Some travel advice requested, please.  :)


I'm planning a trip to Europe in June, and one of the return flights I'm looking at has a 7-hour layover at JFK on a Sunday.

This Southern boy has never visited the Big City, so I'm wondering if it would be practical to do something away from the airport in less than 7 hours.
Is there easy and (hopefully) inexpensive travel between JFK & the city? Suggestions on what to do?
I can stay on my feet for hours, so even if it's just walking around looking at the sights, I'd be happy with that.

Any advice would be welcomed.  :areyoufuckingserious

With the 7 hours.......should return to the airport to check in at least 2 hours in advance for TSA
Take about an hour each way to get into the city.  Might be less, might be more.
So, plan a realistic 3 hours in the city

not very realistic to do anything worthwhile in the short time allotted, plus, if you end up late, you miss a flight home!

Yeah, I'm realizing it's not much time, but I'm thinking three hours just walking about is better than a full seven sitting in JFK.

Is there a subway, or any direct connection with the city from JFK, or does anyone know how much a cab ride is?

roundtrip cab from JFK is well over $100 to midtown... there's trains, but that can take a long time... your time of day, day of week will make a big difference... if you're going to just walk around, head to a specific area that has alot, otherwise you'll be milling through crwods of people feeling lost!

If there is any way you can get rerouted thru EWR ( Newark)? It is a nicer airport and ALOT closer to downtown...

JFK is a hard airport to negotiate from no matter what...UNLESS you can have someone pick you up and/or drop you off...

It is actually easier than it used to be to train>subway>JFK:

Most Reliable Method – LIRR and the Airtrain Combo to JFK Airport
This method is not just the most reliable, but also a relatively cheap and quick way to travel from Penn Station to JFK International Airport during the day or night.  Catch the LIRR train from Penn Station to LIRR's Jamaica hub, which takes 20 minutes.  From there take the JFK Airport Airtrain on the upper level that gets you to the airport terminals in 12-15 minutes.  LIRR trains and the JFK Airport Airtrain run 24 hours a day.  Be sure your LIRR train stops in Jamaica though, because some trains bypass that station.

The cost of using the LIRR/Airtrain combo to get to JFK International Airport depends on when you travel.  The JFK Airport Airtrain always costs $5, payable with a pay-per-ride Metrocard (Unlimited-use Metrocard's won't work on Airtrain).  The LIRR fare varies with travel time: during the afternoon rush, the LIRR fare to Jamaica is $7, making your total cost $12.  During other weekday hours, the LIRR fare is $5, for a total fare of $10.  On weekends, you can ride the LIRR to Jamaica for a special City Ticket fare of just $3 – making the total cost of your trip to JFK Airport only $8.

LIRR trains run to Jamaica every 15 minutes during the day, and every half hour at night, except between 2 and 5 AM, when the trains run hourly.  Travel time is uniformly 35-45 minutes, and transfers between the LIRR and the JFK Airport Airtrain are easy to make.  If you consult www.mta.info for nighttime LIRR schedules, your trip should be painless, no matter when you travel.  Announcements at Penn Station, on the LIRR trains, and the JFK Airport Airtrain are always clear and concise.

Cheapest Method – Subway and the Airtrain Combo to JFK Airport via Sutphin Blvd.
A Cheaper solution for catching the train from Penn Station to JFK is the subway/JFK Airport Airtrain method.  From Penn Station in NYC, the E train will take you to the LIRR/JFK Airport Airtrain (Sutphin Blvd.) station in about 45 minutes, and then it's a 12-15 minute ride to the airline terminals.  The cost is always $7, and the E train runs 24 hours a day.  E trains run every 8-10 minutes during the day, and every 20 minutes after midnight.


For full/more info:  http://www.nysubway.com/airport/jfk.html

Wow, P.A. !

I'm going to have to re-read this after the Boddington's Ale wears off !  :pullanolte

Edith Grove wrote on Feb 25^th, 2012 at 9:05pm:

Wow, P.A. ! I'm going to have to re-read this after the Boddington's Ale wears off !  :pullanolte

WOW!! How many did you have...Boddy's around 4.5% AVP??

:booze :booze :booze :booze

;D ;D ;D ;D

Paranoid Android wrote on Feb 26^th, 2012 at 9:48am:

How many did you have...

Four pints. Not sure what the alcohol content is.  :pullanolte

It's not enough time to get back and forth to Manhattan. You can grab a cab to Brooklyn, which is much closer to the airport, ask how much fare to Arthur Ave, Brooklyn. If its not too expensive round trip you should go out to eat. The best authentic Italian cuisine in NY is on Arthur Ave, restaurant row, Italian bakeries too. You cant go wrong with that!

