New York Travel Tip: Metro Pass!

Well, our team is back from the big cities, Washington D.C. and Manhattan. We have toured until our feet hurt, thrilled to the amazing sights and sounds, and cried at the inspiration surrounding historical sites, at the beauty of D.C., the dream come true of seeing New York City for ourselves, and the powerful tribute given by our guide at the World Trade Center construction site. We’re spent.

But we have a boatload of info and tips to help us serve our groups better. And I’m starting with this one: Public Transportation Rocks.

Often for student tours, it’s customary to rent a motorcoach to reach the destination. And we’d recommend hanging onto that convenience for Washington D.C., especially if you stay at a hotel a little outside the city. The attractions are sometimes a good distance from each other in this area, and it helps to have transportation between them that keeps the group together.

However, after about five minutes in New York City, as our bus sat trapped between double-parked vehicles on either side and a kind passerby attempted to wave us through one half-inch forward and one inch back at a time, we knew motorcoach simply isn’t the way to go in Manhattan. Shortly after checking into our hotel, we walked one block to a subway station, made it onto the train and to our destination with zero hassle and a grateful heart for the wonderful inventors of the metro.

Our expert guides agreed that Metro is the way to go for group travel tours. As the seven of us and our guide squished onto a crowded subway car one afternoon, I wasn’t so sure about the merit of the metro for very large groups. But our guide disagreed. It’s still the way to go. As long as you organize, have enough chaperones, and communicate clearly about the each stop, groups can navigate the subway system just as easily as an individual.

So that’s my first tip. Grab yourself an any-time metro pass, learn the trick of not pulling the wrong side of the entry gate, and take full advantage of this amazingly cost-effective and convenient mode of transportation in the amazing city of New York.

Related posts:

1. The Metro for NYC Groups
2. Tips for First-Time New York City Tours
3. New York City Colleges
4. Group Travel: Some Help with the Follow-Through
5. Only Two Days in New York City?