Car Service Questions (NYC / Bayonne)

[ababrooks]

Hi everyone, I have a few questions about using Carmel / Dial 7 in NYC that I haven't seen answered yet:

 

1)  I see Carmel recommended on here a lot, but some of their more recent Yelp / TripAdvisor reviews aren't the best.  Has anyone used them in the last few months that can reassure me with positiveness? 

 

Specifically out of LGA to NJ.  Before anyone recommends changing flights, there was an almost $1000 difference between La Guardia & Newark and with the type of ticket we booked we can't change anything even if we wanted to.

 

2)  There are 5 adults, 4 "main" pieces of luggage, 3 carry-on's and a backpack.  I see the minivan holds 4 + 6 luggage or 5 + 5 luggage.  Do carry-ons count as luggage? 

 

I checked their FAQ's and in the sedan category it says "4 passenger + 3 luggage + up to 3 carryons (depending on size)" so I assume in a mini-van the extra carryons don't count but don't want to be surprised.  I tried calling twice, but both people didn't seem to understand my question and kept repeating the 5 pieces of luggage thing.

[mking8288]

36 minutes ago, ababrooks said:

Hi everyone, I have a few questions about using Carmel / Dial 7 in NYC that I haven't seen answered yet:

 

We cruised regularly out of NYC and used Carmel at least 4 to 6 a year, also for airport trips; and, I would give them a score of 9.25 out of 10 - they're as reliable as anyone can be, back in 2011 ... days after Superstorm Sandy made landfall in/near NYC, taking out electricity & shutting down mass transit, their fleet continue to operate - got us to the pier for a cruise about 5 or 6 days later, with the gasoline shortage & rationing in place.  Enough said, take some of those Yelp & TripAdvisor reviews with a grain of salt, pepper & hot spices for what it's worth.  Majority of those that asked, used & feedback on using Dial 7 and/or Carmel had good things to say, with very few exceptions here.  They aren't perfect but their cars are safe, reliable but not as "current" or new as Uber (or Lyft, as "requirements" are somewhat less strict)  We've booked a standard 4 door "base" sedan and/or a minivan, and gotten free upgrade, at no extra charge, for a minivan or SUV - XLT that seat up to 8 (and, easily fitted 4 adults, 4 checked bags & 2 backpacks, etc.) 

 

Minivans are typically Toyota Sienna or Honda Odyssey, that seat up to 6 or riders plus reasonable luggage.  Just be careful about getting substituted for a free SUV-XLT like those GMC Suburban or alike.  

 

The question that only you can answer is how reasonable & large/small are those 4 carry-on bags/backpack ... MLC 22" sized or smaller, not overpacked; and, can you 1 or 2 of them in your lap for the 1 hour trip, airport to cruise pier ?? 

 

How big & reasonable are those checked bags, 24" to 26" and hopefully not 28" or 29" loaded to the max (heay)?   They "should" fit in the back of these minivans ... 1 might need to be stowed in the passengers area (along with the "carry-ons"  

 

Their fleet of sedans have been downsized in the last few years, could be a Toyota Camry or Nissan Quest - good for 3 to maybe 4 adults, but trunk room is definitely tight for 4 bags, 3 of the 25" rollerboards or spinners should fit, with some room for carry-ons.  It's common to see how flyers creatively push the limits of what is considered "carry-on" sized bags at the check-in & gate/boarding area at local airport these days ... 

 

Worst case, you can book & travel by booking 2 sedans ... instead of taking a single minivan.  Costs will be higher but you are still saving off that $1,000 airfare.  

 

P.S.  We just rode with them last November and again in mid January ... booked them for an upcoming one this month.  

Edited May 4, 2019 by mking8288

[ababrooks]

mking, thank you for your reply!

 

Our BIG luggage is pretty dang big - 3 of the big heavy ones, 1 medium-big one, 2 average-sized carryons, and 1 very small carry on.  Some of my family members are major overpackers. 

 

I actually have a friend with an Odyssey, so I may ask her if I can play tetris with her van one day haha!! 

[barb32162]

I can also highly recommend Carmel Car Service. We have used them for the last several years in the NYC area and they have never let us down even last Nov when NY/NJ was hit with an unexpected snowstorm that brought traffic to a crawl. Plows were deployed late and could not clear the streets because they were stuck in traffic jams with everyone else. When we landed in  Newark an hour and a half late the airport was almost deserted. We called Carmel and sure enough our driver was in the cell phone lot. Took us 3 hours to crawl into Manhattan in the snow and traffic. I don't know what we would have done without him. There were not cabs or Ubers in sight.

[cft8]

We just used Carmel for Cape Liberty to Midtown and then back to Newark. 

 

For the trip to Midtown, we had 4 adults and 8 pieces of luggage (I counted our carry-on spinners as luggage. I would count anything you cannot hold on your lap/have at your feet). We booked and SUV and had a Suburban. They got all the checked bags and spinner carry ons in the cargo area but we had to hold our tote bags. 

 

For the trip to Newark, we just had 2 people, but we still had 7 bags, so we got a minivan. 

 

Both trips were fine. For the departure from Cape Liberty, I’d booked for 9;30. The driver started calling me at 8:15. We were still at breakfast, so I told him we would be out at 9:30. He called and texted a few more times, which was annoying, especially since I was trying to manage getting off the ship and it wasn’t easy to get to my phone. But, once we got off and told him what area we were at, he came right up. He had a sign in the window with my name. 

 

The pickup in Manhattan was super easy, he was right outside the hotel at the appointed time. 

[ababrooks]

Thank you both for your replies, it helps to know they were reliable and to hear stories of other people's luggage too.  Thanks again!

[AF-1]

do these car services have websites and pricing?  Thanks

[cft8]

Carmel is https://www.carmellimo.com/

 

You can do a mock booking to see the pricing. 

 

I looked at Dial 7, but I didn’t save the website. It did have pricing. It should be easy to find with a quick google search. 

[AF-1]

Thank you for this link; I did a mock booking.  Are there any tolls for LGA to times square?  Thanks

Edited May 23, 2019 by AF-1

[AF-1]

I sure hope LGA has all the construction finished by Oct 2020.  This is when we sail;  Plan on booking a private car service; so hope they can pick up right at baggage claim

[Nebr.cruiser]

We used Carmel in April from La Guardia to our downtown hotel.  We sailed out of Manhattan the next day.

 

Excellent service and price.  I'd certainly use them again.  It was only two of us, so i can't comment on bigger vehicles.  I booked online and they were very responsive when I had a question, so just call--or they may have an online chat, and I am sure they will answer your questions as to luggage, etc.

[AF-1]

Thanks Nebr.cruiser.   I have this company bookmarked on my computer.