Help planning EWR to Katz's Deli run
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 21
Help planning EWR to Katz's Deli run
I find myself going on a mileage run (for UA Gold) out of EWR on the recently discounted HNL-GUM-MNL hopper, but am based at SFO. (It seems like a crazy plan but I have a free weekend, disposable income, and am an air traffic controller who actually works Pacific oceanic traffic, so I work these flights every day.) I have 2 medium-length layovers at EWR to compensate for any unexpected delays into/out of SFO.
I would like to run out to Katz's deli during one of these layovers to compare their pastrami to my own.
First layover at EWR: UA441 supposed to arrive on Fri, 10/21 at 1:13am, departing on UA15 at 8:15am.
Second layover at EWR: UA535 supposed to arrive Sun, 10/23 at 8:29pm, departing on UA1483 at 5:45am.
My question is: which of these two layovers would be more feasible for the trek out to Katz's and back to EWR to catch my outbound flight? I know they are open 24 hours on Friday, but only until 10:30pm on Sunday. What's best (cheapest) way to get there? Would it be safe for a solo female to walk back from Katz's to Penn Station in the middle of the night?
I will only be carrying a backpack (at most) and have TSA PreCheck, if that makes a difference.
Thanks for any insight!
I would like to run out to Katz's deli during one of these layovers to compare their pastrami to my own.
First layover at EWR: UA441 supposed to arrive on Fri, 10/21 at 1:13am, departing on UA15 at 8:15am.
Second layover at EWR: UA535 supposed to arrive Sun, 10/23 at 8:29pm, departing on UA1483 at 5:45am.
My question is: which of these two layovers would be more feasible for the trek out to Katz's and back to EWR to catch my outbound flight? I know they are open 24 hours on Friday, but only until 10:30pm on Sunday. What's best (cheapest) way to get there? Would it be safe for a solo female to walk back from Katz's to Penn Station in the middle of the night?
I will only be carrying a backpack (at most) and have TSA PreCheck, if that makes a difference.
Thanks for any insight!
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,519
Neither will work, especially if you want to rely on public transportation.
Katz's closes at 2:45 am on Friday morning (Thursday night); it does not reopen till much later on Friday morning.
Katz's closes at 2:45 am on Friday morning (Thursday night); it does not reopen till much later on Friday morning.
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 21
Thanks, I forgot to account for Friday/Thursday changeover.
I see Uber is available now (though I can't seem to find the uberPOOL option, as advertised--supposedly $29 flat rate to Manhattan). Would this make it closer to possible? Will I be able to make it back to EWR then on public transportation? I'd like to spend some time walking around the city.
I see Uber is available now (though I can't seem to find the uberPOOL option, as advertised--supposedly $29 flat rate to Manhattan). Would this make it closer to possible? Will I be able to make it back to EWR then on public transportation? I'd like to spend some time walking around the city.
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,519
Thanks, I forgot to account for Friday/Thursday changeover.
I see Uber is available now (though I can't seem to find the uberPOOL option, as advertised--supposedly $29 flat rate to Manhattan). Would this make it closer to possible? Will I be able to make it back to EWR then on public transportation? I'd like to spend some time walking around the city.
I see Uber is available now (though I can't seem to find the uberPOOL option, as advertised--supposedly $29 flat rate to Manhattan). Would this make it closer to possible? Will I be able to make it back to EWR then on public transportation? I'd like to spend some time walking around the city.
I've never used Uber/Uber Pool, so I'll leave it to another FTer to comment on that option.
#6
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Location: MSY (finally); previously NYC, BOS, AUH
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#7
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: NYC
Posts: 8,497
I see Uber is available now (though I can't seem to find the uberPOOL option, as advertised--supposedly $29 flat rate to Manhattan). Would this make it closer to possible? Will I be able to make it back to EWR then on public transportation? I'd like to spend some time walking around the city.
If you really want to make it to Katz's and that fare is still in effect when you arrive, I would probably spring the extra $20 for a solo ride, as you could end up wasting a good amount of time picking up and dropping off other people with the Pool option.
Going back to EWR you can take public transportation. But be sure to check the schedules as service is pretty infrequent in the wee hours of the morning.
#8
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Mar 2001
Posts: 55,189
I would not walk alone in the middle of the night to Penn. No way. Take a taxi, uber, or lyft. If you have a metrocard, you can take the bus but the schedule might be an issue as themicah wrote above. Enjoy Katz's!!
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 21
Thanks for the replies, everyone. I think I'm going to try to go on Sunday if my flight is on time. I think I should be able to do everything I want to do before the train/bus stop running.
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
Last edited by binkata; Oct 19, 2016 at 2:34 am
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: n.y.c.
Posts: 13,988
Thanks for the replies, everyone. I think I'm going to try to go on Sunday if my flight is on time. I think I should be able to do everything I want to do before the train/bus stop running.
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
#11
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: NYC
Posts: 8,497
Everyone's comfort level is different, but there is very, very little random street crime in Manhattan these days, and the route you describe generally has people out and about even late on a Sunday night. With some urban street smarts and confidence, I'd think you'd be fine.
#12
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 1,857
Thanks for the replies, everyone. I think I'm going to try to go on Sunday if my flight is on time. I think I should be able to do everything I want to do before the train/bus stop running.