If ya get the itch and it's a nice day out and you can splurge for the round trip via taxi (forget public transport - will eat up too much time) I'd suggest heading to V-Bar in the east village - FKA St. Marks Bar where the Stones shot the video for Waiting On A Friend - the place has been much spiffed up since then but the iron support columns are still in place and the current bar occupies the same space as did the bar when the video was done - depending on your level of Stones geekdom (which I think is safe to assume is pretty high for all of us ROers) may be cool be have a beer or two there just for memory's sake. Then walk east one block on St. Marks - you'll pass the building shot for the cover of Zep's Physical Graffiti album (across St. Marks from Yaffa Cafe) - at the end of the block @ Ave. A is Tomkins Square Park - there's a bar off the SW corner of the park (7th st. & Ave A - Niagara - easy to spot with a Joe Strummer mural painted on the outside wall) that's good for people watching during the afternoon/early evening when it's not too crowded - there's usually quite a few interesting derelicts coming and going out of the park. There's also Manitoba's bar another block east on Ave B between either 7th and 6th or 6th and 5th streets - run by "Handsome Dick" Manitoba of the 70's NYC band The Dictators that has lots of unique photos from the punk era on the walls and a good jukebox as well.

So yeah, I'm basically recommending a pub crawl but you can kill 3 hours, have some eats and drinks and chill in a still somewhat funky part of town that has some Stones/music history to it (also of note Charlie Parker lived off the east side of the park on Ave B). I'm afraid with the tourist throngs in Midtown you probably wouldn't have enough time to see much around there.

Another option that would allow you to stretch your legs after the long flight would be to take a taxi to and hike around Central Park - would be an either/or deal with the village option timewise.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/v-bar-new-york-3

http://www.yelp.com/biz/niagara-new-york

Follow Paranoid Android's advice on getting into the city by Airtrain/LIRR combo, you'll save money and maybe some time.  If you take a cab and hit traffic, you're screwed.  

From there take a cab downtown.  Walk around the East or West Village.

Stay away from midtown, Times Square.

The famous Arthur Ave is in the Bronx, not Brooklyn.  You won't have time to make it up there.

When in June and what time do you land and have to take-off again? I can give you one helleva tour in that time. BUT...it all depends on the times. Let me know EG.

Bingo wrote on Mar 1^st, 2012 at 10:28am:

When in June and what time do you land and have to take-off again? I can give you one helleva tour in that time. BUT...it all depends on the times. Let me know EG.

Edith this is a film from Bingos tour


http://youtu.be/-O2Zu6NLB_M

wrote on Feb 29^th, 2012 at 11:24pm:

If ya get the itch and it's a nice day out and you can splurge for the round trip via taxi (forget public transport - will eat up too much time) I'd suggest heading to V-Bar in the east village - FKA St. Marks Bar where the Stones shot the video for Waiting On A Friend - the place has been much spiffed up since then but the iron support columns are still in place and the current bar occupies the same space as did the bar when the video was done - depending on your level of Stones geekdom (which I think is safe to assume is pretty high for all of us ROers) may be cool be have a beer or two there just for memory's sake. Then walk east one block on St. Marks - you'll pass the building shot for the cover of Zep's Physical Graffiti album (across St. Marks from Yaffa Cafe) - at the end of the block @ Ave. A is Tomkins Square Park - there's a bar off the SW corner of the park (7th st. & Ave A - Niagara - easy to spot with a Joe Strummer mural painted on the outside wall) that's good for people watching during the afternoon/early evening when it's not too crowded - there's usually quite a few interesting derelicts coming and going out of the park. There's also Manitoba's bar another block east on Ave B between either 7th and 6th or 6th and 5th streets - run by "Handsome Dick" Manitoba of the 70's NYC band The Dictators that has lots of unique photos from the punk era on the walls and a good jukebox as well. So yeah, I'm basically recommending a pub crawl but you can kill 3 hours, have some eats and drinks and chill in a still somewhat funky part of town that has some Stones/music history to it (also of note Charlie Parker lived off the east side of the park on Ave B). I'm afraid with the tourist throngs in Midtown you probably wouldn't have enough time to see much around there. Another option that would allow you to stretch your legs after the long flight would be to take a taxi to and hike around Central Park - would be an either/or deal with the village option timewise. http://www.yelp.com/biz/v-bar-new-york-3 http://www.yelp.com/biz/niagara-new-york

MCSORLEY'S OLD ALE HOUSE A COUPLE BLOCKS AWAY TOO! OLDEST BAR IN NYC.

