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Fortunately, a little overlooked perk of living next to New York Hospital is that you live extremely close to the Delta Water Shuttle, which runs on weekdays only. 1-800-54-SHUTTLE for the schedule, which runs only on weekdays and with a margin around business hours (e.g. 6am - 7pm), and is synchronized with the air shuttle's schedule. It stops on the East River at about 64th street -- take the pedestrian bridge over FDR to get there. Round trip is $25, one-way is $15 -- and it's the absolute fastest way to get to the Delta Shuttle terminal, hands down, with no traffic to ever worry about regardless of the time of day. The only bad part is that this is typically a good option only for those flying on the Delta Shuttle to D.C. or Boston -- it drops you off at the Marine Air Terminal, which is way separate from the main terminal(s).
Another way to get to and from La Guardia is the Airport Express, at least that's what I think it's called. For your purposes, it runs from La Guardia to Grand Central (42nd St. on subway line 6) and back at $10 for a one-way ticket, possibly less for a round trip although I've never tried it. Technically, you can go to Penn Station as well, although there's no reason if you're just trying to leave Cornell. The shuttle bus is invariably crowded, because as you imagine, they try to make as much money as they can off the operation. Still, it's fast -- they took the Queensboro bridge the times I've taken it -- and can be caught without a reservation beforehand, as long as you don't mind waiting anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes at the airport. Of course, a schedule is available -- I've just never bothered to look it up.
Now, if you want to go really cheap and see how far $1.50 goes, you can actually do it. Take the M15 bus up 1st Ave. as far as it will go, up on the edge of Harlem around 125th St. There, you need to transfer to the M60 (or whatever the number is -- you'll see it), which goes to the airport. Total ride time can be anywhere from 1 hour to 2.5 hours, depending on traffic, so be prepared to pay in time for your savings in money. Plus, you have to wait for the bus, which can be infrequent when you need it the most. Same thing goes for the return trip -- just remember to transfer at 125th. Cheap and slow, but sometimes alright if you have time to spare and you're travelling on the weekend and at non-peak hours.
Now, the easiest and most cost-efficient way to get to the airport is splitting a taxi. It'll run you about $25 total, plus tolls, which works out to less than $10 a person if you can round up just two other people to take the taxi with you. Door-to-door service -- but don't get conned by the taxi driver at the airport. If you drop someone off at one terminal and continue to another one, remember, that's a whole new trip, and the fare starts over from the base fee -- and often negates any cost savings of sharing a taxi ride, especially after the taxi driver realizes he can dupe you.
There's also the SuperShuttle, the blue van that you have to call ahead to reserve to get both to and from the airport. It's actually a good deal -- a few more minutes than a taxi, but generally clocking in at less than $17 or so, and still door-to-door. A pretty good value, even more so if the van has only two or three other people to drop off or pick up.
And, you can try a car service, like Carmel or whatever. 777-7777 is the notorious number of another one. These services charge a flat fee for transfer to and from an airport, priced from $20-$25. Not sure if you can split the ride like a taxi, but it sure seems like a possibility. If you do decide to go with the car service, make sure you think about using one of the coupons in the phone book, which can save you anywhere from $2 to $5 off the ride, depending on the service.
Although I'm not an expert, I think I've tried most of the options. Here's what I think.
If you're 24 and under, this is definitely the way to go. For about $250 including taxes, you can get a pack of four one-way tickets on the Delta Shuttle (the tickets work for the US Air Shuttle as well.) If you've got more travel planned for Boston, then get the 8-pack which is priced at about $440, taxes included, which works out roughly to $55 a ticket. These tickets are good for the "off-hours", although the shuttle is usually never full, so, unless there's some unusual glut of business folk travelling that day, if you go to the counter with your ticket and standby, you'll always get on. The Delta Shuttle is so fast that you wind up spending more time getting to and from the airports than you actually spend in the air. For instance, by the time "cruising altitude" is reached, the pilot clicks on the intercom to announce that they're beginning the landing approach. The flight attendants have barely enough time to give you a drink and a little snack basket or bag, which is usually decent although nothing to write home about. Other perks include a slew free magazines and newspapers in a big long rack at both the La Guardia and Logan airport terminals. Add that with the attitude toward quality service by nearly everyone working for the Shuttle, and you've got a winning combination, which can be worth the money.
That being said, it does cost money and time to get to La Guardia in the first place. Boston, is fortunate, where if you're staying anywhere around the city, you can get to and from the airport for 85 cents by the T, the subway. At Logan airport, an airport bus that goes around the terminals takes you from the airport T stop to the terminals and back. Getting to and from the airport in New York, on the other hand, can be hellish (see above).
Amtrak is rolling out a new 3-hour train ride between Boston and New York, probably priced around $150 or so. My guess is that if you get creative with student IDs and the Student Advantage Card program, you might get a discount on certain off-peak trains. The real compelling argument to take the train is that it comes close to the time it takes to take a plane to Boston, when you account for travel time and expense to and from airports. In contrast, for Amtrak, all you have to do is hop on the Subway down to Penn Station in New York or South Station in Bostn, and you're set, bringing your total door-to-door time to something like 4 hours.
If you already have a car, obviously this is the cheapest way to go. Drive time is about 5 hours, less if you speed (which everyone does), bordering on 4 hours if you live dangerously and have a radar detector. Be sure to fill your gas tank before you leave, or else fill it up early along the way, because there are some weird stretches along the Mass. Turnpike where you can go for dozens of miles (i.e. gallons of gas) without a gas station in sight.
RENTING A CAR AROUND CORNELL MED
Now, if you want to *rent* a car, then that's a different matter (at least, besides the part about the gas). There are some good deals to be had -- but only if you're over 25 years old, and renting outside of New York City. And even then, you'll have to pay tolls if you want to get back into the City to pick up any friends, offsetting the savings. My suggestion: save the headache, suck it up, and just pay the extra cash to rent from Avis down on E.62nd or so (look it up yourself in the phone book). I mean, sure, call ahead first, but realize that it's pretty much the closest reputable national rental agency, and there's a lot to be said for convenience.
Cheap and slow, but who cares. For $40-$50 or so, you can get a roundtrip ticket between New York and Boston. Peter Pan is cheap, and offers dumb movies on their buses too. Personally, I can't stand the things, though -- and if you're claustrophobic, too, or also have a propensity to car sickness, obviously avoid this option. But try this for a cheap ride if you don't mind the 5 hour drive (they spend about 1 hour just navigating through traffic in Manhattan -- really).
This can actually be done, but is usually for charity (e.g. Boston-New York AIDS Ride), and not for practical travel purposes.
(Your mileage may vary. The contributors, editors, and owners of this site are not responsible or liable for any damages or losses incurred as a result of anything published on this site. Hello, meet our lawyers.)