taxi to port -- I expect to walk a bit

[trish1c]

If we grab a cab on 8th or 9th Avenue behind Penn Station (because I'm not standing in that taxi queue) where is the best place to get dropped off for the port? Which one runs uptown?  I am perfectly happy to walk a few blocks.  

 

What's the cross street on 12th Ave for the pier so I can judge where we want to get dropped off for the least hassle?  

 

Our cruise is Dec 21st so I already know traffic will be a NIghtmare, hence I'd rather be on foot then dealing with vehicles but I don't want to walk the full 2 miles with luggage or schlep on a subway.

 

Thanks.   

[princeton123211]

8 minutes ago, trish1c said:

If we grab a cab on 8th or 9th Avenue behind Penn Station (because I'm not standing in that taxi queue) where is the best place to get dropped off for the port? Which one runs uptown?  I am perfectly happy to walk a few blocks.  

Assuming you are talking about the Manhattan Cruise Terminal the cab can drop you right at the terminal-- its set up like an airport drop off with an upper and lower level drop off/pick up areas. No need to walk. 

 

9 minutes ago, trish1c said:

What's the cross street on 12th Ave for the pier so I can judge where we want to get dropped off for the least hassle?

Approximately 55th street. 

[Turtles06]

14 minutes ago, trish1c said:

If we grab a cab on 8th or 9th Avenue behind Penn Station (because I'm not standing in that taxi queue) where is the best place to get dropped off for the port? Which one runs uptown?  I am perfectly happy to walk a few blocks.  

 

 

Traffic on 8th (and 10th) runs northbound.  (It runs south on 9th.)  And it also runs north on 12th.  But if you want to get dropped off at the Terminal itself, you would not want the cab to go up 12th Ave., because it would likely have to wait a while to take a left turn at 55th Street to then turn into the Terminal complex.  It's much better to go up 10th Avenue and turn left on 55th St. there, so the cab can go straight across 12th Avenue and then into the terminal complex.  

 

But if you just want to get dropped off on 12th Avenue across from the Terminal complex and walk across 12th Avenue to the Terminal, then you want to be dropped off near the pedestrian entrance closest to your ship's pier (which will not be 55th Street).   For Pier 88, get dropped off on 48th Street.  For pier 90, it's 50th Street. 

Enjoy your cruise!

[meadowlander]

Definitely follow Turtle's advice NOT to go up 12th Avenue and to  use 10th Avenue. My first cruise out of MCT, we drove up 12th and as we got closer to terminal the left turn lane did not move. Did not move for so long that we got out of the vehicle and walked to the terminal. Second cruise, went up 10th, cross street, and eventually a left to the terminal with no traffic and no walking.

 

🍑

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, meadowlander said:

Definitely follow Turtle's advice NOT to go up 12th Avenue and to  use 10th Avenue. My first cruise out of MCT, we drove up 12th and as we got closer to terminal the left turn lane did not move. Did not move for so long that we got out of the vehicle and walked to the terminal. Second cruise, went up 10th, cross street, and eventually a left to the terminal with no traffic and no walking.

 

🍑

That's correct if you're expecting to have the taxi take you all the way into the cruise terminal, but reading into the original post I think it's quite likely that the OP will want to be dropped off across the street from the cruise terminal on northbound 12th Ave. to minimize the time spent sitting in traffic and the cost of the taxi ride. If I'm right, 12th Ave. is the way to go, with a drop off at 48th St. for Pier 88 or 50th St. for Pier 90. It's the OP's question "What's the cross street on 12th Ave for the pier so I can judge where we want to get dropped off for the least hassle? " as well as the statement "I'd rather be on foot then dealing with vehicles" that are guiding my thoughts.

