Originally Posted by
zippy the pinhead
Avis is recruiting customers to help them deal with dropoffs? Interesting.
I appreciate all these responses. There should be a collateral benefit of some fun from this trip. Cost vs. benefit, I think we get the greatest freedom from a rental car on most days.
That said, I live in the suburbs of the LA area, and (for a variety of reasons) I go to downtown LA only when necessary, and usually in my car. But I've never visited NYC and I have to admit, it feels wrong on a certain level to go so close and then never make time to get into NYC. A friend who lived there recently suggests that it would be wiser to do anything involving a rental car outside of NYC, would that be the consensus opinion here, the Avis deal notwithstanding?
Only you can decide if you want to spend time in NYC on this trip. If you do, I would *strongly* recommend against having a car while you are in NYC.
If, while in Philly, you only plan to visit the University and the common tourist sites (Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, and the like), I don't think you will want (or need) a car. If you're only planning to spend half a day in Princeton (you probably don't need more time than that), I can maybe see doing a one-day, one-way rental from Philly, to either Manhattan or to an NJ Transit rail station, where you can catch a train into Manhattan when you are done seeing Princeton. (Avis/Budget has a location in Edison, near the "Metropark" train station which has good service into Manhattan's Penn Station.)
For West Point, just take advantage of the $9.99 deal if you can, or rent a car at the 24-hour rate if you can't.
It will be easier for us to make specific recommendations once you finalize the list of schools you wish to see, and decide whether you do or do not plan to spend a few days in NYC.