CT transportation to JFK

I have been reading yelp and any other review I can get my hands on about transportation from CT to JFK. Many of the reviews don't sound good. My flight leaves at 10am and coming home flight comes in at 7am. I don't want to take the train as it sounds confusing, will be tired and worried I will make a wrong connection. I will be by myself as well. Any recommendations?

Where "approximately" in CT - town/village/city or county, coastal or inland, etc. ?

Hard to understand the question. Why are you going from CT (do you mean Connecticut?) to JFK - are you catching a flight to the west coast (the return flight on a red eye would come in aboout 7:00 AM)?

Car service from CT to JFK is pretty costly, while train service from NYC to most areas in CT is reasonable, but more information is needed.

As the others have said it's not possible to make a recommendation without knowing exactly where in Connecticut you're located, but if you're near near a Metro North Station, you can take a train into Grand Central Station and then take the NYC Airporter bus to JFK. http://www.nycairporter.com/ .

New Haven, CT to JFK. Anyone use Red Dot transportation?

New Haven, CT to JFK ...

We need, IMHO, more specific info to help brainstorm your options - traveling alone - can you manage your luggage on mass transit ?

From your signature - assumption, please confirm: you are cruising this winter - flying JFK to HNL in advance (weekdays) - POA sailing on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017.

As a domestic flight, you need to be at JFK for check-in at 2+ hours, as recommended for on-time departure.

Weekday travel driving/being driven down I-15 or I-95 from New Haven, CT into NYC area, typically - onto the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge (or, Throgs Neck Bridge) to I-678 is dicey at best, with unpredictable road & traffic and weather conditions - of no less than 2 hours to 2.5 hours, 3 hours being more comfortable as I'm very familiar with this route. This, means, leaving from from your town in CT no later than 5 to 5:30 AM in late January.

Or, you can get a ride to Metro North's New Haven Union Station & take the 5:01 AM train into Grand Central Station in NYC, arriving around 7 AM - based on the MTA Trip Planner's recommendation, transfer to the #7 subway train to Queens's 74th Street, Jackson Height for the E Train to Jamaica, for the final segment via JFK's AirTrain to your terminal - arriving about 8:06 AM, then downstairs & inside for checking in. This is very tight - just under 2 hours - with 3 transfer points on a weekday morning, competing with morning commuters & space for your luggage.

Sorry, can't help you with Red Dot - I know there are other CT-based shared van services to JFK as I see them on the above route. However, your outbound flight meant that you will need to be picked up sometime after 4 AM - on a van-ride sharing basis to get you to - hopefully - JFK before 8 AM without too many stops, weather & weekday commuter traffic conditions being close to normal. A major winter storm, not a blizzard, would obviously meant airport delays & flight cancellations, etc. - kindly take that into consideration.

Your red-eye return landing at JFK around 7 AM is not the major concern - if the shared shuttle van is a reasonable priced one, just take it & being tired, take a nice nap and hopefully, you will be home by noon or sooner & I'm the driver will not mind waking you up.

If the assumptions are correct, have you consider flying out of BDL / Hartford, CT - there are fewer options and flights are more expensive, i.e. on UA - it's a lot closer & if you factor in travel time/cost to JFK in the winter (and, possibly an overnight hotel stay to avoid missing your flight ... unless you can find/book a later flight out of JFK to still make the connection into HNL) - it might not be costing that more more. Or, even drive & park at the airport instead ?? Nowadays, it's sometimes easier to book two one-way plane tickets - leave from BDL and return to JFK or BDL ??

IMO traveling in the northeast in winter to make either a plane or cruise ship requires multiple flexible plans to allow for snow events. I have gotten clipped by precruise and post cruise snow events on my last two cruises from Cape Liberty and had to rearrange plans at the last minute. The prime objective is to make your plane from JFK.

Have you bought private trip insurance that covers you from the day you leave until the day you return (not just cruise insurance for the week you are cruising)? On one trip I had to book an emergency hotel in Boston because I couldn't get safely out to my house and the $150/day trip interruption insurance coverage paid for that.

