syrwhizzy

I'm looking for advice related to National Car Rental location, from the Delta terminal to the rental car pickup at JFK and LGA.
Executive Elite Member here
Which is the easiest/quickest experience?

For an upcoming trip, I have flight options that arrive in and out of both airports at the same times/dates on my travel dates. Both are outside of rush hour so I'm not worried about traffic. Flight fares are roughly the same. Out of these two airports what offers the quickest plane to car and return to plane experience?

Sorry if this topic is covered elsewhere, I tried to find something discussing this before I posted I've flown into both of these airports more times than I care to mention but I've never needed to rent a car.

AutoSlash

They're both roughly equivalent in terms of terminal to rental location in general. With LGA you have to take the shuttle bus, while at JFK you take the AirTrain. The intervening factor right now is that due to construction at LGA, you need to take 2 shuttle buses to get to/from the rental location:

That probably makes JFK a faster/more seamless experience in most cases right now, but I'd counter with that it depends on where you are ultimately going. JFK is not as convenient to Manhattan as LGA is, and even outside of rush hour, NYC roadways can have oppressive traffic, so it worth checking on Google Maps to take into account total travel time to your destination.

syrwhizzy

Thanks AutoSlash! Normally my business takes me westward into Manhattan and I take the train/subway or taxi/car for hire. This time I have to go eastward on Long Island. I researched my travel times to my destination and JFK/LGA at the hours I need to go to are about the same. It sounds like I should do JFK for a more seamless experience right now, but it's good that they are both about the same absent major construction.

AutoSlash

If you're going to the South Shore of Long Island, JFK is a no-brainer. If you're heading to the North Shore or mid-Island, it's more of a toss-up, but either way, given the LGA construction right now, I'd opt for JFK other things being equal.

syrwhizzy

North Shore/Mid Island, which is why I was evaluating the two.

I'm looking at an 8:30pm arrival on a Monday and an 8:45pm departure on a Tuesday so I'm not expecting major traffic from/to either airport at those hours.

Thanks for the tip! I really appreciate it.

Auto Enthusiast

I figured the Manhattan advice wasn't relevant If people are renting a car, they're almost always going to the suburbs, outside cost effective Uber range.

syrwhizzy

I thought I would share my experience. I ended up having to book LGA on my flights due to pricing. So my inbound was LGA. I was able to switch my outbound to JFK, so I got to experience both, LGA Monday evening around 9pm and JFK Tuesday afternoon at 3pm. In my case the travel time to my location on Long Island, traffic to and from either airports at those hours was not an issue and essentially equal.

JFK was a much easier experience.

The dual shuttle situation at LGA is not recommended. Not only is it inconvenient to take two shuttles, but the signage when being dropped off on the red bus line from Delta Terminal 2 was outdated and inaccurate. I got off the red bus line and proceeded to the common green rental car shuttle bus shelter which was clearly marked for Avis, Hertz, and National. I sat outside in the cold for about a half hour, saw 5 Hertz buses stop by and 4 Avis. Never a National bus. I called the listed number for LGA's National Car Rental location and it offered no greater detail, nor did the website, nor the email 24 hours before the rental... So I called National and they were working on getting someone at LGA on the line for me. Meanwhile, one of the Hertz drivers was nice enough to get out of her bus and noticed I had been there for awhile, she asked me where I was going, and I said National, and she re-directed me to the new location. She was very nice and I really appreciated that! I did not appreciate standing in an unheated bus shelter for a half hour on a cold, windy night, 28 degrees F with a 20 mph wind... a 15 degree wind chill. Sure I know better for the future / next time -- but for a frequent traveler such as myself I shouldn't have struggled with that. I can't believe they have a sign that says National pickup at a bus shuttle and don't have a bus running by that. They really need to update the signage. And for crying out loud, that bus shelter is painted National green!

JFK the Airtrain was fantastic.

