Kennedy, LaGuardia, Newark, or punt??
 

Ok, so I have to travel to New York for work related purposes... I'll be flying in early and flying out late on the 25th of January. Which friggin airport should I fly into? I'll be going to 45th & Park (Manhattan??). I thought I saw a post with the good/bad for the 3 airports but I cannot find a link... also, any tips on public transportation from any? Any info is appreciated...

If you're going to Manhattan, best bet is LaGuardia.

/agree. LaGuardia. If you can't get there, go Newark. JFK is a bitch.

La Guardia, hands down.

Or for shits and giggles, fly into Islip.

If for some ungodly reason you end up going JFK, I highly recommend taking the rail into Manhattan. When I used to fly into JFK, taking the rail was much cheaper and a little bit quicker than cabbing all the way into the city.

punt

La Guardia. Smaller airport and easier to get around. Also, it is closer to Manhattan. I remember a 20 minute drive I had about a month ago from La Guardia to 50th and Boardway.

i have never used laguardia, but i would recommend Newark, i have used it dozens of times, and to get to where you want to go, you can easily rent a car and go about 15 minutes up the NJ Turnpike and head for the lincoln tunnel which puts you right into downtown, and you can park the car at the port authority garage if for not a million dollars and pretty much walk wherever you need to go.

and for even more shits and giggles, look into Teterboro.

LaGuardia.

That is unless there is any sort of weather because if they turn the sprinklers on at Shea they start cancelling flights and everything else gets backed up for a couple hours. It's still better than Idlewild (JFK) or Newark.

If you're driving, I like Newark... but if you're cabbing, LGA hands down. I spend about 75% of my time in NYC or Central NJ... so I travel there quite a bit...

Regards,
Chas

LaGuardia is by far the best (easiest to get out of). If you're getting a cab, it's the cheapest too. About $25 + bridge toll to midtown vs. $35 from JFK and close to $50 for Newark.

Only major concerns are 1) it's smaller so there are fewer flights to LaGuardia and 2) it tends to shut down quicker than the others when there's bad weather.

But for my money, I'd always fly into LaGuardia if possible when going to midtown.

There's a nice shuttle that goes from Newark Airport to Port Authority, so it really depends on where in NY you are going. From LaGuardia to midtown by cab will most likely cost you over $30 (I think it was $25 last time I went from LGA to the Upper East side). The shuttle from Newark was $10 last time I took it and pretty much goes from right next to the terminal to Port Authority.

thanks fellas... not having been there before I wasn't sure what the travel options would be. I prefer to use public transportation / cabs if possible. Don't want the hassle of driving not knowing where I'm headed. I also plan on wandering around a bit once I am in the city... depending on the weather and my schedule I hope to get at least 3 or 4 miles of walking in (I'm an architect so I'll be in heaven..).

If you're sticking to Manhattan by all means don't rent a car. You can get everywhere you need to go by walking, subway, or bus (or worst case cab - convenient but expensive to get around), especially from midtown. Walking is IMO the best way to see the city.

Besides if you rent a car, you'll have to find parking or pay the $30 a night (or more) parking fees.

I'll be trying to pack as much architecture into the one day I am there as possible.. I plan on stopping by MoMa to do a cursory overview... I'll see what else I stumble upon.

I live in Midtown East (right near 45th and Park), and I find Laguardia the easiest by far. If your company is footing the bill, I would look into getting a car service. If you are paying yourself take a cab, it won't be too expensive

If you prefer public transportation from the airport to Manhattan, keep in mind that Newark Airport is now connected via rail service (trains go into Penn Station, I believe).

LaGuardia is still your best bet if you cab it, since it looks like your final destination is Midtown East. If you do take public transportion from Newark, I would take a shuttle bus to the Port Authority, since it is easier to get to Grand Central Station (close to where you are going) from Port Authority than from Penn Station.