<p>My son has a summer internship in NYC and will be lodging in the NYU dorms. He will be flying into JFK around 7 pm on a Monday night, and the job starts the next day. He'll have 2 rolling suitcases, and although he is familiar with public transit, he's never been to NYC. What is the best way for him to get to the dorms? Normally he'd most likely take the subway, but given the circumstances, I'm wondering if it would be better for him to use a shuttle service (like Super Shuttle - ?). Do you know what a taxi would cost and is it worth it in this situation? I'm a bit concerned that he might appear too vulnerable on the subway with his new luggage, and it's hard to navigate a new city once it gets dark.</p>
<p>Probably taxi. The fare will be $50+ but moving to a new city and immediately starting a job will be a bit overwhelming. This way he can unpack and prepare for the next day.</p>
<p>Taxi sounds best. My son is also starting an internship in NYC next Tuesday! But he is subletting a studio apt by himself, and I am traveling there with him on Sunday morning.</p>
<p>Take the taxi. The subway is not luggage-friendly. Two rolling suitcases are going to be too much to handle if he’s traveling alone. With just one I might advise differently.</p>
<p>The fare is in fact a flat fee into Manhattan, according to nyc.gov it’s now $52.00 + $0.50 tax + tolls and tip. I usually budget $65 for it.</p>
<p>I’ve heard mixed results with the Super Shuttle. The Super Shuttle tends to start uptown and move downtown, so depending on who’s on the shuttle and which dorm he’s staying in, he should expect to be one of the last passengers off, which can make for a rather unpleasant ride if he gets carsick. For some reason, people get carsick more often in the Super Shuttle, too - something in the air.</p>
<p>I’m a current NYU student who’s familiar with the dorms and transportation to and from JFK, so feel free to PM me.</p>
<p>My son had no trouble getting from La Guardia to NYU dorms with Super Shuttle yesterday, during the day. It cost about $25 for that airport. We (and NY friends) said not to take the subway with suitcases and cluelessness, though he will be taking the subway every day to his internship. (I hope he made it to work ok this morning and isn’t still sleeping…)</p>
<p>There’s no reason to avoid the subway with <em>A</em> suitcase. As long as you stay alert and don’t have trouble managing IT, the subway + a suitcase is fine. I’ve taken the subway multiple times with a suitcase, including when I was new to the city, and I’ve never been attacked.</p>
<p>However, with more than one suitcase I would splurge on the taxi. Flat fare from JFK is $52. There’s no toll on any of the bridges a taxi driver would take from JFK into Manhattan, so with 50 cent tax it’d be $52.50. I’d figure $10 for a tip so yeah, I’d assume it’d be around $65 for the trip. It’ll be about a half hour, but he’ll also get dropped off right in front of his dorm. There will be plenty of time to explore and learn the subways after he gets settled.</p>
<p>If he really wants the subway, the easiest way to get to NYU’s dorms from JFK is to take the A or E train to West 4th St. That ride will be about an hour and a half. He’ll have to ride the AirTrain from JFK to the A or E train, so the total ride will be $7.50. All three stops in question (the end of the line on the A and E, and West 4th St) are wheelchair-accessible, so there are ramps and elevators that will make it easier to navigate with the suitcases. The walk from West 4th isn’t a long one.</p>
<p>There’s also the NYC Airporter bus service:</p>
<p>[New</a> York Airport Shuttle Bus Service | JFK | LaGuardia | Newark](<a href=“nycairporter.com”>http://www.nycairporter.com/)</p>
<p>It’s $16 from JFK to Grand Central. From there, he can take the 6 to Astor Place and then walk to his dorm.</p>
<p>Also…New York never gets dark, lol. The sun just goes down.</p>
<p>He could take a taxi from Grand Central to NYU for $10-15. You can also reserve a car service for him online. I like dial 7. It’s $45 plus tolls and tip.</p>
<p>I don’t know if my experience was typical or not, but my daughter and I took a cab from JFK to NYU for an accepted students day. The driver didn’t know where NYU was. I have him the street address (Washington Park South), he still didn’t know. Ended up directing him using the map app on my iPhone!</p>
<p>Cellopop: that’s unusual, but then I once had a cab driver try to tell me that there was no such thing as East 2nd and Bowery (where NYU’s Second Street dorm is). Fine, I said, take me to 1 East 2nd St. He cautiously dropped me off on the corner furthest from the street signs that read East 2nd and Bowery. I also live on a relatively obscure street in downtown Manhattan, and by now if a cab driver asks me to repeat my address, I tell him it’s x blocks south of a certain major thoroughfare. </p>
<p>So, if you’re worried, look at the map and figure out a few ways to explain the location - exact address, cross streets, number of blocks north/south/east/west of xth Avenue/Bowery/Canal/Houston/etc.</p>
<p>Cab it-$50 sounds right. Out of town, subway, and luggage is a bad combo.</p>
<p>Truly, truly, take a cab. Yes, it’s a bit pricey, but any other way to go is very stressful, time-consuming, and bound to be difficult. It’s just really worth the money to take a cab.</p>