Cheapest Ways to Get to New York

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 9:25am

Long story short, I'm trying EVERYTHING in my power to get to NYC on a tight budget. I'm looking for 2 people to get to NYC by plane. What websites have all the cheapest flight rates, hotel rates, ect...

Updated On: 7/2/09 at 09:25 AM

[WOSQ]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 9:43am

Sidestep.com

Where are you coming from?

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 10:10am

^ Thank you SO much WOSQ. I'm coming from East Tennessee.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 10:21am

Something to keep in mind:
Airline baggage fees chart

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 10:44am

Thanks for the list Eris0303. That helps a lot. I'm embarrassed to ask this, but how is the transportation from hotels in the Newark area to Manhattan?

[TimesSquareRegular]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 11:19am

There are PATH (Port Authority Trans Hudson) trains from downtown Newark to 34th St in Manhattan.

(There's other service also, but I really don't know the routes. )

[Taryn]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 11:31am

NJ Transit runs from Newark into Penn Station on 34th Street. (I think PATH runs farther downtown.)

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 11:33am

Will you fly out of Nashville? I have found it much cheaper to fly into Philly, but if you aren't getting a car, that's probably pointless. Continental has a direct flight from Newark that's around $200 but it's on those teeny two seats on one side, one seat on the other side. Jet Blue stopped flying out of Nashville which SUCKS.

I am in love with Priceline. I got a hotel that normally costs $269 a night for $110 in Times Square for a weekend in August. They let you name your own price on flights, too. You pick where you are going, how much you want to spend and how many stops you are willing to make. I just went in and put in a bid of $75 for a flight. After tax, it would be $111. I said I was willing to make 1 stop and land in Newark, JFK or LGA. It would have accepted the bid if I had put my credit card in. That's not saying that it will 100% be accepted by an airline, but they usually give you a warning message if you put in something that won't be accepted. You can also combine your flight and hotel that way. See how much you are willing to spend for the weekend, shave some off just to see and then put your credit card in. You can always raise your bid amount if it's not accepted in 24 hours. It's a little bit of a gamble, but if you're really trying to save some money, it's a great way to go.

What are your dates for travel?

Updated On: 7/2/09 at 11:33 AM

[Eris0303]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 12:01pm

Philly is, usually, cheaper but you're going to end up paying more in public transit fees so it'll, probably, come out even. You'd have to take the subway or a taxi to 33th Street Station in Philadelphia, take the train or bus to Trenton, and then get on NJ Transit in Trenton. Three fares for one trip.

The PATH train doesn't stop at Newark Airport so in order to catch that you'd have to take NJ Transit to Newark Penn Station and get off there. I might be easier to just take NJ Transit all the way into New York Penn Station rather than switching and getting on the PATH. The last time I took the PATH was last summer and, at that time, you couldn't buy a single ride. The minimum was 12 rides. It might be cheaper to take NJ Transit to Penn. At the airport just follow the signs to the Airtrain which is a monorail that connects the terminals to the train station. Unfortunately, you cannot buy round trip train tickets to and from the airport. I wish you could. It's $15 one way according to the website.

Priceline/Hotwire are great for hotels but not so great for flights. The one issue is timing. You can't choose your flight times which can be a problem when dealing with public transit that doesn't run 24/7. If you arrive in Newark after NJ Transit stops running you're stuck there until 5am. So, that's one thing to keep in mind. The last train out of Newark is at 2:03am and the first is at 4:48am.
Train Schedules (Station to Station)

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 12:09pm

Thanks guys and gals. I am, hopefully, on my way to NYC for the first time EVER this October as a birthday present to myself and this is some good advice.

Updated On: 7/2/09 at 12:09 PM

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 7/2/09 at 12:15pm

You can also take a bus from Newark for $15. Last bus is at 1AM, first is at 4AM. http://www.coachusa.com/olympia/ss.newarkairport.asp

If you can fly into LGA, a cab is about $25 with a tip.