How to transfer between airports in NYC?

December 11, 2004 12:24 PM

NYC Travel Help: I need some advice about transferring between NYC airports. [+]

I live in Washington, D.C. On Jan 1, I’m flying out of Newark to Israel. I fly back into JFK on Jan. 12. (It’s not an ideal arrangement, but I’m not paying for the flight, so I can’t complain). I’m trying to figure out the best way to handle getting up there and back for the least cost/hassle.

Open-jaw flights were running in the $400+ range when I looked. I can do round trip to Newark for like 150, and take a bus from JFK to EWR on the 12th. There weren’t really any good options for doing round trip to JFK. I can get a round trip to La Guardia for 99, but then I’d have to do some kind of transfer between airports at each end of my trip, which seems like a pain in the ass. I can take a train to Newark, then get a one way ticket from JFK or LaGuardia back to D.C.

It seems like there’s a billion different not-quite-good options. I’d appreciate any advice on the best way to manage this – ease of transferring between airports, cost of different transfers, companies you’ve used, etc. Thanks.

posted by jewishbuddha to travel & transportation (10 comments total)

It's much easier to get from LGA to Kennedy than to get to Newark from either, i find. There are more frequent buses. It's New York Airport Service buses
posted by amberglow at 12:44 PM on December 11, 2004

to get from Newark to either JFK or LGA you'd have to take one bus from Newark to Grand Central and then another to the other airport.
posted by amberglow at 12:57 PM on December 11, 2004

I live in New York, and visit my family in DC often, and it just seems Amtrak is the best way to go between cities...more relaxing, less security, and not a drastic difference in time all things considered.

I'd take the Amtrak to Newark, and on your return take the bus amberglow suggested, for $15.00, or pay about $50.00 for a taxi to Penn Station.

Your NYC options aren't so great, but like you say, the trip to Israel is free.
posted by extrabox at 1:09 PM on December 11, 2004

Why not price out two one-way rental cars. One from DC->EWR. One from JFK->DC. I wouldn't be surprised if it's cheaper than 12 days of parking, even in the long-term lot.
posted by mosch at 2:12 PM on December 11, 2004

I misread part of your question, but second the Amtrak idea for getting from New York to DC. I've taken that train several times, and it's worked out well.
posted by mosch at 2:14 PM on December 11, 2004

If I were you, I'd Amtrak up to Newark on the Acela, then take a one-way commuter flight from JFK to D.C. on the way back.

There's a very convenient monorail from the Newark Amtrak stop directly to the Newark airport terminals, which makes that experience almost pleasant.

But not so pleasant that it's worth the hassle of transferring from JFK to Newark on the return trip.
posted by ikkyu2 at 2:27 PM on December 11, 2004

There are generally no good fares between JFK and DC though.

There are buses from JFK to LGA.

Take the train to Newark outbound, then when you get back, take a bus from JFK to LGA and hop a shuttle. If it's a Saturday or morning Sunday, you can fly home cheaper than the train.
Hmm, well, no it's a Wednesday. But if you book in advance, you may be able to get a cheap LGA-DCA shuttle. Or you can take a bus to Penn station and get on the train again.
posted by CunningLinguist at 5:03 PM on December 11, 2004

Me personally....I would take the train to Newark; from JFK, take the AirTrain (click the JFK link) to the LIRR...which takes you back to Penn Station and Amtrak. A little more convoluted, sure, but you don't have to worry about the highways after all.

BTW...if you take Amtrak to Newark Airport, I think you have to get off at either Newark Penn Station or Metropark and get on NJ Transit to get to the Newark Airport monorail station -- I don't think Amtrak stops at that station very often.
posted by PeteyStock at 9:13 PM on December 11, 2004

Time-wise, LaGuardia<>JFK is fairly quick. If you're somewhat adverturous/innovative (and I know you are), and you can get a cheap flight to/from LaGuardia, why not try a taxi from/to LaGuardia to the AirTrain (monorail thing) in Jamaica to JFK? E-mail me if you want more info. And have a great, safe trip!
posted by ParisParamus at 11:18 PM on December 11, 2004

Thanks for the help everyone! I think I'm leaning towards amtrak on the way up, and either amtrak or flight on the way down, depending on cost.
posted by jewishbuddha at 7:24 AM on December 12, 2004