NYC cruise terminal debarkation to Amtrak - how long?

[erdoran]

I've only sailed to NYC once, and that was in 2011.  I remember having to wait quite a while for a taxi.  My next cruise departs/arrives NYC.  Arrival time showed 0700.  I'm traveling there/back by Amtrak, but not sure how long to allow from getting off the ship to Penn Station, given the taxi wait.  Any advice?  Thanks in advance.

[138east]

20 minutes ago, erdoran said:

I've only sailed to NYC once, and that was in 2011.  I remember having to wait quite a while for a taxi.  My next cruise departs/arrives NYC.  Arrival time showed 0700.  I'm traveling there/back by Amtrak, but not sure how long to allow from getting off the ship to Penn Station, given the taxi wait.  Any advice?  Thanks in advance.

What time is the train you are considering?  Exact date?  Uber and Lyft are other options since 2011.

 

In another post you mentioned a flash sale this weekend.  What’s the deal with that?  I’m sailing in Jan and coming from Boston.

Edited September 6, 2019 by 138east

[idraconis]

Have taken Taxis plenty of times down to Penn Station. Never experienced a long wait for a taxi, at most 10 min. Once in the taxi it's 10-15 min to Penn.  If your can disembark the ship between 8:00 and 9:00 I would book a 10:30 train. No earlier than 10: Good luck.

[navybankerteacher]

Manhattan Cruise terminal is sort of chaotic when it comes to ground transportation . You have to get across the avenue to get a taxi - and depending upon how aggressive you are and how pushy others are, you might be in a taxi in two minutes or it could take another half an hour. You add that to the possible delays in getting off the ship- making any train before 11:00 knind of chancy.   If you are off the ship before 8:00, you might be at Penn Station by 8:30 - but you might not get off until 9:30 , and then have trouble getting a cab - which than gets hung up in traffic-. 

 

If it were me, I’d book a train about noon.

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, erdoran said:

I've only sailed to NYC once, and that was in 2011.  I remember having to wait quite a while for a taxi.  My next cruise departs/arrives NYC.  Arrival time showed 0700.  I'm traveling there/back by Amtrak, but not sure how long to allow from getting off the ship to Penn Station, given the taxi wait.  Any advice?  Thanks in advance.

 

A couple of weekends ago I got off Insignia at 8:30 on a Sunday. Small ship so thru customs fast. Ordered a Lyft which picked me up at 8:50. Took 11 minutes to get to Penn Station. So got to Penn at 9:01. Took  train 143 to DC that left at 9:47.  

[Charles4515]

9 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

Manhattan Cruise terminal is sort of chaotic when it comes to ground transportation . You have to get across the avenue to get a taxi - and depending upon how aggressive you are and how pushy others are, you might be in a taxi in two minutes or it could take another half an hour. You add that to the possible delays in getting off the ship- making any train before 11:00 knind of chancy.   If you are off the ship before 8:00, you might be at Penn Station by 8:30 - but you might not get off until 9:30 , and then have trouble getting a cab - which than gets hung up in traffic-. 

 

If it were me, I’d book a train about noon.

 

Lyft picked me up right outside the Pier 92 terminal exit. Off the ship at 8:30. No need to cross the street. Caught a 9:47 train. I am not saying book a train that early. I did not make an advance reservation as I don’t need to. So they might be safer with something a little later. I think after 10 would be safe. 

Edited September 6, 2019 by Charles4515

[Charles4515]

21 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

Manhattan Cruise terminal is sort of chaotic when it comes to ground transportation . You have to get across the avenue to get a taxi - 

 

When I exited the terminal to get a Lyft we went up to the second level and booked when we got up there. There were taxis there too. I believe I would not have had to cross the street to get a taxi if I had decided to do that instead of Lyft or Uber. 

[Noxequifans]

We disembarked recently on a Sunday. We were pleased to be able to get a taxi on the second floor right outside the terminal. In the past we had to cross the street to the taxi stand. I suspect that because it was a Sunday there was a taxis lined up outside.  

[erdoran]

3 hours ago, 138east said:

What time is the train you are considering?  Exact date?  Uber and Lyft are other options since 2011.

 

In another post you mentioned a flash sale this weekend.  What’s the deal with that?  I’m sailing in Jan and coming from Boston.

Amtrak is having a weekend 35% off sale for “grandparents day” - go on their site for T&C, you have to buy your ticket this weekend and travel thru I think the end of January.  Someone on slickdeals had said they didn’t see the discount for their trip, but if you know what the price should be, you will see pretty easily if it is legit.

 

Train would be January 19, 2020.  We dock 0700 and I’m trying to decide what train to book home.  I’m hearing suggestions anyway from 10 am - noon here.

