meadowlander

Jewel was scheduled for a 14 night round trip Greenland cruise departing yesterday.

Thanks for posting your experience. The price for Uber is outrageous but it will give Cape Liberty cruisers an idea of Uber's surge pricing which is not the same as Uber's price on a random day of the week with no ship at Bayonne. While car services are allowed to pick up passengers in front of the terminal, taxi service is not. It is how you described it, in a lot across from the terminal. Best way to get to the taxi lot is exit the terminal to the right, go left when outside, walk up to the road (near the garage glass entrance doors) and cross 2 cross walks to the taxi lot.

I enjoyed Rouen very much. Had an outstanding meal at a restaurant highly rated on Trip Advisor. It is an easy walk from the Rouen train station to the center of the city. The architecture was stunning. I like history, which Rouen has. I began walking to the Le Havre train station in the morning before sunlight. It was challenging, not knowing specifically where to go combined with darkness. Luckily a taxi van on its way to the terminal allowed many of us walking to get in, charged us each 2 Euro to the train station. Walked back to the ship in the afternoon & it was challenging as well. I paid 10 Euro for a taxi to take me the last mile to the terminal as I took a few wrong turns & became tired, no longer desiring to walk.

The op was asking for information regarding costs. Having cruised twice from Cape Liberty in 2023, I provided the new higher taxi fee. If you read my post completely you would have seen I agreed with going directly to NPS nor did I advocate using a taxi for a group of 5. The only time I use cab service is at Cape Liberty & my experience as to the condition of the vehicles is not the same as yours. It is a 3 mile ride and I doubt it would bother me if it were not in rideable condition. That the taxi driver did not assist with my bag was expressed to him, Uber has always helped with my luggage. From the terminal to the light rail station, a van not a car is used. The price for a UberX on a random Wednesday with no ship traffic at Cape Liberty may be $10. I can assure you that is not the price on embarkation day due to surge pricing. The taxi from the light rail station was cheaper than Uber ($16) when I boarded in May.

Cab fare from Cape Liberty to the 34th Street light rail station in Bayonne is a fixed $12 per person. $60 total for your group of 5, not including a tip. Tickets for the light tail are to be validated when purchased. Thought I have never encountered any checking of my light rail ticket, having the ticket handy for presentation without validating it is subject to a fine. The convenience of not having to transport luggage for 5 from train to train is well worth paying more by transiting directly to Newark Penn.

NJTP exit 14 A. Stay left at toll plaza. Go up the ramp, that curves left, following signs for 440 & Chosin Few Way. Right onto CFW where it splits with 440. CFW to the end. Left onto Goldsborough Drive. 2 miles to the terminal. You can try using Starbucks located on Goldsborough Dr. in Bayonne instead of Cape Liberty for your gps. Goldsborough Dr is the last road leading to the terminal. CFW, 440 & Avenue E (3 options at toll plaza) all can lead to CL. CFW is the simplest route, with no traffic lights.

Solarium bistro opens at 9am. Main dining room serves brunch from 8:30- noon with no lunch service. Solarium roof is not fully enclosed but not retractable as posted. Windjammer has a made to order omelette station , it is located where burgers and fries are placed for lunch and dinner.

Exit the terminal to the left, outside go right. There is a blue metal canopy that has numbers (6 through 10)attached to the support poles. This is the area for car services. Taxi service is in a different location. You could walk to a different location that would have no one waiting, if you feel the driver may not spot you at the car services area. The best location for that would be the entrance to the area before the luggage drop zone there is no seating or protection from the weather there. You will notice this area on embarkation day, it is where traffic personnel stop vehicles temporarily.

Ruby is closed.

The dining options in Elizabeth will be limited to restaurants at Jersey Gardens mall & IHOP. If you are driving you could travel to the Ironbound section of Newark known for its Brazilian, Portuguese & Spanish cuisine or you could drive to Jersey City(parking is scarce) for dinner & enjoy the spectacular view of lower Manhattan.

Somewhere between 5-15 minutes after departure. SoL will be on starboard side.

The changed in civility began before the pandemic. Early 2017, perhaps a few months before.

