How do I know which airport to choose in NY?

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iceicebaby

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I need to fly to New York to visit my brother who goes to college at Columbia and I'm booking my flight and I don't know if I should chose JFK or Laguardia? I tried calling him but he's not answering his phone. Pls help! Thanks
 
Your best bet is to go with the cheapest flight, all things being equal travel time from the 3 major airports (JFK, LaGuardia or Newark) are within a half hour of each other.
 
JFK has better transportation to and from Manhattan than LaGuardia - unless he plans to pick you up (because LaGuardia is actually marginally closer to Manhattan if you're driving), it would be better to fly into JFK, take the airtrain and whichever train connects to your brother's place (which is probably the E train to the 1 train, if he lives close to Columbia Univ.). LaGuardia connects to the 7 train, but you have about a half hour walk (or you can take a cab) to the Junction Blvd. station.
 
If there's a big difference in fares and time convenience, take whichever one of the three - LGA, JFK, or EWR (Newark-Liberty) that gives you the best deal and time.If it's virtually a tie, I'd say use JFK for its convenience. The $5 AirTrain, built for air travelers, will get you to Jamaica. There, you can get the $2 subway, or the Long Island Rail Road (fares vary based on time of day/day of week).On the subway, you can get a Manhattan-bound E train, and transfer to an uptown 1 train at 42nd Street. Take that to Columbia (or get an uptown 2/3 express, transfer at 96th, then get the 1 to finish the trip).On the LIRR, you can get to Penn Station and then get the uptown 1 (or 2/3 to 96th then the 1).But if you can get a steeply lower fare to LGA, it might be worth it to go there and just take a cab or the M60 bus and a transfer to the subway to get to Columbia.Newark is also convenient, with its AirTrain and connections to rail lines to Penn Station.Once you figure out your options, we can give you suggestions and specifics.
 
I find LaGuardia is easier to get into town from - the cab ride is cheaper. Some people go to Newark though, because the flights are cheaper.If you fly jetBlue, they only land at JFK, but their cheap flights might make it worth it.
 
The easiest thing to do is to type in NYC into the destination on any online travel search and they will give you best matches from all 3 NY area airports.
 
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