EWR to JFK by auto/pax pickup at JFK/JFK hotels & auto rentals

I have several questions here and would greatly appreciate any assistance
that can be provided.

I'm going to be flying into EWR at 10:00pm and meeting an associate who is
flying into JFK around 11:00pm on a Friday night. Any advice as to what the
best route would be between EWR and JFK at this time of night? (I hope to be
in my rental and out of EWR by 10:30pm).

I plan on using a map generated by Yahoo, but I know some of the on-line
maps aren't always 100% accurate and/or sometimes there is often a better
way (to avoid construction, traffic, etc) than what the map provides. Any
insight or tips would be much appreciated. I'll also be asking Hertz for a
map and directions, but if there are any tips on making the trek and if
someone could give me an idea of how long it should take (and what traffic
is usually like this time of night) I would much appreciate it.

In regards to JFK what is the best place to meet or pickup a passenger who
will be coming inbound on an American Airlines Intl flight? IIRC, I believe
it's terminal 7 (or 8?). I have only been through terminal 3 JFK on DL
myself and the passenger pick-up area outside of where the exit is after US
Customs @ T3 seemed a bit confusing.

It is likely the passenger I will be picking up will have cleared US
Immigrations & Customs and will be waiting when I arrive. As such, what
would be a good place for this person to wait as I would like to drive along
the arrivals area and just stop the car just long enough to pick him up and
get luggage in the trunk.

Additionally, I plan on flying into JFK a few weeks later. I personally
would like to stay in Manhattan, but it seems most of the hotels are already
heavily booked. Instead, I would like to opt for an airport hotel for night
one because I'll be making a late night arrival. Anyone have suggestions
for a good, safe, JFK airport hotel with shuttle service? I currently have
a reservation at the Marriott Courtyard, but I would prefer something a bit
nicer. Any suggestions as to what hotels are in the area, have shuttle
service, and would be nice to stay at? I believe there is also a DoubleTree
and a Radisson in the area, but I'm not sure how far they are from JFK.
I'm sure there are several others -- as such, I would much appreciate any
suggestions.

Last but not least, how is the rental car situation at JFK? I haven't
decided if I want to get one or not, but if I do, are they all located off
site (shuttle bus ride required) -- or what is the setup like? I know JFK
isn't one of the best designed airports, but unlike EWR (which is my
preferred NYC area airport), JFK offers more frequent trans-Atlantics with
schedules that meet my needs best with a tight schedule.

Thanks in advance!

Steve

I'm going to be flying into EWR at 10:00pm and meeting an associate who is
flying into JFK around 11:00pm on a Friday night. Any advice as to what the
best route would be between EWR and JFK at this time of night? (I hope to be
in my rental and out of EWR by 10:30pm).

Take the obvious route, NJ Turnpike south to the Goethals Bridge,
across Staten Island to the Verrazano to the Belt Parkway to JFK.
Unless something's closed for construction, the trip should be pretty
speedy that late, probably no more than an hour. The westbound
Goethals is closed for construction weekends 12-4 AM, but you're going
east.

In regards to JFK what is the best place to meet or pickup a passenger who
will be coming inbound on an American Airlines Intl flight? IIRC, I believe
it's terminal 7 (or 8?)

It's T8. Since it'll be midnight, you can probably wait at the curb
in the car in front of the terminal. If the cops tell you to move, go
around the (rather long) block.

Additionally, I plan on flying into JFK a few weeks later. I personally
would like to stay in Manhattan, but it seems most of the hotels are already
heavily booked. Instead, I would like to opt for an airport hotel for night
one because I'll be making a late night arrival.

Anyone have suggestions for a good, safe, JFK airport hotel with
shuttle service?

The P.A. has a list of airport hotels on their web site at
http://www.panynj.gov/aviation/jsmfram.htm. They all have courtesy
shuttles, they're all pretty close. It's not a partularly dangerous
part of NYC, so pick whichever one you want.

If you want to stay in Manhattan, I'd be surprised if you couldn't
find a reasonable room, and you can always get a taxi at JFK. Did you
check Expedia and Orbitz, both of which have a lot of merchant hotel
inventory?

Last but not least, how is the rental car situation at JFK?

Disregarding the obvious question of what kind of masochist rents a
car in NYC, the rental lots are all at Federal Circle, in the airport
but not close to the terminals. If the Airtrain is running, it'll
drop you there. Otherwise you take a bus.

Regards,
John Levine, , Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://iecc.com/johnl, Sewer Commissioner
"A book is a sneeze." - E.B. White, on the writing of Charlotte's Web

It's funny, I would also suggest the same route you did saying that there
isn't any other one, but if you do a yahoo map that isn't what they come up
with. So I too vote for the route below and not what Yahoo tells you to do.

Where to pick up somebody? If you both have telephones, have him wait
someplace comfortable, and when you get to the airport call and have him go
to one of the doors at either the arrival or departure level, as long as you
know which he is at you either go up or down, and just pull up while he's
waiting. Don't leave your car at the curb to go in and get him, then you
will be looking for another car.

