May 5 Queen Mary-5 Boro Bike Tour is closing most of the streets to the port that day

[JCMass.]

Just when we figured out a way to get to the port on May 5 from Massachusetts we find out there is a large bike race closing roads, highways and bridges all over the area.  The information on line basically tells you not to go to the New York Boroughs during the day on May 5.  This will affect people coming from any type of transportation even those who fly in and then need to get from the airport.

 

Does anyone live locally and have any thoughts on how to get there.   Will everyone have to book a hotel the day before to be sure to get there ?   I checked and hotels are filling up at premium prices because of this event.  Any ideas are welcome. 

[NE John]

Assuming you’re taking the QM2 out of Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, I’d recommend 1) to arrive the day before and stay in a downtown Brooklyn hotel so you don’t have to cross bridges or tunnels from Manhattan to Brooklyn or 2) stay in a lower Manhattan hotel and take an Uber/car service via the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel to the Terminal. Do not stay in Mid-town Manhattan. The race starts in lower Manhattan and by the time you leave for the ship, most of the racers will be gone. But as you said, those hotels are booking up. 
Check out Marriott in downtown Brooklyn, I’ve seen it recommended on the Cunard boards. There is also a hotel in Red Hook close to the Terminal but I know nothing about that one. The bike race takes place on the highway going through downtown Brooklyn so on the morning of your embarkation, you can take car service to the cruise terminal and the car service can take side streets to get to the Terminal. The trouble is even Uber and car service drivers are going to be delayed. 
Leave early and give yourself plenty of time and good luck!! You’ll get there. 

Hopefully others can add more ideas. 

PS I’d retitle your headline to say “Queen Mary 2/May 5 Brooklyn Departure/Five Boro Race/Help!” to narrow down the geography, date, and problem. Some people may associate it with Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA…

Edited February 16 by NE John

[navybankerteacher]

There are a couple of reasonably priced hotels in lower Manhattan (near several good restaurants) and easy walking distance to pier 11 where you can take the passenger ferry across to right next to the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal - no traffic concerns at all.

[BeantownLady]

We sailed last year on that same weekend on the MSC Meriviglia . After lots and lots of research, we decided to fly in the day before [instead of driving from Massachusetts].  We stayed at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge - and had no problems at all.  It was expensive, but worth it.  There were a lot of people checking into the hotel with their bikes. 

But the good news is that the morning of the race, we pre-arranged an Uber pickup @ 9:30 to the Brooklyn Cruise Port and had no problem at all getting there, in fact, the driver took us on streets that had no traffic and, other than at the hotel, we never saw a bicycle that morning.  

If the route is the same this year, I would highly recommend that hotel, and leaving early to beat the spectator traffic in the area.  It was well worth the extra money for peace of mind.

[JCMass.]

On 2/20/2024 at 12:58 PM, BeantownLady said:

We sailed last year on that same weekend on the MSC Meriviglia . After lots and lots of research, we decided to fly in the day before [instead of driving from Massachusetts].  We stayed at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge - and had no problems at all.  It was expensive, but worth it.  There were a lot of people checking into the hotel with their bikes. 

But the good news is that the morning of the race, we pre-arranged an Uber pickup @ 9:30 to the Brooklyn Cruise Port and had no problem at all getting there, in fact, the driver took us on streets that had no traffic and, other than at the hotel, we never saw a bicycle that morning.  

If the route is the same this year, I would highly recommend that hotel, and leaving early to beat the spectator traffic in the area.  It was well worth the extra money for peace of mind.

Thank you for this information, we are still developing a plan.