Planning a trip to New York
- Thread starter Daniel
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- new york city
Hi Dan,
My suggestion is that you pick up Route 91 South at the tip of Vermont. This will take you all the way down to about 75 miles from NYC. It's the best way from Montreal. The ride through Vermont and half-way through Massachusetts will be a relaxing drive. Traffic picks up around Holyoke, MA and thereafter. Tolls don't start until you get to the south side of Connecticut. Route 91 south turns into Route 95 once you get near the New York State line. From there, you will end up in a maze of exits, depending where you want to go. Rt. 495 takes you through the Lincoln Tunnel right into the heart of the City. (Manhattan)
I have a few suggestions for you...
1. If you have EZ-Pass (direct toll billing) put it in your vehicle. This will save a huge hassle at the tolls, and there are plenty. Some kinda pricey. Some bridges charge tolls in only one direction. Others, both.
2. If you do not have an EZ-Pass device, plan on about $50 in USD for the tolls. (both ways) If you blow through a toll, no worries, they will bill you. My daughter (who lives there) says they are direct billing at a lot of Toll plaza's now.
3. A good GPS is definitely your friend in NYC. Even the locals get lost... Sometimes your GPS get's lost too! Ha! Blame it on the tall buildings...
4. Never double park. It gets really expensive if you do that. Parking is expensive enough.
5. Make sure the vehicle you take is in top shape. The roads in NYC can be pretty rough in places. Be sure your spare tire is good.
Outside of that, have a good time
Regards, Bob
My suggestion is that you pick up Route 91 South at the tip of Vermont. This will take you all the way down to about 75 miles from NYC. It's the best way from Montreal. The ride through Vermont and half-way through Massachusetts will be a relaxing drive. Traffic picks up around Holyoke, MA and thereafter. Tolls don't start until you get to the south side of Connecticut. Route 91 south turns into Route 95 once you get near the New York State line. From there, you will end up in a maze of exits, depending where you want to go. Rt. 495 takes you through the Lincoln Tunnel right into the heart of the City. (Manhattan)
I have a few suggestions for you...
1. If you have EZ-Pass (direct toll billing) put it in your vehicle. This will save a huge hassle at the tolls, and there are plenty. Some kinda pricey. Some bridges charge tolls in only one direction. Others, both.
2. If you do not have an EZ-Pass device, plan on about $50 in USD for the tolls. (both ways) If you blow through a toll, no worries, they will bill you. My daughter (who lives there) says they are direct billing at a lot of Toll plaza's now.
3. A good GPS is definitely your friend in NYC. Even the locals get lost... Sometimes your GPS get's lost too! Ha! Blame it on the tall buildings...
4. Never double park. It gets really expensive if you do that. Parking is expensive enough.
5. Make sure the vehicle you take is in top shape. The roads in NYC can be pretty rough in places. Be sure your spare tire is good.
Outside of that, have a good time
Regards, Bob
kmead
Old enough to know better
Alternatively, you could take 87 from the border at Champlain and head south through Albany and down to the city from there. Stop at Saratoga and that vicinity.
Personally I would keep your X’s out of the city and take the train in from somewhere outside. Driving in NYC is thankless enough much less in a small low car.
You might consider going down 22 which starts at the border with side trips into western Mass and western Connecticut, there are some great driving roads through there. My parents used to take that route to Lake Champlain and the ferries to VT from Connecticut. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_State_Route_22
If you are interested in scenic and fun, if from Montreal 89 south to rte 100 or from farther east then 100 from Newport all the way across Vermont and then take 125 or 73 over one of the “gaps” in the green mountains through Shoreham to Ticonderoga and then over to NY state taking 8 or 9 to the 87 and down to the cities. Some great twisty roads on those routes with nice elevation change. There is much more like that, it just comes down to what you are interested in seeing and doing.
I grew up in Vermont and learned to drive on those roads in my first cars amongst which was an X. It really liked the gaps in Vermont, they can really give an X and its driver a workout if you want or a nice cruise if that’s more the desired style.
Karl
Personally I would keep your X’s out of the city and take the train in from somewhere outside. Driving in NYC is thankless enough much less in a small low car.
You might consider going down 22 which starts at the border with side trips into western Mass and western Connecticut, there are some great driving roads through there. My parents used to take that route to Lake Champlain and the ferries to VT from Connecticut. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_State_Route_22
If you are interested in scenic and fun, if from Montreal 89 south to rte 100 or from farther east then 100 from Newport all the way across Vermont and then take 125 or 73 over one of the “gaps” in the green mountains through Shoreham to Ticonderoga and then over to NY state taking 8 or 9 to the 87 and down to the cities. Some great twisty roads on those routes with nice elevation change. There is much more like that, it just comes down to what you are interested in seeing and doing.
I grew up in Vermont and learned to drive on those roads in my first cars amongst which was an X. It really liked the gaps in Vermont, they can really give an X and its driver a workout if you want or a nice cruise if that’s more the desired style.
