Holiday Inn Carteret

[lneilan]

We are leaving on a Celebrity cruise on Sunday May 12 and Trinity Reservations is offering a park/stay package at Holiday Inn in Carteret. Has anyone ever stayed here and is there any problems we should know about?

 

 

[megr1125]

No.

 

Industrial area, not really nice.....I would pass and look for something else.  If you want to be surrounded by HUGE fuel/oil tanks, go for it. 

 

We never suggest the Carteret/Rahway area.  It's just not a good place to be.
 

Are you flying in or driving?  TBH if driving, pick one of the oft-suggested hotels on International Blvd off exit 13A and drive to the pier.  Plenty of parking and no fooling around with shuttles/uber whatevers.....

 

Embassy Suites, Courtyard EWR/Elizabeth, Residence Inn EWR/Elizabeth or Country Inn are WAY better.  

[138east]

How many people are you?  Where are you driving in from?  Port parking would be $154.  You need a hotel on a Sat night.  It might be possible to get a hotel within an hour of Cape Liberty that would make the cost of the hotel and port parking competitive with the trinity package when you consider the value added by being able to park at the port.

[lneilan]

We are driving in from Western Virginia. I think i like the idea of being an hour away and using port parking. Would I make a reservation or just drive up?

 

Thanks

[138east]

8 hours ago, lneilan said:

We are driving in from Western Virginia. I think i like the idea of being an hour away and using port parking. Would I make a reservation or just drive up?

 

Thanks

You should definitely make a reservation.  Where exactly are you coming from in West Virginia?  Are you just 2 people?  Are you coming on the NJ Turnpike (I95) or I78?

 

I highly recommend this strategy for folks taking long trips to get to Cape Liberty.  IMO it’s nice to get off the road in a more rural/suburban and not have to deal with the traffic and congestion around Newark Airport.  On a Sunday morning it will be an easy drive to Cape Liberty.  When you disembark, you can just hop in your car and head home - no worries about finding the shuttle back to retrieve your car.

[megr1125]

Make a reservation on line with the hotels directly.  You'll be 20 minutes away if you choose one of the hotels I suggested.  Easy drive up to the pier.   As you'll have a car, you'll be able to drive to a supermarket or liquor store if needed....

 

If you're coming up the NJ Turnpike, you can stay in the Hamilton/Robbinsville area (5 minutes off the TPKE and it's 1 hour to the pier...easy...there's a Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites, Residence Inn and a little farther away, a Hampton Inn.  Plus, they'll have free parking and a plethora of shops and places to eat. Those would be at exit 7A and the hotels between 2-10 years old (ish) The Residence Inn is prob 2-3 and the Homewood Suites is 2.  The HGI is older, and the Hampton Inn is maybe 3 years old or so.

 

There are a few things at exit 8A in the Cranbury/Jamesburg area as well including a few newer Marriott branded properties.

 

OR there's a nice Courtyard and a couple other things in Edison (off exit 10) 

Edited March 24, 2019 by megr1125

[lneilan]

Thanks to everyone for the advice, which i will take. I appreciate it.

 

[138east]

34 minutes ago, lneilan said:

Thanks to everyone for the advice, which i will take. I appreciate it.

 

You’re welcome.  It’s really important to identify a route I78 or I95.  The hotel choices are very different unless you decide to stay at Newark Airport.  What is your hotel budget?  The prices an hour out will be much less than the airport prices.

[TruckerDave]

I'll echo what others have said. I know that Holiday inn well. It is right next to the turnpike. I used to load in the Kinder Morgan terminal next door often. Thus I used to be in that very area quite often. There is NO WAY IN HECK I would leave my vehicle there, even over night.  I wouldn't even spend the night at that hotel and park my truck in the parking lot for the night.  There are so many other places people have mentioned that I would stay in rather than that dump.

[138east]

28 minutes ago, TruckerDave said:

I'll echo what others have said. I know that Holiday inn well. It is right next to the turnpike. I used to load in the Kinder Morgan terminal next door often. Thus I used to be in that very area quite often. There is NO WAY IN HECK I would leave my vehicle there, even over night.  I wouldn't even spend the night at that hotel and park my truck in the parking lot for the night.  There are so many other places people have mentioned that I would stay in rather than that dump.

TruckerDave - thanks for the feedback about that specific area and hotel.  We haven’t ever recommended it, but it’s really nice to have you post your first hand experience with the area.  Folks from less populated areas coming to Cape Liberty just don’t realize how highly urban and congested the Newark area is and how important it is to be selective about where you ditch your car while on a cruise.

[lneilan]

On 3/23/2019 at 4:51 PM, megr1125 said:

No.

 

Industrial area, not really nice.....I would pass and look for something else.  If you want to be surrounded by HUGE fuel/oil tanks, go for it. 

 

We never suggest the Carteret/Rahway area.  It's just not a good place to be.
 

Are you flying in or driving?  TBH if driving, pick one of the oft-suggested hotels on International Blvd off exit 13A and drive to the pier.  Plenty of parking and no fooling around with shuttles/uber whatevers.....

 

Embassy Suites, Courtyard EWR/Elizabeth, Residence Inn EWR/Elizabeth or Country Inn are WAY better.  

 

[lneilan]

Are these hotels the ones at the airport?

[138east]

6 hours ago, lneilan said:

Are these hotels the ones at the airport?

Could you be more specific about which hotels you are asking about?

 

There are a large pool of hotels at the airport near exits 13A and 14 that are in either Newark or Elizabeth.  Carteret is several miles south at exit 12.  Edison/Woodbridge is south of Carteret.  The whole area is highly urban industrialized.  It’s not a vacation destination.  We recommend that folks be picky about where they leave their cars while cruising.  The “airport” hotels are better set up for this.