Cape Liberty/Bayonne 411 - New and Improved!

[138east]

I'm not sure what to say to you or how to advise you. Newark is a highly urban industrialized area. The Newark Penn Hilton is right in the middle of downtown Newark. The main reason to stay there is to take advantage of the inexpensive transportation into Manhattan. $109 is a good price, but that doesn't include tax and it not cancellable. However you stated at the beginning you were unsure about using public transit and were going to pay for a more expensive NY tour that woud pick you up and return you to your NJ hotel.

 

If your priority is saving money, then you should stay at the Hiton, go into NY by train and ride the Hoho bus all day and evening and pay for a cab to the pier the next day. If you are not comfortable in an urban area, then you should stay at Country Inns and have the tour company pick you up and return you to that hotel.

[kruzkraziness]

You make perfect since. I will think hard for a few days. I do appreciate your help. No rush to do anything now I guess. Once again, thank you.

[138east]

Where are you from? Have you ever been to NY before? The problem with downtown Newark is that you really don't want to be wandering around the area on foot in the evening unless your're just going from the train station across the street to the hotel. If the tour company drops you back at the hotel at 6 pm, you have to either eat in the hotel or take a cab to one of the Spanish/Portuguese restaurants in the Ironbound district. Most folks who go into NYC from Newark eat in the city and spend at least part of the evening there.

 

Country inns is in an enclave of four hotels next to the Jersey Gardens mall. There is a Ruby Tuesdays and an IHOP next door. You can have the hotel shuttle take you to the mall or you can walk over there if you like. It's a very different atmosphere.

[kruzkraziness]

We are from California. The change of heart came from my husband. He does not seem concerned about the public transit, although we don't want to drag luggage. We have never been to NY and want to see as much as possible. Still want to do a tour.

 

We live close to San Francisco and have taken BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) for a day in the city. After reading other posts and finding the 109. price I thought Hilton Penn Station might be a good option. I am still not convinced. I only know I have to cancel the reservation at Best Western! Still weighing the pros and cons. Your information is so welcomed.

[138east]

Well, you won't have to drag luggage except at the airport to go upstairs to the monorail to go to P4 to get the hotel shuttle for any hotel. If you don't want to do that, then you can always take a cab for $20-25.

 

The transportation from Newark to New York is easy by train or Path. The train goes to 32nd and 8th Ave in NY (New York Penn Station). Path goes to the World Trade Center. It is possible to go by train to midtown, then take the subway downtown, and go straight back to Newark on Path or vice versa. That's what makes staying at the Newark Penn Station Hilton so attractive. The best plan is to eat in New York so you just come back to the hotel and have no need to explore the area. A cab or car service to the port is about the same as from any airport hotel - $50-60. It may even be a bit cheaper because it is not from the airport where they take what they can get from travelers.

[megr1125]

the NYC subway system is really not too hard..even easier if you get a metro card...and the walk from the Newark Penn Station hilton to the train station is inside, via an enclosed walkway.

 

i have not stayed in the hotel , but ate there before a concert..(it was decent food...but if you're visiting, i would eat in NYC...)

 

the hotel does have a nice staff..and apparently a LOT of repeat guests...i was waiting in the lobby for friends before a concert...very friendly staff...

 

here are a couple links..

 

NJ Transit

 

PATH trains (Port Authority Trans Hudson)

 

 

NYC Subway

[hofrances]

Hi, 138east,

 

I see u give good advice re: Cape Liberty and am wondering if you may give me some shopping advice.

 

We arrive by 10 am at EWR on Sept 21 for Brilliance of the Sea - New England cruise, is it possible to go to Jersey Garden and then to port say at 2pm. How and How much?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Frances

[138east]

Unfortunately, I'm not a shopper. I'm not sure exactly what to advise you. The timing is tight. By the time your flight arrives and you get your luggage, it is likely to be at least 10:45. Cab to Jersey Gardens would get you there at 11:00 am at the earliest. The ship sails at 4:30 so your absolute drop dead time for arriving would be 3 pm, but you don't want to cut it close - I'd say 2 pm at the very latest. You would want to arrange for a car service to pick you up at 1:15. The only extra cost would be the cab to Jersey Gardens.