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
Is walking around Manhattan at night really that bad? I've walked alone at night in Istanbul, Bangkok, etc. I'm thinking down Houston, up Bowery to 4th to Washington Square, up to Union Square, then Park Ave (or 5th) to see the Flatiron and Empire State Bldgs. I walk fast and generally have good instincts. I know it's late, but I would guess that there's still enough nightlife to feel safe?
#13
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: NYC
Programs: Marriott Platinum Elite, National Executive, United Gold
Posts: 1,181
Here are some other ideas for late night activities outside of Katz's:
https://www.timeout.com/newyork/thin...do/24-hour-nyc
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2016
Posts: 21
Thanks to all--just returned from my trip yesterday. I ended up going to the Ironbound area of Newark on Thursday night/Friday morning and having a banana burger at Altas Horas, which is open all night. It's just under a mile along Ferry St. to Newark Penn Station, but some of the night clubs were still open and it wasn't that bad. (Every car I saw on the road ran the red lights at that hour, though, so be sure to look both ways before crossing the street!) Penn Station itself seems seedy at 3am, but most of the people hanging around just keep to themselves. There were some people waiting inside the station for the window to open, but more people were waiting outside for bus 62 to the airport. Most are airport workers, it seems.
I actually had 4 extra hours in NYC on Sunday after I was rebooked on NRT-EWR direct due to the SFO flight being delayed by 4 hours, which would make me miss my onward connection to EWR. Since this was a mileage run I was afraid of losing the miles from the layover, but, as it turns out, the rebooking by the United agent at NRT counted as a Y fare and I earned 150% towards PQM--which was more than I would have gained from my original booking. Had I known this, I might have opted for the NRT-DEN-EWR the agent offered as an alternative and be gold status before my trip to Atlanta next month. (I'm 694 miles shy right now.)
The early arrival in EWR let me see Manhattan in the daylight. I opted for uberPOOL to Katz's since I had time to kill, and it took about an hour in Sunday afternoon traffic (the driver said it was much heavier than normal). One caveat about uberPOOL: just as we were leaving EWR, Uber matched with someone else who opted to pool to Manhattan and we had to circle back around to Terminal C--only to have the guy say that he didn't want to carpool (apparently, people pick the wrong option quite often). Later on, after we had passed the first toll checkpoint on the expressway, the app tried to send the driver back to the airport to pick up another uberPOOL fare. So, that's something to consider if you're thinking about using this option in the future. The driver was cool and didn't want to pay a toll and sit in more traffic to return to this point again, so he cancelled that ride and we continued on to Katz's via the Wave-directed Staten Island-Brooklyn-Manhattan Bridge route. At least I got to take in more scenery this way.
It was dark by the time I left Katz's, but still early enough for all sorts of people to be out. I took 1st to Bowery to 4th through the Washington Square Arch to 5th Ave past the Flatiron Building and Broadway to 33rd and the Empire State Building. The walk was easy at 7pm, taking me just over an hour. After a beer at The Ginger Man on 36th with my old college roommate, I actually walked further up to Times Square and then onto the Port Authority Bus Station to catch the Newark Airport Express bus ($17 after fees) back to EWR. I think this would have been an easy walk even at midnight, at least up to Times Square. Any later than that and I would have taken a cab or Uber to Penn Station to catch a train back to the airport.
Anyhow, it was an interesting weekend! I appreciate all your replies.
I actually had 4 extra hours in NYC on Sunday after I was rebooked on NRT-EWR direct due to the SFO flight being delayed by 4 hours, which would make me miss my onward connection to EWR. Since this was a mileage run I was afraid of losing the miles from the layover, but, as it turns out, the rebooking by the United agent at NRT counted as a Y fare and I earned 150% towards PQM--which was more than I would have gained from my original booking. Had I known this, I might have opted for the NRT-DEN-EWR the agent offered as an alternative and be gold status before my trip to Atlanta next month. (I'm 694 miles shy right now.)
The early arrival in EWR let me see Manhattan in the daylight. I opted for uberPOOL to Katz's since I had time to kill, and it took about an hour in Sunday afternoon traffic (the driver said it was much heavier than normal). One caveat about uberPOOL: just as we were leaving EWR, Uber matched with someone else who opted to pool to Manhattan and we had to circle back around to Terminal C--only to have the guy say that he didn't want to carpool (apparently, people pick the wrong option quite often). Later on, after we had passed the first toll checkpoint on the expressway, the app tried to send the driver back to the airport to pick up another uberPOOL fare. So, that's something to consider if you're thinking about using this option in the future. The driver was cool and didn't want to pay a toll and sit in more traffic to return to this point again, so he cancelled that ride and we continued on to Katz's via the Wave-directed Staten Island-Brooklyn-Manhattan Bridge route. At least I got to take in more scenery this way.
It was dark by the time I left Katz's, but still early enough for all sorts of people to be out. I took 1st to Bowery to 4th through the Washington Square Arch to 5th Ave past the Flatiron Building and Broadway to 33rd and the Empire State Building. The walk was easy at 7pm, taking me just over an hour. After a beer at The Ginger Man on 36th with my old college roommate, I actually walked further up to Times Square and then onto the Port Authority Bus Station to catch the Newark Airport Express bus ($17 after fees) back to EWR. I think this would have been an easy walk even at midnight, at least up to Times Square. Any later than that and I would have taken a cab or Uber to Penn Station to catch a train back to the airport.
Anyhow, it was an interesting weekend! I appreciate all your replies.