Manhattan hotels are very full for some reason this fall, I was looking for
one last weekend for an event we were going into the city for and the search
engines were bringing up hotels further from the city then my house is.
Call the hotels directly, they may have some space that hasn't been released
into the systems yet, but don't wait, it's going to be a tough fall and
winter for hotel rooms in the city for some reason (which is a good thing
for the economy).

Would I rent a car if you were only going into the city? Not a chance. If
you have any plans of the suburbs or beyond, then it makes sense, but I
wouldn't do it just to get around, I drive in every day and I don't move the
car if I have to go someplace else usually, it's too much of a hassle, and
way to expensive to park it several places in a day.

Unless there is some pressing need for a car, don't do it.

"John R. Levine" wrote in message
...
I'm going to be flying into EWR at 10:00pm and meeting an associate who
is
flying into JFK around 11:00pm on a Friday night. Any advice as to what
the
best route would be between EWR and JFK at this time of night? (I hope to
be
in my rental and out of EWR by 10:30pm).

Take the obvious route, NJ Turnpike south to the Goethals Bridge,
across Staten Island to the Verrazano to the Belt Parkway to JFK.
Unless something's closed for construction, the trip should be pretty
speedy that late, probably no more than an hour. The westbound
Goethals is closed for construction weekends 12-4 AM, but you're going
east.

In regards to JFK what is the best place to meet or pickup a passenger
who
will be coming inbound on an American Airlines Intl flight? IIRC, I
believe
it's terminal 7 (or 8?)

It's T8. Since it'll be midnight, you can probably wait at the curb
in the car in front of the terminal. If the cops tell you to move, go
around the (rather long) block.

Additionally, I plan on flying into JFK a few weeks later. I personally
would like to stay in Manhattan, but it seems most of the hotels are
already
heavily booked. Instead, I would like to opt for an airport hotel for
night
one because I'll be making a late night arrival.

Anyone have suggestions for a good, safe, JFK airport hotel with
shuttle service?

The P.A. has a list of airport hotels on their web site at
http://www.panynj.gov/aviation/jsmfram.htm. They all have courtesy
shuttles, they're all pretty close. It's not a partularly dangerous
part of NYC, so pick whichever one you want.

If you want to stay in Manhattan, I'd be surprised if you couldn't
find a reasonable room, and you can always get a taxi at JFK. Did you
check Expedia and Orbitz, both of which have a lot of merchant hotel
inventory?

Last but not least, how is the rental car situation at JFK?

Disregarding the obvious question of what kind of masochist rents a
car in NYC, the rental lots are all at Federal Circle, in the airport
but not close to the terminals. If the Airtrain is running, it'll
drop you there. Otherwise you take a bus.

Regards,
John Levine, , Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for
Dummies",
Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://iecc.com/johnl, Sewer
Commissioner
"A book is a sneeze." - E.B. White, on the writing of Charlotte's Web

"John R. Levine" wrote in message
...
Disregarding the obvious question of what kind of masochist rents a
car in NYC, the rental lots are all at Federal Circle, in the airport
but not close to the terminals. If the Airtrain is running, it'll
drop you there. Otherwise you take a bus.

Thanks for all the information! Actually the purpose of the rental car
would be to get out of New York City (if I don't find reasonable lodging in
the area I want). ;-)

I'll try Expedia/Orbitz on the hotels, but I've already tried Starwood and a
few of the major chains directly -- no availability at all in midtown
Manhattan for the weekend I'm looking at. Apparently there is a convention
(plus it's close to X-mas) and everything is heavily booked. The SPG 'gold'
line couldn't even offer one property with availability in the area.

I did check travelocity and the few available decent hotels were more or
less at rack rates. I also tried a priceline and no bids were accepted even
when I tried a price much higher than what normally works for midtown.

Thanks!

Steve

It's funny, I would also suggest the same route you did saying that there
isn't any other one, but if you do a yahoo map that isn't what they come up
with. So I too vote for the route below and not what Yahoo tells you to do.

Yahoo's route is the Turnpike extension to the Holland tunnel, across
lower Manhattan to the Manhattan bridge, up the BQE. out the LIE, then
down the Grand Central and Van Wyck. It's not a bad route,
particularly late at night, but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who
wasn't familiar with NYC because it'd be easy to get lost.

Where to pick up somebody? If you both have telephones, have him wait
someplace comfortable, ...

Good point. Cell phones definitely help here.

Take the obvious route, NJ Turnpike south to the Goethals Bridge,
across Staten Island to the Verrazano to the Belt Parkway to JFK.
Unless something's closed for construction, the trip should be pretty
speedy that late, probably no more than an hour. The westbound
Goethals is closed for construction weekends 12-4 AM, but you're going
east.

