LaGuardia to/from Cape Liberty?

I have read many times that it is not recommended to fly into LaGuardia to get to Cape Liberty, but for our family of 6, we can get our flights for $1,000 (yes, one THOUSAND dollars) cheaper if we fly into LaGuardia. If we fly into Newark, it might just kill the entire trip (put us over budget). Sooooo.... what ARE our options to get transferred to/from LaGuardia to Cape Liberty for a party of 6 (including 3 young children)??? How much time should we allow for on the day we return home (to transfer from the port to LaGuardia) which would be on a Saturday? (I know traffic is horribly variable... what's the realistic worst case scenario?)

(Sorry, I really did search through threads, but couldn't find an answer to this... not many parties of 6 doing this transfer, I guess.)

What is your planned arrival date/time into LGA for the C.L. disembarkation - same day ?? Do you know, if you will be flying a smaller regional/commuter jet as virtually all bags will need to be gate-checked (free or otherwise) - need to wait for luggage.

As a general rule, for this airport to cruise port transfer, you will need to budget plenty of extra time - it's not just the airport but highway/roadway connections ... weekday vs. weekend. What is the ship's absolute cut/off & recommended arrival time for check in, or else :rolleyes: Is flying into NY one day earlier (with an overnight hotel stay) possible - sightseeing plans ? << It appeared that you will likely be making a flight connection at an airline hub en route, from your midwest home city ... thus, unless you can do a pre-dawn flight, the odds of landing at LGA any earlier than 9 or 10 AM is virtually null - fewest # of flights scheduled on Saturday >>

How much luggage will you have together for 6, including backpack & cabin luggage (note, one of my 22" MLC carry-on can easily tip the scale at 40 lbs) as you might NOT all fit into a typical minivan or even "8" pax SUV suburban/XL ...

Expect round-trip transportation (post-cruise, as well) by car service are really your only option - I would not book any return flights earlier than 2 PM ... as even 1 PM is really pushing in with minimal margins for delays. Expect your airport transfer to run somewhere between $250 to $300+ for 6 of you, even more if 2 vehicles are needed - in other words, pack & travel light, if frugal and staying within budget is a priority.

The more details we have & know, the better informed this "community" can better advise you of do's and don't - what are your backup flights inbound ?

EWR is only about 10 miles or so from the Cape Liberty port and landing at LGA puts one two rivers and a state away (approximately 50 miles). I suggest redoing the math and see if EWR can work somehow.

I should have mentioned that we would definitely be flying in the day before departure. (Honestly, coming from Wisconsin, we assume we'll need to do that, regardless of where we'd be flying to.) We'll be flying direct from Chicago to the east coast (whatever airport we end up flying into). I avoid layovers with 3 small children at all costs.

As for luggage, we'd travel with 3 large checked bags, and 3 backpacks (1 bag and backpack per adult). We'll drive down to Chicago in our minivan. (We've done that trip with one more adult, and with more luggage actually, so I know that can technically fit.)

But... that just reminded me of car seats. I don't want to have to haul those along... I'm guessing my options are quickly dwindling. This trip might have to wait another year. :/

EWR is only about 10 miles or so from the Cape Liberty port and landing at LGA puts one two rivers and a state away (approximately 50 miles). I suggest redoing the math and see if EWR can work somehow.

Thanks! If LGA really is going to be that big of a pain in the butt... we will avoid it!

Another issue is finding affordable accommodations for 6 people near one of the airports. You don't want to have to pay to get to a hotel that will accommodate 6 and then pay again to get from the hotel to the port.

To start looking for affordable lodging for one night, 138east/Carol is good at it, but need to know month/date of your planned cruise or travel ? Any hotel points & preference, discounts (AAA, military, etc.)

Age of "young children" - travel within NYC, children riding in taxi & car service are exempt from safety seats, but you know and assume all risks from going without - Carmel/Dial 7's minivan or large/XL SUV can be requested/booked in advanced with an (one only) integrated child safety/booster seat. It sounded as if you can fit into one XL SUV or minivan, so that is good. Children of age/weight/height are subject to, regardless of type of vehicle, child safety seat requirements ... for good reasons.

Is finding "acceptable" flights out of LGA after 1:30 or 2 PM on a Saturday (slowest & fewest flight options scheduled among all carriers) possible ? LGA-ORD would be a non-stop option, back in the UA days, practically hourly "shuttles" on weekdays - not so much as their hub is really EWR these days.