lynny2

We are dropping off an Avis car at Newark and then need to get to Hoboken. I'm sure we could get a taxi but is there a cheaper way that is relatively easy to do lugging suitcases? The guide book doesn't make the situation clear.

lynny2

I should have said - Newark Airport.

RoamsAround

You'll find all you need to know here:

http://www.panynj.gov/airports/ewr-g...portation.html

joethekay

Its easy. You didn't say what day or time but you have multiple choices via public transit.
From the car rental return you can take the airtrain people mover to the newark airport NJ Transit station.
Depending on time of day you can either buy a NJ transit ticket directly to Hoboken via a change of trains in Newark Penn station(You should go to trip planner at the NJ transit website for schedules) or more reliably buy a ticket to Newark Penn station and take a PATH train (subway) to Journal Square and transfer to a Hoboken Path train. A separate fare card is needed and can be bought at the Newark station.
Total fare would be about $ 11.50 per person.

bspielman

Confirming and amplifying joethekay's response, the public transportation route is doable but somewhat complicated, and it does involve three changes of trains. EWR AirTrain to EWR station > NJTransit to Newark Penn Station (first stop; not NY Penn Station) > PATH to Exchange Place (fourth stop) > PATH to Hoboken (two stops).

You need to go to Exchange Place (two stops beyond Journal Square) because PATH from Journal Square to Hoboken does not run at all times. However, Exchange Place to Hoboken does run all the time.

If it's worth it to you to take public transportation despite all of this, it can be done, but you should check the PATH schedules (http://www.panynj.gov/path/full-schedules.html) and maps (http://www.panynj.gov/path/maps.html) before you choose this method.

doug_stallings

Possible yes, but I agree with bspielman that it's not exactly easy. But I'd look into the possibility of taking NJ Transit all the way to Hoboken, as joethekay suggests. I'd skip the PATH if you can avoid it since it requires entering and buying a ticket on a completely different system. You just need to change trains at Secaucus to get a different NJ Transit train to Hoboken, but the key is the schedule. That's sometimes easier said that done, especially if traveling outside of regular commuting hours.

The trick is that I don't know if it is all that much cheaper for two people. I'd actually try to figure out the taxi fare just to be sure.

lynny2

Gosh, that does sound complicated. Perhaps we should keep the hire car and drive ourselves. I was hoping to save the extra 2 days rental and hotel parking fees but I will see how that equates to 2 taxi trips. Is public transport from Newark any easier if we stay in Manhattan? We shall be arriving on a June Saturday, by car, from Pennsylvania and flying out of Newark on a Monday evening.

nytraveler

Not sure where you are staying n Hoboken - but doubt you wil find lodgings n Manhattan at the same price. (BUt you wil be in Manhattan - assuming that's what you want to see).

Travel can be easier (there's a shuttle bus to a couple of centrl points) but using Air Train, then NJ transit, then subway or cab or ? in the city is still 3 steps.

doug_stallings

You still pay about $13 each way (per person) just to get into Manhattan from EWR, so add $26 to the price of your hotel in Hoboken, and see if you can find something comparable in Manhattan. I doubt it as well, but it's possible. (If you take a ferry from Hoboken into Manhattan, it's pretty expensive, so do be sure to take the PATH train.) Staying in NJ is inconvenient no matter how you look at it, but for some people it's worth the cost savings.

But it's true that regardless, you still have to do all the same steps to get into Manhattan as you would to get to Hoboken. In Manhattan you'll have to switch over to a city taxi or bus or subway to get to your hotel once you arrive in Penn Station. So nytraveler is absolutely correct that it's still 3 different modes of transit.

I suspect it would be cheaper to pay the difference in hotel costs from Hoboken to Manhattan than to pay for 2 extra days car rental. Similarly, it's going to be cheaper to pay for a taxi to and from a Hoboken hotel than to pay for 2 days' car rental. I can tell you that without your ever checking the costs online.

bspielman

Yes, you could take NJTransit all the way (via Secaucus, not Newark Penn Station) to Hoboken, but the PATH itinerary is somewhat shorter in duration, according to NJTransit's website.