Stripe

You didn't think to ask the price before getting in the car?

Kacee

Especially if you already know what the flat rate is for a taxi.

skimthetrees

I had a better experience 2 years ago when I stayed there. When I left and asked for a taxi the doorman offered me a ride in a black SUV for a little more. He told me up front what the rate was and asked me if it was OK and it was for me so I said yes. The price difference at the time was very minimal over a taxi and it was disclosed by the doorman. There were no taxis waiting at the stand at the time. If they do it with full disclosure like they did with me I actually welcome the choice. I had a nice comfortable ride to the airport. Doing it without disclosure is wrong and should be brought to the attention of the hotel.

ilcannone

My memory is a little hazy but I'm fairly sure there are some subway stations with dedicated bus links to LGA...anyone who deems that a reason to not use public transport is -complete the sentence with your own adjective yourself-

arlflyer

Completing the sentence - "logical thinker". Those "dedicated bus links" (not sure what you mean by dedicated, they stop in more than two places) add massive amounts of variability and, even in the best case, significant time to the journey. Not the kind of risk a business traveler should be taking to save a few bucks.

xooz

The Q70SBS Bus Service from Jackson Heights/Roosevelt Station on 7,E,F,R and M lines. is exactly that. Nonstop between LGA and subway lines. For $2.75, not a bad way to get to/from Manhattan. Agree I might choose taxi/Uber if on business or if traveling with a lot of baggage, but for personal travel and depending where I am going in Manhattan I confess to spending the extra time and pocketing the $35.

As for the OP's questions, I am with the others who would not sit down in a black car with no meter and not at least ask what the fare will be before taking off.

ilcannone

I travel by public transport all the time for my business trips, yet to have an issue, and that's even with Moscow's godawful traffic. So I would say there is a little bit of snobbery in your response there. It's not 'logical thinking' to completely dismiss alternatives to taxis, especially in places with well-developed infrastructure like NYC.

Kacee

lol, I take public transit from the airport in cities where it's a reasonable option. Tried once from JFK, never again. EWR it's tolerable if you're staying within walking distance of Penn Station, otherwise no thanks.

RoyalFlush

Advice:

NEVER, ever, ever get in a vehicle for hire without pre-negotiation ahead of time the trip's cost. Don't even touch the door handle.

ask, before getting in, "what are the drop fees, tolls, tips/gratuity, trip surcharges, ALL IN" and, importantly, "WILL YOU ACCEPT A CREDIT CARD"

Negotiate ahead of time, get an exact, precise cost.

That's it.

xooz

Definitely agree its not for everyone. Have done numerous routes from EWR, even the cheapo route (Bus #62 to Newark Penn Station to PATH train). JFK, while not hard to do, is mind numbing. I only do JFK via subway if I am by myself. If traveling with anyone else, I am good to pay for Lyft. From the Hilton Midtown to LGA though... no brainer to take E train to Q70.

hbtr

Concerto

Without quoting a number of posts, aren't the hotels scamming everybody every way they can anyway? Don't even get me started on resort fees, the new equivalent of bogus airline award "taxes". Good advice from RoyalFlush above.

I am one of these, I almost never take taxis and if were to take one I would make my own arrangements, not go through the hotel. I tend towards using public transit and while the subway is not hugely comfortable in New York, I find it ok. But I can understand those that want a taxi, if you have even a minimum of baggage the subway is not a lot of fun. And I know my mother in her latter years would have preferred a taxi.

Remember, in New York you have to be streetwise. It's the Big Apple, baby!

jburns513

arlflyer

Yeah dude, it isnt a secret, I have spent plenty of time crawling through Queens on that thing. At LGA you wait for the thing forever, and then it is mobbed as a million people try to chaotically push on. My main takeaways every time are that 1) I am never taking that bus again, and 2) I really need to get out and eat some South Asian food in that area, because there are so many awesome looking places. But business, personal, whatever, these days the cost savings are just not worth it to me, and I doubt to OP either.

Speaking to the greater discussion, of course, in most cities I use public transport to go to and from the airport. I was not being a snob, just realistic about the situation of the OP. London, Tokyo, Moscow, wherever, they're all great. Just not NYC.

halls120