zhizhis

I'm taking my mom to NYC for her 60th birthday for one week, Sat.-Sat. I'm planning quite a few places to visit but I'm afraid or running out of time due to being unfamiliar with the transportation details. I've done a lot of research online already and would appreciate advice from locals and experienced travelers here.

I'm thinking of getting the 7-day metro pass. Is the pass for seven calendar days or seven 24-hour periods? Is the express card better? We are only two travelers, is it better to cab it from the LGA airport or is it actually faster to take the bus-subway route? If our flight lands at 5:30pm, is it safe to book our dinner for 8pm in midtown? Does it really take 25-30 minutes on the subway from mid-town to downtown? What's the realistic roundtrip transport time from midtown to the Bronx Zoo?

Thanks in advance!

TwoFatFeet

You should be able to make your 8pm dinner, but you'll be in a rush.

Cab is faster than the bus/train, unless there's a ton of traffic.

You'll want express trains when you're in a hurry. Midtown to Downtown in 30 minutes is entirely reasonable. I can make it from Midtown to Brooklyn in 30.

www.hopstop.com is a great site that will help you with transportation.

ellenem

<<I'm thinking of getting the 7-day metro pass. Is the pass for seven calendar days or seven 24-hour periods?>>
From the MTA website:
7-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCard
Cost: $24, reduced fare $12
Good for unlimited subway and local bus rides until midnight, 7 days from day of first use.

<<Is the express card better?>>
Don't know what you mean by 'express card.'

<<We are only two travelers, is it better to cab it from the LGA airport or is it actually faster to take the bus-subway route?>>
Take a cab. It should cost $30-$40 and be much less agonizing, especially since you will have dinner reservations.

<<If our flight lands at 5:30pm, is it safe to book our dinner for 8pm in midtown?>>
yes

<<Does it really take 25-30 minutes on the subway from mid-town to downtown?>>
Depends on where midtown and where downtown--these are large areas. For some trips, you might be able to take express trains, while others might be better by the slower local trains. Can you offer specific starting points and destinations?

<<What's the realistic roundtrip transport time from midtown to the Bronx Zoo?>>
Again, it would be better to know from where you wll be traveling. However, as an example, the trip from Grand Central Station (42nd St) on the 5 train to East 180 St, close to the zoo, is about 40 minutes.

Sher

zhizhis.
I have done the bus/subway from LGA to downtown and believe me it isn't very much fun especially if it is hot.

Do not expect a cab to be only $30 to $40. The last time my husband and I cabbed it into town (of course we are in SoHo) it was every bit of $46.

Just warning you so you do not get sticker shock. Of course, it could be less depending on the traffic.

If you had more time, you could take the Super Shuttle which would cost you $24 plus whatever tip you wanted to give for both of you door to door but can be slow.

williamscb13

With your mom you should
1. Take a taxi from the airport. Do NOT take the subway/bus. It is a pain and not worth the time, effort, money savings, hassle, etc. a taxi will drop you right off at your hotel as opposed to a bus or the subway which will drop you off where ever and then you'll have to climb stairs with your luggage and hoof it to your hotel.

2. 7 Day metro pass is good for 7 days and it will say the day it expires so you can use it up through that day. The pass is great because you can hop on and off the subway and bus any time you want. You can even take it one stop. but study a bus map before you come so you know where the buses are. They can really be your friend if you know how to use them.

3. Check into taking Metro North to the Bronx Zoo. I think we took it back from the Botanical Gardens which I think is right near there. Costs us $3 per person and took 20 minutes to get to Grand Central. You can look up Metro North train schedules on line.

janie

one minor correction to williamscb13's good advice
The 7 day metrocard is good for any 7 consecutive days, starting with the day you use it, until midnight of the last day.
SO, if you buy it on Monday,
but only start using it Wednesday at 2 pm, you have it until 11:59 pm the follwing Tuesday night

But the expiration date given on the card (which will probably be about a year from when you buy it) just means that the card itself (even if never used)will expire then. If for some reason you don't end up starting the card, you can hold onto it for another trip in the future. Once you start it though, it will expire in 7 days even if you never use it again.
By the way, you can buy a one day card (for $7) for the first or last day of the trip if you need one more day.


