Washington DC and New York airports choice (USA)

I'm shortly going from Vancouver in Canada to Washington DC in the
States, then Washington DC to New York, then finally to Switzerland
from New York.

Both aboventioned US cities have two airports each, and I'm not sure
which ones are best for arriving/departing from....

Washington DC: Washington Dulles
Washington Reagan

New York : John F. Kennedy
La Guardia

I plan to stay in a reasonably priced backpacker hostel both places,
in central locations, so I'd prefer the airports closest to that, and
with public transport access throughtout the day.
Suggestions?


Hallvard

Actually they each have three "local" airports. Washington has Dulles,
National, and then there is BWI, which is the furthest, but which has some
of the best fares and is a Southwest Airline hub. NYC has Kennedy,
LaGuardia, and then there is also Newark, which actually has the most
traffic for NYC.

For DC, each airport has its pluses and minuses. Dulles is out in Suburban
Virginia, but it serves the long haul international flights and some
discount airlines such as Jet Blue, Ted now Independence Air. National
(Reagan) is the closest to the city and is on the Metro line into town, but
is limited by a short runway and cannot serve large aircrat such as the 767.
And the proximity to DC also means fares to National are usually higher,
though now some discount airlines fly into it such as Spirit and Air Tran.
BWI is near Baltimore but it's just an hour or so from downtown DC.
Southwest is the largest airline in the airport and you can get some good
fares to there. Going to NYC from DC is probably the best from National
though I personally would recommend the train (Amtrak). It takes you
downtown to downtown in about 3 hours, which is about the same if you fly
taking into considertion the travel required to the airport and the wait.

For NYC, the only choices you have leaving it for Switzerland are JFK and
Newark. LaGuardia does not serve overseas flights. Both JFK and Newark are
a bit away from Manhattan and require either taxi of some form of public
transportation into the city. Newark is better for the public transport as
you can access the Amtrak or NJT trains into Manhattan. JFK is not very
convenient for public transportation as the subway ride to Manhattan is very
long. I think the only consideration here is which airline you're flying
and which has the best fare for you to Switzerland.

Pan


"Hallvard Tangeraas" wrote in message
om...
I'm shortly going from Vancouver in Canada to Washington DC in the
States, then Washington DC to New York, then finally to Switzerland
from New York.

Both aboventioned US cities have two airports each, and I'm not sure
which ones are best for arriving/departing from....

Washington DC: Washington Dulles
Washington Reagan

New York : John F. Kennedy
La Guardia

I plan to stay in a reasonably priced backpacker hostel both places,
in central locations, so I'd prefer the airports closest to that, and
with public transport access throughtout the day.
Suggestions?


Hallvard

Pan wrote:
For DC, each airport has its pluses and minuses. Dulles is out in Suburban
Virginia, but it serves the long haul international flights and some
discount airlines such as Jet Blue, Ted now Independence Air. National
(Reagan) is the closest to the city and is on the Metro line into town, but
is limited by a short runway and cannot serve large aircrat such as the 767.
And the proximity to DC also means fares to National are usually higher,
though now some discount airlines fly into it such as Spirit and Air Tran.
BWI is near Baltimore but it's just an hour or so from downtown DC.
Southwest is the largest airline in the airport and you can get some good
fares to there. Going to NYC from DC is probably the best from National
though I personally would recommend the train (Amtrak). It takes you
downtown to downtown in about 3 hours, which is about the same if you fly
taking into considertion the travel required to the airport and the wait.

What Pan said.

National Airport is the most convenient from hostelling in DC, it is on the
metro line, etc. It's also going to be more expensive, probably.

Dulles and BWI are less convenient, but there is public transport to both (ask
here when you know where you are leaving from; I've done all three of the
airports via public transport since I Live walking distance from a metro
station).

But if the point is to go from DC to New York, there is no question that the
TRAIN is the best bet. You get there faster (if you factor in transport time,
and needing to check in early (very earliy if you are flying southwest out of
BWI).

Julie


--
Julie
**********
Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at
http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm

Hallvard Tangeraas wrote:
I'm shortly going from Vancouver in Canada to Washington DC in the
States, then Washington DC to New York, then finally to Switzerland
from New York.

Both aboventioned US cities have two airports each, and I'm not sure
which ones are best for arriving/departing from....

Washington DC: Washington Dulles
Washington Reagan

Washington National (DCA; which you've called "Reagan", thus giving yourself
away as a non-DC local) is by far the most convenient airport to the city.
Much much more convenient than Dulles (IAD).

The second most convenient after National is Baltimore (BWI). Dulles is a
distant third, and is also the world's worst airport.

Unfortunately flights to National can be more expensive, and not all
airlines serve it. But use it if you can.

New York : John F. Kennedy
La Guardia

LaGuardia (LGA) is probably the fastest to town if you're flying into New
York from elsewhere in the USA. Not by much though. And as others have said,
no international service except Canada.

