Cape Liberty New Jersey

[little britain]

We stayed at the Doubletree. Very impressed - and it had a pool.
The Portuguese area of Newark was great, good restaurants and great bottle shops for your carry on wine.  

We used Uber as it was cheaper than the hotel shuttle option to get to the port.

[reallyitsmema]

55 minutes ago, little britain said:

We stayed at the Doubletree. Very impressed - and it had a pool.
The Portuguese area of Newark was great, good restaurants and great bottle shops for your carry on wine.  

We used Uber as it was cheaper than the hotel shuttle option to get to the port.

 

Sounds like you stayed at the Doubletree that is near Penn Station.  We are talking about the Doubletree that is at the end of the airport on Frontage Road.  Only thing over there is the prison.  Definitely not shops to buy anything.

[BND]

We stay at the Doubletree Penn Station because we take Amtrak.  But, we've had friends meet us two different times who flew in and took the hotel shuttle from the airport.  To get to CL from the hotel, we have the bellman call a local car service.  We've done it at least 6 times and have really good and nice drivers every time. The local car services know the surface streets to get to the port and avoid the turnpike.  When we started staying there it was a Hilton, but changed to Doubletree a couple of years ago.  So, you don't have to stay at the airport if you want to try some good Portuguese food.

[Merion_Mom]

5 hours ago, Ashland said:

Elizabeth New Jersey...yes....I wouldn't recommend the Country Inn/Suites....try the Embassy Suites across the street or even better Residence Inn ...all of these on International Blvd. near a large indoor mall and restaurants (Red Robin closed but I believe IHOP is still open or go into the mall). Quick and cheap Uber from EWR to hotel ...hotel to cruise port and cruise port back to EWR.

 

1 hour ago, Ashland said:

It (Country Inn) was a dump...continuing renovation that has been going on for years. We were even upgraded because of status with membership...Dirty and mold in the bathroom...I will never stay there again if it had have been more than one night I would have checked out...we don't need fancy but it must be clean...Much better options across and down the street.

 

 

I agree.

[cured]

How is the Hyatt Regency on the Hudson? 

[BirdTravels]

4 hours ago, franncos said:

I would 1st wait to make sure you cruise is not cancelled before making any kind of travel arrangements. I would say your cruise has a 50/50 chance of sailing.

I would not wait. I don’t understand why anyone would.
 

Some hotel rates are cheap now. Make sure to understand the cancellation policy. Book at several properties and watch the rates periodically. 

[Wine-O]

4 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

We stayed there once too and didn't like the location or the hotel.  It catered to airline crew and couldn't care less about anyone else.

I agree, there is nothing around it in walking distance, if you so dare.  We just used it for its reasonable long-term parking at the time when we flew out of Newark.  🍷

Edited December 19, 2020 by Wine-O

[soremekun]

7 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

Our drive is just under 4 hours, so we could come morning of the cruise and have done that once, but you never know what is going to happen with traffic/accidents/weather/etc. so we drive day before for sanity sake.

I'd be willing to drive from Boston (at least once).  What are your average one way rental prices like?

[reallyitsmema]

22 minutes ago, soremekun said:

I'd be willing to drive from Boston (at least once).  What are your average one way rental prices like?

 

We drive our own car down and park at the port for the week.  We are just north of Boston and it takes just less than 4 hours to get to Elizabeth, NJ near the airport.  You can park at the Embassy for the week, they have a higher rate room that comes with parking, but we find the garage at the port to be more secure than the open lot at the Embassy.

 

The one time we drove down on a Saturday morning, it was an easy, no traffic drive.  It just makes for a long day though as we were up at 5am.  

[little britain]

9 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

Sounds like you stayed at the Doubletree that is near Penn Station.  We are talking about the Doubletree that is at the end of the airport on Frontage Road.  Only thing over there is the prison.  Definitely not shops to buy anything.

No we stayed at the Doubletree on Frontage road. We caught Uber into Newark for the Portuguese vibe.

[kidless]

Thank you all! I am feeling confident cruises will be sailing October 2021. It does seem Newark Airport is the way to go. As Hilton Diamond members I'm sure we can find something around airport! Merry Christmas All

[AF-1]

kidless;   I to am sailing Oct 2021; but on Princess out of Brooklyn.  I too am a Diamond with Hilton.  I have stayed at the Hilton Newark airport;  and the hotel is fine for one night stay.  It is a very transit hotel and does cater to flight crews;  but as a Diamond you will be treated nice.  

[nomadguy]

On 12/18/2020 at 9:17 PM, reallyitsmema said:

 

We drive our own car down and park at the port for the week. ... You can park at the Embassy for the week, they have a higher rate room that comes with parking, but we find the garage at the port to be more secure than the open lot at the Embassy....

Do you make reservations for garage parking in advance? We will be driving in from Central NJ for a cruise next June.

[reallyitsmema]

1 minute ago, nomadguy said:

Do you make reservations for garage parking in advance? We will be driving in from Central NJ for a cruise next June.

 

You do not need reservations to park at the garage at the port.  They guarantee there will be available parking.  If the garage is full, there is a parking lot directly across from the garage that they will direct you to park in.  Cape Liberty is one of the easiest ports to sail from.  Very organized with port staff everywhere directing you.

[CruzrwKidz]

Hoping to cruise in January.  Could anyone comment on whether parking at the port is in a covered garage?  Don’t want to assume anything and need to know if I need to bring a snow shovel along, lol.

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, CruzrwKidz said:

Hoping to cruise in January.  Could anyone comment on whether parking at the port is in a covered garage?  Don’t want to assume anything and need to know if I need to bring a snow shovel along, lol.

Yes, it's a covered garage, but in theory the garage could be full in which case you would have park in the nearby outside lot.

[CruzrwKidz]

Thank you!

[GTJ]

On 12/18/2020 at 9:46 AM, Wine-O said:

There's not a lot of dining options in the area.  🍷

 

It depends on which area to which you refer. Certainly true about staying near Newark's airport. But downtown Newark, at the DoubleTree across from Penn Station, there are several good dining choices, especially in adjacent Ironbound district just east of the railroad tracks. There's also a number of hotels in Jersey City, particularly along the waterfront, and there are a few good dining choices there, and even more so very close by in adjacent Hoboken (not too many hotel choices in Hoboken itself).