Best way to travel between NYC and Boston?

We live in NYC and travel to Boston a couple of times a year. We use Greyhound or Peter Pan out of Port Authority Bus Terminal. Much nicer than the Chinatown buses and not much more expensive. It usually takes us about 4 1/2 hours.

By the time you drive, and park and wait for the train etc. it is probably not going to save you that much time and will certainly cost you more money.

PS-My wife wants to move to Boston, but I tell her she is not ready for the winter there.

Amtrak's definitely the nicest way but unfortunately it's fairly expensive. Driving to Stamford is an OK option bu in the long run it may not be a better option than Amtrak, if it's just one person traveling especially. (Like if there were 2 people traveling you'd have to buy 2 Amtrak tickets, but the cost of driving - gas, tolls, parking in Stamford, etc. would be pretty much the same, you'd only need the extra commuter rail ticket from Stamford-NYC). If you're going to drive, then parking in Stamford and taking the commuter train into NYC is absolutely the way to go - way easier and cheaper than driving and parking in Manhattan. If you travel down to NYC frequently you could try it once and see if it's worth it in the long run. So I would say it might be a little bit cheaper than Amtrak, if you're going by yourself, but also might not save you any time and it's not as pleasant as Amtrak. (Plus if you take Amtrak you can read, do work, sleep, etc... all things that you can't do if you're driving). Also - if you ever do take Amtrak - taking the Acela to NYC isn't worth the extra cost, the trains aren't THAT much nicer and it doesn't save enough time to justify the significantly higher fare. The regional trains are still fun, hehe.

Driving to Stamford? Heck, you might as well drive right into NYC if you are going that far. From Framingham (Logan Express area), you can take a limo to NYC. It runs daily for $85...never used it.

As native NY'er, I can assure you that on Memorial Day weekend, you will hit a boat-load of traffic, especially on certain arteries between BOS & NY. If you leave at the wrong time, it will take you over 6 hours to get to NY by car/commuter rail. I say take Amtrak's Xcela Express and pay the money.

If you must drive, avoid I-95 and I-84. Instead, take the Mass Pike to the NY Thruway, and go south. At Exit 17 (Newburgh), you can get onto I-84 EAST. Go over the Hudson River and exit at 11 (Beacon). There is a Metro North Rail station there which has easy parking options (some spaces are free off street). It is about 45 minutes to the city from that station. Total trip should be no longer than 4 1/2 hours. You shouldn't be stuck in any major traffic going that way.

Good luck.

My recommendation would be to invest in either a treo with google maps or get a GPS with traffic info. You can then choose where to stop on the way down to hop on a train.

My personal favorite is always Stamford because the parking is safe and there are a few trains (Amtrak and regional) that go through there.

the only toll between Boston and Stamford is on the mass pike. I don't take 95 all the way when I drive.

Usually form Boston to NY mass pike(90) west to 84 to 91 south to 95 south the Stanford metro north station is right off 95

I travel between NYC and Boston every 2-3 months. I always take the Greyhound bus--it's definitely nicer than the Chinatown bus. If you take a direct bus (no stops) it's usually around 4 hours and costs $45 round trip.

Good luck!

We took the train from Katonah a couple of times and Irvington before that, but it seems that Irvington is the place to go once again (now that no more temp permits are allowed in Katonah).

Irvington is especially good since you can transfer to the subway at Marble Hill, allowing you to get right into NYC without having to go to Grand Central.

Total time was 4 hours into NYC

Peter Pan or Bonanza Bus Lines

Take Amtrak and aviod the tolls, traffic, and parking.

most likley the subway