For flying out to Switzerland it's a toss-up between Newark (EWR) and JFK.
Personally I prefer EWR as it's a bit faster to get to and in better shape
than most of the JFK terminals.

miguel
--
Hit The Road! Photos and tales from around the world: http://travel.u.nu

Miguel Cruz wrote in message ...
Hallvard Tangeraas wrote:

I'm shortly going from Vancouver in Canada to Washington DC in the
States, then Washington DC to New York, then finally to Switzerland
from New York.

Thanks for the replies to everybody.
The full story is that I already have plane tickets -a Star Alliance
round-the-world ticket, so I don't have to worry about which airport
gives the best fares, but rather what's most convenient.

I've called up the airlines and made a preliminary change, but can
change it again if I like.
The information here has been helpful.

What I've done now is the following:

- Vancouver - Washington DC Reagan (DCA)
- Washington DC Dulles - New York La Guardia
- New York JFK - Zurich (via Frankfurt)


Washington National (DCA; which you've called "Reagan", thus giving yourself
away as a non-DC local) is by far the most convenient airport to the city.
Much much more convenient than Dulles (IAD).

Yup. That's what I found out after searching for a Washington DC map
online, so most convenient when arriving in the evening.


The second most convenient after National is Baltimore (BWI). Dulles is a
distant third, and is also the world's worst airport.

I thought I'd try out another airport when leaving, but if it's really
a crappy and inconvenient one which is difficult and time-consuming to
get to I can change this to IAD as well.
How much time do you reckon I'd use to take a bus/train to Dulles?



Unfortunately flights to National can be more expensive, and not all
airlines serve it. But use it if you can.

National airport isn't an option for me since Star alliance doesn't
list it when searching for destinations, so I guess none of their
airlines use that one.


New York : John F. Kennedy
La Guardia

LaGuardia (LGA) is probably the fastest to town if you're flying into New
York from elsewhere in the USA. Not by much though. And as others have said,
no international service except Canada.

I've made a good choice then, since LaGuardia is what I've set up
already, when arriving from Vancouver.


For flying out to Switzerland it's a toss-up between Newark (EWR) and JFK.
Personally I prefer EWR as it's a bit faster to get to and in better shape
than most of the JFK terminals.

Again, Newark isn't used by Star Alliance apparently, so JFK seems to
be the only choice, but too bad it's hard to get to with public
transport.
Someone mentioned it being a long subway ride, but I'm OK with that (I
took a long train ride getting to Tokyo Narita airport from the city
as well). What I don't like however is if I have to change
trains/buses a million times when I haven't been there before and I'll
be afraid to miss something or not find the buses/trains.

So, how do I get from one of the central locations in NY to JFK?
I think I might be staying at one of the Chelsea hostels in Manhattan
if they have rooms available.
Would that be a good choice for staying 5 days in New York, trying to
see as much as possible without spending half of each day just
travelling?


Hallvard

"Hallvard Tangeraas" wrote in message
om...
I thought I'd try out another airport when leaving, but if it's really
a crappy and inconvenient one which is difficult and time-consuming to
get to I can change this to IAD as well.
How much time do you reckon I'd use to take a bus/train to Dulles?

Give yourself at least an hour from downtown DC to Dulles, if you go via
Metro to West Falls Church and then switch to the Airport Shuttle maybe 90
minutes. Once at Dulles you'll need probably 2 hours before flight. The
lines through security can be very long. Since 9/11 the crowd has actually
gotten much worse. On the other hand, DCA is very quiet and convenient.
I've never had to wait on line to go through security there flying out in
the early afternoon.

Someone mentioned it being a long subway ride, but I'm OK with that (I
took a long train ride getting to Tokyo Narita airport from the city
as well). What I don't like however is if I have to change
trains/buses a million times when I haven't been there before and I'll
be afraid to miss something or not find the buses/trains.

You'll have to make at least one change, at the airport train to the
subway station. Then depending where you go in Manhattan you might need to
make changes again. You'll be on the A train from JFK to the city and that
takes you to the West side, up 8th Ave. Anywhere else you'll need to change
trains. Don't try to take a lot of luggage on the subway as it's mostly
stairs and the regular NYer passenger won't appreciate you lugging a lot of
stuff on and off the train.


So, how do I get from one of the central locations in NY to JFK?
I think I might be staying at one of the Chelsea hostels in Manhattan
if they have rooms available.
Would that be a good choice for staying 5 days in New York, trying to
see as much as possible without spending half of each day just
travelling?

Subway or cab.


Pan

Hallvard Tangeraas:
| So, how do I get from one of the central locations in NY to JFK?
| I think I might be staying at one of the Chelsea hostels in Manhattan
| if they have rooms available. ... What I don't like however is if
| I have to change trains/buses a million times when I haven't been
| there before and I'll be afraid to miss something or not find the
| buses/trains.

