zachanned

We are planning a trip from California to Washington DC and New York. What is the best way to get from Washington DC to New York? I've read, train or bus...but don't know what train people are talking about.

We were thinking about renting a car from DC to NY, which means we would have to drop the rental car off at the airport. Is traffic too crazy?

emd3

Amtrak, the Northeastern trains, run from DC's Union Station to Penn Station in Manhattan.

There are several bus lines that run from DC to Manhattan. Check BestBus, MegaBus, BoltBus online sites.

emalloy

Best not to rent a car as you won't need or want it in the city, the cost of rental, tolls, gas, drop off fees and taxi from the airport drop off will probably make the train fare seem ok. The drive is not fun, mostly boring highway often traffic jams or crazy drivers.

sf7307

Amtrak is the way to go. There's no need to take the Acela (which is the "high-end" Amtrak train, and runs about 1/2 hour faster than other Amtrak trains, and does (I think) allow for reservation of specific seats, whereas the a reservation on a non-Acela train guarantees A seat, but not a specific seat).

Dukey1

For overall convenience I think you might want to simply go to www.amtrak.com and look at the various timings. There is only one train service and as has been said, several bus services.

NewbE

Amtrak is the best way. You could also fly, which will probably cost more and also require a bit of a haul into the city from the airport; or you could take one of the bus services emd3 lists that would be very cheap but will take much longer.

Do not rent a car for this, that is the most inconvenient option.

Dukey1

IME the bus doesn't necessarily take a whole lot longer than some of Amtrak's non-Acela timings.

What at least used (to me) be an issue on some of the bus services:

Where you had to get them and where they dropped you off in Manhattan. Non-working or poorly working promised amenities such as wi-fi. Confinement vs being in a train and a lack of any food services whatsoever.

And, as always, subject to traffic slowdowns and any issues related to highway construction, especially along the New Jersey Turnpike but that very latter has probably improved now.

tomfuller

Any interest on seeing any of the cities in between on the route of the Northeast Regional including Baltimore and Philadelphia?
The Washington Amtrak station (Union station) is on top of a major Metro station. I have walked from Union station to the Capitol building in less than half an hour.
Reagan National has its own Metro station which makes it more desirable in my mind than Dulles.
BWI has an Amtrak station and the fare to Washington is cheap on the NE Regional trains.

IMDonehere

Another vote for AMTRAK. As far as the Acela is concerned just check time and money. It is clearly not worth it between NY and Boston.

doug_stallings

I would never rent a car for this trip. I'd always go either by train or by bus, depending on how much you want to spend. Amtrak is very reliable between NYC and DC, as is the bus (though the latter takes longer). There are even some other options, such as a luxury bus or van service, but that to me is overly complex.

Christina

I have take the bus several times and thought it was fine. And it doesn't take much longer than the train, drops you off around Penn Station anyway (at least all the brands I took did), leaves from Union Station in DC, and is a fraction of the cost. It can even be more comfortable, the last time I took Amtrak, it was so crowded, I didn't even get a regular seat, I had to sit on a bench in the cafe car the entire trip. And I had a reservation. I've taken Bolt, DC2NY and Washington Deluxe, I think they are a step above Megabus.

I don't know about how reliable Amtrak is, they seem delayed a lot, I paid for Acela last time and the train was delayed about an hour (returning to DC). Yes, they may go, but not on time. I haven't had the trouble going from DC to NY, though.

I've only taken the bus on weekends when traffic wasn't a particular issue.

nytraveler

A car is a complete nonsense and will be very costly by the time you pay for rental, gas, tolls (not cheap in this area) and paying to trek to/from where you will get it/leave it.

Amtrak northeast corridor trains take about 4 hours and the cost can be quite low if you buy tickets far in advance - about $50 each. these trains are perfectly comfortable and usually on time. It is not worth the extra money for the Acela express. (note the ticket allows you to get on the train but does not guarantee a seat. So be ready to get on the train - literally run - as soon as the platform is announced.)

Bus is another option. Prices vary based on when you buy tickets and what time the bus is. Because the traffic in this area is very bad buses take longer and are much more subject to delays due to bad weather, accidents or construction.

zachanned

Thanks so much for all your replies. I should have also mentioned that my husband and I are traveling with our two kids. We will also each have a carry on luggage in addition to a personal item(s). How difficult will this be on Amtrak...especially if a seat is not guaranteed? Is there a separate area for luggage?

We were considering a rental car because we may want to stop off and tour Princeton University & Yale along the way to NYC. What is the best travel logistics?

Thanks!

sf7307

Yale is about 80 miles further than New York, it's not "along the way to NYC" from DC.

sf7307

farther

IMDonehere

Please note Princeton is just off the NJ Turnpike on the drive from DC to NYC, but Yale is about 2 1/2 hours past NYC. It is not on the way from DC to NY.

You can also take a train on the NE corridor and get off at Princeton Junction and then take the shuttle train to Princeton, one stop.

That is a bit more complicated, of course.

_________

Seating is guaranteed but a specific seat in coach is not. Unless there some special circumstance, there will be storage for luggage.

The huge advantage of the train is going from city to city directly. The NJ Turnpike is the most traveled thoroughfare in the US and loaded with trucks.

BigRuss

>

Yes, you should have mentioned that because NOW a car rental makes the most sense.

Yale's not along the way, it's past NYC and the best option is to route yourself around the city to New Haven and circle back. If you can drop the car in New Haven and then take a train into NYC, that's a good option because driving in the city is . . . difficult (Amtrak or Metro-North [take the express]).

As for travel logistics, there are tons of resources to map your trip. Princeton is close to Philadelphia (although thankfully not next to Camden). It's not hard to get to Princeton from DC.

thursdaysd

https://www.princeton.edu/transportation/pubtrans.html

http://to.yale.edu/train

nytraveler

Agree with those 2 stops a car makes sense - but how many nights are you allowing for this trip? Don;t see how you could get from DC to Princeton in time for a morning tour and then get to Yale in time for a tour there - so you would probably be staying a night somewhere.

Have you looked at the Princeton and Yale websites to see the schedules of tours and activities and figured out a schedule. Yale may not look far from Princeton but you are talking about driving through the heaviest traffic in the country.

Google maps say 2.5 hours without traffic. The chance of without traffic is nil - so you really need to allow about 4 hours between the two cities.

Dukey1

If you are leaving on Amtrak from Washington unless you reserve a specific class then the seats are not reserved as was said above.

THE way to make sure you don't have to worry about rushing onto the platform when it is announced is this:

GET A REDCAP at Union Station. They will get you and that luggage onto the platform before anybody else boards. With kids in tow it is worth the cost of a tip or whatever.