LIRR to Jamaica Station to JFK

Clean
FAST
and way better than spending $ 60 from apt to JFK!
Recommend!
It also has big windows so you can enjoy the scenery.
–Photo–

Flying out of JFK, this is without a doubt a no-​brainer, especially if you live on the west side of the city and/​or got a flight anytime around rush hour. Used to take the E-​train but after running across these reviews and walking distance to PENN, was hard pressed not to give it a try. And boy oh boy, have I been missing out. For saving on the buckeroos, saving time and the quickest transport outside of a jetpack, hands down, the way to travel: SBWY to PENN/​LIRR to JAMAICA STA/​AIRTRAN to JFK is the only way to go. Pending day/​time, you’ll spend no more than approx. $ 11 – 13 and forgo the amazing Gotham City sightseeing while standstill in traffic. And again pending day/​time, its only 1 – 3 stops on the LIRR to JAMAICA station to transfer to the AIRTRAN to JFK. You owe it to yourself to relieve at least one part of the air travel stress journey and give this a try.

Short of taking a helicopter or using floo powder from the Harry Potter universe, this is the quickest way to get to JFK and the most effective… assuming you live in the West Side of Manhattan or in parts of Brooklyn.
Here’s the deal: take a Long Island Railroad train two/​three stops to Jamaica Station, and then transfer to the Air Train to JFK. That’s it!
If you are at Penn Station and want to know which platform to board from, just go to the Long Island Railroad ticket counters (close to the McDonalds, the only one within Penn Station in fact). There, you will see a huge board listing every station within the system. Simply find «Jamaica,» and the board will tell you which platform the next two trains will leave from and at what time.
I live on the East Side of Manhattan, meaning the 25 minutes it takes me to get to Penn Station diminish the convenience of this route. However, if I lived on the West Side, I’d use this option far more.

This option will save you fifty bucks and speed up your transport, at the risk of tgeir being an issue with the train. I decided to take a chance at the last minute and sub the LI train for a taxi… Taxi was 60. Train combo was 12. Ill be taking the train every time that i fly into jFK going forward!

Que ce soit en partance ou à destination de l’aéroport de Jfk, l’alternative que je préfère pour faire la liaison avec Manhattan est la «Long Island Rail Road (LIRR).
Il faut environ vingt à trente minutes pour joindre les deux bouts. Entre eux dans les deux sens se trouve la Air train, rapide navette à Jamaica Station.
C’est plus rapide et confortable que le métro. Si le ticket de ce dernier est à 2,25 $ contre 7 $ pour LIRR, ça reste une très bonne affaire comparé aux tarifs de transports aussi rapide tel que les taxis et les shuttle (d’autant plus lorsqu’on voyage seul).
Un bon équilibre sur tout les critères à prendre en compte lors d’un voyage.

Is this an absolute no brainer… you can spend $ 40 to grind it out in a cab. You do experience the full glory of NYC traffic
OR
Spend $ 2.75 and take the E train to the second to last stop and then transfer to The SkyTrain for another $ 5. It’s 55 minutes to your terminal
I had to laugh watching all that traffic congestion while perched on top of the Skytrain… as it effortlessly glided to its destination

I took the subway from 53^rd/​Lexington to Jamaica and then the AirTrain. In total it took a little over an hour. I had heard lots of people say not to take the subway to JFK but I honestly had very little complaints! One small mistake on my part was getting on the wrong train but luckily at the next stop I was quickly able to remedy the situation ;) E train to Jamaica is the one you want! Plus for half the $ amount of a shuttle (which also takes an hour) or a fourth of the cost of a taxi I think it’s the way to go!

This is why I fly in and out of JFK-​to take the LIRR! Since I live close to Penn Station, it’s the easiest and quickest way to get to and from JFK-​the city. It’s only $ 4 more than taking the subway, and is only 1 or 2 stops (20 minutes). The train comes VERY often, it’s never packed, and you can use the restroom on the train if you need to (never have!).
Afterwards, you pay $ 5 for the Airtrain. All in all, the ~$ 11 is definitely worth this commute!

LIRR to Jamaica & Airtrain to terminal is the easiest and often the quickest way to JFK. I’ll ponny up extra for LIRR vs. A train, LIRR is a quick 20 – 25 minute non-​stop ride. And during busy rush hour, there’s a lot of frequency to Jamaica. A train is cheaper but takes a longer time.