[Charles4515]

15 minutes ago, erdoran said:

Amtrak is having a weekend 35% off sale for “grandparents day” - go on their site for T&C, you have to buy your ticket this weekend and travel thru I think the end of January.  Someone on slickdeals had said they didn’t see the discount for their trip, but if you know what the price should be, you will see pretty easily if it is legit.

 

Train would be January 19, 2020.  We dock 0700 and I’m trying to decide what train to book home.  I’m hearing suggestions anyway from 10 am - noon here.

 

Here are the details. 

 

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/amtrak-offers-35-discount-in-honor-of-grandparents-day-300912855.html

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, Noxequifans said:

We disembarked recently on a Sunday. We were pleased to be able to get a taxi on the second floor right outside the terminal. In the past we had to cross the street to the taxi stand. I suspect that because it was a Sunday there was a taxis lined up outside.  

I guess they have figured it out  - my experience was in October 2017, and there was complete chaos in exiting the terminal and crossing the avenue was the only option.

[erdoran]

I can't tell if I am even getting the discount applied.  Has anyone booked this and seen the discount mentioned?  I'm getting $78 RT between Wilmington DE and NYP, which I suspect is full fare.

[princeton123211]

We were off this past Sunday from Insignia-- we disembarked at 8:20 and were in an Uber with our luggage by 8:40 and at Penn Station by 9am. I had originally booked a 10:52am train to Philadelphia to be safe but we quickly rebooked onto the 9:47 Northeast Regional and were home an hour earlier than anticipated. Even for our small ship, though, the line for a traditional taxi was long and at that time in the morning there weren't enough-- they would come up sporadically. Best option to get out of there quickly is Uber/Lyft. 

 

What I did see happening on the much larger NCL Escape next to us was a massive queue across the 12th Ave from the terminal for traditional taxis. From what I could tell those passengers were not allowed to disembark on the upper level of the terminal as we were but were sent to the ground level and then across the street by foot. Not sure if you could order an Uber from the terminal down there but would assume you could. 

 

I would say, no matter what sort of ship size you are on, any train after 10am would work and you could always rebook via Amtrak's app quickly like we did to an earlier train (it cost us $6 extra per person). 

[markeb]

6 hours ago, erdoran said:

I can't tell if I am even getting the discount applied.  Has anyone booked this and seen the discount mentioned?  I'm getting $78 RT between Wilmington DE and NYP, which I suspect is full fare.

 

Yes. $224 each from WAS to NYP on Acela. Should be about $272.   Your normal saver is showing $108 (checked a random date next May). $78 looks to be the promo. 

 

The discount just just shows up. No regular fare/savings indicated. 

Edited September 7, 2019 by markeb

[138east]

19 hours ago, erdoran said:

Amtrak is having a weekend 35% off sale for “grandparents day” - go on their site for T&C, you have to buy your ticket this weekend and travel thru I think the end of January.  Someone on slickdeals had said they didn’t see the discount for their trip, but if you know what the price should be, you will see pretty easily if it is legit.

 

Train would be January 19, 2020.  We dock 0700 and I’m trying to decide what train to book home.  I’m hearing suggestions anyway from 10 am - noon here.

Another question would be if you’re buying trip insurance that covers travel delays?  If so, I’d plan to get yourselves off the ship as quickly as possible (even self disembarkation) and gamble on the 10 am timeframe.  Several years ago I arrived back at Cape Liberty in a blizzard.  My Amtrak train was cancelled but I was able to rebook on a later train. However, the blizzard was headed for Boston and I knew it would be difficult and dangerous to get out to my home, so I hotwired a room near the Back Bay Station.  My travel insurance ended up covering almost everything.

 

[erdoran]

Thanks for the tips.  I should have thought to check a different date!  We read the fare conditions carefully and we can reschedule free, so we went the conservative route and booked the 11:00; figure if we get to Penn early, which we no doubt will, we’ll grab an earlier train.  Worst case is if nothing available, we’ll hang out.  Thought about booking 9:47 but realized we’re better off allowing too much time and moving train back then last minute realizing we’re running late and risking nothing else being available at a reasonable time - or missing the train entirely.

 

 

[princeton123211]

3 hours ago, erdoran said:

We read the fare conditions carefully and we can reschedule free, so we went the conservative route and booked the 11:00; figure if we get to Penn early, which we no doubt will, we’ll grab an earlier train.

Just make sure you download the Amtrak app to your phone-- by far the easiest way to quickly switch trains and get updated tickets. You'll most likely be able to hit the earlier 9:47 but we did the exact same thing to give us more time and booked the one just before 11. There will be a minor charge for difference in fare-- ours was $12. 

[erdoran]

Thanks again for all the advice.  CC is the best!