new york city navigation advice!

[mvalento]

i was wondering if any new york natives or anyone who is familiar with NY city could tell me the best way to get from la guardia to NYU school of medicine- i'll be interviewing there in 2 weeks and am not sure what the fastest (or cheapest!) method of public transportation would be. i don't mind walking if a bus/subway drops me off somewhere in a half hour radius, i'll have plenty of time. thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[omores]

Hi there. I've been in and out of La Guardia many times, so I'm quite familiar with transportation options:

$1.50 gets you a ride on the M60 bus, which makes a loop through La Guardia and then heads into Queens and Manhattan, making stops near many subway lines on its way. I think you have to pay another $1.50 to get on the subway unless you buy a Metrocard -- not sure if they sell those at the airport. The closest subway to NYU medical center is probably 33rd street station (at Lexington Avenue) on the 4/5/6 line (watch out -- only the 6 train makes that stop -- the others are express.) From there, NYU medical center is less then a ten minute walk. Here's the website of the MTA (New York's transit system), which has plenty of information and maps: http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/
The bus/subway combo is your cheapest option, but it involves climbing up and down several flights of stairs, which can be annoying if you have heavy or awkward baggage. Last time I travelled by subway from LGA, it took me about 45 minutes to get downtown.

$10 gets you a ride on New York Airport Service's minibus, which travels to Grand Central Station and then on to Port Authority. The ride from the airport is usually about half an hour. Get off at Grand Central (42nd and Lexington) -- from there, you should be able to walk to NYU medical center in twenty minutes.

$13-ish gets you on a shared-ride shuttle operated by one of two companies. This would take you to NYU med's door, but you might be making other stops first, depending on what route the driver follows and how many other passengers there are.

Taxis are around $30.

To get to any of these vehicles, follow signs for Ground Transportation when you get off the plane.

Safe trip, and have fun in New York!

 

[mvalento]

hey, thanks for the advice! a lot better than the info. NYU sent me! anyway- much appreciated-

bud

 

[gower]

The information given is accurate.
However, LaGuardia is an overcrowded airport.
If you are planning to fly in on the morning of your interview, DON'T. There is no assurance your flight will land on time. And on that morning you don't want to save money by going the long way around. If you must, take a taxi, but it will be slow going once you are in Manhattan.
If you are planning to fly in on the evening before your interview don't use public transportation to get to wherever you are staying. Take a taxi.

With all you have already invested in getting to this stage, it makes no sense now to start saving a few bucks here and there. This is make or break time.

If it is not too late to change plans, I (always) suggest arriving the morning of the day BEFORE the interview. Check in wherever you will be staying, wash up, and find your way to NYU. Find the admissions office, let them know you are there a day early, ask to locate med students whose brains you can pick. Ask all kinds of questions about NYU: what to expect of the interview, what they think of the school, where they live, actual costs, what they do for fun/relaxation, everything you might want to know to prepare for the interview, AND to be able to make a decision, if you have more than one acceptance, which you will choose. Ask someone for a quick tour even though you will get an offical tour next day.
Get a good night's rest. Leave a wake up call for a time early enough to get ready. When you head for the interview you know exactly how to get there, which entrance to use, where to head for once inside, you are prepped for the interview and you won't be late. Your anxiety level should be way down from what it would be if you had arrived cold that morning. And if later you have choices of which school to attend, you have all the information you might need to make a decision.
Good luck.

 

[mvalento]

gower- thanks for your advice- just a question- why do you recommend avoiding public transportation? i am arriving the evening before the interview, and i thought if any city has halfway reliable public transportation, it's NYC. of course, i've never been there...anyway, i like to avoid taxis because of the cost, i realize what you are saying about not bothering with saving a few bucks at this point but i have been discouraged in past interviews by taxis (e.g. spent nearly $70 on them at duke), and this is tough for a poor college student who survives on money he earned over christmas break because he spent all the rest on application fees and interviews! i'm sure many know how that goes...but your input is nevertheless appreciated. i think i will do the student host program with NYU if they offer it, any mail from them is waiting for me back at school. as far as the whole interview routine is concerned, i'm pretty familiar with it now and how to make the most of it, but thanks again!

bud

 

[omores]

Hi bud:

New York City public transportation is confusing at best, dangerous at worst. That doesn't mean that you'd be risking your life taking the subway at night -- I've ridden the rails as a lone female at all hours, but then again I live(d) there. That said, I'd concur with Gower that, if it's your first time in NYC and you're arriving at night, don't bother.

That doesn't mean you have to spend $30-40 on a taxi, though. The $13-ish shared shuttle is a good bet -- it's cheap(er), quick, and it will drop you at the front door of wherever it is you're staying.

[This message has been edited by omores (edited 01-10-2001).]

 

[mvalento]

thanks for all your help guys. does anyone know the names of the companies who offer these shuttles? a bus to grand central station would not be bad- i arrive in the early evening (5:30-ish) so i don't feel too bad about walking a little, especially as i would like to see a bit of NYC. plus, i'm a big, intimidating man!! yep, that's what i tell myself, anyway- probably every local will be able to tell i grew up in the midwestern suburbs.

bud

 

[omores]

Hi.

The $10 bus to Grand Central and Port Authority is operated by New York Airport Service: http://www.nyairportservice.com/
Follow the signs for ground transportation, walk through the doors into the outside world, then look for the nearest guy wearing a New York Airport Service sandwich board and carrying a walkie-talkie (they're hard to miss!)

There are two $13-ish door-to-door shuttle companies, Express Shuttle USA (http://www.graylinenewyork.com/airport.cfm) and SuperShuttle (www.supershuttle.com). Both these guys operate from one counter in the Ground Transportation area.

My best advice: get to wherever it is you're staying as quickly as possible, get rid of your stuff, strip your wallet down to its essentials, make sure your shoes are comfortable, and then head out into the city night. New York's a very exciting place. Enjoy it!

 

[mvalento]

thanks again guys! your information will undoubtably be useful next week- would have been interesting, to say the least, without it.

bud

 

[aga]

hey bud,

i was at first very apprehensive about riding the trains at night. last semester i took a night class and had to take the subway at night. its atually not that bad and its often crowded but i still prefer not to take them at night.

being the native new yorker that i am, i take the city for granted and dont explore what it has to offer. my purpose for this post (was not to intentionally ramble) but to say take in as much of the city as you possibly can and good luck on your interview!

Carolin