There was another thread about airports that reminded me of this.
I’ve only flown to NYC once, and opted for LGA. The only reason I picked that one was that it was the closest to midtown Manhattan where I would be staying, and the cost differences between it and the other two were not enough to make that the deciding factor.
So, if you’re familiar with the other area airports, which one would you choose (again, assuming that your destination is Manhattan) and why?
All three are very close to Manhattan that if cost were a factor, take the cheapest, the difference to your ultimate destination is literally going to be minutes barring major traffic troubles. I always use Newark, but my destination is always Jersey and it cuts out alot of that traffic.
I’ll buy that for a dollar.
As a person who travels via airplane very frequently, I feel I am qualified to answer this question.
I tend to look at the airports according to the ease of travel to/from them. Here are the options:
There is a subway (the A train) that goes directly from JFK to anywhere in the NYC area accessible by subway. This also means that you can get to/from the airport for $1.50. The ride to Midtown is about one hour.
Since JFK is pretty far from everything, the cab ride to Manhattan is a fixed rate of $30. It takes about 30-45 minutes.
LaGuardia is the closest to Manhattan, but the transportation to/from is pretty weak. There is a shuttle that goes from LaGuardia to Grand Central that costs $12 round trip. Cab fares are metered so they vary - from LaGuardia to my work (Midtown) a cab costs $20. Both methods take about 20 minutes.
Newark is BY FAR the worst airport if you are traveling to NYC. Flights to it may be cheaper, but you will end up paying a ton more in time and transportation costs. A cab costs a minimum of $30 - gypsy cabs and car services are around the same price. It can take from 45 minutes to over an hour depending on tunnel and turnpike traffic.
The public transportation is HORRIBLE. The buses (I think they’re like $12 round trip) take the passengers to Port Authority. It can take about 2 hours to get from Newark to Manhattan on the bus.
None of the above include tips and tolls. If you know your way around, you can avoid tolls. If you are traveling from Newark, it is imperative to tell the driver to take Routes 1/9 north instead of the Turnpike - you’ll save several dollars and a lot of time stuck in traffic. If you fly into LaGuardia, have the driver take the Queensboro or Williamsburg bridge into Manhattan - free. If you’re coming from JFK, have the driver take the Brooklyn or Manhattan bridges in - free. The tunnels cost $3.50 into Manhattan.
If you decide to rent a car, it’s cheapest through JFK.
Another option for travel to/from the airport is the one I use: the car service. If I don’t have vouchers from work, I just pay the $20. It’s nice because they pick you up at your home, take you directly to your ticketing counter and are generally pleasant. Unfortunetly, they drive like hell.
Depending on how much stuff I’m carrying, how much money I want to spend and how much time I have, I either choose LaGuardia or JFK.
Hope this helps.
Melanie
LaGuardia is the most pleasant and the most convenient.
I will occasionally use Newark if I plan to leave my car there (family vacations, etc.). It has the cheapest long-term parking.
Kennedy is a god damn hell on earth. Only a last resort or for European travel.
Uke
If you have any choice, stay away from JFK. You will almost certainly run into the worst traffic getting out of that airport, no matter what route you take (always an accident involving some overturned tractor-trailer, or some such). Fares for JFK are also often slightly higher than the othe two.
LGA & Newark are both okay. LGA generally has slightly cheaper flights, and is certainly a cheaper fare into Manhattan (even with no traffic, you’re looking at 30-45 min. into midtown from Newark, compared to 15-20 min. from LGA).
That said, LaGuardia is, uh, under-endowed in terms of runway length. If the weather is going to be inclement upon your arrival or departure, choose Newark or take a swimming lesson.
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I don’t think any of the three is particularly pleasant, so to minimize my agony, I usually choose LaGuardia. It’s been so long since I flew into Kennedy I don’t even know whether they ever finished the extension from the subway to the terminal, or whether you still have to take a shuttle bus.