 

Is there a particular attraction in this mall? My family went over there but I took a pass on that trip. They were underwhelmed. I've heard the same thing from others, but the mall does seem to be popular with folks from Canada and Europe. Are you going to park your husband with the luggage while you look around?

 

Don't forget that the prime objective is to not miss the ship. I'd give this mall a pass and try to shop in Portland or Bar Harbor.

[megr1125]

Hi, 138east,

 

I see u give good advice re: Cape Liberty and am wondering if you may give me some shopping advice.

 

We arrive by 10 am at EWR on Sept 21 for Brilliance of the Sea - New England cruise, is it possible to go to Jersey Garden and then to port say at 2pm. How and How much?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Frances

 

No..i would not do this.....

 

just head up to the ship...boarding starts usually around 11:30..the windjammer will open for lunch around noon....now this cruise is sort of a one-off special thing...and it may be a little later...BUT no way would i attempt to do all that...

 

you'd have to pay to get to the mall from the airport (shuttle, R/T $9 PP i think...) then about $50 in cab/car service...plus you will not have any place to stash your bags...

 

it is an outlet mall..it's big, and NJ does not charge tax on clothes nor shoes, but really...it's only good if you HAVE to kill time....

 

you don't have enough to make it worth while...

 

and a cab over there from the airport would PROBABLY be about $20 at least...(so around the same as the shuttle...)

 

not worth it

[hofrances]

Hi, 138east,

 

Thanks for your advice, I love your comment "park your husband with the luggage while you look around" you read my mind. But after reading your advice, I will just go to the port directly from EWR, save the shopping to do at Freeport.

 

I wonder if my hubby had contacted you before me.......you say the same thing that he's been telling me but I just wouldn't listen to the non-expert.....

 

Thanks. Happy cruising!

 

Frances

[Grhamer]

Sailing out of Cape Liberty for the first time on 9/2. Staying at Marriott Courtyard in Elizabeth on Glimcher Realty Way. Hotel does not offer shuttle to cruise terminal. Any recommendations on how we can get from the hotel to the cruise terminal and how much will it cost?

[misbenj]

So we used Pemier Parking for Cape Liberty for 11.99 a day for our 9 day departure on RCL Explorer OTS Aug 2-11, 2012. People should stay away from this parking alternative. For the following reasons

 

1) We arrived at the lot at about 1:30 PM for our Departure. THe lot was already jammed and we (and all others arriving at this time) had to leave our keys with the attendant for the week while we were away because they were "stacking" cars in the lot.... i.e. they would have to move our car so others could leave. You do not get your own parking space. They do not advertise that you do not get your own parking space, or that you have to leave your keys with them so they can jockey your car around the lot to allow people to come and go.

 

2) Upon return we had to wait over 1 hour for the shuttle to get our car. They claim this wait is because the traffic at the cruise port prevents their shuttles from getting there in a timely fashion.... This is not true. They only have 3 vans to unload and shuttle people to the lot..... and they park 300 cars there.. I did a little quick math... and 3 vans is not enough.

 

3) Upon return our car was waiting for us, with the cars on the dash....PARKED ON AN OPEN STREET, with nobody attending. Anyone could have taken our car. Nobody checked our claim ticket nor was anyone around to do so. Only the van driver.... who never checked our claim ticket.

 

Granted, Our car was not damaged. But the risk is very high, the wait times are very long, and the company does not deliver as specified. I would steer people AWAY from this parking alternative. You'll be happier paying the full price.

[SNJCruisers]

Sailing out of Cape Liberty for the first time on 9/2. Staying at Marriott Courtyard in Elizabeth on Glimcher Realty Way. Hotel does not offer shuttle to cruise terminal. Any recommendations on how we can get from the hotel to the cruise terminal and how much will it cost?

You need to book an independent car service. Independent Driver charges about 40 one way and comes highly recommended. You can contact them at 888-816-0973. Call soon, they are a small outfit and may be booked up. If you're flying out of EWR after the cruise, you can get a shared van at the port for 17.00pp.

[dshanesmom]

So we used Pemier Parking for Cape Liberty for 11.99 a day for our 9 day departure on RCL Explorer OTS Aug 2-11, 2012. People should stay away from this parking alternative. For the following reasons

 

1) We arrived at the lot at about 1:30 PM for our Departure. THe lot was already jammed and we (and all others arriving at this time) had to leave our keys with the attendant for the week while we were away because they were "stacking" cars in the lot.... i.e. they would have to move our car so others could leave. You do not get your own parking space. They do not advertise that you do not get your own parking space, or that you have to leave your keys with them so they can jockey your car around the lot to allow people to come and go.

