Puddle-jumper or car?
 

I am scheduled to give client presentations in Binghamton NY on 9/5 and in Stratham NH on 9/6-9/7.

So I can fly LGA-PHL-BGM on Monday night, BGM-PHL-BOS Tuesday night, BOS-LGA Thursday night. (Stratham is an hour from BOS.)

Or I can drive - 4 hours to NYC-BGM, 6 hours BGM-Stratham, 5 hours Stratham-NYC.

In the old days, I most likely would considered flying to be less stressful than driving. Now, I'll probably drive. (Even though I'll be driving 4 hours the day before this trip, too).

Just out of curiosity - what would you do?

If they were all direct flights, I'd say fly. But with two connections at PHL?

So... how are you on requalifications this year? :D

That's what I was thinking too: if you have to attain status, why not. Connections are a pain, but so too can driving. If it were up to me, I'd fly!

Sadly, the only carrier into BGM is US - I haven't flown them since about 1990, and hence have no real possibility of getting status any time soon...

Given that scenario, I would drive

My best guess is the flights are in RJ's so thatsa another reason I would drive. Also PHL has one of the worst ontime records in the US.

MisterNice

I think I would at least consider renting a car one way from NYC to SYR. Then you could drive yourself to BGM on Monday, and after your presentation drive from BGM to SYR (about a 90-minute drive). From SYR, there are a few nonstops to BOS. (In the good old days, of course, there were nonstops between BGM and both LGA and BOS.)

DL flies there 2x per day from ATL, and NW has 2 per day from DTW, but no logical connections from the NYC area.

May as well fly JetBlue JFK-SYR and get good service at a reasonable fare.

Except that flying from NYC-SYR to get to BGM does not really save any time, or that much driving. Depending on traffic, the drive from Manhattan to BGM can take as little as 3 hours, going through NJ and PA.

How can you even post such a question on FT, isn't it all about the miles and/or segments? :D

Well, this is TravelBuzz!, not MileageBuzz! :) Otherwise I would say you have a valid point.

If I were in the OP's shoes, I'd drive. Four flights on tiny planes, and two PHL connections, in two days, sounds like a recipe for insanity to me.

Thanks all.

I came to the same answer as everyone else: drive.

Except now I'm not going to BGM (my partner is), so looks like I may fly from EWR (since I *do* need some segments on CO).

so this is now academic- but you can also take UA from the NYC airports to IAD and connect to a non-stop UA flite IAD/BGM (okay so its a Saab 340)

travel time is longer than driving but it beats PHL connections

and to compensate for the lack of a jet, you'll find the one-way fare less than on US via PHL