JFK TO MANHATTAN ON THE SUBWAY...SAFE AND CONVENIENT?
 

I am arriving at JFK early Sunday morning...is the subway operating at 6am on Sunday to Mid-town Manhattan??? Is the subway safe from JFK to the city? How long does the trip take? Will it be better just to take a shuttle service for $15? Let me know.

I've considered taking the subway, but I always end up using Super Shuttle. It's easy and convenient, however, the trip to your door may take 1 1/2 hours or more, depending how many passengers are in the van, where they are going, how bad the traffic is, etc. The subway seems to me to be a lot easier but, with luggage, I'm leary of all the stairs in and out of the stations. I'm curious what others think, too, as I am planning another trip soon.

A lot depends on where exactly you're going in Manhattan and how much luggage you have. Yes the trains run but probably less frequently at that hour. There are 2 subway connections, one at Howard Beach for the A train good for going downtown and the other at Jamaica for the E train, better for midtown. Here's the subway map that shows where each goes

http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/maps/submap.htm

Keep in mind you may have to navigate stairs with luggage via subway.

You can also take the AirTrain to Jamaica and catch a LIRR train (commuter train) which goes to Penn Station (34 st & 7th ave.) but that costs about the same as the bus (~$12/person). Less likely to have to do stairs.

At 6am there'll be very little traffic on the road so frankly, I don't think the trains will be much quicker than a bus. It will NEVER take 1.5 hrs at the day/time. Unless you sit waiting for the bus to fill up, you should be in NYC in 40 mins. Again, if you're near the bus drop off, better still.

Take the $15 dollar shuttle, which is a little more than twice the public transportation cost. I would take the public transportation option if the A or E train stop were within walking distance of your final destination and the shuttle were not.

The cheapest route is using the MTA bus from JFK to the New Lots Avenue (no. 3?) line. But that probably takes much longer, and the availability of the bus at that hour is iffy.

Hi PNCHOTJ

It is open.
I always used to take the Super Shuttle too, but the last time I flew into JFK I used the Air train and switched at Jamaica for the LIRR into NYC. I was really impressed with how easy it was. The Airtrain is super clean, and really accesible. It's not the same as the regular NYC subways. You can buy a Metro card from Machines at the entrance which is $5.00, and it drops you at the LIRR station, where you go down an escalator to get to the tracks. You end up inside Penn Station. Trains leave often.

I like the Super Shuttle, but once had a scary experience when it was snowing and the driver was speeding to get to the airport- we had some close calls that one time.
The "door-to-door" service can in fact take awhile (yes maybe over an hour) if the driver drops many others off first, and if the locations are far apart.

The Subway in NYC operates 24/7, but there is reduced service on the weekends and many service changes (which may or may not be announced in advance). At 6am on a Sunday, you may wait for a half-hour (or more) for a train. On a good day, with no waits for connections, the A-train will take at least two hours to get from JFK to mid-town and weekends are never good days on mass transit. You will also be negotiating stairs with luggage. My recommendation at that hour - take the bus to Midtown - there shouldn't be much traffic, so it should take less than an hour.