If you’re in a hurry, by all means fly to LaGuardia. And if you’re traveling to Midtown or Lower Manhattan and time matters more than money, tell your driver to take the tunnel rather than the bridge.
I understand all the words, they just don’t make sense together like that.
Maybe this should go to Great Debates (ha ha).
I have to ask: Am I the only person who LOVES JFK and HATES Newark?
When I came back from Europe last September, I flew into Newark. A friend picked me up and it took me over 2 hours to get home in Brooklyn. And when I came back from Atlanta a few weeks ago, I decided to take public transportation from Newark airport. It took me 3 hours to get to Port Authority by bus. I guess the moral I’ve learned is to forget about getting into the city from New Jersey on a Sunday.
At JFK, I’ve been in and out in a jiffy no matter what time my flight arrives.
BTW, Kunilou, you still have to take the shuttle to the terminals from the subway.
PATH trains and NJT trains get into the city pretty quickly. Busses suck ass, that’s anywhere not just NYC or NJ.
I’ll buy that for a dollar.
C’mon, Saxy, if you’re coughing up hundreds of bucks for a plane ticket, pay the $20 for a cab home from LaGuardia.
How can you hate Newark Airport? It’s so…American. Clean. Well-lighted. Since it’s in America, don’t even THINK of going near it unless you have an automobile or a friend with an automobile.
There’s no real trick to getting home fast from Newark…one exit south on the Jersey Turnpike takes you to the Goethals Bridge, a happy jaunt through Staten Island, BING over the Verrazano Narrows, and there you are in Brooklyn!
JFK is the blasted heath. Nothing grows there, or lives there for long.
LOL! I prefer Newark myself (LGA seems claustrophobic to me), but I guess I never thought of it as an all-American airport. 
Uke, since my roommate parked in front of a driveway and had all of his tires slashed by the people that couldn’t get to work, we don’t have a car. So it’s public transport for me.
Psycat - I have to say that I would kill myself before I have to sit on another slow ass Path train. I used to take sax lessons in Hoboken - getting there and back was Hell on Earth. Plus the Path train doesn’t go to Newark Airport - you have to take the bus to/from Newark’s Penn Station first.
NY Transit is ok for transport throughout NJ - but again, there are no trains to Newark Airport - you have to take a bus to/from Newark’s Penn Station.
Did I mention Newark’s Penn Station is hell? It costs about $15 to get to Newark airport from Newark’s Penn Station. RIDICULOUS.
I think JFK is cool because I could live there for weeks (didn’t someone do that?). And the JFK International Arrivals terminal is probably the closest thing to Ellis Island I will ever experience. And it only costs $1.50 to get there. More money for beer.
The neat thing about JFK is the Cargo Transport area, where the non-human Stuff is flown in from overseas.
Huge unpopulated tracts of runways, hangars, and warehouses.
Get yourself a van, a pair of overalls, and a clipboard. Drive around and help yourself to whatever you want.
You think anyone is going to stop you? YOU’VE got the clipboard.
I just reread this thread and thought, Poor Mjollnir!!
Here are a bunch of New Yorkers and New York area natives bitching and complaining about how all of them are hell and how hard and expensive it is to get around from ANY airport. And we are familiar with the area! Imagine what someone flying in must feel.
The hands down winner has got to be LaGuardia, aren’t you glad you asked?
I love this board.
I’ll buy that for a dollar.
Psycat - that is a great observation!
Ok, for the record, it would benefit everyone if NO TOURISTS visited New York City anymore! I know Uke will agree with me on that…
Anyway, my one trip to NYC had a couple of disappointments, so I do want to go back at some point:
Coney Island was closed for the season, and I had wanted to take a long (driving) cruise out Long Island way, but the weather was not accommodating.
And don’t knock tourists–if it weren’t for them, er, us, (especially easy to spot in Manhattan, because they, er, we are constantly looking up at the tall buildings “Wow, Mabel, lookee there”), muggers and purse-snatchers would have a much more limited pool of resources to mine.