Where to stay ???

My bad. There is a one day pass for $12. You have to take at least 6 subway rides/day to make that worthwhile.

I'm going to do more research but someone told me the seven day pass is $21. Is that not worth it either?

Yes - there is a 7 day pass for $21.75. That could be worth it. You can put that on a paper Charlie ticket instead of fussing around trying to get a plastic Charlie card. However with a paper ticket I would be sure to keep it in some sort of protective covering and to get a printed receipt when you buy it.

The pass will cover the inner harbor ferry between Long Wharf and Charlestown, so if you're interested in a "harbor cruise" I would do that using the pass before I paid big bucks to another vendor to ride around the harbor.

Thanks for the tips!

I might be reluctant to come to NY without a firm reservation, but recently I've been looking at hotel offerings on an app called Hotel Tonight, which you can download for free to a smartphone. Certain hotels offer great rates on same day reservations, and reduced rates on hotel stays a day or two or three out. I haven't used the app, but know someone who has, and he recommends it - IF, of course, you are willing to take a chance that nothing is available a day or two before you travel, or nothing in your budget is available. With so many hotels in NYC and Jersey, I can't imagine that happening, but you never know. Fall in NYC is pretty busy at the hotels. In any case, it might be worth checking out the app.

If you're an AAA member, there is a pretty good deal offered at the Westin Grand Central - or at least it was for some dates I looked at in September.

Sorry - duplicate post!

Thanks for all the tips, we've booked Back Bay Hilton for Boston and Newark Penn Station Hilton for New York using public transportation to get to Manhattan. Wondering if there is something similar to Linkpass for public transportation in Manhattan? Also, if we get on ferry at Battery Park to get to the Statue of Liberty, can we get off at one of the Manhattan locations or do we have to go back to Battery Park?

Thanks for all the tips, we've booked Back Bay Hilton for Boston and Newark Penn Station Hilton for New York using public transportation to get to Manhattan. Wondering if there is something similar to Linkpass for public transportation in Manhattan? Also, if we get on ferry at Battery Park to get to the Statue of Liberty, can we get off at one of the Manhattan locations or do we have to go back to Battery Park?

Nothing like Link Pass. Only a 7 day ticket.

The SOL ferry services only Battery Park and Liberty State Park in NJ. It dies not go to any other Manhattan locations.

Are you seniors? Do you understand how NJ Transit and PATH work and which one to pick depending on where you're going or where you're coming back from?

Depends what the age is for seniors. One senior and two adults. Haven't done much research yet on transportation besides your directions on how to get to Manhattan from the hotel. Thought perhaps we could take the ferry from New Jersey to Statue of Liberty and then from there go to Manhattan via another ferry.

Depends what the age is for seniors. One senior and two adults. Haven't done much research yet on transportation besides your directions on how to get to Manhattan from the hotel. Thought perhaps we could take the ferry from New Jersey to Statue of Liberty and then from there go to Manhattan via another ferry.

Seniors for NJ Transit are 62 to be eligible for half fare. Age for PATH and NYC subway is 65 and requires a complicated application process that I don't think you have time to complete before you leave.

Getting to the SOL ferry in NJ is more complicated and expensive via public transit. Better to just take PATH to World Trade and walk, take the subway, or take the bus to South Ferry.

http://web.mta.info/maps/submap.html

http://www.njtransit.com/pdf/rail/Rail_System_Map.pdf

http://www.panynj.gov/path/maps-schedules.html

Thanks for the links, I'll do research on transportation now.

Another question, we are renting a car in Newark to drive to Boston. We have noticed toll roads and the need to purchase a fast pass. Which pass would cover the entire trip or is there a route that will allow us to pay as we go? This is on Saturday September 10th.

Another question, we are renting a car in Newark to drive to Boston. We have noticed toll roads and the need to purchase a fast pass. Which pass would cover the entire trip or is there a route that will allow us to pay as we go? This is on Saturday September 10th.

These directions I created for someone else that tell you how to avoid the one unmanned toll that would be a problem in a rental car without an Ezpass. You can pay cash for the GW Bridge and the Mass Pike. This is a pretty ride. Just did most of it round trip last Sat. Ask if you have questions.

New York to Boston "cars only" directions

From Newark Airport I would take the NJ Turnpike north (getting on at Exit 13A or Exit 14 depending on the location of your hotel) following the signs to the Lincoln Tunnel, which will take you on the eastern spur of the turnpike. Then follow the signs to the George Washington Bridge Exit 18.

From the George Washington Bridge I would take the cars only parkways all the way through New York City, New York State, and halfway through Connecticut. You will not see a big scary truck until you get on I91 south of Hartford. To do this you take the upper level of the George Washington Bridge ($15 toll ) and get in the rightmost lane. Take the very first exit at the end of the bridge onto the Henry Hudson Parkway North. (If you end up on the lower level, get in the left lane and take the very first exit onto the Henry Hudson Parkway North) This route has a $5 cashless toll which is billed back to cars that don't have an EZ Pass - you want to ask Alamo if they offer a toll pass program. I checked online and someone posted that Enterprise car rental charged them $18 for this $5 toll. The Henry Hudson Parkway changes it's name to the Saw Mill River Parkway at the NYC line. You take Exit 4 onto the Cross County Parkway.