"Pan":
You'll have to make at least one change, at the airport train to the
subway station. Then depending where you go in Manhattan you might
need to make changes again. You'll be on the A train from JFK to
the city and that takes you to the West side, up 8th Ave.

Pan is describing the reverse route, of course. Coming from Manhattan,
you might need to change trains to get *onto* the A train for the main
trip.

Going from the city to the airport is a bit trickier because, unlike
most New York subway routes, the A train has multiple branches -- so,
some A trains don't go to the airport. Specifically, if the train
says it's going to Lefferts Blvd., don't take it. Any "Rockaway"
destination is okay.

At the airport end, you get off at Howard Beach - JFK Airport station
and the AirTrain takes you to the airport for $5 (which is more than
twice what you paid for the subway ride).

There is another option besides the subway. Go to Pennsylvania ("Penn")
Station, on 7th Avenue at 34th Street (you can also enter from 8th Av.),
and buy a Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) suburban train ticket to Jamaica
station. This costs a bit more than the subway, but nothing unreasonable,
maybe around $5. Jamaica station is on multiple routes and you shouldn't
have to wait more than a few minutes for a train. The journey will be
faster than by subway. The AirTrain also serves Jamaica, so you can get
the airport easily from there.

There is also an express bus from Manhattan to JFK for $9; its Manhattan
stops are near Penn Station, Grand Central, and the Port Authority bus
terminal. See http://www.sky-guides.com/jfk_airport.html for details.
Of course, delays due to traffic are possible.
--
Mark Brader | scanf() is even more complicated and usually does
Toronto | something almost but not completely unlike what
| you want. -- Chris Torek (after Douglas Adams)

My text in this article is in the public domain.

(Mark Brader) wrote in message ...
Hallvard Tangeraas:
| So, how do I get from one of the central locations in NY to JFK?
| I think I might be staying at one of the Chelsea hostels in Manhattan
| if they have rooms available. ...

"Pan":
You'll have to make at least one change, at the airport train to the
subway station. Then depending where you go in Manhattan you might
need to make changes again. You'll be on the A train from JFK to
the city and that takes you to the West side, up 8th Ave.

Thanks, but I'm a little confused -there are so many stations, trains
and airports in all of these discussions, so let me clear things up a
little as I've done the final rebooking of my ticket....

It looks like getting from/to Vancouver and Washington DC Reagan
airports will be fairly easy (I hope I'm right, but I'll find that out
soon enough as I'm off to Vancouver tomorrow), but I need some help
with New York.

I'll be flying from Vancouver (via Toronto) into New York LaGuardia.
I've booked into Chelsea international hostel at 251 West 20th Street.
What would be the best way to get there (and preferrably without
spending a fortune, being the budget traveller that I am)?
The hostel website didn't give any directions, and so far they haven't
replied my email where I ask about this.


Then, when leaving New York for Switzerland I'll be going from New
York JFK.
I guess I'll follow those instructions you and Pan have given me to
get to that airport.


Hallvard

In article ,
Hallvard Tangeraas wrote:

What I've done now is the following:

- Vancouver - Washington DC Reagan (DCA)
- Washington DC Dulles - New York La Guardia
- New York JFK - Zurich (via Frankfurt)

I thought I'd try out another airport when leaving, but if it's really
a crappy and inconvenient one which is difficult and time-consuming to
get to I can change this to IAD as well.
How much time do you reckon I'd use to take a bus/train to Dulles?

It's a long time, but if you like airplanes, the new Udvar-Hazy satellite
facility of the National Air and Space Museum is very close to Dulles--it
has all the large airplanes that won't fit in the main facility. As far
as I'm concerned, it's the only reason to go via Dulles. If the air
museum doesn't interest you, either try and trade in for a DCA-LGA ticket
or just take a train instead. It's about 4 hours on a cheaper train,
and $70, but for that, you save all the fuss of getting out to an airport
in DC and in from an airport to NYC.

So, how do I get from one of the central locations in NY to JFK?
I think I might be staying at one of the Chelsea hostels in Manhattan
if they have rooms available.
Would that be a good choice for staying 5 days in New York, trying to
see as much as possible without spending half of each day just
travelling?

Sounds about right. That's how I'd do it.
--
---
"Wake Up, Everybody."--McFadden/Whitehead/Carstarphen
RIP John Whitehead 1948-2004

On Mon, 14 Jun 2004 14:58:52 GMT, Miguel Cruz wrote:

The second most convenient after National is Baltimore (BWI). Dulles is a
distant third, and is also the world's worst airport.

Miguel, you used to give good advice, but your recent opinions, like this one,
have been so colored by your personal prejudices that they're nigh-on worthless.

-- Larry (Alexandria)




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