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My family wants to go to New England this summer. We live in SC. We would like to drive our van so we can see the Northeast at our leisure. On the way, we'd like to visit NYC for a couple of days. My wife and I have been there many times, but our 12 year-old son really wants to see it. I do not want to drive in NYC. (Been there, done that!) Where is a good place to spend the night near the city that is safe and has good train or bus access to NYC? I don't want a commute of more than 90 minutes. We would probably spend 3 days in the area, 2 visiting NYC. Another option would be to find a safe place to store the van outside the city, commute in, and stay at a hotel in NYC for 2 nights. I appreciate any suggestions!
Why don't you just drive in to your hotel, park the van in a nearby lot and leave it there for three days? Why spend hours on a bus or train commuting back and forth? No fun!!!
I guess that's the best solution. My worst driving experiences were in NYC and Detroit.
How do you go about choosing a safe lot? Any precautions I should take other that taking eveything out of the van?
I agree about staying in the city. Commuting to your vacation is no fun! You'll have a lot better time staying in the city. Plus, if you are going to spend the day walking around the city in the summer heat, it's nice to be able to get back to your room to freshen up for dinner and evening activities.
Many hotels have an arrangement with a nearby garage or lot and some have their own underground garages, but any nearby 24-hour garage will be fine. The daily rate is about $45-$65 with sales tax plus an extra 10% tax. A larger vehicle might cost a little more.
I don't think you need to worry about the safety of the vehicle... In Manhattan there are almost no "self park" garages, so you hand the keys to an attendant who will "bury" it in the garage - out of the reach. Tipping the parking attendant a couple of bucks is common and appreciated.
You will pay a premium for a van in NYC. I used to do that, on a monthly contract, for one of my cars, an SUV that wasn't that huge. Check bestparking for some rates. If you want to stay in NJ, you can stay at a hotel like the Doubletree in Jersey City that's right near the PATH and can get you to Lower Manhattan in minutes.
Check the parking rates, since some will cost the equivalent of your hotel for a couple of days just to park the van, not in and out access. There are some less expensive places on the far west side, and some let you make a reservation in advance, which might be preferable with a van.
Hi. I am a transplanted New Englander" to NYC metro area for almost 25 years.
First: Where in "New England" are you traveling to. ..and where will you be starting your leg of the NYC trip from...as that NE is a a pretty large area
For the most economical point of view, there is the "Chinatown Bus Lines" and others like it.
Search here for Chinatown Bus information to Boston New York DC Philadelphia express service (http://www.chinatown-bus.com/index-1.htm - broken link)
I've never ridden them but there are ridiculously inexpensive $15 OW.
If you are near Amtrak routes you may want to consider Amtrak Amtrak
Little more expensive but no driving/parking fee to worry about and it brings you right into Penn Station.
I am a believer that if you are coming to the city, you should experience "The CIty" not an expedition of train schedules/buses/running back and forth order to get back to your base of operations before nightfall....
...and if you are going to be coming in at Penn station you might want to look at the Affina chain. They have a hotel right across the street from Penn -The Affina Manhattan . All of Affina's rooms are Suites with BR, pull out sofa and Kitchen. Way back when b4 I moved toNYC we would stay there...6 guys 2 BR and sleeper and cot...very inexpensive...and no coffee to buy in the AM...hop out of bed and make it. Back then the hotel was known as "The Southgate Tower". It is definitely worth the$$ and it is such a time saver. It will give your kids an 'immersion' into NYC. You can have a full day, crash at the hotel, snack with your kitchen, kids can unwind with TV and still have time to do something at night.