To avoid this toll (ok to do early on a weekend morning) you take the Lower Bridge and stay to the right to get off at the Major Deegan (New York Thruway) North I87. This is one of the very next exits and requires you to scoot across multiple lanes if you take the Upper bridge. http://www.aaroads.com/guide.php?page=i0095nany The Major Deegan North becomes the New York Thruway at the city line. You take Exit 4 to get onto the Cross County Parkway East - a quick scoot at the exit from left to right across two lanes of traffic to the Cross County on ramp.

Get into the left lane of the Cross County Parkway and follow the signs to the Hutchinson River Parkway North. The Hutchinson River Parkway becomes the Merritt Parkway at the Connecticut Line. Around Milford Connecticut the parkway changes name again to the Wilbur Cross Parkway. You go all the way to the end where the road intersects with I91 North towards Hartford. In Hartford you take Exit 29 Charter Oak Bridge to get onto I84 east towards Boston. At the end of I84 you get on the Massachusetts Turnpike East towards Boston.

At the end of the Mass Pike you have a choice to go to Logan Airport, South Boston, or South Station.

Thanks Carol!

Thank you for the valuable information. This is the husband that will be driving. If I understand your reply correctly, you are saying that we would could pay cash tolls in some manner at toll booths other than what you pointed out. When looking at the I-95 info online it looked like they were all converted or being converted to EZPass and you were out of luck if you did not have one. I know we can buy them at retailers in $25 increments but hate to throw it away at the end of one day, or worse, need to pull over and buy a second one. Do I understand you correctly? Thanks so much for your help!

Thank you for the valuable information. This is the husband that will be driving. If I understand your reply correctly, you are saying that we would could pay cash tolls in some manner at toll booths other than what you pointed out. When looking at the I-95 info online it looked like they were all converted or being converted to EZPass and you were out of luck if you did not have one. I know we can buy them at retailers in $25 increments but hate to throw it away at the end of one day, or worse, need to pull over and buy a second one. Do I understand you correctly? Thanks so much for your help!

With the route I proposed you would only drive I95 in NJ from exit 13A/14 to exit 18. I'm not aware of any proposal to eliminate cash tolls, but maybe I missed that memo since I'm not a local resident. I don't see cash tolls being eliminated on the GW Bridge. No plan to eliminate cash tolls on the Mass Pike.

The only toll that is cashless is on the Henry Hudson Parkway, and I have provided the directions to use the Major Deegan and I87 as an alternative route.

With the route I proposed you would only drive I95 in NJ from exit 13A/14 to exit 18. I'm not aware of any proposal to eliminate cash tolls, but maybe I missed that memo since I'm not a local resident. I don't see cash tolls being eliminated on the GW Bridge. No plan to eliminate cash tolls on the Mass Pike.

 

 

 

The only toll that is cashless is on the Henry Hudson Parkway, and I have provided the directions to use the Major Deegan and I87 as an alternative route.

Ok. I googled it because I can't believe that they expect everyone to have an ez pass. It said they will take a photo of your license plate and mail you the bill if you don't have EZ pass.

Ok. I googled it because I can't believe that they expect everyone to have an ez pass. It said they will take a photo of your license plate and mail you the bill if you don't have EZ pass.

That's fine if you're using your personal car, but with a rental car the bill goes back to to the rental car company and they charge it back to you with a hefty surcharge. This is a problem with the Henry Hudson Parkway toll.

You can rent an electronic toll payment transponder from Hertz and Avis, and I suspect the other major car central agencies also offer them. The charge is $4-$5 per day, plus the cost of the tolls rung up on your trip. It's billed to the credit card you use for your car rental charges.

You can rent an electronic toll payment transponder from Hertz and Avis, and I suspect the other major car central agencies also offer them. The charge is $4-$5 per day, plus the cost of the tolls rung up on your trip. It's billed to the credit card you use for your car rental charges.

This.

I can't imagine picking up a rental car in New Jersey without an EZ Pass mounted on the car. But there will be a surcharge for using it, in addition to the tolls.

I also can't imagine driving in the Mid Atlantic up to New England without an EZ Pass. Actually, I can, because I did, once, on I-95 from Philly to DC. Only once...

I agree that driving in the Northeast with an EZ pass is a lot easier. We've had it since it first started and cheered as each leg of our frequent Boston to NJ trips added their toll collections to the EZPass system. We figured that it ultimately saved us at least 20-30 minutes on a 4-5 hour trip.

OP - find out what your rental car company will charge you to rent an EZ pass for what I assume is your one day rental to go from Newark to Boston. This will allow you to take the Henry Hudson Parkway, which I consider $5.50 well spent to escape off the GW bridge for a pretty, low traffic ride up the Hudson through a lovely area of NYC.

Where are you returning your car in Boston? You should be able to drop your bags at your hotel and return the car somewhere in downtown Boston rather than at the airport, but make sure the weekend downtown hours work for you. You do not want to pay $50+ to lodge a rental car overnight in Boston. In the end you may just want to throw money at it - drive straight to the airport, ditch the car, and pay for a taxi or Über back to the hotel. This could save you a lot of aggravation trying to negotiate the one way Boston streets.

