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Reading travel threads and travel myself so I wondered how most of you get to and from the airport on personal trips.
I feel if I can afford vacation I am either driving to airport and leaving car in long term parking or paying for a shuttle/car service and not asking friends or family to haul me there. We usually drive to airport and park.
I worry about delayed planes and or canceled flights and do not want to have to depend on family or friends.
Most of the time, I drive and park @ off-site long term parking.
The subway in Atlanta is Not 24x7, and One times my flight was delayed to the point that I missed the last subway out. The Cost/Risk factor make me not take subway. Cost to park @ subway station is $6/day + $5 Subway fare.
Long Term Parking is ~$7.50/day with coupon (off there website). 24x7 access to car 5 minutes from airport, 30-45min Drive home, Vs subway ~15min wait for subway, 45min subway ride, 20 min drive from subway station to home.
Home city is Baltimore. We take taxis to/from the airport.
In cities with excellent public transit we usually try to take the train/subway if possible as in many cases it's only marginally slower than taking a taxi (and in some cases it's quicker). This generally applies in Europe.
In other destinations that we know won't have good transit links or the airport is too far from where we want to go, it's either a taxi or a prearranged hire car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by njkate
Reading travel threads and travel myself so I wondered how most of you get to and from the airport on personal trips.
I feel if I can afford vacation I am either driving to airport and leaving car in long term parking or paying for a shuttle/car service and not asking friends or family to haul me there. We usually drive to airport and park.
I worry about delayed planes and or canceled flights and do not want to have to depend on family or friends.
I live three miles from the airport,. If I have a flight at a time that is inconvenient for getting a ride, I simply hoof it. It is only a 45 minute walk. My carry on is a travel pack with backpack straps.
Returning home from one of my common destinations, It is a 30+ minute drive, so I either get a ride from family, or hire a town car for about $50.
This really came about as when my son and DIL were going to Sandals in St Lucia in Feb last year leaving from JFK and asked me to take them to airport...I was if you can afford a 7 day vacation at Sandals in St Lucia you can afford to park long term at airport or off site or have a car/shuttle service take you...
We shuttle back and forth to the airport. Our trips are 2-4 weeks long. Why inconvenience someone to drive in heavy traffic, or pay hundreds of dollars in parking fees, or just leaving it in an open unprotected space. There's also the case of someone doing damage to your vehicle or breaking into it.
The 40 minute ride to the airport and back is well worth the shuttle cost.
We do not have bus, train or subway service where we live.
In order of preference:
1. Family/friends. Our airport is an hour drive away so we usually do this in trade for each other's trips, or there are some younger friends I know and trust enough and they love to make $20-40 bucks just for driving up to Denver and back. I let them use my older car with my gas in it, so all it's costing them is time.
2. Self park at the discount ($7/day) lot. It works well in a pinch but it quickly gets a lot more pricey than paying a friend $20 and hour to drop and retrieve us. And you still have to deal with getting on a shuttle to the terminal and back which can real be a pain in the cold/dark/rain/snow, especially with two little kids in tow.
3. Taxi. $100 door to door but it's the most convenient option barring a reliable friend and its hardly any more than 2 people in the commuter shuttle. I got our driver's # the first time because he said he'd gladly make the trek to get us instead of driving in circles around the airport for a couple hours for the same or less money. I'm not sure i he'll feel the same way now, depending on gas prices that day, but I keep the number handy anyways although I haven't needed it for years.
4. Airport shuttle from our town. Cost $30-40 one way to be crammed into a smelly van and takes way over an hour with all the stops, but it's do-able in a pinch if its just me. If it's two or more people, it makes more sense to take a cab.
5. The bus. Even if it still ran that way (which it hasn't for a couple years now) it took hours to get there with at least 3 transfers for minimal savings over the shuttle. The train is not an option here unless you happen to be a lump of coal.
We do not have a bus or train option so the local Door to Door Airporter is a godsend. I think it's about $35 rt. What I appreciate is that this airport has one of the highest late/cancellation rates of any airport and if you miss your plane they are waiting for you anyway, without your having to call them.
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