Heading to Manhattan (NYC) for a conference, meeting, or just for fun? Here's some info that'll help you get into and out of the city from the airports. All of this info was last checked and updated on June 27, 2003.

Airport & Subway Info

Getting to New York City from Kennedy (JFK) Airport

JFK international airport is technically on Long Island, the island to the east of Manhattan island. To get to Manhattan you'll need transportation and will be taking a bridge or tunnel.

The official JFK Airport webiste.
Info about JFK, on a site called Airwise.

You can get to NYC from JFK by:

• Taxi: According to Airwise, fare is about $30 - $40 plus tolls and the trip is about an hour. (But there can always be traffic.)
• Bus: New York Airport Service. $13 one way to the city. $23 round trip per the fares page. It's $1 less if you book online. (Remember that busses take streets and are subject to traffic conditions. You can take this bus directly to Penn Station, so if your hotel is by Penn, or you're going straight to Javits, that's your destination of choice. The schedules are online so you can see travelling time.
• Subway. This is the least expensive way to go ($2 or less) and is easy too. It may take longer due to the shuttle and waiting for the train. Maybe about 90 minutes. This is how I travel. Details below.

Getting from JFK to Penn Station by Subway - Details

The Javits Center is close to Penn Station, NYC, so these directions are from JFK to Penn. I wrote all this from my own experience as a New Yorker. Now the MTA has added some of this information to its site too.

Here's a New York City subway map so you can see the trip. Look at the blue line - the "A" train. Almost at the far right bottom is the JFK stop - called Howard Beach. Follow the blue line up and to the left edge of Manhattan Island and about half way up the island and you'll see 34th Street/Penn Station, your destination. Trains come from 10-20 minutes apart, depending on whether it's rush hour or off-peak.

Both JFK and Penn Station are on the blue line - the "A" train.

First you take the free shuttle bus that goes around the JFK Airport terminals and takes you to the subway. (The subway is the last stop. You cannot miss it.)

The subway station is small and not confusing because no other train lines go through there. Buy your metro card ($2 per trip, or a longer pass) so you can enter the platform, then go up the stairs to the northbound track into the city. It is the only train you take. If there's a seat, take it. This train goes all the way into Penn Station/34th street. No changes to make. If you are staying at the Hotel New Yorker, it's just across the street from Penn so you walk out and across the street (once you find the correct exit).

Tips: When going back to JFK, only take an A train to Far Rockaway or Rockaway Park , not Lefferts Blvd. Your stop will be called Howard Beach/JFK Airport.

Getting to NYC from LaGuardia Airport (LGA)

LaGuardia Airport is in Queens.

• To take public transport, you need to take a city bus, then a subway. You can do it for $2 if you have a MetroCard, $4 (2 fares) if not. Since this is not very direct, you may well not want to do this with luggage. For these directions per the MTA page.
• Private, direct bus service is provided by New York Airport Service (the same service as for JFK). $10 one way to the city. $17 round trip per the fares page. It's $1 less if you book online. Busses appear to pick you up from each terminal. You can take this bus directly to Penn Station, so if your hotel is by Penn, or you're going straight to Javits, that's your destination of choice. Or, the site says this bus serves midtown hotels between 33rd and 57th Streets so you may get a ride straight to your hotel. The schedules are online so you can see travelling time.

Getting to NYC from Newark Airport (that's New Jersey)

Info about Newark Airport, on a site called Airwise.

Again, these directions are to Penn.

• Bus: Newark Airport Express (formerly called Olympia) is the bus to take from Newark airport to Penn Station (Grand Central and other places too). Their site is clear and easy to learn from.
  $19 round-trip or $12 one-way.
  Phone, toll Free 1-877-8-NEWARK
  
  
• PATH goes into NYC and directly into Penn. You have to get from the airport to the PATH train first. I recall an airport bus (the kind that has luggage racks in front) taking me from the airport to Penn Station - Newark where I then took the PATH train into Penn Station - NY. But I don't have those details now.

Other

• The MTA Transportation Centers page may give you a bit of information about travel from within NY.
• On the New Jersey side, the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail travels along the Hudson connects to PATH as well as to NY Waterway Ferry.
• Also on the New Jersey site, here's the "Main Terminal" for New Jersey Transit.
• The NY Waterway Ferry goes pretty much right to the Javits Center. (But has limited hours.) If you're not on the web, call 1-800-53-FERRY.
• Here's another map of transport from downtown Newark.

More NYC Subway Info

The MTA home page leads to maps and info about the subways. It's well worth exploring before you visit. It'll even give you tourist destination info. It also covers other transit, like the Long Island RailRoad (LIRR), Long Island busses, and Metro-North RailRoad, It also covers the bridges and tunnels leading to NYC.

One quick online way to find out which subways can take you to a particular street is the New York Subway Finder.

Fare Cards

I highly recommend using the subways to travel unless you are in a group so the cab becomes a good deal. Subways are safe and they are part of the heart of NY. Cab drivers DO rip you off. I get out and walk when I know they are!

Any single trip on the NYC Subway or bus is $2, whether 1 stop or miles.

A SingleRide ticket costs $2 and is available for cash only at the large vending machines. (The small machines don't take cash.) It's good for a subway or bus trip within two hours of purchase. It lets you do a free bus-to-bus transfer (so you can do things like go up/downtown and then across) but you cannot transfer between subway and bus. For that, you'll pay another $2. (The Express Bus is $4.)

If you're seeing the city, a fare card can be a very good deal. Consider this: One train into the city. Another to Wall street and the world trade center, another on to Chinatown to eat. Another back uptown. That's 4 rides that normally cost $8 so a day card is paid for. Then there is the trip uptown to explore too. Or several trips. The fare card makes it easy to see the city. There are several cards, but I list only two here, as they're the short-term cards that offer unlimited trips.

• The 1-Day Fun Pass costs $7 (reduced fares not available) and gives you unlimited full fare rides for approximately one day, including free transfers to approved connecting buses. It is valid from its first use until 3am the next day.

  The catch? The Fun Pass is not sold at subway station booths.  It is sold at neighborhood MetroCard merchants, MetroCard Vending Machines, MetroCard Buses and MetroCard Vans.  When I last checked summer 2002, I did not see the JFK subway station listed as having a vending machine.

•  The 7-Day MetroCard costs $21 ($10.50 with Reduced-Fare) and covers unlimited full fare rides for any 7-day period, beginning when you **first** use the card, including free transfers to approved connecting buses and subways. It is good until midnight, 7 days from the day you first use the card, not from the day it was purchased.  If you  start using your card on Thursday, it ends the next Wednesday at midnight.

Finding Places in New York City

Once you're there, you'll need to know what streets you're heading to. On my main NYC page you'll find some online, Palm, and book solutions to help you out with that. I definately recommend you check out the Flashmaps.

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for the information presented here or anything that happens to you if you use any information presented here.