<p>How difficult/easy is it to get to campus from the New York area? Anyone have the best method of arriving in Charlottesville from here? A few of the options I know of are flying directly to Charlottesville (costly and not many flights) or flying to Richmond and taking a bus. HELP PLEASE!</p>
<p>I only drive my son in August and May, when he has tons of stuff to transport. Other times he takes Amtrak, which is very convenient and reasonably priced, and a comfortable way to travel. He likes the free wireless and the electric outlets for his laptop, etc. You also save time vs. having to go through airport security, etc. You only have to arrive 15 minutes before the train leaves. The only problem has been when he takes the Amtrak-sponsored bus from Cville to pick up the train in DC. The bus is always very late, but there usually is a later Amtrak train waiting for him to take. </p>
<p>If you drive, you might look at the alternative of going west on I-78 to I-81 to I-64. It may be extra miles, but it avoids lots of congestion, and saves about $25 in tolls.</p>
<p>There’s an Amtrak train that goes straight through from Cville to NYC. I think it goes all the way to Boston.</p>
<p>There’s also a bus that goes from ny to cville, it’s been posted about on here before.</p>
<p>thanks for the help! does anyone know how long the train ride is?</p>
<p>See the Amtrak timetable: [Amtrak</a> - Reservations - Fare Finder](<a href=“Amtrak”>Amtrak)</p>
<p>Looks like it varies between 6 and 7 hours from NYC Penn Station to C’ville. Note there is a lengthy layover in DC because they have to change engines. The Amtrak NE corridor system is electric, but it is diesel south of Washington, DC. </p>
<p>Congratulations on choosing UVa.</p>
<p>I use Amtrak to get between cville and Philly – it’s about 5 hours. NYC is probably an hour or two further. You have wifi and plugs, so you don’t really notice the length of the ride, and it’s a really comfortable way to travel. Easy to get to the station from Grounds, too!</p>