Maybe LGA will be better once the construction is done, but if you're looking for the easiest out of the two right now, JFK is the best option in my opinion.

m907

I'm reviving this thread to ask how the rental car shuttle works at LGA in 2022. Can anyone report?

wal5036

I'm a Manhattanite that doesn't own a car, and I have EE status through work, so I rent cars pretty frequently in NYC. What I can say, without even a moment's hesitation, is that the LGA location is the worst option of the three in terms of customer service and vehicle selection. They are rigid. Status doesn't matter. As an example, one time I got a premium elite SUV reservation (BMW X3 or similar), and they tried to give me an Audi Q3, absolutely refusing to let me take a Q5 because in their mind, the number "3" equated them. They tried to tell me the Q5 was more comparable to the X5, and they refused to budge on it, despite my status. Another time, I picked up a BMW 2 series from EWR with a basic full-size reservation, it got a flat tire, had to return at LGA to swap cars. Despite the lot being literally overflowing, they only allowed me to take a Hyundai Kona EV that was only 40% charged. Was late for a wedding so couldn't fight too hard on it. They wouldn't even let me just take a car from the executive lot. Their attitude was "it's either the Kona EV, or you can uber home".

The EWR location, by contrast, has been nothing but great. If you're EE, you can feel free to just reserve a full-size for the executive lot, and then ask the attendant for an array of luxury cars right by the front. I've gotten RR Velars, Audi Q7's, BMW 5 series, Alfa Romeos, Lexus RX350s, etc etc, with just the basic full-size rental.

The downside, of course, is that if you're coming or going to Manhattan, EWR and JFK are much more out-of-the-way. It's absolutely possible to be stuck in 1-3 hours of traffic coming or going to/from JFK, and traffic to/from EWR can absolutely be over an hour long, depending on time of day and time of year.

Moral of the story: if all you care about is proximity and ease of getting to and from Manhattan, unfortunately, LGA is the location for you. If you care about customer service and vehicle selection, avoid it like the plague, and go to EWR instead.

AutoSlash

Have you ever looked at Kyte? You're certainly not going to get the kinds of luxury cars you've experienced as a National EE at EWR (they only have basic sedans and SUVs), but you're also not going to be sitting in 1-3 hours of traffic, not to mention the cost of trudging out to the airport to pick up your rental.

In short, Kyte will deliver the vehicle directly to you and pick it up at the end of the rental. You really can't beat the convenience.

I (AutoSlash's CEO) use Kyte very frequently in NYC and I've been pretty happy with their service. We've got some coupons for them here if you decide to give them a try.

guv1976

Do you ever rent from National's Manhattan locations? I expect that the choice of vehicles would be much more limited, but at least you'd avoid the schlep out to an airport. Or do you ever do one-way rentals from an airport location to a Manhattan location? Depending on your available discount codes, you might not pay any more by renting at an airport and returning to Manhattan.

OT, but what do you do for third-party-liability insurance? Do you have a personal, non-owner liability policy? (Mine is from Travelers Insurance.)

NBNY424

Renting in Manhattan = you get whatever the attendant has to give you. I've found National staff very friendly, but space is limited and theres only so much they can do. Very little choice.
(Avis and Hertz are much worse in this regard). But i would put in a plug for Newark Airport just because its so easy to get there via train/AirTrain, straight to the front door of the rental facilities.

wal5036

I only rent from the Manhattan locations if redeeming a free rental day. The price difference can be massive... with my corporate rate, it can cost $65 per day for a LCAR at EWR, or it can cost $285 for a FCAR at Broadway & Astor. Worth the train ride out to EWR considering you also get nicer cars.

guv1976

Have you priced one-way rentals from EWR to Manhattan with your corporate discount?

Auto Enthusiast

Keep in mind that you will have to pay tolls to do that. Once congestion pricing starts, it probably won't be worthwhile to return to the city. I predict the opposite will become more common- the convenience of picking up in the city, but returning somewhere else, with mass transit to get home.