I will be staying at the Marriott in Teaneck and want to travel into Manhattan by public transportation on Saturday and Sunday. What is the best way to do this. Maybe parking in Fort Lee and taking the bus. How about a train station with lots of parking and a train to midtown? I am willing to take either train or bus. We are three adults. Or would it be the same price to drive in and leave the car in a public lot in the city for the day while we take public transit in the city with a day pass ($7.50 each).

I used to live in Teaneck.

Taking a train is not really an option. Bus service on the weekends is sparce and the route will take quite long.

If you must take public transportation your plan to drive to Fort Lee is a good one. You can get a bus across the GW Bridge to the Port Authority terminal. From there take the subway (A-Train) to mid-town.

Personally though I'd drive into the city. On weekends the traffic is light but it will cost you more than the combined bus/subway fare to park your car. It will save you lots of time, however.

I also used to live in Teaneck.

There is a bus stop right by the Marriott and it should be relatively convenient for you to take a bus to mid-town. Make sure to consult a time table, though. Just turning up at the stop and waiting for a bus is likely to result in a long wait, especially on weekends. The service is reasonably efficient, though.

Driving to Fort Lee is practical, and you can just turn up, as it is the penultimate stop for every bridge bound bus in North Jersey.

Roams is absolutely correct that trains make no sense at all. It's technically possible, if you drive to the River Edge or North Hackensack stations, but it would take hours and hours, due to the strange schedules. If you were bound and determined to take a train in, you could drive to Secaucus, but it would be a pain.

I tend not to recommend driving into the city. Lighter traffic is relative, and you would be incredibly lucky to find parking for $22.50, not to mention the toll. I would disagree about the time saving, too, at least for Manhattan. You'll be in the same bridge and tunnel traffic as the bus, plus you'll be fighting on surface streets. The only exception to that recommendation is if you were planning to stay in Manhattan until late evening. The busses to Teaneck turn into pumpkins fairly early, and it is possible to get stranded.

We have occasionally gotten lucky with street parking at night, but it takes a lot of patience, and you have to be very careful, as the signs are confusing, and just because someone vacated a space, it isn't necessarily legal. Sometimes people get desperate enough to take the risk. Which is of being towed, not just a ticket. And you DON'T want to get towed in Manhattan.

Just to be clear on the costs. A one-day Funpass for the subway is $7, not $7.50. And it will not include any portion of your travel from NJ. So you may be paying $5 to $7 per person EACH WAY to get into the city by bus or train, depending on where you come from.

You can find parking in Manhattan for the day for under $30, but you also have to pay a toll for the George Washington Bridge or one of the tunnels ($8). Weekend days are considered peak travel times, and traffic is pretty heavy coming into the city on weekends, so don't think you're going to magically just speed in.

Given that, I think it's probably still cheaper to take public transit into the city, particularly if you can take a bus right from the hotel since you'll avoid the cost of parking at a NJ lot. You'll certainly pay a price in convenience for staying in often well on weekends (or probably very late either) since buses in NJ are geared to the needs of commuters, not tourists. NJ Transit has a very good and useful web site to help you plan your trip; use it.

One correction to a correction:
Doug, the one day unlimited Metrocard (FunPass) has been 7.50 (not $7) since the last fare hike.

One other thing to consider--when is this taking place? Until Labor Day, the city is somewhat emptier on weekends and driving in and parking is MUCH easier than at other times of the year. Street parking on the Upper East and West sides, for example, is doable (not to be confused with "easy"--but stil doable!)

The trip is taking place this weekend. Thanks for all of your replies. We are comparing the options.

Also from the area. I would recommend the bus right outside the Marriott glenpoint direct to the port authority - very central nyc location.

Another option is to drive to the ferry - park - and ferry over to nyc. Once in NYC the ferry offers free bus service to many locations.

Ferries are more expensive than buses or trains, and their shuttles are no substitute for the subway. They go to central business locations, not the tourist sights.

The only practical solution is the bus direct from the Marriott or some kind of park and ride, so it's really up to the posters as to whether they want to shell out for a ferry, bus, or train.

Another Teaneck native and commuter here....

The bus you will need to take from the Glenpointe complex is NJ Transit's 167. You can get the schedule on njtransit.com. Last buses are usually 12-1am.

The fare is $3.40 pp oneway.

When you are boarding to go to NY you can buy a RT ticket then or you can buy from the counter or kiosk (enter bus 167, zone 3) in PABT before going to the gate. It is helpful to have to ticket on the way to NJ as some drivers may (and I think are allowed too) refuse boarding to folks without a ticket. You can even buy a ten ticket pack at the station on your first day that can be used for 2 returns and the following day.

The gate is #210 in PABT. There are several doors at the gate, I'm not sure what gate your bus is, there is usually a "system" but it tends to go out the window on weekends when the gates are full of nonregular bus riders. Just make sure you ask if your line/bus is going to Glenpointe as some 167s do not. (The other 167s stop not very far away, but traffic wise, not great to walk to the hotel.)