 

2) Upon return we had to wait over 1 hour for the shuttle to get our car. They claim this wait is because the traffic at the cruise port prevents their shuttles from getting there in a timely fashion.... This is not true. They only have 3 vans to unload and shuttle people to the lot..... and they park 300 cars there.. I did a little quick math... and 3 vans is not enough.

 

3) Upon return our car was waiting for us, with the cars on the dash....PARKED ON AN OPEN STREET, with nobody attending. Anyone could have taken our car. Nobody checked our claim ticket nor was anyone around to do so. Only the van driver.... who never checked our claim ticket.

 

Granted, Our car was not damaged. But the risk is very high, the wait times are very long, and the company does not deliver as specified. I would steer people AWAY from this parking alternative. You'll be happier paying the full price.

 

Thank you so much for this post, we are leaving on Thursday and I was planning on using this lot to save a few dollars but won't now. We have a toddler and infant, and lots of stuff and would not want to sit around waiting with them for hours. At least your car was safe while you were away.

[138east]

Yes thank you for your post about Premier Parking. When this parking was first offered, those of us who post on this board all the time were skeptical about the offering. One of our posters who runs a trucking company ran a check on them and came up with serious concerns about lack of adequate registered insurance. Reports have been very mixed so we have been discouraging folks from using this service. Parking is expensive for Cape Liberty and some folks will do anything to save a few bucks, but exposing yourself and your car to unnecessary risk in this area is not the way to go.

[CruisingChick]

So we used Pemier Parking for Cape Liberty for 11.99 a day for our 9 day departure on RCL Explorer OTS Aug 2-11, 2012. People should stay away from this parking alternative. For the following reasons

 

1) We arrived at the lot at about 1:30 PM for our Departure. THe lot was already jammed and we (and all others arriving at this time) had to leave our keys with the attendant for the week while we were away because they were "stacking" cars in the lot.... i.e. they would have to move our car so others could leave. You do not get your own parking space. They do not advertise that you do not get your own parking space, or that you have to leave your keys with them so they can jockey your car around the lot to allow people to come and go.

 

2) Upon return we had to wait over 1 hour for the shuttle to get our car. They claim this wait is because the traffic at the cruise port prevents their shuttles from getting there in a timely fashion.... This is not true. They only have 3 vans to unload and shuttle people to the lot..... and they park 300 cars there.. I did a little quick math... and 3 vans is not enough.

 

3) Upon return our car was waiting for us, with the cars on the dash....PARKED ON AN OPEN STREET, with nobody attending. Anyone could have taken our car. Nobody checked our claim ticket nor was anyone around to do so. Only the van driver.... who never checked our claim ticket.

 

Granted, Our car was not damaged. But the risk is very high, the wait times are very long, and the company does not deliver as specified. I would steer people AWAY from this parking alternative. You'll be happier paying the full price.

 

Thank you for posting this. I had been researching this lot back in February when it first opened for our March cruise and decided NOT to book it and we parked at the pier (even though there's a chance of damage from paint over spray). Luckily there was no paint, but my car was filthy with black soot which came right off in the car wash. Glad to know we made the right decision.

 

We will be parking at the pier in October and just pray the are not painting any ships in dry dock.

[CruisingChick]

Yes thank you for your post about Premier Parking. When this parking was first offered, those of us who post on this board all the time were skeptical about the offering. One of our posters who runs a trucking company ran a check on them and came up with serious concerns about lack of adequate registered insurance. Reports have been very mixed so we have been discouraging folks from using this service. Parking is expensive for Cape Liberty and some folks will do anything to save a few bucks, but exposing yourself and your car to unnecessary risk in this area is not the way to go.

 

If you use Premier Parking I bet if you car is damaged they won't cover it at all. I don't want to leave my keys for 2 weeks with some stranger. It's not worth the $6 a day you save. I believe it's $11.99 plus tax, so it comes out to $13 and change. The parking at the pier is $19 (includes tax). So it's really not that much of a savings if your car is damaged hundreds or thousands of dollars.

