you will save time, gas and aggravation if you use a garage instead of trying to park on the street, which is almost impossible in midtown Manhattan, downtown Brooklyn, many parts of Queens (despite its reputation of it possibly being the most suburban borough), the Bronx and Staten Island. Before you arrive at your lodging, check with the hotel concierge or the owner of the vacation rental.
2. Arriving to New York By Car Rental: If you arrive to NYC in an auto rental, return it as soon as you drop off your bags at your lodging and see below how to get back to your lodging if you have to drop it at an airport. Better yet, go straight to the drop off place after you pick up your bags and take a car service to your lodging. Trust us. But, some car rental agencies are not at the airport, so check the addresses very carefully. You might have to take the car to an off site location. You may find a drop off site near your lodging. Decide if you want to drop your bags off first at your lodging. You might be able to take mass transit back. Or, if you have your bags, you may want to take a car service back to your lodging after you drop off your car. Sound confusing?? Yeah, our advice: don't drive a rental car to visit New York.
3. Do You Need A Car? Having said all of that, there. may be times when you need or want a car. A few exceptions that you can drive to would be Queens Flushing-Meadows Corona Park complex (with the USTA Tennis Center, Hall of Science, Queens Museum, and the Queens Zoo) the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo and Old Richmond Town in Staten Island. However, with the exception of the Bronx, going to the outer boroughs can cost you money in tolls (twice, with congestions pricing in midtown Manhattan and then bridges or tunnels), gas and more importantly, time.
Another time you would need a car is to visit parts of Long Island or the counties past the Bronx. There are lots of places to see in Hudson Valley, the Catskills, the Finger Lakes and further upstate, Many great places are a day trip away. But once again: check with your hotel concierge or arrange it yourself and hop on a guided tour. Even if you are used to arranging your excursions, you might do one of these.
Except for the locations listed above, it is not advisable to drive around New York City or the region (anyone who's ever taken the Cross Bronx Expressway is nodding their head at this moment). In fact, it can be liberating and you might even get a little spoiled. You will surprised to find out how many adult New Yorkers never got their driver's license. Why should they, we have the best transportation system, for the dollar value (and the most annoying and exasperating, but hey, you can't have everything). People brag about other cities' systems (they're newer, cleaner, etc.) but ours is the most comprehensive. Give it a try.
4. Arriving to New York By Plane: If you arrive by airplane at JFK or LGA, you have several options: take pre-arranged transportation (most expensive but private), cab (second most expensive but also private), car service, friend or family, but make sure you stay in constant touch because your friend cannot stay there more than 2 minutes if you are not out of the airport yet. Having someone to pick you up at the airport is what many New Yorkers and Long Islanders do. Since everyone understands the hassle, it's a favor that family and friends trade back and forth.
5. From JFK: If you do not have someone to pick you up, you have a few options. The easiest, currently because of construction, is to take a yellow cab. Get in line and the porters will let you know when the next one is.
If you are staying local and you really know the area (then you wouldn't be reading this) take a local bus or the air train to local subways. This might work for you if you're staying in Jamaica, Queens. Several buses run in, through and out of JFK (remember, locals work there and need to get to work, so there are buses).
Right now, as of this writing, JFK is under major construction. Taking a car service that is not a cab from there involves one extra annoying step of taking the air train to a separate location and catching the car service from there. If you are dedicated to the idea of taking a car service instead of a cab, go for it.
However, one easier way to save some money is to take the air train to Jamaica Station.
To get to the other boroughs, take the air train, which requires a fare to get to Jamaica's train station at Sutphin Boulevard. You pay when you exit the system (currently $8.50).
From there, you will see clear info about your choices: the regional train Long Island Railroad (LIRR) to Penn Station or Grand Central in Manhattan or Atlantic Avenue Terminal in Brooklyn.
Or, to continue into Manhattan, you can take the subway (E train from Sutphin Boulevard), bus (a long ride to Manhattan, not advised), cab or car service to your destination.
The NYC Traveler Tip for Your Trip: use the LIRR app or the machines in the station. Buy the City Ticket to go from Jamaica to either Penn Station, Grand Central or Atlantic Terminal (downtown Brooklyn). You will pay a much cheaper fare. BUT, pay attention if the fare needs to be peak or can be off-peak.
To go anywhere except to midtown Manhattan or downtown Brooklyn, it's best to take a car service.
6. From LGA (LaGuardia Airport): You can schedule a car service to come right to your terminal (their construction is mostly finished). Other options involve public transportation: something locals do. But if you want to try: take the free bus to the subway. From there, you can ride all the way into Manhattan or take the E train to Jamaica Station to take the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). At Jamaica, choose to take the train to Penn Station or Grand Central for Manhattan or to Atlantic Terminal for Brooklyn.
There is a select bus, the LaGuardia Link. You must purchase the fare at a curbside machine, not pay onboard. The receipt will be your ticket to board. Regular buses will get you from LGA, also: the M60 takes you to upper Manhattan and the Q70 will take you to the subway. From there, you can take the subway, bus, cab or car service to your destination.
7. From EWR (Newark): the air train will get you to Penn Station (NYC) via Amtrak or NJ Transit. From there, you can take the subway, bus, cab or car service to your destination.
8. Arriving to New York by train: If you arrive by train, meaning Amtrak, you will arrive at Penn Station, West 32 Street-West 34th Streets between 7th and 8th Avenues, Manhattan. From there, you can take the subway, bus, cab or car service to your destination. If you're the rare traveler arriving by Metro North, you will arrive to New York probably at Grand Central Terminal (although there are a couple of stops within the city before). The Long Island Railroad is also at Grand Central as are several subways.
9. Arriving to New York by a major bus carrier: you will arrive at Port Authority Bus Terminal, West 40-West 42 Streets and 8th Avenue (most likely). From there, you can take the subway, bus, cab or car service to your destination. Some budget carriers arrive in other parts of Manhattan or other boroughs. You can either take public transportation or car service to your lodging.
10. If you are going to Staten Island: the ferry leaves from lower Manhattan, near The Battery. The select bus goes through Brooklyn. Once on the island, there is train and bus service. If you are coming in to the city and you are headed to Staten Island, it's best to take a cab or car service or at least take it to lower Manhattan and to take the ferry.
BONUS TIP: You just might arrive by cruise ship if it sails from one location and docks here. You will arrive at one of three area ports: Manhattan Cruise Terminal, 12th Avenue near West 54 Street; Cape Liberty, which is technically Bayonne, New Jersey but so close to Staten Island you could walk there; Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, Red Hook, Brooklyn. All of them are extremely inconvenient to travel from with luggage using public transportation directly. The best option is to use either the cruise line sponsored transport service or take a cab to the public transportation or your destination and go from there.
MTA (Metropolitan Transportation Authority) (mobile app available)
Amtrak: subways, buses, LIRR, Path (mobile app available)
John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK, mobile app available)
LaGuardia Airport (LGA, mobile app available)
Newark Liberty Airport (EWR, mobile app available) New York Stewart International Airport (SWF)
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Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.
Articles in this series:
Articles in the "Travel Like a Pro" Series
Articles in the "How To Cruise" Series
Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.
All photos and videos created and copyrighted by Marcia Crayton, unless otherwise noted.
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