Edited November 16, 2019 by njhorseman

[mking8288]

Looks like OP will emark on the Gem next month - only ship at MCT on that Saturday, most likely using Pier 88 ...  As Turtle & NJH already noted, probably plan to get out of the taxi along 12th Avenue near W. 48th Street where there is a taxi stand, then cross the Avenue.   Despite the holidays, Saturday morning across the street at the cruise pier should not be a problem ... unless mother nature wish to dump a major winter storm for a pretty X'mas.  No other ships using the port that day and it's simple enough for 2,500 pax to get off & more to get on (quicker these days for CBP using facial recognition.) 

 

As the taxi head north along 12th Avenue, ships are easily seen & visible on the Hudson River to the left.  Gem almost certain to use Pier 90 on the Dec. 13 sailing but returning, odds are for the ship to be at Pier 88 on Dec. 21.  

[trish1c]

Thanks all.   I have sat in that traffic on 12th ave & don't care to do it again.  DH is saying he wants to take a car service in. . . so we might not be on the train after all.  I'm not too sure about driving in on the last Saturday before Christmas but I would absolutely not have whatever vehicle we're in go too close to the pier because traffic will be a nightmare.   

[idraconis]

I've walk from Penn station to the terminal. It's a nice walk on a nice day, nearly 2 miles. I've taken the A train to 50th street and walk over to the port. However, dragging luggage around town can get old fast. Taxi or car service best bet. Have a great cruise.

[Got2Cruise]

44 minutes ago, trish1c said:

Thanks all.   I have sat in that traffic on 12th ave & don't care to do it again.  DH is saying he wants to take a car service in. . . so we might not be on the train after all.  I'm not too sure about driving in on the last Saturday before Christmas but I would absolutely not have whatever vehicle we're in go too close to the pier because traffic will be a nightmare.   

Traffic near the pier won’t be bad compared to near Rockefeller Center area. If you plan on arriving in am you should be fine. 

[trish1c]

It's Christmas in the City.  Car traffic on the whole island of Manhattan is going to be awful.  I already know that.  We're planning to arrive around 11 a.m., allowing for a 2 hour trip in even though it usually only takes about 1 hour,  which gives us a 3 hour margin of error.   

[mking8288]

Twice on NYC Marathon Sunday, we disembarked from MCT - Breakaway and Escape - and aside from the usual, traffic in front of the cruise terminal and along 12th Avenue moving just fine, no gridlock - until you get close to Times Square, Rockefeller's and Macy's 34th Street corridor ... Broadway & Fifth Avenue (and, 14th Street closed to vehicle traffic 24/7 except for buses) OR must transverse to go across town, west-east direction.  Once the car service driver find his way & picked us up, we zipped north on the Henry Hudson Parkway on a long loop - to get back to Queens (past LGA airport) with no delays getting home.  

 

If you are coming from NJ, plan to leave around 9 am and you should be fine getting there by 10 to 10:15 am - using car service - via either the GW Bridge or Lincoln Tunnel, both route avoid the above gridlock core.  Leaving later for the pier, in our experience, later than 9:30 to 9:45 am - even for us with a short 30 minutes ride from home - take longer & risk running into the usual weekend traffic.  Plus, we try to avoid going across town, even cutting across Central Park via 66th Street is slow with all the traffic lights & foot traffic.  

 

Well, we shall see what happend ourselves directly, embarking the Gem on the 13th and coming back on the 21st ... and we'll both find out how good, smooth and/or bad things turn out.  

[MarkBearSF]

On 11/15/2019 at 2:20 PM, trish1c said:

If we grab a cab on 8th or 9th Avenue behind Penn Station (because I'm not standing in that taxi queue) where is the best place to get dropped off for the port? Which one runs uptown?  I am perfectly happy to walk a few blocks.  

 

You may be interested in a nemonic device I came up with last visit to remember the direction of streets and avenues in Manhattan, (of course there are a few exceptions)  It depends upon some regional clichés...

Think of a US map.  The South is considered to be odder than the more sober North, and the West coast is odder than the East.
Thus... Avenues going South are odd numbers, Northward are even. And Streets heading West are odd numbered, Eastbound are even. 

Edited November 18, 2019 by MarkBearSF