I’m going to try to make a long story as short as possible. I have some family spending their Christmas break in NYC. We haven’t seen them in years and they’d like us to drive down from MA to visit them. We’ve committed to spending one day (the Saturday before Christmas) there with them. I’ve never been to NYC, and neither has my family we’re visiting, and they also are not particularly organized or reliable.
The 3 of us going (me, S23 & S24) are thinking of driving to Stamford Friday, then taking the train in on Saturday morning (parking at the train station), leaving NYC on the train around 6 pm, and then driving back to MA, hopefully getting home by midnight.
Does that seem like an okay idea? Any issues with that I might be overlooking?
(Another possibility is to stay in Mahwah NJ because part of their group is staying there. But that looks like a worse trip into the city than Stamford. But maybe that is a better idea?)
What time would you arrive in NYC on Saturday morning if you took the train from Connecticut? How long is the drive from your home to this train station?
I am confused about Mahwah. Would you stay there Friday night and take the train in on Saturday morning? Or would you drive there on Saturday morning (very early) and then take a train from Mahwah into NYC?
I’m assuming you’re considering taking Metro North from Stamford?
Not sure where in MA you’re coming from… We live in northern CT and usually opt to take Amtrak, a much shorter drive in the car (but longer on the train, and a bit more expensive). We just don’t like the idea of having a long drive after a long day in the city.
Usually we go from Windsor Locks which has a small (ample, free) parking lot near the platform.
It looks like there are regular express trains on Saturday. We’d plan to take the 8:30 am, which I think would arrive around 9:30 am. Part of the challenge is that my family we’re meeting is rarely on time. We all have tickets for Hamilton around 1 PM and I’d be surprised if they actually arrived early enough to do anything before that. (Some of them are staying in Mahwah, some in Hoboken).
If we stayed in Mahwah we’d go there Friday. The person staying there said she’ll drive into the city, but taking the train seems like it would be a better idea for us, especially because we want to be able to leave earlier than I expect the other will want to.
You and your immediate family should make a plan pre-Hamilton and that way you just meet the “tardy” relatives for the show and time after. Highly recommend you make an early lunch reservation - maybe near Rock center and you can see the tree and ice rink even a little time to see the decorations on Fifth Ave plus easy walk to the theater - allow 20-30 minutes if you don’t walk like a New Yorker If you don’t care about a sit down lunch - have a fast lunch place or two identified like grabbing a slice with more time on your own before Hamilton.
I think this all depends on what you consider to be stressful.
Arriving by 9:30 allows you to walk around, grab lunch etc before seeing the show. You would have to be ok with the drive from your home to Stamford, and then the reverse late at night.
Arriving in Mahwah on Friday night is fine if you are ok with the drive. Is the home in Mahwah within walking distance to the train station in the event you wanted to take the train back from the city a little earlier?
I agree about making a plan with your immediate family.
We do long day trips taking metro north from various places on CT. You just need to choose a place where there is ample parking that also is open late.
We typically take the train from Bridgeport, but you could take from almost any train station that has parking.
Trains start running quite early. I’ve taken trains out of Bridgeport that had me at Grand Central before 9 a.m.
She is staying in a hotel. Mahwah is where she could find one that was affordable & would let her bring her 2 large dogs ?? … I love my family but I really try not to delve too much into their thought or planning processes.
The suggestion to just make our own plans for the morning that they can join in on if they make it is good.
Your instincts and experience with these relatives is probably right - two large dogs in a hotel room does not allow for a lot of time in NYC outside of the commute and the show…even that is pushing it, imo…but as you implied, not your circus.
If you are staying in Mahwah, and are leaving “from the city” I would park in Secaucus instead. The train ride is super short and basically every train will stop there, so you can take whatever is the next one. The bid disadvantage IMO is that you are adding on the drive. You will be a solid hour on the right direction in Stamford. The drive from NJ to Stamford is more often than not miserable and unpredictable. Once you hit Stamford it usually gets better.
More likely I would just drive into the city - should be ok on a Sat AM - and leave straight from there. Round trip train tickets for 3 will likely more than cover a day’s parking. I would park strategically (near the end of my day and consider access to my Manhattan exit).
It an option to drive into NYC, of course. But especially during the Christmas holiday times, the city is jam packed with people, drivers, etc. You would want a parking garage close enough…and we have driven around searching for one more than one time. Unless you can make a reservation at a parking garage…I’d take the hour long train ride from Stamford. It’s really an easy trip…and I far would prefer that to driving in NYC.
Based on what I am reading and understanding, I would probably choose to drive from your home to Stamford and then take the train to NYC (assuming that driving to and from the train station at odd hours is ok).
Then make a plan with your immediate family, invite the tardy relatives if you wish, and inform them that if they cannot make it you will see them at the show.
We drive in all the time. At $32 per person round trip when its 5 of us, it’s hard to justify taking the train. (And yes, that is the cost of DH daily commute)
If you drive in, we find it so much easier to use a parking app and reserve ahead of time (only had an issue once when H was driving in for a later meeting, but he found another garage). Keep in mind you could really get stuck in traffic getting out due to the holidays, so I think I would take the train.
When we drive into the City we always use a parking app. I think the plan to do Metro North from Stamford is doable. I probably wouldn’t bother trying to squeeze in museums. If you like Christmas stuff there are the department store windows, Rockefeller tree, the Christmas Market behind the Library at Bryant Park and the Holiday Fair at Grand Central itself. All within walking distance of station.
Oh… and if you have time do stop into the NY Public Library (between Grand Central and Bryant Park). We once took a wonderful docent tour, which you won’t likely have time to do. But just walking around would be nice. Gift shop too.
You can get all day parking in NYC on weekends via parking app for 15. I do that for my mom when she drives in to see me. There is usually very little traffic early Saturday morning. It may be more challenging at night, but I don’t think it should be too bad. I would park around midtown on the east side that’s walking distance to the theater. It will allow you to jump on the FDR when you are ready to leave. By parking around midtown on the east side will also be close to the Rockefeller center.
If you don’t care about a sit down lunch - have a fast lunch place or two identified like grabbing a slice with more time on your own before Hamilton.