roguemckenzie

I am staying in Mid Town near Time Square. I am renting a car for 5 extra days of sight seeing outside of NYC. There is a big ad-on expense if you rent from an airport location, I also do not want to drive in the middle of Manhattan, so I am looking at renting a car near Hoboken, NJ. How expensive is it going to be to take a cab (?) across the river or what other suggestion do you have? Thanks!

DebitNM

What direction will your out of town touring take? Is Hoboken the right spot to get the rental?

J62

Driving out of Manhattan really isn't a big deal. What is your sight seeing destination? Tell us more and we can give you some options, either in Manhattan, or outside of NYC via train or taxi.

roguemckenzie

Planning to drive to the Amish area in PA? We are leaving NYC on Friday morning (10ish) plan to pick up a car at Hertz on Willow in Hoboken, no reservation made yet, just checking $ and time and how to get to the car!! staying at the Muse in NYC.

nytraveler

If you tell us where you're going we can reco a place to pick up the car. there are several offices on West 77th/78 and if you are headed north or west you can easily pick a car up there and be on the west side highway out of town in 4 or 5 blocks in a residential area with minimal traffic. (This would be much cheaper than getting transit to Hoboken and you will already be on a major highway rather than having to find one.)

joesorce

Cars are generally much more expensive to rent in Manhattan, hence the o.p's request for assitance in getting to HOboken, or Secaucus, or some other easy-to-reach area with a Hertz or Avis local office.

roguemckenzie

Hi nytraveler, I think my last comment and your answer crossed. I am staying at the muse (130 West 46th Street). looking at maps it looks like the most direct way to PA is thru NJ to I78. Do you really think a non new yorker would be able to pick up a car and drive out of manhattan? Yes, that would save the hassel of trying to get to NJ to pick up the car. I have only ridden in cabs in NYC and that makes me a bit worried about driving myself. thanks for any help!!

roguemckenzie

thanks joesorce, that is why I was looking at non airport! so manhattan might be just as expensive? Haven't checked that, but it is an extra $100+ at an airport. so cab to hoboken???

travelbuff

I'd suggest trying Priceline and rent out at Newark Airport. I have gotten daily rates of $25 on Priceline renting at Newark, and I think it was National.

You can take a train out of Penn Station NY to Newark Airport and then the airtrain there to the rental locations.

Enjoy PA. Just a quick thought you might want to stop in New Hope PA. a cute town, good restaurants and a bit of shopping.

doug_stallings

If you are going to Lancaster, I'd also suggest pricing the car rental from there. Lancaster is served by Amtrak. But it's not cheap to get there by train, though for me not having to deal with that drive is worth almost any cost.

There's no doubt that you can almost halve the cost of your car rental by renting outside NYC. Manhatten is particularly expensive. But there is really good train service and ferries to Hoboken. A taxi there will cost a minimum of $75 and is, in my opinion, not worth it. So just plan on taking some kind of public transport to NJ and then a taxi if necessary. This cuts the cost dramatically.

I often rent from Hertz in North White Plains, but that's.not a convenient location for where you are going. But there are many car rental locations close to train stations in NJ. That's the way I'd go. It's not that bad driving out of the city. You just get yourself to 34th Street and follow signs for the Lincoln Tunnel. Pretty easy actually for Manhatten driving. But I think your original plan is better. But I do think it's worth considering Priceline at EWR is also a good idea.

roguemckenzie

thank you Doug, being the west coast we don't think about taking a train someplace! This is going to sound very odd, how practical is it to take your luggage onto a train? Is there room to have it standing next to you? again, remember I am Oregon here!!

bigbomoho

I always tell people driving in NYC for the first time, DONT CHANGE LANES, thats when youll run into a cab,--line up your car for a turn blocks ahead of time, and dont speed.The way the city is laid out,its quite easy to get around.A GPS is incredible helpful--i think the lincoln tunnel is a little easier to hook up to where your heading. Just a hint, if you have a portable GPS, set up your waypoints ahead of time so its easy to change destinations good luck

nytraveler

Amtrak trains have overhead racks for luggage as long as it's not too large. And a very small bag can fit under the seat in front of you (there are drop down tables like on a plane and foot rests that lift up - but the seats are much bigger than those in coach on a plane.)

But - from the time the train arrives to departure is only about 10 or 12 minutes - so that's all the time you have to get your luggage an tote it down a couple of flights of stairs. If you want you can get a Red Cap - who will use his key to either get you on the handicap elevator or reverse the up escalator. It;s worth the tip ($5 or so if you just have one larger bag) to not deal with luggage and stairs. You can find the Red Caps near the Amtrak limited seating area - just pick one and tell him your train - he'll come and get you when it's time to descend to the platform. (If you just have a carry-on that you can tote on your shoulder - obviously not necessary.)

bspielman

You can get to within one block of the Hertz location in Hoboken (1404 Willow Avenue) via the 126 NJTransit bus from the Port Authority Terminal in Manhattan. Buses run every few minutes from Gate 204; the trip takes about 12 minutes; the fare is $1.70. (Schedule: http://www.njtransit.com/pdf/bus/T0126.pdf)