Affina has 4 hotels: [SIZE=3]Affinia 50 [/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]155 East 50th Street, New York, New York 10022
Tel: 212.751.5710 ¦ Fax: 212.753.1468 [/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Affinia Dumont [/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]150 East 34th Street, New York, New York 10016
Tel: 212.481.7600 ¦ Fax: 212.889.8856
[/SIZE][SIZE=3]Affinia Gardens[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]215 East 64th Street, New York, New York 10065
Tel: 212.355.1230 ¦ Fax: 212.758.7858
[/SIZE][SIZE=3]Affinia Manhattan[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]371 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10001
Tel: 212.563.1800 ¦ Fax: 212.643.8028 [/SIZE]
Also, I tell all my friends who want to visit NY (well, those who'll listen) One of the greatest books I've found is entitled:
"The Best Things in NY are Free" by Marian Hamilton. Altho its an older book (1991) It is still chock full of free things you can do in NYC and lots of things-to-see that, as an average tourist, you may not have even thought of. FYI: Did you know that there is a free tour of Grand Central every Wed. at 1230p?...Anywho I found it available for a couple bucks at Alibris.com Best Things in NY Are Free by Marian Hamilton (Used, New, Out-of-Print) - Alibris
I guess that's the best solution. My worst driving experiences were in NYC and Detroit.
How do you go about choosing a safe lot? Any precautions I should take other that taking eveything out of the van?
You can minimize driving disasters by not driving around Times Square and midtown. We live in MA now and stay at the Hotel Beacon on the Upper West Side when we visit. The drive there is so unbelievably easy from the North. If you can enter NYC by the GW Bridge and stay in that neighborhood I think you'll have a much calmer road experience.
Wow! All of you have been so helpful! Thanks!
Tonyfrnjd, I had considered Amtrak. I already had decided against it because I wanted the freedom to roam through New England back roads. (We're headed from SC to NYC to Cape Cod and Boston, then on to southern Maine- taking back roads across New Hampshire and Vermont before heading south around I-87 in NY.) Flights from Charlotte to NYC are only $50 more for the 3 of us than Amtrak and it only takes 2 hours (vs. 13 hours Amtrak). I'm thinking it would be worth it to fly to NYC. I checked car rentals and it is much cheaper to rent anywhere other than NYC. I can rent the same car for almost $300 less in Bridgeport. We could take Amtrak from NYC to Bridgeport for $112 and then rent a car. This does make the trip more expensive, but it takes out 24 hours of driving and wear and tear on my nerves (and van) and gives us more time in NYC. I'll check on your hotel suggestions and get the book. Thanks again to you and all who have made suggestions. I really didn't expect this much help!
Being from the Boston area I have skied and mountain climbed throughout NH and spent many a summer up there. Have also travelled some in Maine and Vermont and now live in way upstate NY.
Your plan sounds like a wonderful trip for the family. My suggestion is you travel through the mountain area of NH; Mount Washington (which you can drive up for a price), North Conway area and from there take one of two roads that wind there way west through the mountains: Either route 302 or route 112 a/k/a the Kancamagus Highway which is my favorite, but either road has many mountain views and a variety of stopping places to relax or picnic. Either will eventually lead you to I93 and further on I91 in Vermont.
Can't help you much through Vermont. My main destination there was Killinton for skiing outside Rutland, Vermont, BUT, here's a thought for you: continue on to Lake Placid, NY where the Olympic bobsled run (actually just the bottom half) is open during the summer months for the public to ride down and where the ski jumps are also used year round. On a recent visit there in late August we watched the Canadian ski jump team practicing.We stood at the 'take off' point where the jumpers took flight. From there you could continue on through the Adirondack Park OR simply hop on I87 and head back south.
My thought on your van: The only place it may be an encumberance would be the NYC area, but other than that it would provide a great deal more comfort on the rest of the trip and it seems the comfort would outweigh the 2 day encumberance and your thought of finding a safe place to park it, take public transportation into the city and stay at a hotel there would solve that dilemma. Maybe if you spent a night at a motel outside the city that motel may let you leave the van there for a small price compared to NYC parking.
Last edited by Gaffer; 04-05-2009 at 09:03 PM..
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Some suggestions for your visit
