Which subway line? I'm so confused!!
 

For SATURDAY travel from Penn Station to the area around Wash. Sq. Park and or Braodway/Lafayette/Houston. I want to shop all around that area as well as between 1st and 2nd ave.and E. 7th.
I checked the subway website and the interactive map said to take the A line then the B to Bdwy/laf/houston but that line doesn't run on weekends from what I can tell. So do I take the D or F instead?
I have never ever riden the subway so be very specific with any tips!
Thanks so much!!!

Hi Christine-
I live in Manhattan and work above Penn Staion-here's my advice:
I would take the R train form 34th street (you can find this train by going through the subway station inderground, or by walking over to 34th Street and Broadway near Penn Station.

There will be N, R, or Q.
You'll want the Brooklyn bound trains.
For Broadway/Lafayette/Houston- get off at 8th Street at Prince. Walk one block north and you'll be on the corner of Broadway and Houston Street (BTW, Houston is pronounce "Howston", not "Hewston", don't ask me why.
That corner is the dividing line between Soho and Noho- there is shopping east west north and south of you! Lafayette St is 2 blocks east.

If you want the East Village, take that (N or R) train to 8th Street. You will extit at 8th Street and Broadway, and can easily walk east on 8th from there.

Why the N and R? Because I know it runs on weekends lately.

ALternatively, you can take the number 1 or 2 line uptown from Penn Station 1 stop to Times Square.
Then Follow signs to the shuttle and take it across town to Grand Central station, and find the downtown number 6, and take that to Astor Place (for the East Village) or Broadway Lafayette for the other area.

Just 2 options- there are a million ways through the Manhattan jungle! Happy shopping-don;t spend it all in one place!

blissa,
Wow, thanks!! I may try your directions, they look easy!!
I found the HopStop website which is much more informative than the subway site IMO. It suggests the A to the D.
How do I know which trains will run on a Saturday? Does it list it anywhere in the station?
Thanks again! This will be an experience--taking my daughter in for her 16 bday to do some vintage shopping!!

Christine -

www.mta.nyc.ny.us has all the schedule information, but in general if you're just riding up and down Manhattan, you really don't need to know the details. Each line will have trains running. The N/R/W runs along Broadway, 4/5/6 along Lexington, etc... There will be trains that go on each line anytime. Trains that don't run late or on weekends are generally "Express" that skip some stops. The "Local" runs all the time, in general.

Assume ALL trains run every day. The only reason they are not running is if there's special construction.

If there's special construction, there will be

1) a poster taped to the wall inside the station BEFORE you reach the turnstiles that features the train (eg., R, A, 1, 7) and the date and time of closure

AND/OR

2) a handwritten message scrawled on the marker board inside the token booth behind the clerk's head

The 6 stop at Astor Place is only a short block from the R at 8th St. I'd take the R if you're heading there.

Well, the B actually doesn't run on weekends.

Hi Christine-
You can just use my suggestions as an alternative.
It's just what i would do, because I like where the trains lets you out better.
The one thing about the R and N lines is that you don't have to change trains.

It's good to assume all trains run everyday, as ellenem said, but as a daily computer, I can tell you that there can be unexpected surprises in the weekend trains, and even during the week. It happens often enought that I don't take things for granted these days! Alos, check out whether there are discounted fares for the holiday, and the option of a one day pass to save money.

ellenem's suggestion of Looking for posters in the station is good advice also!

Of course take the N/R. blissa was 100% right in his/her 1st reply already.

The rest of us were just adding more information about NYC subway in general.

Another option, if it's a nice day, is walk. We do it all the time. Just walk out of Penn Station on the 7th Ave side and take 32nd St a couple of blocks east until you reach Broadway. Make a right. It's about 20 minutes.

I think I will be taking the R train to 8th and then walking around from there. I had considered walking the entire way. If I lose my nerve that's what I'll do. I really want to try the subway tho'!!
Thanks for everyone's suggestions ya'll have been super helpful!!!!

Just a quick FYI -- ALL NYC subway lines are supposed to run all the time -- construction or maintenance causes weekend service disruptions.

The best place to learn about disruptions is the MTA website. Don't trust the in-station posters/notices. I've seen people stand on a "dead" platform for half an hour before they realized the local was on the express track downstairs.

Enjoy NYC!

Okay, now I'm beginning to question my own sanity. On my latest NYC visit last month, I saw that the B doesn't normally operate on weekends, with or without construction. It says so on the permanent platform signs and on the chart of lines on the subway map. And, according to at chart, several other lines (the W and V, for example) don't run at night and/or on weekends. So, while Blissa's answer clearly takes care of the OP's situation, I'm wondering why everybody is saying that all lines run all the time. Maybe I'm living in a parallel universe. :-)

Disclaimer: I don't live in NYC, though I've ridden the subways a fair amount, since having been taught to ride them as a kid by my NYC native parents.

Oh, I think I've just figured out what's happening. I'm thinking of "line" as meaning the B train or the C train, while I should be thinking of line in terms of the 8th Avenue IND. While it's true that the B doesn't run on weekends, it is true that the 8th Avenue local does run all the time because the C is running.

I feel better now....

www.hopstop.com


I cannot get around Manhattan without it!

Yes, hopstop is a fantastic resource! However, please notice there are two options- to do "less walking/more transfers," or "more walking/less transfers." In some cases, it's just a short walk over to the connecting line- for example, you can get the D (along with the B, F, and V) right at Herald Square, which is just a block east from Penn Station. So, that's another option to consider.

In addition, if you want to visit Washington Square Park itself, you can take the A, C, or E directly from Penn to the West 4th Street stop.

Enjoy! :)

Thanks all for your ideas!!! We had a blast!!! I love the city (can you tell I'm a neophite!!!) I did use HopStop--pretty cool site tho' some people said they had problems with it--i also have very good maps from Map Easy. Anyway, I posted a condensed trip report after we went which I pasted here!!!
Author: Christine65
Date: 11/30/2005, 08:45 am
Thanks to all for their suggestions on my first "I'm so confused" post!!
Ended up taking the A from somewhere under Penn station--a little confusing because after following the signs the A gate was closed so just went up the stairs for the C&E and an A train showed up. My hands were sweating I was so anxious about being on the right train but we made it to our stop on W 4th.
From there we just walked and walked to all different vintage shops around NYU then headed down Broadway to Chinatown and back up to the Tompkins Sq area and on to Union Sq. where we caught the N to Herald Sq.. We were absolutely exhausted by now!!! And back home by way of the NJ transit to Dover!!
This excursion was for my daughters 16th bday and I overheard her tell her friends it was her best birthday ever. So I guess it was a success and I didn't have to spend thousands of dollars on a "sweet sixteen" as some of her friends parents have done.