The only ways to see the date the card really expires once you've started using it are 1) when using it on a bus, it will list the date on the display after it says that the card is accepted or 2)in the subway system, at card readers (not at the turnstile)

nytraveler

Absolutely take a cab into the city from LGA - cost should be about $35 or so. You don;t want to be trekking around on city buses and subways, up and down stairs, along passageways and trying to stuff yourselves and your luggage onto crowded subway cars.

For the Bronx zoo check out the express bus - BxM11 - which runs up Madison Ave and goes right to and fro the zoo. Much the best choice in the summer.

NeoPatrick

Am I correct that the 7 day pass will NOT include the express bus to the Bronx zoo?

Take a taxi from Laguardia!

doug_stallings

Regular metro cards do not include Express buses. You can get to the Bronx zoo by subway, but then there's a walk to the actual zoo entrance (10 to 15 minutes). It's also possible to take Metro North (also not included on a Metro Card). Expect to pay about $4--$6 each way to get to the zoo depending on which route you take. It's considerably faster to take Metro North, but I usually go by subway.

ellenem

The best MetroNorth stop for the Bronx Zoo is Fordham Road, the stop before the Botanical Garden station. You'll still have a 10 minute walk to the zoo.

ggreen

As others have mentioned on these boards, do not take Super Shuttle into Manhattan. They're good in suburban areas, but there are better options for the city: since they stop at many passengers' locations, you'll be riding all over town, wasting time for that extra few $$!

You've received very good public transit advice from the other posters here. I'll just add:
- Only buy the 1-day "fun pass" at the end of your visit *if* you'll be using it four or more times that day. (It's $7; each ride with "pay-per-fare" is $2, plus a free subway/bus or bus/subway transfer within two hours. Also bus/bus if they're not going in opposite directions...) Minimum cost for the pay-per-fare is $4 (two rides).
- The MTA *bus* maps are very good and geographically accurate (unlike the subway map). They list bus lines, subway stops, and major sites such as museums etc. You can check out a PDF version at mta.info (go to Maps, NYC Transit, Manhattan Bus), then ask at any subway token booth for a free one once you're in the city. Specify which borough(s) you want; each has its own.
- Also on mta.info in the NYC Transit maps section, there's a great map of Lower Manhattan. What's nice about this map is that it shows the actual location of the subway station entrances within the city grid. There are large-scale maps like this in the entryway or near the token booth for every station in the city. (For whatever reason, the only one they have online is the lower Manhattan one.) When you're exiting a subway station, take the time to look at this neighborhood map to get your exact location and orientation: it will help and save time once you're above ground!

zhizhis

Thank you all! We'll definitely take the cab from the airport then. I've looked at several sites and can't rembember where but someone said it's actually faster taking the bus/subway route on a Sat. night. Go figure!

We'll stay at the Westin on 43rd st. for the first few nights. Some of the reservations I got are in SOHO, and then we have theatre tickets at 8pm, so I'm trying to ensure we don't be late.

At this point it looks like the Bronx Zoo will take a bit of time so maybe we'll just have to skip it. Too many things to do but never enough time! My mom doesn't travel much so I'm trying to have her see as much New York as possible, since I don't think she'll be back to NYC again.

When I have our itinerary set I'll post it for some critiquing. I may pack in too much...

Thanks again - this site is so informative!

nytraveler

The Bronx zoo takes the best part of a day to really see the various habitats. If you want a smaller zoo you can spend an hour or so in the one in Central Park - which you'll probably want to visit anyway. Polar bears and penguins are big hits in the summer/ And they're all run b the Wildlife Conservation Society.

williamscb13

Another option for getting to the bronx zoo. http://www.bronxtrolley.com/

NeoPatrick

Yea, but the trolley only runs on weekends, the busiest and worst days to go to the zoo.
Yes, I do realize the original poster WAS talking about a weekend, however.

williamscb13

Plus, I can't imagine riding in an open air (is it open air?) all the way to the zoo! but I thought it was a neat option. And could be a good way to get around the Bronx.