Last Minute Holiday Shopping in New York…the Easy Way.
With just 12 shopping days left before Christmas, people on the East Coast are heading to New York to shop, check out the retailer’s holiday windows and perhaps see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring the world-famous Rockettes.
But getting to New York can be a challenge. First you need to gas up the car, fight DC, Baltimore, Philly and New York City traffic, pay a few tolls along the way and find parking in Manhattan.
But there is an easy way to get to New York City. You can leave the driving to someone else. About a half a dozen bus companies, working out of DC’s Chinatown, make over 40 regularly scheduled daily trips to and from New York City.
The cost is only $35.00 round trip (about $100 less than Amtrak) as long as you return using the same bus company. If you decide to use another bus company, the round-trip cost is $5.00 more.
Schedules run all day so there should be a bus operator that fits your schedule.
While these companies use modern, comfortable buses (think Greyhound), the service is fairly no-frills. You can bring your own food and beverages. And all buses are equipped with lavatories.
Plan on 4½ to 5 hours travel time, but with holiday congestion, weather and typical holiday traffic, trips can be slightly longer.
Most operators allow for one large piece of luggage and two small carry-on pieces.
Bus drivers may not speak fluent English but should be able to communicate basic information, but don’t try to get detailed tourist or NY subway information.
You can book your ticket in advance (online) as during peak times such as weekends and evenings, buses tend to fill. Or, you can pay the driver.
Photo credit: Radio City flickr
Tags: b5-media, DC, DC-travel-information, local-attractions, Shopping, site-seeing, The-DC-Traveler, tourist-information, travel, vacation, Washington, Washington-DC, Washington-DC-travelRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Getting Around – Local Transportation, Shopping
1 opinion for Last Minute Holiday Shopping in New York…the Easy Way.
Danielle :D
Dec 26, 2007 at 10:28 pm
I LOVE NYC :D:D:D
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: