Getting Around: To and From NYC Airports

NYC Airports:

To and from Newark International Airport

AirTrain

Rail-like service transports airline passengers to and from the different airport terminals 365 days a year.

Take New Jersey Transit or Amtrak to Newark Liberty International Airport Train Station.

From there, AirTrain picks up passengers every 3 minutes between 5 a.m.-midnight and every 15 minutes between midnight-5 a.m.

AirTrain Newark provides easy connections to and from NJ TRANSIT, PATH and Amtrak through one gateway: Newark Liberty International Airport Station. Customers may purchase a ticket to ride on AirTrain from NJ Transit or Amtrak at their train stations, ticket offices or ticketing machines and the AirTrain Newark fee will be included - one ticket does it all.

AirTrain is free for on-airport travel and makes frequent stops around the airport including airline terminals, parking lots, hotel shuttle areas and rental car facilities. Payment is made at Airport Station to enter or exit the system. Take AirTrain to Airport Station to connect to NJ TRANSIT and Amtrak.

If you’re departing from NYC Penn Station or Newark, take NJ TRANSIT or Amtrak to Newark Liberty International Airport Station. It takes about five minutes to get from AirTrain to the train platforms and between seven and 11 minutes to get to your terminal, depending on the terminal.

These detailed maps can help you find your way.

Download a printable map of AirTrain Newark.

Download a printable map of regional rail connections.

Suggested route from Manhattan:

Take NJ Transit from New York Penn Station to Newark Liberty Airport Station.

The ride takes about 20 minutes. NJ Transit trains run from 5am to 2am with 3-to-4 trains to Newark Liberty Airport every hour during peak morning times, and 4-to-5 trains every hour during peak evening times.

From there, you can catch the AirTrain.

• Travel time: Allow 30-45 minutes.
• Total cost: Around $14 for adults

#62 Bus

Take NJ Transit from New York Penn Station to Newark Penn Station. The ride takes about 15 minutes and costs $3.75. From there, take the #62 bus ($1.25) on Penn Station Bus Lanes to the Newark Airport Terminals.

Buses run every 20 minutes or so and take about 25 minutes to arrive at the airport.

• Total cost: $5 for adults

Newark Airport Express

The bus leaves from Newark Airport and from five stops in Manhattan approximately every 15 to 30 minutes between 4am and 1:30 a.m.

Manhattan departure and arrival stops include Grand Central Terminal, Penn Station, Port Authority Bus Station, Chinatown, and Lower Manhattan. A hotel shuttle is available for midtown destinations.

• Travel time: A one-way trip takes from 45 to 60 minutes.
• Total cost: One-way fare is $17, plus a $1 “administration fee”.  Roundtrip is $30. 
• Seniors 62+ are half price, and there are discounts for military and children.

Information about shared ride shuttles

on next page

NYC Airports: Shared ride shuttles

Go Airlink NYC 

provides shared door-to-door van service throughout NYC and surrounding areas to all three NYC area airports.

Service is available 24/7.

Travel time: Both companies require pick-up four hours before an international flight and three hours before a domestic flight. 

Depending on whether you are picked up first or last, or dropped off first or last, your van ride could be as long as two hours, hence the long advance pick-up time.

Cost: Rates start at $15 to $19 for service from Manhattan and can go up to $50 in the surrounding area, depending on pick-up and destination.

Shared van service SuperShuttle went out of business on Dec. 31, 2019.

Details here.

Personal note from NYCOTC editor Evelyn Kanter -

I missed an international flight a few years ago because Super Shuttle drove me all over Manhattan for two long hours picking up passengers.

The driver would not let me out to take a taxi because I was the first to be picked up and he would have had to unpack a pile of luggage on top of mine in the back to get to my suitcase on the bottom of the pile.

Because of the shabby, arrogant and outright insulting way I was treated - first by the driver and afterward by Super Shuttle’s alleged customer service - I have not used Super Shuttle since in NYC and  I do not recommend using Super Shuttle in NYC. 

ETS Air Shuttle

This airport shuttle service offers pick-up and drop-off sites in all five boroughs and in Princeton, New Jersey, for shared rides to and from all three NYC area airports.

Rates begin at $25, and rates and times vary according to pick-up and destination.

NYCOTC Disclaimer:

This article was first published in 2018, and updated regularly.

Prices and service times were accurate in August 2021, when this article was researched  and re-published. 

Prices and service schedules can change, so always double-check so you don’t miss a flight. 

Evelyn Kanter is a native New Yorker who has written for the NY Times, NY Daily News, NY Post, New York Magazine, and is a former on-air reporter for WCBS Newsradio 88 and WABC-TV Eyewitness News. 

Evelyn Kanter also is the author of several NYC and Hudson Valley guidebooks, including my latest, 100 Things to Do in NYC Before You Die.