Cape Liberty/Bayonne 411 - New and Improved!

[megr1125]

I am not a fan of the Ramada..and the Crowne Plaza is REALLY hard to get to....

I would try the Country Inn or Hampton Inn ..

However..you should know that not many places in the area offer a cruise packager per se...many of the hotels are near EWR airport and while it is good to have heads in beds, they have enough contract rooms with airlines that cruising is a very small percentage..

SKIP the Best Western and Wyndham Garden...

the Holiday Inn would be my choice if i was really on a budget. Your other choice would be to book a park and fly rate and then your own transfers...expect to pay AROUND $50 each way give or take, for cab and/or car service..

click the link below to my blog..there are some other ideas there...

ALSO sometimes, some of the Marriott brands near EWR offer park & cruise..and we can give you info about transfers on your own (actually it is in the blog..)

[138east]

Sorry I didn't get back to you earlier. I agree with what has been said but I disagree about the Ramada. IMO it's the best budget choice at the airport for a park sleep.

Have you considered using Hotwire to get a hotel between exits 8 and 10 on the turnpike and just paying the $95 to park at the port? I will check your choices in the morning - I've been working all day - I'm truly ready to go to Bermuda on Sep 9. A blind hotel away from Newark will be much less risky than many of the airport hotels.

[138east]

Hotwire has a bunch of hotels in Edison or New Brunswick/Piscataway for $48-78 for your date. The problem with Newark is the port transportation which is expensive - at least $80 rt to the port. You can do that transportation yourself for $95 and have the peace of mind that your car is parked safely for 5 days. Save on the hotel by staying a little further away from the port.

[Mischyff]

Can anyone tell me which mode of transportation would be faster when disembarking? We have someplace to be and am considering driving and parking at the terminal vs. taking a cab or shuttle. Any experience that can be shared?

[138east]

What day of the week do you dock and what general direction will you be going? How many days is your cruise? If you don't park at the pier, where would you have to go to get your car?

[rigs32]

Originally Posted by 138east

That's a good strategy as well. Where are you coming from? Edison or Parsippany are good places to look for less expensive hotels.

I agree. We booked at suite at the Hampton Inn in Parsippany for $70, including a hot breakfast. I figure I'd rather drive the other 45 min the next morning and pay to park the car than to wrestle with cabs or shuttles to the pier and waiting for one to get back to my car after the cruise. Our total cost (even paying the $19/day) is less this way than staying in newark.

[khm1]

I will be coming from the south for my Explorer cruise departing on July 5 (5 days from now- Yay!). We will be staying the night of the 4th at the Hampton Inn, Staten island. We have reservations on the shuttle to the port at 11 on the morning of the 5th.

My question is: What is the best way to get to the Hampton from the south? We will be driving from Maryland's Eastern Shore, up 301, then up the NJ Turnpike. Both Google Maps and Mapquest both say to go on Goethals Bridge. But when I look at a NY/NJ map, it looks a little better to go on the Outerbridge Crossing.

I am totally NOT familiar with the area, but do fine driving just about anywhere. To those of you in the know, which way is better? I don't want to get hung up in a lot of traffic.

Also, how will the holiday effect our trip? Google Maps states a 3 1/2 hour drive. I am budgeting at least 4 hours. We plan on leaving home at 10 AM. TIA!

[megr1125]

a friend of ours drives up from Maryland..i think the outerbridge crossing is the route taken...

i will see if i can find out

[SNJCruisers]

Originally Posted by megr1125

a friend of ours drives up from Maryland..i think the outerbridge crossing is the route taken...

i will see if i can find out

Yes...Outerbridge Crossing is the way to go....you go right past the hotels which are right off of the highway. I drive past them all of the time when I am coming from the Phila area and are going to JFK airport for work.

[grinder172]

could you let us know about the hampton inn when you return we will be staying there in march. thanks

[workinmom3]

Originally Posted by khm1

I My question is: What is the best way to get to the Hampton from the south? We will be driving from Maryland's Eastern Shore, up 301, then up the NJ Turnpike.

Hello from another Eastern Shore cruiser. We will be making the trip at the end of August. Isn't it nice to be able to drive to port? Where are you from? We live in Galena (Kent County).

[scoobie]

We(me and hubby, daughter and boyfriend and other daughter and her husband(their honeymoon cruise) are cruising on the Explorer on December 13th.

The daughter whose on her honeymoon is driving down on December 11th as they want to take a day to see some NYC. They are on a budget. Can anyone suggest a budget friendly hotel that would be close to public transportation into NYC, as they don't want to drive in and then paying huge fees for parking.


The rest of us will be flying in late evening of the 12th and the honeymoon daughter will be picking us up. It would be $400 cheaper for us to fly into JFK or LGA. Would there be any hotel that would fit the budget friendly daughter in one of these areas?

[firemans15]

Hello All,

I have a couple of questions if I may please,

1. I might be taking the repositioning cruise on Brilliance of the Seas in Nov. and was thinking of taking Amtrak from Washington D.C.to the Newark (Penn) Station. My question is do I take a taxi or do I use an arranged private car pick up service?

2. If I drive and park at Cruise Liberty then I have parking to pay for and the cab ride back from an airport. I have no problem doing that. It is expensive to fly back from San Jaun into Newark Airport non-stop. I also looked at flying into JFK or Lagurdia(sp) which is not bad price wise but what cost would be involved from one of those airports back to Cruise Liberty Port?


Thanks
Firemans 15

[SNJCruisers]

Originally Posted by scoobie

We(me and hubby, daughter and boyfriend and other daughter and her husband(their honeymoon cruise) are cruising on the Explorer on December 13th.

