Brooklyn Cruise Terminal to LaGuardia

[mushroom]

It is reasonable to schedule a noon flight out of LGA after my cruise aboard MSC Mereviglia?  I'll be doing self-debarkation.  Will taxis be readily available?  Should I plan to schedule a limo rather than take a taxi?  When I booked my flight I had no idea that GoogleMaps allows an hour or more for this trip. Sure hope I didn't make a mistake🤔

[njhorseman]

34 minutes ago, mushroom said:

It is reasonable to schedule a noon flight out of LGA after my cruise aboard MSC Mereviglia?  I'll be doing self-debarkation.  Will taxis be readily available?  Should I plan to schedule a limo rather than take a taxi?  When I booked my flight I had no idea that GoogleMaps allows an hour or more for this trip. Sure hope I didn't make a mistake🤔

Yes, you can do a noon flight.

You must have looked at Google Maps at a time when traffic was heavy. In "normal" traffic a half hour is more like it. Of course traffic could be heavy when you go...you never know.

My preference would  be to use Uber or Lyft . There were recent reports of taxi drivers ripping off passengers by charging an exorbitant and illegal flat rate. The trips are supposed to be on the meter. 

Car service such as Carmel Limo and Dial 7 are another possibility.

[mushroom]

Thank you.  I did my google research around 5 oclock...rush hour.  I wasn't considering the traffic impact at that time.  You've made me feel much better!

[mjkacmom]

1 hour ago, mushroom said:

Thank you.  I did my google research around 5 oclock...rush hour.  I wasn't considering the traffic impact at that time.  You've made me feel much better!

If it’s a weekday you will be in rush hour as well.

[mushroom]

Thankfully it's a Sunday.

[mking8288]

Traffic is, usually, lighter on a weekend morning from NYC's cruise terminals to nearby airports ... including the busy, summer weeks.  However, one of the reasons that Google recommend and put in 1 hour for travel time from Red Hook, Brooklyn to LGA is - because, there is long term constructions on the primary highway - known as BQE or I-278 that transverse thru Brooklyn to/from Queens, connecting the dots - with 2 highway lanes narrowed & merge into 2 lanes, in both directions of the elevated roadways, due to decades of pounding from heavy truck & commercial/bus traffic on the patched pavements, with the resulting bottleneck.  

 

Even at this hour (8 p.m. Saturday evening) - live "Waze" traffic GPS guidance showing a 40 minutes travel time from the waterfront to LGA's newly expanded central terminal (and, it has been a very short & quick walk to reach most of the airline's gates, after clearing TSA/security checkpoints).  It doesn't take much for traffic to come to a grinding halt with a minor fender bender, let alone a major crash with fatalities that's been known to shut down the highway, sometimes for hours.  Best to leave a little extra time for those unpleasant, unwanted & unexpected surprises - the terminal has free WiFi & numerous food courts, etc. should you get there much sooner than expected ... it's not the old LGA anymore.  

 

Not all "pro" drivers are good in using alternate bypass and/or local streets to cut thru the neighborhoods, along the waterfront (Kent Ave) to jump ahead to re-connect with the BQE, as that's a lot of traffic lights & stop signs ... not to mention, that we are a city full of speed cameras & bike lanes, and 25 mph speed limit on local routes strictly photo-enforced these days, summons by mail. 

 

I would suggest checking the roll calls for updates starting a few weeks before your planned sailings, to see how others ahead did with their ground transportation, taxi & Uber availability and similar encounters, to adjust & finalize your plan.  Perhaps, recalibrate your own walk-off time earlier by 15 to 30 minutes.  Fortune tellers find it uneasy to predict how things might look like next August ... given how the past 3 years had been.  Happy cruising and make the best & most out of it.  

Edited October 23, 2022 by mking8288

[mushroom]

Glad to hear LGA has had a facelift. I appreciate your advice about adjusting my departure from the ship. That's certainly do-able.  Thanks for your feedback. 

[Suncitycruiser1925]

You may be sailing from Manhattan Cruise Terminal, not Brooklyn. To my knowledge, Brooklyn cruise terminal is used by Princess and Cunard Lines (at least currently). I would check to confirm what cruise terminal MSC is using for your sailing.

[njhorseman]

8 hours ago, Suncitycruiser1925 said:

You may be sailing from Manhattan Cruise Terminal, not Brooklyn. To my knowledge, Brooklyn cruise terminal is used by Princess and Cunard Lines (at least currently). I would check to confirm what cruise terminal MSC is using for your sailing.

MSC Meraviglia will be cruising from Brooklyn.

While Cunard and Princess are the primary tenants other cruise lines can sail from Brooklyn on dates when the pier is not otherwise in use.