From Hoboken, it's a fairly easy trip to either I-78, the New Jersey Turnpike's Jersey City Extension; or NJ Route 139, then US 1-9 via the Pulaski Skyway, to its junction with I-78 West near Newark Airport. You pick up either of these routes near the New Jersey exit from the Holland Tunnel. Here's a map of the two-mile trip through local streets, http://bit.ly/bhbDmL, and a somewhat broader map showing both routes heading toward I-78 West near EWR, http://bit.ly/a5UY0E. A GPS device, rented from Hertz with the car, will be tremendously helpful--you'll likely want it for the rest of your trip anyway.

doug_stallings

Big bags go at the end of the compartment on Amtrak. Smaller bags can go overhead or under the seat in front. I've seen people cram pretty big bags into the overhead, but if it's a 24- or 26-inch suitcase, then you're out of luck. It really has to go in the compartment at the end of the car.

I'm not trying to overwhelm you, but public transit and trains are particularly good in the NYC area, and if you're just going two or three hours from New York, it's always worth considering. There are other potentially lower-cost options besides Amtrak.

Although it's out of the way, you can get to Trenton on NJ Transit and perhaps rent there. You could try an interim NJ Transit stop. Many of those smaller NJ cities will have Enterprise and perhaps other companies and are likely cheaper than Hertz in Hoboken. There are also Greyhound-style commuter buses to Allentown, which is more than halfway to Lancaster, and you could rent there. But I think these all add to the hassle, especially if you are not familiar with the area.

I think you have two viable options here. The directions that bspielman has given you for Hertz in Hoboken make it sound (to me at least) worth the trouble if you can save money. If it's a wash with the cheaper car-rental in Lancaster and Amtrak, then I'd take the train there. If you are more than one person, I suspect it's going to be cheaper by far to rent from Hoboken.

By the way, in addition to a GPS (not always available on the cheaper categories of cars), do get a toll-pass for about $3 per day. There are many tolls in NJ and Pennsylvania, and you won't have to deal with correct change this way.

bspielman

The one-way Amtrak fare for two from Penn Station in New York to Lancaster, PA, is $94. Through trains (no change of train in Philadelphia) take between 2-1/2 and 3 hours to make the trip, departing every hour or two from early morning to late afternoon. Amtrak's website, however, reports that there will be track work going on in early October, resulting in some portion of the trip being served by bus, not train. http://bit.ly/bNKd3O

Even were you to get to Lancaster without incident, you'd still have to get to a car rental location. Only one obscure agency is anywhere near the railroad station. You'd be facing a logistical nightmare. Map: http://bit.ly/ds91CF

Also, when figuring this all out, give some consideration to where you'll be returning the car. Round trip rentals are usually considerably less expensive than one-way rentals.

Regarding renting a car in Hoboken, its proximity to I-78 West, your logical route to Pennsylvania, makes that location the most hassle-free. Other cities served by NJTransit may, indeed, have car rental agencies, but they may or may not be close to the rail stations, just as in Lancaster.

roguemckenzie

bspielman I think your scenario is the closest to what I was thinking, however, when i look at the link to the transit schedule it looks like it only goes to the willow station in the early morning and late afternoon (after 5pm)?? Does it sound feasible to take a cab from the Hoboken Terminal to the rental office? What about luggage on a bus? I realize I am probably making it more complicated than it will be! I hope!!

bspielman

The weekday #126 schedule seems to me to indicate that buses run frequently from the Port Authority Terminal (Map Reference 1) to 14th Street at Park Avenue in Hoboken (Map Reference 3). Park Avenue is one block east of Willow Avenue.

Re luggage, here's the statement from the NJTransit website:

LUGGAGE ON NJ TRANSIT BUSES

* Luggage will not be checked and the company is not responsible for articles left behind.
* NJ TRANSIT is not responsible for damage to luggage placed in underfloor storage compartments.
* Bus passengers traveling on vehicles with underfloor storage may store up to two items of conventional size. No single piece may exceed 30 lbs. Passengers wishing to load/unload their luggage may do so at terminals and along routes. NJ TRANSIT reserves the right to deny permission to load/unload luggage at any location where it may jeopardize the safety of the passenger, bus operator, or bus.
* Passengers traveling on vehicles without underfloor storage will be permitted to bring up to two pieces of baggage aboard provided it can fit safely and securely in the overhead parcel racks or on the passenger's lap. Baggage may not block aisles or be placed on empty seats or cause inconvenience to other passengers.

How big are your bags? Outbound buses in the morning are not likely to be crowded (most of the riders are headed into Manhattan, not out of it), so these rules may be lightly enforced. I'd suggest you call NJTransit at (973) 275-5555, explain your circumstances, and ask for advice.

joesorce

Are you renting the car one-way, or are you returning it to the same location where you're picking in up and then finding your way back into NYC or to a NY airport? Best bet would be to pick up the car in NJ, but book it so that you can return it to your departure airport.

roguemckenzie

pick up in NJ and return at same place, and then make our way to EWR to fly home.
thanks for baggage info, we both have small/med size roll ons. I will call the transit and see what they say.
thank you all for the advise!