Still working on where to return rental car. We need to check hours for airport return vs downtown. We didn't want to rush driving from Newark to Boston, but also are aware of the fee to park at hotel. Thanks for all your advice.

Still working on where to return rental car. We need to check hours for airport return vs downtown. We didn't want to rush driving from Newark to Boston, but also are aware of the fee to park at hotel. Thanks for all your advice.

I think you will find the downtown locations close early on Sat, which will put a lot of unnecessary pressure on you to get to Boston on time. What I would suggest is to go to the hotel, have one person check in and get the luggage to the room while the other person sits in the car, and return the car to Logan. From Logan you will have free access to the Silver Line to return downtown either to the hotel or to a dinner destination. The Silver Line goes directly to South Station where you can buy your multiday T pass until 10 pm.

Don't forget that your multiday pass is good on the commuter rail to ride from South Station to Back Bay Station. If there is a commuter rail train scheduled that stops at Back Bay, you can hop on that for one stop and then walk indoors through Copley Place and the Prudential Shops all the way to across the street from the Hilton.

EZ-Pass tags of NY/Nj are acutally rented out, if you a cash account with EXPass they hold $10 as a deposit. Credit Card EZPass Accounts they don't hold the deposit unless you payment does not go thru a few times ;)

Car rental agencies (most) will charge you each rental day for use of the EZ-Pass even if you only use it on one day of the entire rental. They also may bill you the cash price instead of the discounted EZpass cost of the toll plus their fee.

EZPass charges take a while to be processed so you will get a separate charge on your Credit Card from the car rental company.

As Carol said, they still accept cash at all the tolls you will be "experiencing" just make sure you are in the correct lane.

FWIW

These directions I created ...

New York to Boston "cars only" directions

 

From Newark Airport I would take the NJ Turnpike north (getting on at Exit 13A or Exit 14 depending on the location of your hotel) following the signs to the Lincoln Tunnel, which will take you on the eastern spur of the turnpike. Then follow the signs to the George Washington Bridge Exit 18.

 

To avoid this toll (ok to do early on a weekend morning) you take the Lower Bridge and stay to the right to get off at the Major Deegan (New York Thruway) North I87. This is one of the very next exits and requires you to scoot across multiple lanes if you take the Upper bridge. http://www.aaroads.com/guide.php?page=i0095nany

 

The Major Deegan North becomes the New York Thruway at the city line. You take Exit 4 to get onto the Cross County Parkway East - a quick scoot at the exit from left to right across two lanes of traffic to the Cross County on ramp ...

Just a minor data-point, the Lower Level access to the George Washington Bridge, whether it's from I-80/I-95 North or the local bypass/alternate via Rt. 46 is EZ-Pass Only at all times, no cash accepted. The Upper Level of GWB take both EZ-Pass and cash, and Cash lanes are clearly marked when approaching - Saturday morning inbound (NY) traffic are usually okay.

Dodging the Henry Hudson Bridge toll by taking the Lower Level GWB approach to cross into NYC toward CT/MA is challenging ... My suggestion is to pay the cash toll on the Upper Level, try to stay to the middle/right lanes - on the final approach to the bridge - coming from the NJ Turnpike/Exit 18, there are signs for the Express lanes and Local lanes once on I-95, with the Express going to the Upper Level of GWB (but, one can divert to Lower Level if necessary ... same for Local lane with last minute option (intended for trucks, as they are banned on Lower level of GWB) to get onto the Upper level. Upon paying the cash toll, merge onto the 4 lanes onto NYC, move/merge stay on the #3 lane (2nd. one from the left) to stay on I-95 as it go under the "apartments" above upon reaching Manhattan/NYC (#1 or inside lane is the exit for Henry Hudson Parkway, and about 1/4 mile further up - #2 lane is the exit only lane for the Harlem River Drive to go downtown)

The #3 and #4 (left-most) lanes are "thru traffic" lanes continue onto the Bronx, and the exit for the I-87 or Major Deegan is another 1/8 mile ahead, just as thru traffic from the Lower level of the GBW merge together onto I-95 again. This is the trickiest part in moving & crossing one more lane to the right quickly - some of the traffic on the Lower level will merge onto I-95 while others will keep right & exit for I-87 to go North (or South)

Mid to late weekend morning, unless weather and road work/construction or lane closures are in effect (sometimes, it happened) - just pay attention & read the overhead road signs, and stay in the proper lane & move over once you are coming into the darkened section of the bridge/"apartments" area on the Manhattan side of the GWB section with numerous exits - pay full attention and be prepared to merge right & exit for I-87.

This route would be easier if someone can act as a navigator and use iPhone or Google Map Navigation or Waze to plot the route - been using it for quite some time and even as a local, indispensable with its real-time traffic & hazard alerts, constructions & accident warnings and suggestion for bypass - it can be a serious driving distraction so I urge the partner/spouse to help as a co-driver/navigator in reading signs and looking/listen for the turn-by-turn instructions.

Have a safe trip & happy cruising !