NYC/NJ Question
 

Hi all,

I'm looking for some help from someone who lives/is familiar with NYC and NJ. I'm going to be traveling to Newark next month for a Conference which will be great, except that I couldn't get a direct flight into Newark. (Most flights had me routed to Ohio or some other way out of the way location.) So now, my predicament is how to get from JFK to Newark airport. (where the hotel shuttle will pick me up)

I looked online and saw that I could take the Airtrain at JFK to the subway, the subway to Penn Station, then the NJ Transit train to Newark airport, and the Newark Air Train to the terminal where I can catch the shuttle.

My question is: has anyone ever done this? Is it difficult? (I've ridden the subways many times on visits, but I feel like it might be easy to get lost.) Is there a simpler way that doesn't cost a million dollars?

That pretty much sounds like the way I'd do it. Or you could shell out the cash for a cab.

It really isn't all that difficult. NJ Transit has a BEAUTIFUL terminal; you can't miss it. Their times are online. If you miss your train, depending on the time of day, at most you'd wait and hour and a half for the next one. No worries though, there are plenty of things to do in Penn.

Feel free to PM me if you have more questions!

YITBOS

I don't have a suggestion, but found this statement funny. Living in New England, sometimes it's hard to find a good flight (as in time of the day) that DOESN'T stop in Newark!

I agree with Love in TPA, that's probably how I would do it too. Or, like she said, get a cab, but it will be money that's for sure. I'll ask my dad (he's better with these kinds of things lol) but if you are stuck in NY, let me know, i'll come meet you! (I live right outside the city) :p

Rudey thinks he knows everything about the city, so maybe he'll have a better idea :p;)

In the interest of cutting down on transfers and saving time, I would take the Long Island Railroad, and not the subway, directly to Penn Station from the JFK Airtrain Station. Then you could take NJT to Newark Airport. One transfer at Penn Station.

Good luck!

There are shuttle vans that go back and forth between the airports, but I can't think of the name now.
Other than that, Munchkin is on target.

I agree, i live in Queens and having commuted from Queens to Jersey and all in between, i would also recommend taking Airtrain to LIRR to Penn.

Est. cost & time:

Airtrain - $7, about 20 min to Jamaica
LIRR from Jamaica to Penn - $5 (off peak), $7 (peak), another 20-25 minutes
Penn to Newark - $14 (not sure of cost diff. peak/offpeak), i think 45 minutes?

thats roughly $30 on about 2 hours of travel time

or... double the $ and cut the time in half with a cab?

actually, check this site out: shuttles to/from JFK/Newark

Airporter (Princeton Airporter)
1-800-385-4000 or (609) 587-6600
$24 Frequent service
7:00 AM to 5:00 PM
75 - 90 minutes
http://www.goairporter.com/

She is probably flying Continental. Depending on where she originates the hub and spoke system of Continental routes many people through the Cleveland or Houston hubs, then on to Newark. New England would be part of the Newark hubs, so I understand your thinking.

Ya...taking the subway from the stop by JFK to Penn Station will take over an hour according to hopstop.com, plus the extra time on Air Train. LIRR should be shorter.

Hijack, we have to hike to Newark from the Bx to get a direct flight for our trip to St. Thomas next month. UGH.

Thanks for your suggestions! I think that I might take the LIRR to Penn and then the NJT into Newark. (Plus, maybe I can steal a bit of time and venture into the city... I LOVE NYC!)

In regards to the getting a direct flight, unfortunately in this case, my company has agreements/policies on what airlines they buy tickets from and also like to be cheap. (Not that I'm complaining... they did pay for my seat!)So, my choices were Delta, Jet Blue, Southwest, and American Airlines. None of which fly from Boston or Providence to Newark without flying way out of the way. It would have taken me 5 or 6 hours of travel to get there on what should be an hour flight. So, even with all the transfers and travel through NY on the way, it's still going to be much quicker than having a layover in Chicago with American, since they are the only one of the 4 that fly into Newark. <sigh> I love the airline industry.

Sidenote: My mother just booked a flight down to Florida for next month. Guess where she's stopping... oh, the irony!

who are you flying on? i was able to fly direct to STT from JFK... but this was last summer, i dunno. PS have fun! STT is awesome!

p.s. having taken the E train from Jamaica station to Penn Station MANY times for years, i can definitely tell you it doesnt take "over an hour." on an average day, id say 45 minutes. since its likely the OP isnt going during AM rush, 45 minutes is more accurate than "over an hour."

Continental. We live in the Bronx tho so really going to JFK is no different than going to Newark. LGA would have been perfect!!