KayF

Hi, my husband and I are spending some time in NYC in Sept, then plan to hire a car and take about 6 days to reach Boston. We are Australian and not that familiar with that part of the world so can anyone help with where to collect our hire car?

We are thinking to avoid driving in NYC, we could get the train from NYC Penn Station to Stamford, Connecticut, hire the car through either Hertz or Avis, then drop the car at Logan Airport in Boston, before our stay in Boston. My husband has driven out of Logan Airport before and is OK with that. We don't want to have to check luggage on the train but according to Amtrak's website, that should be fine.

From people familiar with the area, is that a good plan?

Thanks for any help.
Kay

yk

Where will you be staying in Boston? Depending on time and day you're arriving; as well as location of your hotel, it may not be too difficult to drop off the car @ a location near your hotel. It's a lot easier to just drive into the city, drop you and your luggage off @ the hotel, then drop off the car at the nearby car rental location.

If your husband wants to avoid driving in Boston altogether, you are looking at the extra hassle of getting yourselves + your luggage from Logan car rental (which is off-site) into the city to your hotel.

doug_stallings

It depends on where you intend to go between NYC and Boston. If you want to visit the Hudson River Valley, then I'd suggest North White Plains (Hertz) as the pick-up point. If you want to visit the Berkshires, then Stamford might be better. If you intend to go to Rhode Island or Central Massachusetts or somewhere north of Boston, then I'd suggest New Haven.

Be sure to allow for the high drop-off fee. It might be hefty and might dissuade you from doing that kind of drop-off. You could find that it would be cheaper to take a train to New Haven and rent a car there for a round-trip, then board Amtrak for the trip to Boston. Of course it depends on where you want to go. If north of Boston, it might be cheaper to fly to Portland, Maine and do a round-trip car rental there, then go to Boston. Ditto Providence, RI.

In the northeast, you do have several options depending on the type of travel and your destination, so driving one-way from NYC to Boston might or might not be the cheapest and best alternative.

jroth

There are several car rental companies that have locations in and around the midtown area in New York City. You can check with several companies - such as Avis, National, Hertz, Budget, Alamo on locations where you can pick up in NYC and drop off a car in Boston. It really isn't such a hassle to pick up in the city - get on a major highway heading out of town and you are on your way - rather than getting to a train station and taking the train merely to get out of town to find a place to rent a car - besides the train fare cost - but you can compare costs with each company.

Jo1023

I don't know where you're staying in NYC, but I'd second the opinion to just rent a car in NY and drive direct from there rather than hassling a train ride to stamford. If you're in Manhattan, it's not that wide and you'd only be driving a short time on streets within the city proper. There are highways lining each side of Manhattan (the West Side highway is a straight run but has traffic lights until around 57th St) which will give you easy access to the roads to Boston. I'm sure your hotel, whoever you're staying with or the rental car company can suggest the simplest ways to get to your next destination and the best travel times for the least congestion. We were driving from near-Stamford to Broadway last Sunday afternoon and Manhattan streets were blissfully uncrowded (yes it was the holiday weekend, but Sundays are generally light and with not too much effort you can plan around many traffic problems). Traveling on Interstate 95 north towards Boston from either NYC or Stamford is another matter --avoid Friday evenings if you can! Have fun. I hope you're planning on stopping in Newport Rhode Island on your trip to Boston. The mansion tours there can give you a great view on US history. We've visited many of the great houses. Just visited the Doris Duke estate--pricier than other tours, but this was the most-recently lived-in mansion open to the public and her interesting story is well-published in articles and recent movies. There are topiaries on the lawn in remembrance of the 2 camels she had roaming the estate (one of whom is still alive in New Jersey)!

KayF

Thanks everyone. We are staying on the upper west side (at the Beacon Hotel) in New York and probably the Charlesmark in Boston, though that is not booked yet. We plan to leave NYC on a Thursday and arrive Boston on a Wednesday.

I've checked the drop off fee and it is $50 with Hertz and similar with Avis, so fairly reasonable.

Plans between NYC and Boston are still coming together but it looks like the area around Litchfield, Newport RI, Provincetown are all on our list so far.

