Where exactly are you going from/to? I live downtown, so I do early morning Megabus or the train. With megabus, I can go early morning and come back late night and avoid all traffic. When I was travelling on someone else's dime, I would always do train instead of plane as the plane just doesn't get to the right place. And I'm an extremely frequent flier otherwise.

Amtrak time don't work or you don't want to spend the money? Because there are typically trains every hour and it is the easiest way to get there. I do agree that Acela isn't worth the extra cost to save 30 min.

Anonymous wrote:Have you looked at flying? It's often quite inexpensive, and almost always less expensive than the Acela. It's my first choice for work. For personal trips I usually drive.

No. Don’t fly. There is usually a delay and traffic getting into Manhattan is horrible. Acela or Amtrak.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Commute back and forth to NYC 1-3 times a week. Park at BWI train station $9 a day. Secure garage 100' from the tracks.

Just do the regular Amtrak but pay the minimal extra for business class. Free non-alcoholic drinks and plenty more room to spread out.

Never book business class so priced out a weekend trip to see the difference. Trip for a weekend in mid-April (so over 2 months advance purchase) BWI-NYP is $386 more for business class than coach for 2 adults and a 13-15 year old. That feels like more than "minimal extra".

PP- this was for the NE Regional, not Acela.

Anonymous wrote:Commute back and forth to NYC 1-3 times a week. Park at BWI train station $9 a day. Secure garage 100' from the tracks.

Just do the regular Amtrak but pay the minimal extra for business class. Free non-alcoholic drinks and plenty more room to spread out.

Never book business class so priced out a weekend trip to see the difference. Trip for a weekend in mid-April (so over 2 months advance purchase) BWI-NYP is $386 more for business class than coach for 2 adults and a 13-15 year old. That feels like more than "minimal extra".

Anonymous wrote:I hate the bus, but with your kid it's probably fine.

I enjoy the train much better. Everyone is saying that the Acela is not worth it. In addition to the faster time, the Acela is usually on time. The regular Amtrak can have all kinds of delays.

This is very true. The Acela gets top priority over the regionals, so if time is a consideration, it may be worth it to pay for the Acela.

Commute back and forth to NYC 1-3 times a week. Park at BWI train station $9 a day. Secure garage 100' from the tracks.

Just do the regular Amtrak but pay the minimal extra for business class. Free non-alcoholic drinks and plenty more room to spread out.

Anonymous wrote:When we go as a family of 4, we drive up and park at Metro Park in NJ, then hop on a NJ Transit train into Manhattan so we don't have to deal with the hassle of tunnel crossing.

When it's just me or I'm taking one kid, we take regular Amtrak

We have done this, getting a parking spot on Spot Hero near Journal Square in Jersey City, so it's only 10 minutes from there to lower Manhattan, or 25 minutes to midtown, and the PATH is only $2.75/person and runs every 10-15 minutes even on weekends. Worked really well. By taking out the risk of tunnel traffic it made it fast and stress free.

I hate the bus, but with your kid it's probably fine.

I enjoy the train much better. Everyone is saying that the Acela is not worth it. In addition to the faster time, the Acela is usually on time. The regular Amtrak can have all kinds of delays.

Flying was better before the arrival of the TSA. I used to walk on at National with an open ticket for the shuttle, get off at LGA and be at my parents house on LI at about two hours door to door. Same in reverse. Now with security, preboarding, etc you save no time and have a lot more hassle. Train all the way.

When we go as a family of 4, we drive up and park at Metro Park in NJ, then hop on a NJ Transit train into Manhattan so we don't have to deal with the hassle of tunnel crossing.

When it's just me or I'm taking one kid, we take regular Amtrak

It really depends on where you live. I live in Rockville/Olney area and if I am going to NY by myself, I find it easiest to drive to BWI and take the train from there. Going south to Union Station just to go north adds so much time. If we are going as a family, by the time we're in the car going north, we usually just drive. It's cheaper to just park your car for the weekend vs. buying 3-4 train tickets.

But this is obviously from the perspective of someone who lives north of DC.

Have done the bus several time with my classes (Vamoose) and I could barely walk when I got to NYC because the leg room was so limited. Since walking all day is part of the point of going, I will never ride on them again. Amtrak all the way.

Vamoose and Tripper also have buses that run to NYC from downtown Bethesda.

Anonymous wrote:Have you looked at flying? It's often quite inexpensive, and almost always less expensive than the Acela. It's my first choice for work. For personal trips I usually drive.

I traveled weekly between NYC and DC for 7 years and flying was the worst. Too many flight delays, having to fight traffic out to the airports, security even with TSA pre-check or CLEAR. Amtrak is MUCH better and more reliable, plus convenient it brings you directly into Manhattan. I did a year of flying and went back to the Acela if at all possible.