Honestly, this is «as good as it gets»! I was up in Staten Island for a wedding, the reception was in Brooklyn, my flight was out of JFK at 8:30PM. At first I thought it would be an excellent idea to have my brother drive me from Staten Island to JFK, but as we’re sitting in traffic, reality kicked and I quickly Googled a better alternative. Thank goodness for the members of Unilocal and their wisdom. Please note that I’ve never done public transportation in NYC on my own before, so this was all new to me. I didn’t know what the LIRR was and the only reason why I know where/​what Penn Station was is because that was the stop from Washington DC to Manhattan on Amtrak.
When I got to Penn Station, I had no clue where to purchase the ticket for the LIRR, I didn’t even know I had to purchase a ticket! I purchased something from a machine, turned out I only purchased the subway ticket, not the LIRR ticket. Good thing they sell them on the train. I had to ask a police officer where to go for the LIRR and thank goodness there were signs posted of which LIRR stops at which station, because there were a lot of tracks to choose from.
I saw Jamaica on a sign for track 19, so I took the steps down and got on the train (sans train ticket). The conductor came to me, I explained to him that I don’t know what I’m doing and that I didn’t know I had to purchase a separate LIRR ticket. He said it’s fine and to give him $ 6.75 and we were set. Before I could even nap, we were at Jamaica. Signs for the AirTrain to JFK were everywhere (you can’t possibly get lost!) and the AirTrain approached quickly.
It was the most cost efficient method of getting to JFK and what makes it priceless is the fact that you don’t have to deal with NY traffic!
I would definitely take it again if I ever have to fly to JFK for anything!

I took this route from JFK to Jamaica Station to LIRR. I wanted to try the LIRR instead of taking the subway to Manhattan. The LIRR train ride was quick and someone does come by to punch out your metrocard. It is highly recommended to only have carry on luggage since the train seats are not that wide.
Total Cost from JFK to Manhattan: $ 5 (for Airtrain) + $ 3.75 (LIRR for weekend price) + $ 2.25 (for subway) = $ 11

I just tried the LIRR to JFK (the train stop is Jamaica, where you pick up the airport’s AirTrain) – a great experience, a fast and reliable way to get to JFK from Midtown Manhattan for very little money. I live in Hell’s Kitchen and always took either the A train or the E train to JFK. Never again. The LIRR offers several perks the subway doesn’t.
1. The LIRR runs on time — when the schedule from Penn Station to JFK (well, Jamaica) says 22 minutes it’s correct. Trains leave and arrive on time. Waiting for the A or E train can make you question your sanity for taking it, wondering if you’ll make your flight.
2. Once the LIRR pulls out of Penn, you’re above ground… which means you can use your smart phone all the way to airport if you want to check your email or like to read the news online, which I do. This is impossible on the subway, of course.
3. It’s safe. I traveled with apparent commuters on the LIRR; on the A train I always traveled through no-​so-​great areas and worried about being vulnerable with two small, but heavy bags with me. At 8:30 a.m., when I traveled, I also had plenty of room, a full row to myself and only 8 other people in my car.
Here’s how you do it:
1. Check online before you leave to figure out what time you want to travel and if your ticket is regular or off-​peak. At 8:30 a.m. I discovered I was off-​peak, which meant my ticket was several bucks cheaper than peak: $ 6.25. (
) When you get to Penn Station, you buy your ticket for Jamaica at their vending machine (with credit/​debit card), but now you’ll know whether to buy regular or off-​peak.
2. Look for the large information screens to tell you what gate to go to for your train. If it’s still not clear, there’s an Information room, where I checked and they told me (I was very unfamiliar with LIRR).
3. Once you get to Jamaica, you’ll find a large, clean, well-​maintained hub, which leads you to the airport’s AirTrain (that’s $ 5). The AirTrain is slow, in fact, slower to travel to the various airport terminals than it took the LIRR to get me to Jamaica. But it’s clean, feels safe.
Cost from Penn Station: LIRR — $ 6.25 (off-​peak), plus AirTrain — $ 5.00.
Total time: 52 minutes door-​to-​door (my terminal was the last stop on the AirTrain, so may be shorter time for you).

What a great way of transport to reach JFK. It is fast, realiable, clean, economical ($ 5) and very comfortable. I agree with my fellow Unilocalers it is suited with very less baggage otherwise it would be pretty difficult to make way into the train specially during the peak rush hour.
The ride is pretty fast too, in less than 20 minutes one reaches JFK. The walk from airtrain terminal to respective terminal would be long unless it is jet blue. But the walk seems pretty reasonable considering one would atleast spend close to 50 bucks for the cab ride to JFK.

