Hotel choice and transportation

I%26#39;m travelling in US for 6 wks and want to manage my hotel expenses, but staying in a safe and decent hotel.

My first stop is to visit New York city%26#39;s sights and 3 hotels are being considered, so please advise which is the best choice.

a) Holiday Inn Express or Econo Lodge(Carlstadt, NJ). I understand that I can take a bus( station is nearby) which goes to Port Authority Bus terminal.

b) Homestead Meadowlands(East Rutherford)

Is it located where I can also use the bus service to Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Out of the 3 hotels, which is a better option?

The next question is how do I get to the above hotel from JFK airport and how much will it cost if I take a taxi or is there a direct bus/coach?

Appreciate your help and advice.

Hotel choice and transportation

JFK is on the other side of the metropolitan area from New Jersey. A taxi would cost about $90, if it would be willing to take you at all, and there is no single bus to take. If you%26#39;re determined to stay at one of those locations, Newark Airport would be a closer choice.

In all cases, from JFK the most efficient way would be to take the direct New York Airport Service bus to Port Authority, and then a New Jersey Transit bus from there. To find the appropriate New Jersey Transit bus, use www.njtransit.com.

Hotel choice and transportation

I don%26#39;t know what prices you%26#39;re looking at for those hotels, but none seem ideal for what you want. Getting from JFK to any place in New Jersey except Newark airport is a pain and traveling from either Carlstadt or East Rutherford most probably involves buses, also a pain. But to answer your question, go to njtransit.com for directions from each hotel. You can also have a look at this page prepared by poster broadwaynyc which may list some of these hotels and will provide names of other options.

http://www.broadwayfocus.com/nj_nyc/

There are some hotels in Queens, NY that would be closer and easier to get to from JFK and near a subway (train) stop into Manhattan. They may not be quite as nice, but they will be more convenient. They include the Quality Inn and the Comfort Inn in Long Island City and the Pan American Hotel on Queens Blvd. in Queens.

Are you traveling alone or with family?

One more thing to consider... I just looked at the Homestead Meadowlands review here on TA and it does sound pretty good with full kitchen etc. BUT many of the New Jersey hotels are not within easy walking distance of much. Most people in NJ drive. I don%26#39;t know whether that one is or not, but if you%26#39;re staying for a while and hoping to do cooking and will need shopping etc. it may become complicated without a car. It sounds like it%26#39;s a 2 block walk to the bus stop to go into Manhattan, but not sure where it is relative to restaurants (there%26#39;s not one in the hotel) or shopping. YOu can probably find out by getting a map from mapquest.com or maps.google.com and then searching for supermarkets or restaurants nearby.

If you do not have a need to stay in New Jersey (I assumed you had a specific reason to do so) there are several budget options in Queens, convenient to both JFK and Manhattan, and on the subway system.

The previous poster mentioned the Pan Am and the hotel in Sunnyside. There are also several hotels and a very inexpensive YMCA in Flushing, including a Howard Johnson Express and some other budget options, and several budget hotels in Long Island City, which is not actually in Long Island but in Queens.

Do you realize there are reviews of almost every hotel there is on this website? The Econo Lodge in Carlstadt gets pretty poor reviews and is only listed as a 1* hotel, very few of those in the NYC area. If you weren%26#39;t aware of the reviews, put the name of the hotel in the search box at the upper left corner of this page. Here%26#39;s the link for the Econolodge

tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g46344-d92351-R鈥?/a>

Staying in New Jersey, except for a location near the PATH train system, will severly impact your enjoyment of NYC. Besides travel time and limitations there is the fact that there is little to do in walking distance near hotels in NJ. NYC taxi cabs may legally refuse to take you there, and the taxi cost is: cost to city line + 2X cost from city line to your destination + round trip tolls. As others have said above, Queens is a much better choice. The subway runs 24/7 and is safe and reliable. IMO While it might be more expensive than the out of the way NJ options the cost in time and extra travel expense negate the $$ saving.

Thanks for all the responses and advice.

I%26#39;m travelling with my husband and my daughter is planning to join me for a few days. We don%26#39;t plan to cook since we will be eating out. Just need a clean and safe place to sleep, but with attached bathroom.

Holiday Inn Express in Carlstadt was highly recommended to me by a previous guest, but seems not a good option as my arrival time in JFK airport is 10pm. I don%26#39;t want to have a hard time getting a taxi after a long plane ride.

I%26#39;ll google for the PAN American hotel first and will come back for further advice.

Thanks.

The panamhotel.com is nothing fancy but offers free shuttle to/from JFK and it%26#39;s cheap and near a subway into Manhattan. How many nights will you stay? If you%26#39;re staying for any length of time, you might consider something else or maybe stay there the first night and then move.

To give you perspective, from JFK to the Pan American hotel or any of the hotels in Queens is between 15 and 20 km. To Carlstadt, NJ it is 50 km! You also cross a state border, which as many people have remarked, makes transportation more difficult.

Please examine all the options in Queens, including Flushing and Long Island City. The Pan American Hotel is a good first step.

I have a flexible schedule for my 6 wks. Planning on staying about about a week in NY, then move on to Boston, Chicago and last stop is Michigan.

I had been to Boston %26amp; Chicago in my previous biz trips but did not have time to explore except going to Faneuil Hall Marketplace, CHEERS pub %26amp; Sears Towers.