Shuttle between JFK and PHL?
 

I am arriving in JFK from Frankfurt at 10:45 AM. I have a 6:30 PM flight out of PHL. For those who know these places, does this seem reasonable?

Any recommendations on the best way to shuttle between the airports. Is there some company that runs shuttles directly between JFK and PHL?

I am thinking about renting a car, however it will be on a Thursday and I am wondering if it is reasonable to try and drive myself during those hours between these airports. I don't know the area.

Any advice would be appreciated because this is the biggest uncertainty in my travel plans.

Assuming it takes you two hours to arrive, clear customs, check bags and get to the rental spot, you'd be leaving JFK at 12:45pm.

JFK-PHL should take about two hours by car. I have done it in less time (but I have a lead foot). You should be in PHL in plenty of time for your flight. You may even have a chance to see a little bit of Philly on your drive in!

In the past, I have tried to price van service and it's about $50 each way.

Best wishes for safe travels.

Itsa messy drive especially after a long overnight trip. I would take a taxi to NYC Penn Station. Buy a ticket and ride Amtrak to Phila 30 St station. Buy a $2 ticket ($1 if a senior) on the R1 line (in the rr station or on the train) to the Philly airport (they run every 20 min) or take a taxi for about $18. You can buy a combo rr ticket but it often confuses the Amtrak people.

MisterNice

Ugh,, not a really good way to get from JFK to PHL

I would largely agree with MisterNice and give 2 options

The cheaper way would be:
Take the subway train to Penn Station,
Train (Amtrak) to PHL's 30th Street Station,
then the local train (SEPTA, Route R1, located in the station) to the PHL airport.

Marginally more expensive and less trouble on your back would be:
Either taxi or express bus to Penn Station,
Train (Amtrak) to PHL's 30th Street Station,
then cab to the airport (~USD 15-20)

Gute Reise und Gute Gluck!
:)

On occassion trains from NY to points further in PA are cheaper. I have found on occassion that a NY to Lancaster train was cheaper than a NY to Philadelhpia train and would just get off in Philadelphia. I don't know if this still holds true or not, but do check it out if you have a morning flight out of PHL.

I'd go for the shuttle then rent-a-car.
 

One thing you should know is to NEVER put too much control of your travel plans in the hands of Amtrak. They are notorius for 2 hr delayed trains NYC-PHL-DC.

I'd say shell out the $50 for the shuttle JFK-PHL, if it is indeed this inexpensive as someone above noted.
Why?
The Amtrak ticket (NYC-PHL) alone is $50 (or like $44 or $47 depending on your day/time of travel).
Then you'd need to get from 30th Street station to the airport:
Taxi: $20 flat rate (set by the city tourism board) about15 minutes
or
R1 Commuter Train: $5.50 (this takes ~30+ min)

Oh!

But you'll need to spend another $10 getting from JFK to Penn Station in NYC.

I think time and cost wise it's best to take the shuttle.

I don't know if it is still true, but Avis used to waive drop off fees between NYC airports and PHL.

The drive is not a bad one, but I would strongly advise you to avoid entering Manhattan. Instead, take the Beltway Route and go through Staten Island.
Then stay in New Jersey through Camden and enter Pennsylvania right next to the airport.

You won't be in NY during the rush hour and you will be going against rush hour traffic when going to PHL. I doubt that the entire trip will take more than 2 1/2 hours, except if you stop to eat.

How many of you are there? If it's more then just you then I say rent a car or hire a service. Price wise alone it will be real close.

A car will be in the $60 to $70 range for a day's rental with the drop off at Philadelphia. The drive is about 120 miles between the two airports, and you will be after one rush hour and before the evening one.

Drive it,, either yourself or hired. If you drive, map it out in advance, and follow the advice to stay out of Manhattan.

From the JFK webpage at www.panynj.gov:

"Dave's Best Limousine
Scheduled Service to Philadelphia, PA. (including Philadelphia Int'l Airport)
1-800-255-2378 or (215) 288-1000
Fare: $45"

If this company can pick you up at JFK in time to get you to PHL for your ongoing flight, and if the fare is still in the $45 range, this certainly seems like your best bet.

Actually, the real cheapest way is to take the NJ Transit train to Trenton, and switch to the SEPTA line from Trenton.

This takes forever but it's something like $13 when it's all said and done.

Then again, after a hop over the pond, this is taxing but a good alternative for those in NYC tryin to head to the PHL area.

Thanks everyone for the info. I wasn't able to access the internet to see this thread before arriving in JFK. Lady Satori wasn't too pleased that we were arriving in JFK with no set plan. My thought was to rent a car, but I wanted to see how we felt.

We blazed through immigration and customs in less than 30 minutes after landing. Dave's Limo was the ground transportation desk recommendation. It would have cost $85 for two of us. Pretty good rates at $42.50 each.
Unfortunately Dave was full and it also would have meant driving around Manhattan picking up passengers. A 5 hour ride.

We rented from Hertz and received a Ford Escape or something like that for $71, no drop fee. Escape from New York was tough as the rode to Staten Island was bumper to bumper and it took close to an hour to cover the first 10 miles because of road construction. After that it opened up and it took us from about 12:20 pm to 4:00 to be in the PHL airport checking in for our flight.

Total cost was Car rental $71, gas $11, tolls $14. It was a bit more expensive, but much more relaxing than sitting 5 hours in a shuttle.

I dread every time I need to go into NY in general but especially to the airports. Its expensive and a royal pain in the butt. $95 for two people actually doesnt sound all that bad for two people and certainly better than driving around Manhattan for 5 hours.

I will add my 2 cents that anything on the road to/from JFK is risky. I live in central NJ near Princeton. In the early morning, with no traffic, I can make the trip in 75-80 minutes. Then I decided, for a noon flight to NRT, to allow 4 1/2 hours, "just in case". I made the flight by about 30 minutes. We spent two hours crawling thru Staten Island at 5 miles an hour, for no reason, other than volume. Then we crawled along the Beltway at 10 miles an hour. Its a good time to have some Maalox or Valium available. This trip is now to the point where it really is unpredictable. Coming from JFK, once you get out of NY and into NJ, it should be clear sailing to PHL.

For my last trip JKF-SYD, I took NJ transit to NY, then the A train to JFK for a total of about 2 hours and 15 minutes.

IMHO, the transit system is a lot more reliable than this kind of a drive.