Paranoid Android wrote on Feb 25^th, 2012 at 7:58pm:

If there is any way you can get rerouted thru EWR ( Newark)? It is a nicer airport and ALOT closer to downtown... JFK is a hard airport to negotiate from no matter what...UNLESS you can have someone pick you up and/or drop you off... It is actually easier than it used to be to train>subway>JFK: Most Reliable Method – LIRR and the Airtrain Combo to JFK Airport This method is not just the most reliable, but also a relatively cheap and quick way to travel from Penn Station to JFK International Airport during the day or night.  Catch the LIRR train from Penn Station to LIRR's Jamaica hub, which takes 20 minutes.  From there take the JFK Airport Airtrain on the upper level that gets you to the airport terminals in 12-15 minutes.  LIRR trains and the JFK Airport Airtrain run 24 hours a day.  Be sure your LIRR train stops in Jamaica though, because some trains bypass that station. The cost of using the LIRR/Airtrain combo to get to JFK International Airport depends on when you travel.  The JFK Airport Airtrain always costs $5, payable with a pay-per-ride Metrocard (Unlimited-use Metrocard's won't work on Airtrain).  The LIRR fare varies with travel time: during the afternoon rush, the LIRR fare to Jamaica is $7, making your total cost $12.  During other weekday hours, the LIRR fare is $5, for a total fare of $10.  On weekends, you can ride the LIRR to Jamaica for a special City Ticket fare of just $3 – making the total cost of your trip to JFK Airport only $8. LIRR trains run to Jamaica every 15 minutes during the day, and every half hour at night, except between 2 and 5 AM, when the trains run hourly.  Travel time is uniformly 35-45 minutes, and transfers between the LIRR and the JFK Airport Airtrain are easy to make.  If you consult www.mta.info for nighttime LIRR schedules, your trip should be painless, no matter when you travel.  Announcements at Penn Station, on the LIRR trains, and the JFK Airport Airtrain are always clear and concise. Cheapest Method – Subway and the Airtrain Combo to JFK Airport via Sutphin Blvd. A Cheaper solution for catching the train from Penn Station to JFK is the subway/JFK Airport Airtrain method.  From Penn Station in NYC, the E train will take you to the LIRR/JFK Airport Airtrain (Sutphin Blvd.) station in about 45 minutes, and then it's a 12-15 minute ride to the airline terminals.  The cost is always $7, and the E train runs 24 hours a day.  E trains run every 8-10 minutes during the day, and every 20 minutes after midnight. For full/more info:  http://www.nysubway.com/airport/jfk.html

I am Very Very Impressed Boss!
I mean it..........

mrpitiful wrote on Mar 1^st, 2012 at 10:11am:

Follow Paranoid Android's advice on getting into the city by Airtrain/LIRR combo, you'll save money and maybe some time.  If you take a cab and hit traffic, you're screwed.   From there take a cab downtown.  Walk around the East or West Village. Stay away from midtown, Times Square. The famous Arthur Ave is in the Bronx, not Brooklyn.  You won't have time to make it up there.

Ooops ~ you are correct, and I meant to say Bronx, not Brooklyn. Its not too far by cab.

So, how did it go?

I'd just stay at the airport and drink....but thats just me...............

gimmekeef wrote on Jul 7^th, 2012 at 10:25am:

I'd just stay at the airport and drink....but thats just me...............

Me too. :pullanolte

Bingo wrote on Jul 7^th, 2012 at 10:09am:

So, how did it go?

Oh, heck, I almost forgot about this thread.  :pukey


The trip got pushed up to April, and the return flight connected through Detroit with a short layover.

Never been to Detroit either, but got to drink a few beers at an airport bar.

They sell lottery tickets from vending machines at that place !  :perverted


Anyway, I appreciate the advice ya'll took the time to give and, hopefully, my first trip to NYC will be for a few days and not just a few hours.

Thanks, ya'll !

gimmekeef wrote on Jul 7^th, 2012 at 10:25am:

I'd just stay at the airport and drink....but thats just me...............

At RDU ( Raleigh-Durham Airport...if you buy a beer you can get a side shot of ANYTHING for 3 bucks extra...

PM me and i will meet you at the bar!!   :booze :booze :booze

Edith Grove wrote on Jul 7^th, 2012 at 2:18pm:

Bingo wrote on Jul 7th, 2012 at 10:09am: So, how did it go? Oh, heck, I almost forgot about this thread.  :pukey The trip got pushed up to April, and the return flight connected through Detroit with a short layover. Never been to Detroit either, but got to drink a few beers at an airport bar. They sell lottery tickets from vending machines at that place !  :perverted Anyway, I appreciate the advice ya'll took the time to give and, hopefully, my first trip to NYC will be for a few days and not just a few hours. Thanks, ya'll !

If your in Detroit. You definitely want to stay at the airport. :loloncemore