Do you really think collecting the car in NYC and driving out of the city would be OK? We have driven quite a bit in America before - for us, you all drive on the wrong side but never in such a large city.

Regarding dropping the car at Logan airport in Boston, I thought there was a train direct from the airport into Boston? Wouldn't that make the transfer to our hotel fairly easy?

Thanks, Kay

nytraveler

All of the major rental companies have offices on the upper west side. If you pick up there you can drive a few blocks in the city and then just jump on the west side highway, at 79th st, which takes you out of the city with no hassles. Hertz has an office on west 76th or 77th and Avis on west 83rd.

From west side highway you have a choice of highways that will take you either north (Saw Mill Parkway to Taconic) or east/north (Saw Mill to Cross county to Hutch to Merritt etc). For less large truck traffic and a more scenic drive stick to parkways (which don't allow trucks - only passenger cars) as much as possible.

jroth

Even though your hotel in NY is on the west side - you might try a car rental location on the East Side -- I know that Avis has one on E. 80 Street just east of 2nd Avenue. You can then get onto 1st Avenue to 96 Street where there is an entrance onto the FDR Drive north - to Triboro bridge and follow highways to I95 north into New England. Car rentals usually also have some local street maps available for help. I would not return at the Boston airport and then take the train into town - remember the train leaves you at a train station - so you still have to get to your hotel. Get directions from your Boston hotel on driving to their site - drop off your luggage and return the car. Yes - I have driven in England several times. Here: just keep saying to yourself - keep to the right. for turning (say): turn left, keep to the right or to turn right(say), turn right, keep to the right. As far as "driving in a big city" - hey - you just drive one street at a time - all the same - big city or small city.

Jo1023

The upper west side fairly narrow geographicallly, and the west side highway is only a few blocks from Broadway, the "main street" of the area". Most of the side streets which would take you to the highway are one-way. Also the east-west streets there are numbered in a gridlike pattern, unlike driving in many other places, making it easier to figure out where you're heading. If you have time, from there I suggest you consider the Saw Mill/Taconic option and extend your drive to include the Hudson Valley region on your way to Litchfield. There are many posts about things to do in that area and if it's late Sept, there's always the possibility that the leaves will have started to turn. IMO, I-95 to Boston is direct and straightforward, but there are always trucks and tie-ups. But it is easier than driving highways in Italy (I hated all those zippy little cars flying up to and around me) !! I had the same fear about wrong-side driving when I went to Ireland. My biggest fear was driving the wrong way into a round-about--very few of those in the US (none I can think of on highways in the Northeast--one at Columbus Circle/Central Park/Lincoln Center area in Manhattan) and they're not nearly as crowded or driven as fast as in Europe--usually in small towns only. My brave friend drove in Ireland and it only cost us a side mirror, a hubcap, a few car scratches (nothing serious to anyone or anything)and earned us some great laughs!

KayF

Thanks for all this, it's very helpful. My husband will be the one driving in NYC, I'm a bit of a chicken and usually only drive overseas when it's easy or quiet on the roads.

When we've driven in the US before, we have always been fine except once, when there was no traffic anywhere, we pulled from the roadside on to the left side of the road, which was natural to us, then nearly had a heart attack when we realised what we were doing.

We will definitely stick to the scenice roads, or parkways, wherever we can.

Thanks again, Kay

sf7307

Kay, yes, you can take public transportation from Logan into Boston, however, you'll first have to take the shuttle from the car-rental facility back to the airport, then the bus to the T, then the T to whereever you're going in Boston. That's why yk was suggesting it might be easier to just drive to someplace closer to your hotel and drop the car there (and then maybe walk or take a quick taxi ride to your hotel).

KTtravel

We found driving cars out of NYC really not that difficult. I think you should be fine. We had heard terrible things about driving in New York and Boston but had no problems driving out of New York and into Boston. Be sure to have good maps and take your time. I forget which car company we used when we dropped our car off in Boston but the location was somewhere near the wharf. We had a hard time finding the drop off spot (despite being at the right address) until we realized the car rental drop off was in a large parking garage with a teeny, tiny sign.