[138east]

It's not only the car damage, which seems to be everyone's primary concern. They are also transporting you to the pier in their vehicles and do not seem to have adequate insurance for that.

 

Everyone always brings up the paint spray issue at the port, but the reality of that damage, even though highly undesirable, is that the dry dock has insurance that paid off all the claims.

[lonegirl]

We are driving from Toronto and plan to spend 1 or 2 nights before our cruise. I was wondering if anyone knows of a decent hotel that has cruise parking packages. We did this in Ft. Lauderdale and it was great as we just caught a shuttle to the port and our van was safely stored in the valet area.

[SNJCruisers]

We are driving from Toronto and plan to spend 1 or 2 nights before our cruise. I was wondering if anyone knows of a decent hotel that has cruise parking packages. We did this in Ft. Lauderdale and it was great as we just caught a shuttle to the port and our van was safely stored in the valet area.

Check out stay123 at the link below:

 

http://www.stay123.com/cruise-results.php?airport=164&day=27&month=10&year=2012&adults=1&children=0&rooms=1

 

The Country Inn & Suites comes highly recommended @ 150 per night including taxes. Round trip shuttle to the port is an additional 35 pp through the hotel. Independent driver is a recommended car service in case you have 4 in your party or if you hook up with others from your roll call that are staying at the same hotel. That way it'll be 40+ tip each way. Another option is the Hampton Inn or the Hilton Garden Inn in Staten Island NY. They are next to each other and their shuttle will take you back and forth to the port and it's included in the rate. They do have a cruise package available at the hotel, but it has been reported on these boards, but not this thread that you do not need to book the cruise package in order to leave your car there and be shuttled to the port, all you need to do is just book a regular room. Good luck

[138east]

Nothing that easy at Cape Liberty. You're going on a 7 night cruise? Do you plan to sightsee in New York? Your basic high levels options are to get a less expensive hotel in Parsippany or Secaucus and park at the port, do a park/sleep at Newark Airport and pay for round trip port transportation, get an expensive cruise package from Country Inns in Elizabeth, or stay on Staten Island at the Hampton Inn for " free " parking and port transportation. The economics of paying to park at the port for a 7 day cruise are close. What you want to do pre cruise will determine which of these options are better.

[Esmerelda]

There are 3 couples going on the Explorer in October. We've all booked ther Hilton Garden Inn, Staten Island. We have our room and we can leave our car all week (they allow more than 7 days but that's the length of our cruise) plus they transport us to the port and then pick us up aftewards and return us to our car at the hotel. We each paid $231 with all taxes and fees. I was even upgraded to a Jr suite due to being a Hilton Honors member. The reviews for the hotel are quite good and we are all excited to stay there. I will post a full report when we get back. :)

[luvfamvaca]

Apologies if this has been answered before, I searched several threads and couldn't find anything.

We are going out of Bayonne first time, parking at the pier. We are only sailing a 5 night cruise so we've decided to bring a backpack/tote along with a wheeling 21" carryon size luggage each…is there a different place to go when we reach the parking lot? What is the situation with the shuttles? Will our luggage size be a problem? I would rather not check our luggage if we don't have to. Any info/suggestions appreciated :)

[138east]

The last two times on the EX I had a 20" rolling suitcase and a rolling backpack. I carried on both one time and just checked one the other time. No problem as long as it fits through the luggage scanner.

 

No problem on the shuttle either. It may be crowded and folks will have plenty of "stuff", but just be patient and you can do it. The only problem is that the rooms aren't accessible until 1:30, so you have to hang onto it until then or just ditch it someplace like the back of the library.

[luvfamvaca]

The last two times on the EX I had a 20" rolling suitcase and a rolling backpack. I carried on both one time and just checked one the other time. No problem as long as it fits through the luggage scanner.

 

No problem on the shuttle either. It may be crowded and folks will have plenty of "stuff", but just be patient and you can do it. The only problem is that the rooms aren't accessible until 1:30, so you have to hang onto it until then or just ditch it someplace like the back of the library.

 

Thanks for the info! We just don't want to be "those people" and crowd up the shuttle with the awkward rolling suitcases when everyone else casually gets on with a tote bag! :o

We will probably arrive around 11:30/12:00, by the time we get our 4 teen/20yr olds onto the ship we just have to kill an hour or so, maybe we can grab a table in the WJ out of the way if we are lucky! Thank you again! :)