Until OP comes back to clarify schedule and requirements, all we can do is what New Yorkers typically do when giving advice to out of towners... debate opinions
BTW thanks to this thread I now know the TWA Hotel is finally opening, so will be booking it for my next 8am DL flight rather than follow my own advice of staying in Manhattan the night before.
Originally Posted by
remyontheroad
All this makes we wonder if there aren't cooler hotels other places than Manhattan that might be fun to spend a night - maybe cheaper and a quick car to the airport.
Some hipster place in Rockaway, or a chain hotel in Jackson Heights or Coney Island?
Could be interesting...
More for flying out on DL out of LGA, but LIC actually has quite a few new properties now, mostly chains but some independents.
Originally Posted by
davetravels
It also helps that I speak decent Spanish.
Depends which part of Queens.
Originally Posted by
ATOBTTR
I have to agree. Last year I went to NYC twice, stayed in Manhattan once and stayed right by JFK once. When I stayed in Manhattan, we arrived at JFK at 10 pm on a Friday evening and got in the cab around 1030 PM. It still took well over an hour to get to our hotel in Central Manhattan. Traffic coming out of JFK was awful and Manhattan was bumper to bumper traffic. Getting back to JFK on Sunday morning was slightly better but still heavy traffic in Manhattan and heavy traffic around JFK.
OP was describing an early morning departure, when traffic outbound to the airports is generally clear. Specifics from the OP would help, though. Inbound traffic on a Friday evening can be terrible (at least certain times of year).
Originally Posted by
jdrtravel
The Manhattan suggestion was to take the train from Penn station.
My suggestion was to pick a hotel optimized for the desired mode of travel. If transit, stay near Penn Station (where there are a bunch of new properties within about a 2 minute walk). If car, stay close to the tunnel or bridge. Going crosstown is a real time sink, even at 5am. (The lights are synchronized for N/S, not E/W.)