Seriously one of the quickest ways to get directly to Manhattan from the JFK. Or vice versa. Takes about 15 – 20 minutes!
I wish I knew about this last year when I took the subway to Jamaica station instead. That took foreveerrrrr!
Agree with the other Unilocalers:
Convenient if you packed light aren’t traveling in a big group. You don’t want to squish yourself onto a packed train with tons of luggage. (Also, like in my case, imagine running down stairs and onto a platform with a lot of luggage to catch the LIRR. No bueno!)
When you buy your ticket, check whether it is peak or off-​peak to save yourself some money. (I think $ 6.25 for off-​peak and $ 7.50 for peak)
It’s quicker to just buy the ticket from the machine.
Also, when taking the LIRR during morning rush hour at Penn Station, make sure you get on the right train and it makes a stop at Jamaica station. I was lucky to have spotted a train that said «Jamaica» as it’s end point leaving within the next 5 minutes. It was really confusing looking at the big screen with all the departures and no idea whether all the trains stopped at Jamaica or only some. Give yourself adequate time to if you need to ask questions to make sure you are on the right train. I couldn’t imagine standing in long line to talk to someone at Penn Station during morning rush hour, and still make sure I make to on time to JFK.

$ 5 for a ride to the airport? Shoot, this is much better than paying my $ 50 to cab it from the city. Almost always, I take the LIRR from Penn Station to Jamaica, and then the Air Train from Jamaica to Terminal 7 at JFK.
This is perfect if you’re traveling solo or with just a carry on. It takes about 30 min to get from Penn to Jamaica, and then another 15 to get to your terminal. No traffic, lag, or anything of that sort so what’s to complain about?
If you’re worried about schedule, you can check out the timetable online on their website. Note: Try and leave 2.5 hours before your flight just in case. You might run into the security line from hell at the airport.

This is the ticket. And here’s the TIP: where EVER you enter the transit system, purchase a $ 7.25 card. When you get to Penn Station, just grab your LIRR ticket and chill. When you get to Jamaica Air Train, swipe in with your remaining $ 5. You’re good!
By the way, Jim K. is correct. This is best for solo travelers who have packed light and can handle their own luggage. Don’t bring a lot off CRAP with you, you will NOT be happy.

During rush hour, this maybe the cheapest and most efficient way to get to JFK. Cabs will have to fight traffic and are expensive, while the Subway can be packed with commuters. Not that LIRR doesn’t get the commuters, it’s just not as crazy.

This is the best way to get from JFK to downtown. Wow, how the heck did I not hear about this? I found out about it through Google Maps public transit option. Wow, what a difference from the Subway. It’s a direct route and seats are like leather recliners. It’s friggen awesome.
My only gripe with them is the ticket machines don’t allow you to buy too much of a ticket. I was buying a ticket for off peak times and I didn’t know so I paid a little extra.
Don’t waste your money with the shuttle or subway. Take the LIRR!

Isn’t it enough that I tout this mode of transit to my COO?
Yes. It –is-​, in fact, that fast, that smooth, that comfortable, and that (relatively) convenient for trips to and from JFK. Having subway-​ed it, cabbed it, and LIRRed it, there’s no question in my mind.
There’s just no other way to fly. Err… get to your flight.

This is REALLY the way to go to JFK. I kind of think that this makes going to JFK preferable to even going out of LGA or EWR from a cost perspective. EWR has the NJ Transit thing but those trains run less frequently than those trains from Jamaica to/​from Penn.
LIRR/​AirTrain takes the guilt out of a cheap last minute weekend trip because you’re not adding $ 120 r/​t to your costs.

I’ve been taking LIRR from Jamaica Station to Hicksville for years in my adult life of past times. Passengers are best to purchase their tickets from the vending machines rather than from the ticket booths as MTA employees are notoriously known for shorting change.
Jamaica Station has a new make-​over in recent years as it went from dumpy to somewhat glamourous being a major hub for connections. There are (I believe) about eight tracks with is gargantuan considering this is not the beginning where trains either begin or terminate.
N.B. For passengers to take Air Train from Jamaica Station the fare is $ 5.00. The Air Train was long overdue to connect from Jamaica to JFK airport, but better late than never.