Getting There

By Plane

Three major airports serve New York City: John F. Kennedy International Airport (tel. 718/244-4444) in Queens, about 15 miles (1 hr. driving time) from midtown Manhattan; LaGuardia Airport (tel. 718/533-3400), also in Queens, about 8 miles (30 min.) from Midtown; and Newark-Liberty International Airport (tel. 973/961-6000) in nearby New Jersey, about 16 miles (45 min.) from Midtown. Information about all three airports is available online at www.panynj.gov; click on the "All Airports" tab on the left.

Even though LaGuardia is the closest airport to Manhattan, it has a bad reputation for delays and terminal chaos, in both ticket-desk lines and baggage claim. You may want to use JFK or Newark instead. (JFK has the best reputation for timeliness, such as it is, among New York-area airports.)

Almost every major domestic carrier serves at least one of the New York-area airports; most serve two or all three. The big news in early 2009 was that low-cost carrier Southwest was going to start flying to LaGuardia, as well as its hub of MacArthur Airport in Islip (some 50 miles outside of Manhattan).

Choosing Your NYC-Area Airport -- It's more convenient to fly into Newark than JFK if your destination is Manhattan, and fares to Newark are often cheaper than those to the other airports. Newark is particularly convenient if your hotel is in Midtown west or downtown. Taxi fare into Manhattan from Newark is roughly equivalent to the fare from JFK -- both now have AirTrains in place, but the AirTrain to Newark from Manhattan is quicker.

If You're Flying into MacArthur Airport on Long Island -- Southwest Airlines is one of several carriers flying into New York via Long Island's MacArthur Airport, 50 miles east of Manhattan. (The others are Delta, Spirit, Northwest, and US Airways). If you're on one of these flights (because the price was sooooo low), here are your options for getting into the city:

Colonial Transportation (tel. 631/589-3500; www.colonialtransportation.com), Classic Transportation (tel. 631/567-5100; www.classictrans.com), and Legends (tel. 888/LEGENDS or 888/888-8884; www.legendslimousine.com) will pick you up at Islip Airport and deliver you to Manhattan via private sedan, but expect to pay about $125 plus tolls and tip for door-to-door service (which kind of defeats the purpose of flying a budget airline). Be sure to arrange for it at least 24 hours in advance.

For a fraction of the cost, you can catch a ride aboard a Hampton Jitney coach (tel. 631/283-4600; www.hamptonjitney.com) to various drop-off points on Midtown's east side. The cost is $29 per person, plus a minimal taxi fare from the terminal to the Hampton Jitney stop. Hampton Jitney can explain the details and arrange for taxi transport. Note: The stop is referred to as Islip Airport on the Hampton Jitney schedule. It's the same place.

Last year, the MTA began to offer a discount ticket package from Penn Station to MacArthur (including a shuttle ride to the airport from the station) for $14 ($11 for seniors). If you're already on the island, the fare is lower. For more information, call tel. 718/217-LIRR, or visit www.mta.nyc.ny.us/lirr.

For additional options and the latest information, call tel. 631/467-3210, or visit www.macarthurairport.com.

By Car

From the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95) and points west, there are three Hudson River crossings to the city's West Side: the Holland Tunnel (lower Manhattan), the Lincoln Tunnel (Midtown), and the George Washington Bridge (upper Manhattan). From upstate New York, take the New York State Thruway (I-87), which crosses the Hudson River on the Tappan Zee Bridge and becomes the Major Deegan Expressway (I-87) through the Bronx. For the East Side, continue to the Triborough Bridge and then down the FDR Drive. For the West Side, take the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95) to the Henry Hudson Parkway or the Taconic State Parkway to the Saw Mill River Parkway to the Henry Hudson Parkway south.

From New England, the New England Thruway (I-95) connects with the Bruckner Expressway (I-278), which leads to the Triborough Bridge and the FDR Drive on the East Side. For the West Side, take the Bruckner to the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95) to the Henry Hudson Parkway south.

Note that you'll have to pay tolls along some of these roads and at most crossings. If your state has an E-ZPass program (www.ezpass.com), as most states in the Northeast do, your pass will allow you to go through the designated E-ZPass lanes.

Once you arrive in Manhattan, park your car in a garage (expect to pay $20-$45 per day) and leave it there. Don't use your car for traveling within the city. Public transportation, taxis, and walking will easily get you where you want to go without the headaches of parking, gridlock, and dodging crazy cabbies.

By Train

Amtrak (tel. 800/USA-RAIL; www.amtrak.com) runs frequent service to New York City's Penn Station, on Seventh Avenue between 31st and 33rd streets, where you can get a taxi, subway, or bus to your hotel. To get the best rates, book early (as much as 6 months in advance) and travel on weekends.

If you're traveling to New York from a city along Amtrak's Northeast Corridor -- such as Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Washington, D.C. -- Amtrak may be your best travel bet now that they've rolled out their new high-speed Acela trains. The Acela Express trains cut travel time from D.C. down to 2 1/2 hours, and travel time from Boston to a lightning-quick 3 hours.

By Bus

Thanks to the so-called Chinatown shuttles, busing to and from New York City from major East Coast cites has become the single most cost-effective way to get into town. These bus services, originally created by Chinese-Americans as a means of getting between New York City and the cities of Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., are open to everyone and offer rock-bottom prices. From Philadelphia, the average ride is just $12; for the other two cities you won't pay more than $20, but there are times when specials reduce the fares to just $1. There are now nearly a dozen smaller bus companies operating along these routes, and fare information plus bookings can be made on one well-designed agency site called Busjunction (www.BusJunction.com).

You will probably wait for the bus to pick you up, or depart from a street corner, rather than a bus station, which some people might count as a bonus if you're not fond of bus stations.

If you'd prefer to contact one of the cushier, non-Chinatown companies (their prices match those of the Chinatown buses, but their buses are newer, often offer Wi-Fi, and their drivers are more likely to speak English) look at:

• Megabus (tel. 877/G2MEGA; www.megabus.com)
• Boltbus (no phone; www.boltbus.com)
• Vamoose (tel. 877/393-2828; www.vamoose.com)
• DC2NY (tel. 202/332-2691; www.dc2ny.com)