Cruising in November with only 1 ship sailing from Bayonne you will be directed to park in the garage. September & October you will probably be in the outdoor lots. Traffic personnel will direct where to park. The earliest I have arrived is 9:30 and had no problem parking. I would think from 8:30 on, many spaces will be open. Some who park in the lots have reported paying on arrival day & others have paid upon disembarking. If you do park in the garage bring the parking ticket with you as you will pay prior to returning to your car. Arriving at Cape Liberty before 10:30 will minimize waiting time on the road that leads to the terminal. You have to pass the luggage drop zone. You do not have to drop luggage but it is advisable. Some surface parking spots are far from the terminal that a shuttle is used to transport to the terminal.

Boarding times are not checked, not enforced. If the boarding process at Cape Liberty has not started at the time you arrive, you will be allowed in the terminal. After check in you will be pointed where to sit. Once boarding starts key, pinnacle & suites get priority followed by wheelchair then all others are allowed to board regardless of loyalty status or boarding time. Those sitting in row 1 go first followed by each row behind. If you are sailing in September & October, most likely you will be assigned to park in outdoor lots unless you have a handicap plate/placard which will allow entry into the garage.

If you are asking about Cape Liberty, there is no special treatment for diamond. Boarding times are not enforced, not looked at in Bayonne. You will check in and be assigned to a seating area close to the escalators & elevator if the boarding process has not begun. Once it does begin, those sitting in row 1 board first followed by each row behind regardless of loyalty status, regardless of scheduled boarding time. There is an area for key, pinnacle & suite guests, They do get priority boarding.

I provided the cost of the tunnel and the tip percentage in my other reply. If you email/call Carmel I am sure they will give you a price excluding tip. With 3 bags, as mjmom said go with the car service for convenience. Boarding a commuter bus with 3 bags is ludicrous!

It is not logical to use Amtrak from NYPS to Newark Penn Station. NJ Transit is a commuter train with more frequent trains than Amtrak offers and cheaper. After my first cruise I took a bus back to NJ. from NYC. Only had a carry on. I was much younger, stronger and had better walking capabilities than at present. I would never board a bus with a large suitcase much less multiple ones. I have twice seen people walking to the HBLR from Cape Liberty in the past year. Do not understand why they would walk 2 miles with luggage to the HBLR station at 34th street. While the road leading to the terminal has been paved smoothly, the area in close proximity to the terminal is how you remember it. On my last trip in May, there was a buildup of vehicles in front of the terminal. I was aware of the left turn (that would avoid the traffic) just prior to where the road first curves before the terminal. The taxi driver wanted me to allow him to take that shortcut. After waiting 2 minutes, I told him it was okay. Where he dropped me off was no more than 50 yards from the terminal entrance. There is no other close drop off area. If you were dropped off minutes walking distance from the terminal, you were dropped far from the terminal. Since Archie's taxi charges a flat rate you had no reason to get out where you did and walk the distance you did other than not waiting in queue.

Reads as if you have done research for your cruise. Do not rely on taxi from NYC to Cape Liberty. Carmel Limo and Dial 7 are car services that would transport you from NY to CL. Surprised they did not give you a price including tolls. $17 is the fee for using Holland or Lincoln Tunnels to NJ, not sure the fee for traveling through Staten Island. Mick listed the public transit option. PATH trains not NYC subway would get you from Manhattan to either Hoboken or PATH stations in Jersey City such as 'Exchange Place' or 'Journal Square'. which are closer than Hoboken to CL. It would be easiest to use Uber/Lyft or taxi from Jersey City directly to Cape Liberty as you will still need a ride to CL if you use the Hudson Bergen light rail from Hoboken or Jersey City. Estimate $20-25 for Uber from Jersey City to CL. Another transit option, though requiring more time, would be NJ Transit trains(not Amtrak) from NY Penn Station to Newark Penn Station then Uber/taxi to CL. Tipping is expected, minimum of 15% of the charge (not including any tax imposed). 20% of the charge is what is likely expected. The Uber driver is more likely to give better service (help with bags) than the taxi driver. If possible, arrive at Cape Liberty before 10:30 am. This will keep you from waiting 20-30 minutes in the car as you approach the terminal. Traffic will significantly accumulate on the terminal entrance road(only 2 lanes but paved since Mick was last there) by 11 am. Boarding times for cruise ships are no longer being enforced at Cape Liberty. You can enter the terminal when you arrive. If it is past the time cruisers have begun boarding you will check in and board. If the boarding process has not begun (anywhere from 10:20 am & later) you will wait in an area with chairs & boarding will start with the first row. Wifi is spotty inside the terminal. Better to bring printed copies of your boarding pass. For Anthem it is best to reserve seats for Spectra's Cabaret in the cruise planner, anywhere between 45-30 days prior to sail date. It is the only show at present that can be reserved. Not a requirement but without a reservation you would have to wait on a standby queue with no guarantee (though likely) you will be allowed in for the performance.

