Cosmia

I'm visiting NYC soon and plan on being frugal and taking the air train+ A train to my hotel (NU Hotel) in downtown Brooklyn (hoyt-schermerhorn stop). But I've never done this before. Is it a big hassle? I'll be alone and plan to have one large suitcase and carryon duffle bag. I arrive Saturday at 4pm @ JFK and will leave next Friday (flight @ 9am). For a 9am flight, I guess I have to leave the hotel around 6:30am. Will the train be very crowded? Are there a lot of stairs?

The last time I used public transportation to get to an airport was in Madrid and hated it.
Thank you.

nytraveler

Unfortunately most subway stations have a lot of stairs - often 2 or 3 flights of steep steps. It's not something I would even consider with anything more than a carry-on I could easily put on my shoulder.

If you go to hopstop.com it will give you directions between any 2 spots in the city by foot, public transit, cab etc - including estimated time. Be aware that the time doesn;t take into consideration weather, accidents or construction delays.

How early you need to leave on Friday am depends on where your flight tis to and how early the airine wants you to check in. For intrnationa it is usually 3 hours, amd for domestic 2. I would think 30 minutes on the subway is cutting it very close.

nytraveler

Just checked on hopstop - and it lists the trip from JFK to your stop at an hour on the subway.

Cosmia

Thank you for the reminder to get there 2 hrs before the flight! I was thinking 1.5 hrs was ok.

doug_stallings

This is not necessarily a bad plan, but you have to remember that you take the A train, not the E train. So you are NOT going to take the Airtrain to Jamaica station. You have to take it to the Howard Beach station and then get on the A. And the A does not stop at Hoyt. I believe the closest stop is Borough Hall (which is about 4 or 5 blocks from there). But the hotel itself is pretty easy to find once you are there. The A train does take at least an hour to get to Borough Hall.

Mara

I live in downtown Brooklyn - the Nu Hotel is actually closest to the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station on the A line - I don't use that station much and don't know if it has an elevator or even an escalator....don't know why Doug doesn't think it stops there - the A train doesn't stop at Borough Hall at all - that' s the stop for the IRT and BMT trains..

Going early in the morning I personally would rather go to Jay Street which is 3 blocks from your hotel as it is busier imo than H-S....I think there is a new elevator at Jay St. but I'm not sure exactly how to access it....

Also there is a lot of weekend construction so I would check at mta.info for your Saturday arrival - Friday should be okay.

nycguy10002

At the Howard Beach station (Station A on the AirTrain) there is an elevator from the AirTrain level to the subway train platform.

At Hoyt-Schermerhorn there is one stair from the platform to the mezzanine and one stair to the street.

When you get off the AirTrain and walk to the turnstile area buy a "AirTrain + Subway" MetroCard for $7.25. That will cover the AirTrain fee of $5.00 and the subway fare of $2.25. Use the turnstiles next to the small newsstand. Insert The MetroCard in the slot. The gates will slide apart so you can proceed. (the card will be returned to you with no value on it).
HINT: Buy 2 of these cards (each is a separate transaction in the vending machine) from the vending machine. That way you won't have to wait on line at Howard Beach to buy a $5.00 MetroCard to get on the AirTrain when you are heading back. On the return trip the subway turnstile will deduct $2.25 leaving $5.00 for the AirTrain.]

A trains stop at the Howard Beach station every 12-15 minutes.
I checked to see if there was any construction work this Saturday that would affect A train service in that area. There is none so the A will run express in Brooklyn. The trip on the A train to Hoyt-Schermerhorn should take about 30 minutes (plus any waiting time and the short AirTrain trip from JFK to Howard Beach).

Going back on Friday be sure to take the A train marked "Far Rockaway" on the side electronic route sign. Do not take the train marked "Lefferts Blvd". Also don't take the C train as it does not go to Howard Beach-JFK.


NOTE to Doug_Stallings - Hoyt-Schermerhorn is a major express station. The A train always stops there.

nycguy10002

Note to Mara - I think what Doug was referring to was the Jay Street-Borough Hall Station which is one stop further than Hoyt-Schermerhorn.

By the way - Jay Street-Borough Hall is now officially called Jay Street-MetroTech. The change was made back in March 2011 when the passageway between the Jay Street and Lawrence Street (also now called Jay Street-MetroTech) stations was completed.

Mara

Thanks for going into more detail and clarifying, nycguy10002 - I wasn't sure what station Doug was thinking of....
And I also didn't realize the OP is coming this weekend...which is why I told him/her to check the mta website for info on possible changes due to contruction....

Cosmia

Thank you all so much! These details are so helpful.