"Mike Cordelli" wrote in message
. com...
It's funny, I would also suggest the same route you did saying that there
isn't any other one, but if you do a yahoo map that isn't what they come
up
with. So I too vote for the route below and not what Yahoo tells you to
do.

Mike,

Thanks greatly. Sometimes I've found the routes that yahoo (or other map
programs) provides aren't always the best, especially when driving in a
large city.

Manhattan hotels are very full for some reason this fall, I was looking
for
one last weekend for an event we were going into the city for and the
search
engines were bringing up hotels further from the city then my house is.
Call the hotels directly, they may have some space that hasn't been
released
into the systems yet, but don't wait, it's going to be a tough fall and
winter for hotel rooms in the city for some reason (which is a good thing
for the economy).

I'm almost at the point where I'm giving up at trying to find a room in
Midtown Manhattan for my December visit. I'm either going to stay at a JFK
hotel and just use local transport to get into the city -- or rent a car,
get out of the city and stay somewhere up in CT or NJ. The search has been
ridiculous -- the SPG gold line advised me everything was sold out. The
Marriott Silver line had nothing in the area other than a property south of
Manhattan across the bridge (I apologize, my NYC geography isn't the best).
Other chains have turned up dry as well as a search on Travelocity which
yielded a few, extremely expensive options which weren't the best locations.
I also tried priceline, FWIW, and no luck with bidding 2x's+ what priceline
normally accepts for a property in the area. When I start trying priceline,
that's a sign of being desperate. ;-)

I'll take your advice a call a few of the hotels I had in mind directly to
see if they can offer something. I also plan on trying another Priceline
as it gets closer just in case something opens up with their last minute
inventory that they try to sell off.

Would I rent a car if you were only going into the city? Not a chance.
If
you have any plans of the suburbs or beyond, then it makes sense, but I
wouldn't do it just to get around, I drive in every day and I don't move
the
car if I have to go someplace else usually, it's too much of a hassle, and
way to expensive to park it several places in a day.

Unless there is some pressing need for a car, don't do it.

The auto rental would be used to get out of the city, if I decide to take
that route, and do lodging up in CT or in NJ. I'm just trying to look at
my options as it seems my chances at getting lodging in midtown are quite
slim at this point; as such, it'll either be airport lodging, or lodging
outside of the area, thus the rental. As much as I'd like to spend some
time in Midtown, it could work out much cheaper just to get an auto, drive
up to Stamford, CT (or somewhere in NJ), and get an extremely nice hotel at
a good rate.

How is transport from the JFK hotels into midtown if I decide to stay at a
JFK area hotel and take that route?

Thanks,

Steve

How is transport from the JFK hotels into midtown if I decide to
stay at a JFK area hotel and take that route?

You need to call them and ask, but I'd be surprised if you got an
answer other than "duh?" Ask if they can do pickup and dropoff at the
Jamaica train station, where there is extremely frequent service to
and from Penn Station.

What dates are you looking for? I asked Orbitz for Dec 9-11, and they
had a reasonable selection of hotels in Manhattan for under $150,
mostly on the upper west side which is a nice neighborhood and a heck
of a lot closer to midtown than JFK is, but a few reasonable ones in
midtown, too.

"John R. Levine" wrote in message
...
How is transport from the JFK hotels into midtown if I decide to
stay at a JFK area hotel and take that route?

What dates are you looking for? I asked Orbitz for Dec 9-11, and they
had a reasonable selection of hotels in Manhattan for under $150,
mostly on the upper west side which is a nice neighborhood and a heck
of a lot closer to midtown than JFK is, but a few reasonable ones in
midtown, too.

I'm looking for December 5-7, 2 nights with option for one additional night.
For the time being, I've grabbed the Radisson at JFK (better than the
Courtyard I originally booked) and the same price ($129/night) and I booked
it for 3 nights.

I tried a bid on Priceline for $150 to no avail and a friend of mine in the
UK tried a bid for GBP 90 to no avail as well.

It seems this particular weekend is heavily sold in NYC. I understand there
is a convention of some type in town as well. I think the Radisson will
work out and we'll just use local transport such as the train from Jamaica
to Penn Station as you suggested. I also understand there is a subway line
near the airport somewhere in addition to the city bus.

Not being very familiar with the area, if you do know of any places that
might be worth looking at for that weekend, I'd much appreciate it.

Thanks for all your help, I sincerely appreciate it.

Steve

I believe the reason Yahoo and Mapquest give "odd" routings are that
they are not equipped to distinguish personal and commercial vehicles in
their systems. The preferred course, as we've seen, involves using the
Belt Parkwy which is closed to commercial traffic. Not wanting to give
that routing to an eighteen wheeler with the subsequent knocking down of
low bridges, (oh, the liability) everyone is directed elsewhere.

If the Marriott property available is the one near the Brooklyn Bridge,
it is a much better choice than anything in the JFK area. Quick cab
rides or public transport to Manhattan and I understand there are great
views from some rooms.