Spent the day in Bruges in 2019 and hope to go back next year. The port call was in Zeebrugge as John Bull indicated. Could not walk from the ship to the terminal as it is also a working port. Buses were provided free of charge and drop cruisers as the terminal. Rather than using the train, I found a shuttle bus better suited my schedule. Cruise Express was the name of the company. They provided directions from the terminal to their location. It was 2-3 minute walk and directional signs were placed along the route. Checked in at a table in a parking lot, boarded the bus and it departed minutes later. I opted for round trip transit, no tour. In Bruges, all shuttle buses drop off and pick up passengers at a large parking lot at one end of town near Hotel de Barge. There is a free shuttle van from the train station but the walk there is nearly as long as the walk into town. Bruges is a beautiful city with matching architecture. Fantastic chocolate and the best french fries I have ever had was in Grote Markt at a green stand that looks like up a pop up vendor, directly in front of Belfort tower.

It is less than 2 hours from Rouen to Paris by train (SNCF). On a port call at Le Havre, I took the train to Rouen and spent the day there. It was very enjoyable, there was enough to fill a day and the restaurant I ate at was outstanding. The train I took from Le Havre terminates in Paris and about 10 people from the cruise spent the day in Paris. There is no comparison between Rouen & Paris in my opinion. If it were me, based on my experience, I would be on the first train to Paris and spend the night there, traveling back the next day to board the cruise.

There are 2 different trams. One from the ship, that seats about 12 people to the tram station on Coco Cay. If anyone in your group has mobility issues, waiting for this tram would be worth it. The other tram, seats about 40, is to the right when you enter Coco Cay. This tram circles the island. It's first stop is at South Beach. The only food option at South Beach is Snack Shack. Another Snack Shack is located between Oasis Lagoon (pool) and 1 of the beaches, possibly Breezy Bay beach. When you say the sports area with volleyball, pool table played with soccer size balls, that is where Snack Shack is located and Chill Grill, which has a different menu, is nearby too.

The NYC ferry has a stop at the terminal with at most a 4 minute walk to the terminal.

The bridge in the photo is on the NJ Turnpike extension leading to exits 14 A-B-C. Exit 14 A is for Cape Liberty. It is possible to get to CL without crossing that bridge by using 440 through Jersey City. You would still have to drive over water at some point, though not as elevated as using the Casciano Bridge (extension bridge).The NJTP toll recently raised so it is likely your Uber driver may use the 440 route avoiding the Casciano Bridge. There is a route that would avoid crossing water completely. It involves many roads and is time consuming, certainly not as direct as using NJTP. Enjoy your cruise. If it is on Oasis, remember to make reservations for eligible shows prior to boarding, usually 30 days prior to sail date or on the 1st day of the month prior to the month the cruise sails. Do not miss Aqua 80!

Not sure what bridge you are talking about. Are you talking about bridges in the Bayonne area or crossing from PA to NJ? Where in Ohio are you departing from? If you do not want to drive to the port in Bayonne are you okay with driving to within 20 -30 miles from the port? Did you contact the La Quinta in Clifton NJ and ask if they will allow you to leave you car for the duration of your cruise? In the past, though a long time in the past, they did allow parking for the length of the cruise at no charge if you lodged there.

I would take the route that charges less in tolls especially since it is only a 25 mile saving and you are not under a time constraint. I am not aware of NJ Transit service from Rockaway though Denville, Dover & Mt. Tabor stations are nearby. From the NJ Transit trip planner, you would transfer from train to NJ Transit bus to get to Newark Penn. I think you are making it difficult for yourself. Bridgewater, New Brunswick, Edison all have direct NJT train to NPS. Metropark in Iselin has direct train service & a parking garage. If your cruise sails on a weekend, you would not incur traffic driving directly to Bayonne, if that is your concern.