The daughter whose on her honeymoon is driving down on December 11th as they want to take a day to see some NYC. They are on a budget. Can anyone suggest a budget friendly hotel that would be close to public transportation into NYC, as they don't want to drive in and then paying huge fees for parking.


The rest of us will be flying in late evening of the 12th and the honeymoon daughter will be picking us up. It would be $400 cheaper for us to fly into JFK or LGA. Would there be any hotel that would fit the budget friendly daughter in one of these areas?

Budget friendly in the greater NYC area right before the Christmas holidays is different than budget friendly elsewhere. With regards to the evening of Dec 11, a hotel in the Secaucus NJ area would be a good choice because of it's proximity to public transportation into Manhattan. Meg or 138east will be following up to my message with more specific hotel choices. Since your daughter will be picking you up and you have your choice of either JFK or LGA to fly into, I would suggest that you fly into JFK, simply because it is the lesser of two evils. With regards to hotels around those two airports, I would not recommend either area. Since you do have a car and you'll be looking for a park n stay hotel, good choices are either the Hampton Inn or the adjacent Hilton Garden Inn, both on Staten Island. They include a round trip shuttle to the port. They are the only hotels that provide this service. If by some chance they are full for the dates in question, the Country Inn & Suites in Elizabeth NJ is in a safe area and they have an outside service that provides a shuttle to the cruise port for 35 pp round trip. Good luck

[khm1]

Originally Posted by SNJCruisers

Yes...Outerbridge Crossing is the way to go....you go right past the hotels which are right off of the highway. I drive past them all of the time when I am coming from the Phila area and are going to JFK airport for work.

Thanks! I think that we will go that way.

Originally Posted by grinder172

could you let us know about the hampton inn when you return we will be staying there in march. thanks

Will do

!

Originally Posted by workinmom3

Hello from another Eastern Shore cruiser. We will be making the trip at the end of August. Isn't it nice to be able to drive to port? Where are you from? We live in Galena (Kent County).

Hello to you! We are from Talbot County. Sorry, don't want to get too specific online....

[megr1125]

Originally Posted by firemans15

Hello All,

I have a couple of questions if I may please,

1. I might be taking the repositioning cruise on Brilliance of the Seas in Nov. and was thinking of taking Amtrak from Washington D.C.to the Newark (Penn) Station. My question is do I take a taxi or do I use an arranged private car pick up service?

2. If I drive and park at Cruise Liberty then I have parking to pay for and the cab ride back from an airport. I have no problem doing that. It is expensive to fly back from San Jaun into Newark Airport non-stop. I also looked at flying into JFK or Lagurdia(sp) which is not bad price wise but what cost would be involved from one of those airports back to Cruise Liberty Port?


Thanks
Firemans 15

You can just grab a cab...expect it to be around $50 give or take, plus tip..(welcome to our nightmare....cabs are not cheap!)

you will eat up all your savings...you could TRY a car service such as www.dial7.com or www.carmellimo.com but cabs do NOT have to take you anyplace in NJ except to EWR....they can't legally pick up return fares in opposite states and they can basically charge you whatever they want...

[megr1125]

Originally Posted by scoobie

We(me and hubby, daughter and boyfriend and other daughter and her husband(their honeymoon cruise) are cruising on the Explorer on December 13th.

The daughter whose on her honeymoon is driving down on December 11th as they want to take a day to see some NYC. They are on a budget. Can anyone suggest a budget friendly hotel that would be close to public transportation into NYC, as they don't want to drive in and then paying huge fees for parking.


The rest of us will be flying in late evening of the 12th and the honeymoon daughter will be picking us up. It would be $400 cheaper for us to fly into JFK or LGA. Would there be any hotel that would fit the budget friendly daughter in one of these areas?

Scooby

you do NOT want to stay near JFk..and really not LGA except maybe in the Marriott or laGuardia plaza...MANY airport hotels over there are used to house homeless people..not that it's a bad thing, but well....not the best choice..

PLUS you need to figure in the cost of getting FROM JFK/LGA to Cape Liberty. You'd need a car service...try www.carmellimo.com, www.dial7.com for starters...

Define BUDGET FRIENDLY. actually those words..and December in NYC should not be used in the same sentence...

what is the budget?? Also...i don't think that the honeymooners want to trek all over creation to pick you guys up at JFK or LGA ....they will need to budget at least 2 hours to get there.....depending where they're staying (alllowing for traffic, accidents, and just plain goofy stuff...prob won't take that long..)

i have to think about this for a bit...and i was sort of ill this AM so i have medicine head and i probably am not making any sense....

[firemans15]

Originally Posted by megr1125

You can just grab a cab...expect it to be around $50 give or take, plus tip..(welcome to our nightmare....cabs are not cheap!)

you will eat up all your savings...you could TRY a car service such as www.dial7.com or www.carmellimo.com but cabs do NOT have to take you anyplace in NJ except to EWR....they can't legally pick up return fares in opposite states and they can basically charge you whatever they want...

Megr1125
Thank you very much!

[workinmom3]

Originally Posted by khm1

!
Hello to you! We are from Talbot County. Sorry, don't want to get too specific online....

I completely understand. With so many people from all over the world using CC, I get excited when I come across someone from the same area. Have a great cruise.

[SNJCruisers]

Originally Posted by workinmom3

I completely understand. With so many people from all over the world using CC, I get excited when I come across someone from the same area. Have a great cruise.

Lisa...could you drop me a line please so we can discuss transportation options.....it's my username @yahoo