Hi! Dumb question ahead. You have been warned.
I’m thinking about going to a conference in Salem in October. I’d be flying in and out of Boston, of course, and I’m trying to figure out if it’s practical to visit NYU on the same trip. How much extra time would I need to get from Boston to New York and have a reasonable amount of time for a visit/tour/meeting with advisors? What’s the best way to go? Driving, some kind of commuter train, etc? How long does it actually take to get there? (NYU, that is.) Is there anywhere to park the car in the entire city once I get there? (You were warned about the dumb question-quality of it all.) Does it sound like a good idea? This might determine whether or not I even go to the Boston conference.
Thanks,
Anise
I can answer some questions from the Boston end of things:
It’s about a four hour drive if you take a car. You can also get there by train (Amtrak), which is faster but more expensive. There are also several buses that go there from South Station - bus Fun Wah (sp?) is about $15 - I’ve never taken it, but I know people who have. It’s crowded but cheap, and will get you there in about 4 hours.
There are also Greyhound buses that go from South Station in Boston, which are more expensive than Fun Wah, but also less crowded and a nicer ride. The travel time is about the same depending on any stops on the way.
Since I’ve only been to NYC once, I’ll let a New York doper answer questions re: parking and how much time you’ll want to spend there.
Hmm. Usually it takes about four hours (give or take thirty minutes, but we get lost a lot) for me to drive from my small town (north of the city) to Medfield, MA. Since Medfield is closer to NYC, it would probably take longer. But a train would probably take no longer than two or three hours.
Believe it or not, there ARE places to park your car in the city, if there’s not a convention in town or something. (When I saw The Gates, I got there at seven, ate breakfast at a diner, and went two streets across to Central Park. After about nine, you’d be lucky to find a parking spot ten blocks away.) As I said, there is parking in NYC, but there are also quarter meters. The ones near Central Park can only be reserved for three hours (I think), and the police have been cracking down on traffic violations (because our budget’s been screwy over the past couple of years, and they’re trying to make up for it by slapping everyone with fees.)
Since you’re staying near a college area, and not, say, someone’s brownstone in Manhattan, I would definitely recommend finding a good parking garage. There’s always tons more theft near college campuses, although NYU is a better one. (I wouldn’t suggest Pratt, or anything in the Bronx. I’ve heard some gruesome stuff happening on the subways there.) Since it seems like you want to stay at NYU, I’d say you have a good chance of working the situation out. It’s much harder to find a safe, cheap place to staying the city if you don’t have someone there, than it is to find parking.
P.S. This might seem kinda stalkerish, but are you going to Witching Hour? The October/Salem connection sparked my memory immediately. And if you are, are you the Anise that wrote The Bat Bogeys Cometh? 'Cause I totally fangirl that story.
Beware of the Chinatown buses, sometimes they are fine, othertimes they are overbooked and there’s a mad rush to get a seat. Greyhound is actually about the same price right now and a nicer ride.
Amtrak is no faster than driving most of the time, and definately not now that high speed service is out. But it’ll drop you off at Penn Station which may be very convienent for where you want to go, and it’s a pretty relaxing trip. It is quite a bit more expensive than driving, even with parking.
Have you looked into the cost of flying to Boston, then flying to New York, then returning to your starting point from New York instead of Boston?
Amtrak runs Acela trains from South Station (Boston) to Penn Station (NYC) in three-and-a-half hours. Those trains are out of service at the moment, but should be back well before October. There are cheaper trains that are a little slower.
I know someone who took the Limoliner (a luxurious bus, really) and said it was a good way to go. There’s even an internet connection; he was chatting with us on IRC during the ride. Don’t know how long it takes. Slightly cheaper than the Acela, too.
The train is the best option, IMHO. It doesn’t take any longer than driving, requires no work on your part, and you don’t have to worry about the car when you get to Manhattan. In addition, riding the choo-choo is fun.
The Chinatown buses are MORE crowded than Greyhound and a WORSE ride?
They must be truly horrific. Didn’t one catch fire on the Turnpike a few months back and the driver wouldn’t stop?
You could drive part of the way, park in New Haven or Stamford or something, and take the train from there. That might be the cheapest overall. Might be a bit slower though (that train from New Haven to New York always seems to take forever).
I like the idea of driving to a place CLOSE to NYC, leaving the car in a commuter lot, and then taking a commuter train. The idea of flying into Boston and then out of New York is interesting, but I would bet it’ll be a LOT more expensive that way. I’ve taken Greyhound buses in the past and got time off for good behavior, so I don’t think I’ll be going that way again. 
It sounds like I should count on spending a night there… if I arrange a tour of NYU, I’m sure there’d be a way to find somewhere to stay through them.
And…
Yes, Kendraen, I am THAT Anise. Author of TBBC and other fannish works, including the infamous, gatherer-of-flames, I’m-probably-going-to-hell-just-for-writing-this Quick and the Dead. I’m glad you liked TBBC. 
Are you going to TWH?
I thought I’d heard that multi-city trips might not be more expensive. So to satisfy my curiosity, I put together an imaginary flight from Chicago, leaving June 23, returning June 27, using the American Airlines website.
A flight to Boston on June 23 and back to Chicago on the 27th cost $438.
A flight from Chicago to Boston on June 23, then Boston to New York on June 25, then New York to Chicago on the 27th cost $421.
Of course, I’m not claiming this is true every time, or even the majority of times. But it seems to be worth checking out.
Yuh cain’t get theah from heah!
This is how I get into the city every year when I vacation in Mass. We drive to New Haven and take the commuter train to Grand Central Station, and the come back all in the same day. It’s a long day, but it works and it’s the cheapest option for us. I think if you had a car you could use (or if you can rent one cheaply) then it would be worth it. Otherwise, take the train, bus, or maybe even a discount airline flight one way and then leave from NY.
If you want to see schedules/fares for the commuter train, it is called MTA Railroad.
Ooh, The Quick and the Dead. Must remember to read that, the summary sounds great. I’m not going to TWH, because I can’t skip classes then (too early in the year) and the one-day prices wouldn’t benefit me, especially with the commute. (Plus my relatives in the area have a newborn. You couldnt pay me to spend the night.) 
I hope you have fun though.
Oh, and if you’re going to the driving option, be sure to buy gas in New Jersey, as it’s really cheap there (as low as $1.99 near Closter.) You probably already knew that, but it never hurts to check.
Too bad you can’t come to TWH, Kendraen… But I understand. I probably couldn’t justify going if it weren’t for the chance to visit NYU. On the whole, I think it makes the most sense to drive (and it would also be the cheapest.) The biggest drawback is that I wouldn’t have a ton of time there-- not if I wanted to do the round trip in the same day!
MTA Operates several railroads. That one is called Metro-North Railroad.
And it’s Grand Central Terminal. Grand Central Station was a post office.
Hey, when New Yorkers come down to Florida they are even worse at getting things mixed up! Thanks for the corrections.
No problemo. I’m a railroad geek so I’m anal about such things.