getting from CT to EWR cheaply
 

Hi, I'm familiar with how to get to LGA or JFK from Connecticut, but I'm unclear about how to do it out to EWR. Yes, I know I can take Amtrak, but the times don't work with my flights, and it's too expensive. I've looked into long term parking (i'm taking a 3 day trip) at EWR, but it's either pricey (over $60, which i had hoped not to spend) or has a bad reputation (fly2go, which is $30)... I don't understand how AirTrainNewark works (i only understand AirTrainJFK), nor NJTrainsit. I could take Metro-North to Manhattan and then take a shuttle from there, but I'm looking for my cheapest route possible round trip... bearing in mind that if I take a train from CT, I want a place to park for free if possible at the station, lol...

Can anyone help this cheapskate out?? Thank you!!

You don't menton which station in CT you are near, but in any event unless you are travelling same day r/t on a Sunday-- I think most park and ride parking lots charge. As for getting from CT to EWR. Take Metro North to Grand Central, then the S-Shuttle to Times Square (1 stop), then the #2 or 3 Downtown 1 stop to 34th St/Penn Station where if you're really looking to save money, you'll buy an off peak (assuming that's when you're travelling) r/t ($8.50) on NJ Transit NY Penn to Elizabeth. Get off at the AirTran stop (the one between Newark Penn and Elizabeth) and buy a $5.50 o/w ticket on the monorail to the airport (If you buy a NY-Airtran ticket that includes the monorail to the terminal it is $14 o/w).

So a total of $23.50 round trip + whatever your CT costs are.

hey thanks so much. i was just hoping to park for free 'coz i think some of the metro north stations are free on the weekend.

i actually live in hartford, so maybe i should take the bus to port authority and then njtransit from there...

riding in low style... lol

so whether i buy the NJtransit and airtrain tix together or separate, it's $14...

still cheaper overall, i think, than paying between 30 and 60 to park at ewr... plus tolls... plus gas...

what do you think?

my flight is 5pm friday out of newark (international)
and 3:30pm return monday.....

Not sure how CT views 'weekends'-- but in NJ if you park on a Friday mid day and leave it there thru Monday evening, you'd have to pay for Friday and Monday parking (or risk getting a ticket).
As for the Airtran / NJ Transit-- the o/w Airtran to EWR terminal is $14 which includes the ride on the monorail. But I now see you will most likely be on NJ transit 'off peak' on Friday, but Peak on Monday-- thus you will not be able to buy the full off peak NY to Elizabeth ticket (off peak fares on NJ Transit are not allowed between 4pm & 7pm), so you'd have to buy a full fare on Monday-- unless you wanted to wait in the airport until closer to 7pm.

flight gets in at 330pm... figured saying i'd leave at 5 was conservative...
maybe i should take the bus afterall...
how do i get from port authority to ewr? am i still stuck dealing with njtransit anyway then?

Take the downtown E train (subway) from 42nd/Port Authority to 34th St/Penn Station ($2 one way on subway). Take NJ Transit from Penn Station to EWR stop (stop right after Newark). $14 one way for NJ Transit. Only other option would be the bus out of Port Authority (don't know really much about) but other posters might be able to give you information.

This is incorrect. NJ Transit's off-peak roundtrip tickets are valid between 4 pm and 7 pm for inbound travel to New York, Newark, and Hoboken from more distant points. The off-peak roundtrip tickets are not valid for outbound travel during this time period. So if the OP plans to take NJ Transit to EWR, buying an off-peak roundtrip to Elizabeth would work for him, and would be the cheapest way to take NJ Transit.

However, there is an even cheaper way to go, if the OP really has more time than money: From Grand Central, take a downtown 4 or 5 express subway to Fulton Street (12 minutes), walk one block west to the PATH terminal, take a PATH train to Newark (22 minutes) for $1.50, and then take the #62 bus from Penn Station Newark to Terminal A, B, or C at EWR (20-25 minutes) for $1.25. The subways run very frequently, the PATH every ten minutes, and the #62 bus every 10-15 minutes or so (schedule here: http://www.njtransit.com/pdf/bus/T0062.pdf). And if the OP decides to take the bus from CT to Port Authority, (s)he can take a downtown E train to the last stop (Chambers Street/WTC) and get the PATH train there.

You can take the bus from the Port Authority to EWR for $14. That might be the easy way to go considering price is the same.

You can actually get the bus to EWR directly from Grand Central, rather than going to Port Authority (the bus starts at GCT, then stops at Port Authority on its way to the tunnel). That's probably the easiest way.

The absolute cheapest way, on the other hand, is to take the MNR into Grand Central, then take a couple subways to the PATH train to the NJT 62 bus.

But I'd take the bus from GCT to save the multiple transfers.

See our guide to EWR transportation at:
http://flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php...sportation_FAQ

any thoughts on long-term parking lots at EWR?
i've heard Park2Go is bad... people's cars have been severely damaged there.
does anyone know anything about Mr. B's? it seems the cheapest option after Park2Go. and what about AviStar?
again, i'm just trying to figure the cheapest way to deal with EWR...
and i'm so pissed... the airfare went down so i could have flown from BDL for the same price... but i have to pay $200 change fee to do that!! argh :mad: :mad:

I don't fly out of EWR often, but when I do I drive and park in the Long Term lots at the airport. I believe they are lots 6 and 7 and at $15 per day, I think it's a good deal. All the advice you're getting sounds fine but it also sounds like it will take you forever to get there! To me, time is money, and I'd rather drive and get there in about 90 minutes then go the routes you're getting and take 3 or 4 hours to get there.

I don't think there are any trains from Hartford to Grand Central though. Bus to Port Authority and another bus to EWR is probably the easiest way, or else OP has to drive to and park at a Metro North train station (New Haven?).

Didn't realize he was coming all the way from Hartford.

I think some people in the past have reported good experiences with ABC Airport Parking. It used to be only $7 a day, but I think it may have gone up to $10 since then. There's no tax, though, because it's over the line in Elizabeth (not Newark).

There is a chinatown bus that will get you from Hartford to NYC for $15, but the times won't work out for you, it's only an afternoon and evening thing.

Not sure what it costs to park in Waterbury, many of the metro north stations offer free parking from noon on Friday to 4 am on Mondays, but you will probably be overlapping that. For some insane reason it's $12.50 off peak each way. Bridgeport or New Haven would have way more trains and more reliable service, but even though the trains go through Bridgeport, they cost more to get there (makes me wonder if a ticket from waterbury would work in Bridgeport or not to save money)

There's a 9:17 that gets you into Grand Central at 11:40, from there you can take the bus to Newark for another $14 (or $23 round trip). The bus is like across the street from the terminal. The bus runs every 15 minutes, takes a bit less then an hour to get to the terminals.

There aren't, but there are trains from Hartford to New Haven, where connections are available to Metro North trains to GCT. The trip takes longer than Amtrak from Hartford to Penn Station, but the fare is about $20 less.