Karl
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toddr124
Hagerstown, MD
Stay out side the city and take the train in. There is no reason to drive X1/9s in the city. Traffic is terrible and parking is worse. Pick the worse traffic city in Canada and multiply by 10. GPS do not work well because of the buildings.
Better yet stop in Buffalo. Buffalo is bad but a dream compared to NYC.
Better yet stop in Buffalo. Buffalo is bad but a dream compared to NYC.
Paul Stoltze
True Classic
I think a tour through NYC could be really fun, but it would take a lot of planning. Sunday mornings are relatively quiet in the city. Some roads are bad, but there are nice scenic routes along the river fronts, and nice routes through Central Park, Broadway, and Fifth Avenue. Don't expect to stop and see the attractions with on your tour though. It would be best to find a hotel outside the city with Metro (subway) access so you could also visit NYC attractions without your car. I would recommend looking around Yonkers, which is at the northern edge of the Metro lines. There have been some good suggestions on scenic roads on the way from Montreal to NYC. Lots of beautiful areas on Route 7 from Vermont through Connecticut, but it would be a very slow route.
Paul
Paul
lookforjoe
True Classic
The Harrimans have beautiful scenic drives, just not on a weekday. Traffic is bad as many are used as cut-throughs.
I'm with the others, don't take the X's anywhere NEAR the NYC roadways. Even the West & Eastside drives have BAD humps/dips/potholes that will KILL your suspension if you are unlucky enough to hit one. Would be serious PITA to fix/tow/repair an X in Manhattan or vicinity.
I NEVER take my X1/9 to the city, heck, I don't take my lowered Volvo C30 either. Only car we drive in is the Fiat 500
If you do take them into Manhattan, pre-arrange with a parking garage in the vicinity you are planning to visit, worth the $25-35 weekend day rate. IMO Street parking is for beaters/DD that you either don't care about or have no practical choice in the matter.
I'm with the others, don't take the X's anywhere NEAR the NYC roadways. Even the West & Eastside drives have BAD humps/dips/potholes that will KILL your suspension if you are unlucky enough to hit one. Would be serious PITA to fix/tow/repair an X in Manhattan or vicinity.
I NEVER take my X1/9 to the city, heck, I don't take my lowered Volvo C30 either. Only car we drive in is the Fiat 500
If you do take them into Manhattan, pre-arrange with a parking garage in the vicinity you are planning to visit, worth the $25-35 weekend day rate. IMO Street parking is for beaters/DD that you either don't care about or have no practical choice in the matter.
kmead
Old enough to know better
Route 100 can be a pretty fast route, as recently as last summer I was able to easily push 70mph along it between the little villages. The gaps over the mountain ridges are not as fast due to the number of low speed turns but its why one goes on them.
I would avoid 7 as it has been ruined (straightened) and its generally a truck route for the west side of the state running from Burlington to Bennington. Better to cross over it and use some of the many other marvelous routes across the state.
Have a great time.
I would avoid 7 as it has been ruined (straightened) and its generally a truck route for the west side of the state running from Burlington to Bennington. Better to cross over it and use some of the many other marvelous routes across the state.
Have a great time.
RobM
True Classic
I live 37 miles west of NYC. The city is an awful place for a car, never mind a small, vintage Italian one. Don't drive your Xs into NYC. There are plenty of Park and Ride locations (commuter bus or train) in the suburbs which would be a better way to visit NYC. Connecticut Route 7 is a nice driving road from Lakeville (home of Lime Rock Park - Road Racing Center of the East) south to Danbury. There's a great stretch of road called the Hawk's Nest, just north of High Point, New Jersey. It has been used for many car commercials (switchbacks alongside the Delaware River). Many local, country roads to take from there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawk's_Nest,_New_York
Keep us updated on your plans. I'm sure myself and others from the Fiat Club Northern NJ Chapter would love to join you when you get close to New Jersey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawk's_Nest,_New_York
Keep us updated on your plans. I'm sure myself and others from the Fiat Club Northern NJ Chapter would love to join you when you get close to New Jersey.
I'm 5 miles west of Staten Island. I've driven my X into the city twice. MR2 many, many times (because it's my daily). Having a small car in my opinion is a huge advantage for city driving - let's you squeeze through tight spaces, aids in avoiding fender benders, and significantly reduces the likelihood of getting ticketed for blocking the box in grid locked traffic.
However, I wouldn't drive a car you particularly care about into Manhattan unless you know exactly what you are getting into and are very experienced with dense city driving, and have an acceptable parking spot planned out in advanced.
Street parking will absolutely be playing Russian roulette with bumper dings. Garage parking will be trusting someone whose never driven an X and likely has limited manual experience to park your car for you.
However, I wouldn't drive a car you particularly care about into Manhattan unless you know exactly what you are getting into and are very experienced with dense city driving, and have an acceptable parking spot planned out in advanced.
Street parking will absolutely be playing Russian roulette with bumper dings. Garage parking will be trusting someone whose never driven an X and likely has limited manual experience to park your car for you.
