Traveling between New York and Boston brings a lot of travel options, which is a rare luxury in the United States. Passengers can choose to drive, take the bus, take Amtrak, or fly.
I travel between the two cities many times throughout the year, and I primarily take Amtrak or an airline. In fact, I’m nearly at a perfect 50/50 split between the train and the plane so far this year, with a few bus trips sprinkled in here and there.
I mostly decide based on cost, as both options tend to have a vast schedule throughout the day. Sometimes Amtrak is cheaper, and sometimes American Airlines is cheaper (accounting for cost to and from the station/airport in both cases). I tend to decide on the spot during booking.
So what about speed? Well, I want to account for the time it takes door to door, as LaGuardia, South Station, and others aren’t my final destination. For reference, my New York residence is located on the east side of Manhattan, while my Boston destination is located about 10 minutes on the subway from South Station.
My Fastest Trip Belongs to the Plane
Door to door, my personal best belongs to the plane on a trip I made in December of last year. Flying from Boston to LaGuardia, I was able to complete the trip in 3 hours and 46 minutes.
A few things made this possible. First, I got to the airport about 75 minutes before departure on this day. The late(ish) arrival time isn’t a problem with TSA PreCheck, and Boston Logan Airport has small terminals that I can navigate the gates quickly (I’d be a little more nervous if I were flying out of JFK’s Terminal 4).
Secondly, LaGuardia to the east side of Manhattan is quite quick as long as I don’t hit any traffic on the Q70 bus to Jackson Heights. From there, it’s about 10 minutes on the Queens Boulevard express train to Lexington Ave 53st Station (I take the E).
Thirdly, I took an Uber this day to Boston Logan Airport, which is much faster than navigating the MBTA.
All of this was during the morning hours, which is when I almost always travel.
Related: How to Take the Q70 Bus and the Subway From LaGuardia Airport to Manhattan
The Benefits of Amtrak
3 hours 46 minutes door to door is hard to beat with Amtrak. After all, the fast Acela trip between Penn Station and South Station takes about that long. However, it’s not like it’s a huge time saver taking the plane, either.
Nearly everything has to go right for me for the fastest plane trips door to door, with no boarding delays, no taxiway congestion, and smooth connections onto the Q70 bus and the Subway. With Amtrak, there are fewer of these conflict points.
Additionally, I’d prefer to take Amtrak for a couple of more reasons:
- I can work. I’m mostly on the move when I fly, since the actual flight time is so short. I can’t sit at my computer when I have to go through TSA, find my gate, or even during the flight itself (again, since the flight is so short).
- The Acela is generally the most reliable option. New York City airports are extremely prone to delays, and in the case of poor weather, operational delays in other parts of the country can and will delay my flight. That’s not to say that the Acela never has delays, but it’s the most reliable when it’s all said and done. Additionally, the Acela gets priority in the event of a delay.
To summarize, flying has the edge for my door-to-door trips in terms of pure speed, but can sometimes take longer than the Acela in the event of delays.
Bottom Line
Both options have their pros and cons. Delays are difficult to predict, and there are better travel days than others. Overall though, I feel like I’ve been able to maximize my productivity and time on the ground with my many trips.
At the end of the day, I’m glad to have the luxury of being able to choose between the train, plane, and bus when I travel between the two cities.
All photos taken by the author.
