Long term parking at JFK

February 27, 2013 6:53 AM

I'm catching a morning flight out of JFK next Saturday and I need to leave my car at the airport for a few days. I would like to use the on-airport long term parking lot because it looks like there's AirTrain access, but I don't think you can reserve those spots. So I've got two questions: 1) is the parking lot (on Lefferts Boulevard) hard to find? 2) what are the odds that there won't be any spots when I show up? Thanks!
posted by reformedjerk to travel & transportation around New York, NY (5 answers total)

It's slightly tricky but not hard to find. It's parallel to the road that leads into JFK, on the service road.

You should have no problem finding a spot. Just in case, you can make a free backup reservation at one of the off-airport parking garages (they are on the same road as long term).
posted by Kruger5 at 7:01 AM on February 27

Have you thought about getting a room at a park and fly airport hotel the night before? Many airport hotels around the country throw in free parking with the price of a room. They're great if you have an early flight out or a late one back. Rates at JFK might be high, though. But check it out.
posted by Elsie at 7:56 AM on February 27 [1 favorite]

Elsie has a great suggestion. I'd check with that, assuming you trust the hotel with keeping an eye on your vehicle.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 8:47 AM on February 27

I don't think there will be any trouble finding a spot at the airport lot; I've done it several times and never had an issue. The long-term lot is huge. And this time of year, there aren't as many people traveling as there would be over the summer months. Give yourself plenty of time to get from the lot to your terminal--the AirTrain is convenient, but it might take 15 minutes or more to get to the terminals. I didn't have any trouble finding it, but map it out before hand to make sure you know where you're going.

I could never bring myself to use the off-site lots--from the reviews I have read, they all seem SO sketchy and not as convenient (waiting after your flight for some random shuttle to pick you up? No thanks). Plus I think some of them aren't even lots; you just hand over your keys and they street-park your car somewhere for the duration. And for all that, you don't even save much money, maybe a couple bucks a day.

At long-term parking, you can pay your parking fees with an EZ-Pass if you have one linked to a credit card. Easy!
posted by Jemstar at 11:37 AM on February 27

The long-term lot has signs directing you to it, and there's little else there; it can be minorly tricky, but you'll just turn around once you've realized you've gone the wrong way. Won't take more than 5 minutes. Never had a problem parking there, although I think we've gone mostly after noon, can't swear that morning isn't tougher.

We did Park and Fly at I think the Double Tree. They have a shuttle to and from the airport, which can lead to a little wait on the way to the airport and longer waits on the way back, when you can be tired and cranky. And it wasn't terrifically organized, and someone was parked partially blocking my car. It seemed like it would take so long to find someone to help, I just got out of the spot myself. I haven't parked there since, but I can afford not to easily enough. I wouldn't recommend it for 'a few days' and, I assume, something like $25 difference.
posted by troywestfield at 9:09 AM on February 28