DC to thru Atlantic City New york City

Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 08:55 AM
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DC to thru Atlantic City New york City

Hello,

I will be driving with my wife and 2 other adults and I got the washington DC trip and a half a day visit to atlantic City on the way to New York. I didn’t want to stay in Manhattan since I will have a van, im looking for a very budget hotel under $150 or even under $100 around the area, don’t mind driving to a subway station to park and take the train or subway to the city.

Can you please help suggest locations I can search the hotel sites to look for hotels? Can you also tell me how much will it cost to train ir or subway? I was thinking for getting that $30 7 day unlimited metro card for 4 people. I am not sure where the edge of the metro card subways or buses go.

Thanks for all your advice, I looked on some of the forums but most threads stays in the city and most people fly in.
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 09:01 AM
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The subway and city buses that take the Metro CArd are inside NYC. They do not extend into NJ - which is what I presume you are looking for.

Not sure what options you have for that price point for 4 people in a convenient place. there are express buses but they are fo commuters and there aren't many at other hours (plus traffic is awful). Train is a better option but you may not be able to park at a train station without a local sticker.

Jersey city has a couple of hotels that are right on top of PATH (underground train to the city)but not sure they will meet your price point. And you need to be sure to get one RIGHT THERE - not a mile away and no convenient way to get there.

Subway or city bus is $2.50 - express bus or train outside of Manhattan depends on where you are taking it from - but a lot more. (If bus or train is $7 each way that is $56 on commute - plus the cost of the subway in the city - so you might reconsider budget ad staying in Manhattan).
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 09:04 AM
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Just realize that Atlantic City isn't on the way from DC to NYC. It's about 100 miles out of the way.

There's no "budget" place where you can stay around NYC for under $100, even in the far-reaches of New Jersey. The $30 Metro card only works in NYC itself. The subway stops at the Hudson.

There are other trains to NJ. People park in the garages of Metropark and take NJ Transit into Manhattan, but they do that to park, not to be within convenient distance of the city.

It's fine to stay in a cheap hotel in NJ. People do it. You lose a lot in convenience, and for me it's a sacrifice I wouldn't make. But it's possible ... not recommendable but possible. But you need to realize that you'll have to pay for a bus or train into NYC from NJ at about $10 per person per day (or more depending on where you stay ... and many hotels in NJ that tout their "great" locations are in no way convenient for tourists).

You can stay in a hotel in Long Island City Queens for as little as $150 per night (the Country Inn and Suites is among the more convenient choices), but that hotel doesn't have parking. You'd have to pay for parking in the area, and that would add to your costs. And it's not at all easy to get there if you park in NJ. So there are going to be trade-offs in your plan regardless.
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 10:33 AM
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Try the Hampton Inn in the Meadowlands (carlstadt). Pretty close to the City and an express bus to Manhattan runs right in front of it. Rates run around $150/nite. Free parking, complementary breakfast. We've stayed there a couple of times and like it a lot.
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 10:38 AM
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thank you dwdvagamundo, do you by any chance remember how much the bus to manhattan cost per person?

thank you for other replies so for exmample i stayed at carlstadt, can i drive my van to a subway station to use the metrocard?

sorry if my questions seems ignorant im from Florida and not use to public transportations
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 10:47 AM
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"thank you for other replies so for exmample i stayed at carlstadt, can i drive my van to a subway station to use the metrocard?"

The subway is only in NYC and Carlstadt is in NJ so no.

I think you can find the bus info I think you are looking for here:

http://www.njtransit.com/sf/sf_servl...geAction=BusTo
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 01:41 PM
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There's no way to use the NYC subway if you are coming from NJ. There is another, separate subway system in use there called PATH, which costs $2.50 per ride, same as for the NYC subway, but the unlimited Metro Card cannot be used for the PATH, only for the NYC subway system.

The bus fare is somewhere between $3.20 and $6.50, but it depends on your starting point, and I don't really know those. NJ Transit has a very good web site with a useful travel planner, and I would suggest you do some research on your own to explore cost and schedule options.

There are park-and-ride lots in NJ for commuters, but these are in high demand, they cost something (often a lot), and are often not available without a local pass. I believe you can park for free at the ferry terminal in Hoboken or Jersey City, and you could certainly drive there (though there would likely be a toll of some kind from Carlstadt), but then you'd have to take the ferry, which costs $10 per person and doesn't always run at convenient times on weekends because it's aimed at commuters.
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 01:49 PM
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Not to beat a dead horse, but in short, people in the great NYC area generally take public transit, most of it is timed toward commuters, and parking is at a premium everywhere and almost always costs something, often as much as $20 to $50 per day. Tolls are expensive, and all the bridges and tunnels into NYC from NJ have them ($12 to $15).

You always give up something in convenience by staying in NJ. So it's going to be a trade-off between the cheaper hotels in NJ and time. When deciding if you really are saving money, you have to figure in the extra cost of commuting into NYC above and beyond the subway fares in the city. Then you have to add this all up and decide if the trade-offs are worth it.

For alot of people they are, despite the protestations of the Manhattan-centric crowd on this board. But anyone who tells you it's "easy" or "cheap" is simply not tell you the entire story. It can be if you choose wisely and are willing to deal with the hassles. And I guess it depends on your definition of "easy". But if you have no choice budget-wise, then you should explore these options.
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Old Jul 2nd, 2014, 04:56 PM
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Before deciding on any hotel in NJ I suggest you find out exactly where it is, how close it is to express bus, train or PATH, if parking is free, and what the daily commuting cost would be - for 4 people 2 ways it will be 8 times the commute cost - for instance the ferry would be a total of $80 per day for 4 people RT.

The best choice within NYC ( so subway commute) but you need to get a hotel right near the subway, pay for parking and pay $150 per day and up.
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Old Jul 3rd, 2014, 03:46 AM
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thank you guys for all your reply, i was looking at the cost of the stay and the cost of commuting to the city and you guys are correct by the time i get to use my metro card i would have spent at least 60-100 per day on trains and buses. my search now brings me to Queens, like Flushing area, on google map i saw this parking lot near flushing main station can u guys verify if this is still functional i was thinking if i get a hotel by long island or close enough to that subway i can drive to this parking lot and just take the subway to the city. Thanks again for all the replies and all that will reply.
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Old Jul 3rd, 2014, 05:44 AM
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I fear that your search betrays a complete misunderstanding about NYC. Yes, there is parking in Flushing, but there is parking all over NYC. What I'd suggest (but you have to make your own decision) is that you find a parking lot or garage in Long Island City, roughly 2 or 3 subway stops from Manhattan, where hotels are reasonably priced and very convenient. Park there, even if it costs you $20 per day. And leave the stupid van. The idea that you are going to fight NYC rush hour traffic and drive to a commuter parking lot is problematic to say the least. Park the van and leave it for the duration of your stay.

But I would also caution that it's going to cost you at least $30 to drive into Queens from NJ and back. And you'll have to pay multiple tolls depending on your route. I don't disagree with you about going to Queens, but figure these costs into your plans.
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Old Jul 3rd, 2014, 06:10 AM
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per the NJTransport website, the bus from the Hampton Inn into NYC (Port Authority Bus Terminal around 42d Street) costs $3.20 or $4.25--can't tell what the difference is ($1.65 for seniors) and takes around 20 minutes. You'll have to walk around three/quarters of a mile to the Bus Terminal. We did this and it is quite a hike but it's pretty convenient if you all are in good health.
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