Hi All,
This is my first time on this site, so please be gentle with me. After saving like crazy for what seems like ages, I'm finally visiting New York 22-28th March. Staying in Secacus (couldn't really afford NY hotels). My question: I'll be on my own, I'm not the youngest of people (but can still run quite fast), but love shopping. Is it safe to ride the train back from Penn Street to Secacus around 9 p.m in the evening? I can't quite work out if Secacus is in the commuter belt, so have no idea if there will be other people around at this time in the evening. Also, I plan to visit the upper west side of Central Park, is this a safe area during the daytime? Can anyone put my mind at rest! I'm starting to get a bit nervous - it's a long time since I travelled on my own and have never been long haul! Thanks to anyone kind enough to take some time to reply.

Where are you staying?

Are you aware the Secaucus Transfer station has NO pedestrian access?

Do you know how you will get to your hotel?

The trains are safe, Central Park is safe, etc. But many Secaucus hotels are, say, a motel on the side of a busy highway with no sidewalk. THAT is not safe.

You didn't say which hotel, but it is more convenient to take the NJ Transit #320 bus from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Secaucus rather than the train from Penn Station.

You'll be fine at 9pm. You'll be very surprised at how many people are about. This bus actually goes first to a Park and Ride before continuing on to the shopping center where the hotels are.

People have written that there are taxis waiting at the Secaucus Junction train station, but I cannot personally confirm it.

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stay in NJ to visit NYC --> [www.broadwayfocus.com]

Hey Red,
thanks for your very prompt reply. Bit worrying though, didn't know that there's no access at train station. I know this sounds a bit dense, but how do you get on and off the train then?
I'm staying at the Meadowlands Plaza, which I know is a bit off the beaten track, but the posting on trip advisor seem OK on the hotel's free transfer bus (to and from the station). Most people are saying that it's reliable, and waiting is minimal after calling the hotel (although the services stops at 10pm).
Do you know if the local outlets, Mill Creek etc, are walkable from this hotel then? I did look at a local map on Google but of course didn't imagine that there are no pavements (sidewalks I think they are called in USA).
Oh dear, have a made a real mistake!!!
Thanks for your help Red - muchly appreciated.

Hello to you ieee488,
Thank you too for replying promptly. Yes, that sounds better - and I actually prefer the bus. I commute into central London everyday and my experience of bus v tube is that people actually make eye contact and sometimes even chat to you on the bus! This is not the case on the Central Line (that's one of the London tube (subway) lines that serves the City and West End. Well that's a little bit of London insight for you in return for your great help. Are all American's as helpful as you and Red - I hope so!
Many, many thanks.

If you click on the link in my post about staying in NJ to visit NYC, you'll some other options.

My first choice would be to stay in Manhattan.
My second choice would be stay in one of the hotels in Jersey City.
My third choice would be one of the 7 hotels in the Harmon Meadows shopping complex.

Have you looked into bidding on a hotel through Priceline?

For a vacation, I'd really really think you'll want to stay in Manhattan.

Good luck!

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stay in NJ to visit NYC --> [www.broadwayfocus.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/19/2007 05:13PM by ieee488.

Any chance you can cancel your reservation? It's not so much safety that would concern me, it's just that you'll have to race home early to make the last bus, and you'll be missing a lot of what New York has to offer. Even if you stayed at the YMCA in New York, you'd be much better off.

The Secaucus Transfer station is just that: it was created so people could change trains. New Jersey Transit used to have two sets of lines, one going directly into Manhattan and one going into Hoboken where people would have to switch for a PATH train or a ferry to Manhattan. A project called "Midtown Direct" helped give some people on the Hoboken lines a straight run into Manhattan, and the Secaucus station (basically placed at the junction of the Manhattan and Hoboken lines) lets the rest of the people on those lines make an easy switch to get to Manhattan. It sounds like a small thing, but it affects tens of thousands of commuters.

So in other words, you get on and off the train at Secaucus ... by being on another train. They also have a bus station, so you get off a bus and get onto a train.

The Meadowlands are in a somewhat different place, though. There's no train access there, but there are regular buses. However, NOTHING is walkable - the Meadowlands are a complex including a couple of hotels and sports stadiums right off an interstate highway. There is nowhere to walk to and no way to do it.

Really, do you have to stay there? You could stay at so many places that are actually ON the subway, in Manhattan, Jersey City, Brooklyn, Queens ...

Secaucus Junction is a transfer station for trains, but the taxis and buses do stop there. You walk down to ground level. You can even have someone in a pick you up there. So it is not out of the question for sueod to get off there and get on a hotel shuttle. [www.secaucusjunction.com]

She's not staying in the Meadowlands. The Meadowlands Plaza Hotel is in Secaucus on the other side of the river from that. [www.harmonmeadow.com]

Again, this is really not the ideal way to be spending your holiday visiting in NYC.

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stay in NJ to visit NYC --> [www.broadwayfocus.com]

Why don't you try to stay in a hostel?? Then you can be in Manhattan, and it will be cheaper than a hotel. Plus a lot of them offer a complimentry breakfast. Just an idea...

Just got back from a week in NYC.

What is your budget for a hotel - post on here and maybe people can help you

I was just in New York and stayed at a place that I learned about through this site (thank you, New Yorkers!) - The Pod Hotel. The rooms are small but it's very clean, safe, and affordable. My room had a private bathroom, but if you opt to use the common bathrooms (which are nice and seem very safe) then your room will be cheaper. My room had a radio alarm clock with an iPod docking station, a plasma TV, security safe, an iron, shampoo, etc. There's no food service in the hotel, but the surrounding block or two has plenty of options. And the neighborhood is excellent. You're close to Grand Central Station and you're within walking distance of tons of must-sees. I highly recommend it - go to www.thepodhotel.com and see what you think. Safe travels!