My high level advice for restructuring your plan would be:

1) buy private trip insurance

2) take the cheap MetroNorth train to Grand Central the day before. Book a cancellable Manhattan hotel - rates under $150 can be found in Manhattan the last week in Jan. Plan to take a cab or car service to JFK early the next morning.

3) Suck it up and take only rolling luggage you can manage. I just did Hawaii in April with a rolling carryon and a rolling backpack. My extended trip involved 4 days in Portland and 2 in Honolulu before doing an 11 day repo cruise through the islands to Vancouver.

These plans can be easily adjusted if there is a weather event. Typically we don't recommend staying at JFK hotels, but that is an option as well.

Thank you for all your advice. Yes, I am going on POA this January. I plan to bring a carry on luggage and a large tote as my personal item (it can slide on the handles so I don't have to carry it). I am also looking into getting the Global Entry program. I am leaving two days before the cruise which hopefully will leave me some wiggle room if there is a storm. I am going to purchase insurance for all travel days and if there is a storm delay I am hoping the insurance covers the extra cost or missed day for storm issues. I like the idea of takeing the train from New Haven to grand central. Then walk 3 min to NYC Airporter. My only concern is I don't travel by the train that often. I would have to take the 4:05am train out of New Haven and get to grand central at 5:55am and then walk to the bus for a departure of 6:30am. This would be a huge saving compared to the other airport transfers. My only concern is this safe as being a solo women and so early in the morning? After all this traveling I think I will be ready to sleep the 11 hours on the plane :-)

njhorseman have you taken the NYC Airporter? Do you know where you are to catch the NYC Airporter bus to go to JFK (a landmark would be great). Thanks for the idea.

As the others have said it's not possible to make a recommendation without knowing exactly where in Connecticut you're located, but if you're near near a Metro North Station, you can take a train into Grand Central Station and then take the NYC Airporter bus to JFK. http://www.nycairporter.com/ .

Oh good - you now have a plan.

http://www.nycairporter.com/Schedule/GrandCentralToJFKAirport.aspx - map for Pickup point

My only concern is this safe as being a solo women and so early in the morning?

No concern here.

4:05am Train 1503 is the first train from New Haven into GCT, you will not be alone and the terminal itself will be busy getting ready for the rush of commuters. You can even smell some of the fresh bread being delivered. Other trains will have arrived and departed before you. This is the center of Manhattan, it will not be deserted on you short walk over to 41st Street.

Exit the train and walk in the direction the train was traveling. The only issue to note is if your train arrives on the lower level of GCT. You will see stairs towards the front of the train if you can do the few steps up to the ramp you will exit to the lower level Dining concourse. There are escalators up to the main level. If you can't do the few stairs, walk around them to ramps and even elevator behind these stairs. The ramps alone will take you up to the main level.

Metro north to grand central and then the air porter is probably your most economic way to go. I take metro north and then walk a few blocks to the subway personally, but the airportjf is fine if you don't know the subway system.

If your flight was not so early, I would suggest Amtrak to Penn Station as an option. If you book weeks in advance Metro North and Amtrak are just about the same price, but Amtrak trains are more comfortable than Metro North. They use the same stations between New Haven and New York except Amtrak uses Penn and Metro North uses Grand Central. Grand Central is nicer.

New Haven, CT to JFK. Anyone use Red Dot transportation?

I have - about two hours forty-five minutes from a number of New Haven locations for about $75 to JFK.

If you are traveling alone, it is almost competitive - but for two or more, outrageous. Train to Grand Central and taxi to JFK would be quicker, more comfortable, and much less expensive for two.

I would come into NYC the day before....enjoy...relax...and then take a car service to JFK

Remember penny wise and pound foolish

What is your plan if there is a storm the morning you leave new haven should you opt for metro north?

You can take Metro North to Grand Central and then the airporter or airlink to JFK. How many people are you? We will be going to JFK next week, also from CT. There are 3 of us and we will be gone for 2 weeks. I found off site JFK parking on "Parkwiz" for $6 a day. Have used Parkwiz several times and never had a problem or issue. To park for $84, even with gas and tolls, which would bring it to about $120 we couldn't find any public transportation option that would cost around $40 pp to get us to JFK and back home.