To Poughkeepsie From Newark or JFK

I'm not wise, but I can tell you it's a long trip to Poughkeepsie from either airport.

Traffic is bad, both ways, although I'd think the Newark trip might be easier. From JFK, you have to go through Queens, cross a bridge, go through the Bronx. Ugh.

Did you check for flights into Westchester airport? A bit of a stretch, but New Haven airport?

The closest airport, by far, is Stewart. It's a very easy drive to Poughkeepie from there.

They would be flying from Seattle. Where is Stewert? That would probably mean another plane change? This just seems not to be as easy as it should be...or perhaps I should say "like it to be".

It's about 2hrs (a little less) from either Newark or JFK to Poughkeepsie - really not much of a difference between the two. Unfortunately the drives from either can involve traffic and not necessarily easy to follow directions. It's easy to get going the wrong way on highways.

A car service will be about $150-$175 one way.

Stewart Newburgh (SWF), as Howards states, is the closest. (~30min). AA stopped flying into there about 6mo ago but other airlines still do. Another option is Westchester (HPN). It'll be 1 to 1 1/4 hr drive to Poughkeepsie. They really should rent a car if flying into SWF or HPN. It's not hard to navigate from either of those airports to Poughkeepsie.

What it the point of origin? If West Coast, then JFK or EWR non-stops may be preferable over connecting in Chicago, Atlanta, or Cincinnati.

If they will be departing home after Long Island, then look into open jaw tickets - perhaps into Newark or Westchester and out of JFK on AA. It may be possible to use Alaska miles on AA flights - not sure.

What about Seattle to Albany on Southwest? I think Albany is drivable to Poughkeepsie as it is only 90 miles. They could then fly home from Islip on Long Island on Southwest.

You would book two one way tickets to do this. SEA to ALB eastbound and then ISP to SEA.

Check it out and see if that works for you.

Deb

I'm sorry - I neglected to see that you are trying to do this with FF miles.

Deb

Thanks for all of the help. You indeed, are all wise. The decision (if we can book the flight), is to fly them into Newark and go with a car service. I called and got the price, and yes it is expensive but given the anxiety it would relieve and since the flight is free, that's the way to go. Thanks to all !

I'm surprised that no one mentioned taking the MetroNorth commuter train from Manhattan to Poughkeepsie. It will be haul, but it will be much cheaper than a car service from any of the airports.

Nobody mentioned Metro North to POK is a bad idea. Way, way, way too long a trek.

I can empathize with your situation regarding son who hates to fly - my son gets himself close to panic attack everytime he must fly. Because of this, I am glad you decided to fly him into Newark rather than some of the regional airports others mentioned.

Flying into Newark will involve a longer drive, but advantage is that there are likely fewer connections and plane will probably be larger - both often issues for those fearful of flying.

(If it makes you feel any better, in November he called me 1/2 hour before he was scheduled to board a plane in Savannah to tell me he was driving to Boston instead - all to avoid driving)

AirTran and Northwest both fly into Stewart. Your son would probably have to make only one connection (Chicago-Midway or Detroit, I believe) from Seattle. It's a small airport so it wouldn't be as confusing as one of the NYC airports. Albany airport is difficult to get to without a car (I did Amtrak, cab and bus once-never again). Getting from JFK/LGA/EWR to Manhattan to catch Metro-North can be a hassle or expensive.

I ride Metro North all the time, in no way, is it a "hassle" to get to from either LGA or JFK, and only cost is a cab- less than $50+++ to Grand Central. It's a scenic 1 hour 40 min. trip to Poughkeepsi. Train is less than $15 off peak. So actually a low cost option.

I always take the subway and Airtrain from JFK, the cheapest option.

We just booked the flight on Alaska. Darn. No saver miles available, so used twice as many than planned, but we had already committed.

gail: you understand the fear of flying. I love to fly, but when you mentioned your son calling to say he was driving, that was very familiar. It doesn't make sense, but it is what it is. We are north of Seattle, so there is already one change in Seattle and then on to Newark.

I know it is hard to understand how one more change or a cab and then a train to save money could be a big deal, but trust me, it would be a BIG deal. It's a long flight and with that and the time change I think we've got the best option.

Again, thanks to all who put gave this some thought.

Hmmm, I'm surprised a car service would take you from Newark to Poughkeepsie. I guess they're charging for the drive back to the Newark area as well.

Some options available to you. Take the NJ transit to the northern most stop in Rockland and take a cab from there. That should save some money.

Better yet, rent a car from Newark and drop off at Poughkeepsie. I know there's a Hertz in Poughkeepsie (somewhere near IBM). That should definitely be cheaper.

I think you've made a wise decision to have them fly into EWR. It's the easiest of the major airports for this trip. I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but I've read your posts and I think you're missing something very important, travel52. They are still going to need a car once they get to Poughkeepsie, and they will need a way to get to Long Island from there. I guess I'm really not understanding why they wouldn't rent a car at EWR and drive up there and then onto Long Island. If they are attending a wedding, they will be at the mercy of other guests to get anywhere (there's really no public transit to speak of up there). Even if they are staying at a relative's home, they'll be really limited without a car.

I'm from Poughkeepsie -- if your son is going to have time away from the wedding at all and needs information, I can try to help (restaurants, bars, sites, etc). Should've flown into Stewart if it was possible, but they'll be fine.

There is always the Westchester County Airport in White Plains.