Anonymous

There is no reason to drop the car at Logan. Most car rental companies have offices within a few blocks of your hotel, in the Back Bay not far off the highway. As noted above, public transit to and from Logan would involve a couple of transfers and an unnecessary hassle.

When discussing your plans, be sure not to say Provincetown (which is at the tip of Cape Cod) if your mean Providence, RI.

KayF

Thanks again everyone. And we do mean Provincetown, on the end of Cape Cod. Our plans aren't set in stone but it sounds like a nice place. It will be nice to have the contrast of a few small places, compared to larger cities we are visiting. The distances between all these places don't look that bad; coming from Australia we are used to long drives.

Kay

lincasanova

Do not fret about driving out of New York City. One warning.. pay attention to worded signs alongside stoplights.
There is "NO TURN from 7-10" or such at some intersections. Usually police nearby to ticket you during morning rush hour.

It really is not difficult and certainly would be better than slepping luggage and bodies on and off trains and then to car agency.

yk

To confirm what sf7307 & Anonymous have said already, returning your car @ Logan and then head to Charlesmark hotel will involve multiple changes.

1) Take shuttle from car rental office to airport terminal
2) Take MASSPORT shuttle from airport terminal to Blue Line Airport T station
3) Take Blue Line to Government Center T station
4) Change for the Green Line @ Government Center T station
5) Take Green Line to Copley T Station
6) Walk from Copley T Station to your hotel ***

*** I don't think the Copley station has finished the updating construction work yet. At least the last time I was there 2-3 weeks ago, it hasn't. Currently, there are NO escalators or elevators for the Copley station. If work isn't done by the time you come, you'll be dragging your luggage up 2 flights of stairs at the station.

There are plenty of car rental return locations near Copley (where Charlesmark hotel is). If you rent from any of the major rental companies, you should be able to find a return location nearby.

In terms of driving to that party of town:
1) If you are driving Eastbound on I-90 (MassPike), then it's super easy because there is an exit off I-90 that directly goes into Copley.
2) If you are driving Northbound on I-93, it probably is a bit trickier.

Anonymous

Taking 93N (e.g., coming up from P'town), take Exit 26 (inside the Big Dig tunnel) to Storrow Drive, which has a Back Bay exit. Being one of the newer parts of town (built on landfill) Back Bay is set up in an actual grid with logical names (the cross streets are alphabetical: Arlington, Berkeley, Clarendon, etc.).

travelbuff

Instead of the Charlesmark, have you looked at the Harbourside Inn? It is across the street from Quincy Market, lots of shopping and restaurants. It is a nice hotel and very reasonably priced. It is also right on the blue line (T=subway system) from the airport so you come upstairs and at the Aquarium stop and the hotel is right infront of you.

KayF

Hi all, we are now looking at changing our plans, thanks to all you knowledgeable people, and collecting our car near the hotel in NYC and dropping it back in Boston near the hotel. I have to check car rental costs though as I have read that car rental in New York can be very expensive. Earlier,when I looked at hiring it from Connecticut to Boston, it was reasonable.

I had looked at the Harbourside Inn and thought it looked good but it's more expensive than the Charlesmark. I thought hotel costs in Boston were very high. We want to stay somewhere central so we can go back in the afternoon for a short rest or drop parcels etc.

Thanks again everyone.
Kay

Suzette85

Hi -
One more to chime in.. Actually, driving in NYC is easier than Boston. NY is crowded, so you cant go fast. It is a grid so once you get the streets and avenues sorted out, it is pretty easy. Downtown Boston is not at all organized and is tough to navigate without strict attention to a map, or experience on the roads.
You can also look for a car drop off location in Newton and take a cab or T to your hotel.
You mentioned Newport earlier - that is a teriffic destination. Hotels are expensive this time of year, but you can look in Middletown for a less expensive one, but it will mean some driving.
Provincetown is at the very tip of the Cape and is a few hours drive. It is pretty and there are great little towns along the way. Avoid Rte 6 on Friday afternoon/evenings heading out and Sunday afternoons coming toward Boston (all the weekenders). Also, the rental houses switch over on Saturday, so you can have traffic mid-day on Saturday as well. If you can do mid-week, that is the best.
Have fun!