How To Get To JFK Through Mass Transit

When I went to Philly, I used a surprising amount of public transport and that applied to JFK when I went to the airport. The first time I did this I took a cab which made sense because I was with my family so it was less stressful and the $75 flat fare was good value among 4 as compared to what I spent here. Alas, I had little money so I had no choice.

The bus I took from Philly arrived at the NYC Port Authority Bus terminal which conveniently had a subway station under it. From there I got a $3.25 metro ticket and had to figure out how to get past the turnstile with my suitcase. Some helpful commuters opened the disabled gate from the other side, inducing me to commit fare evasion¹. After a short wait, I took the Q train to Jamaica station which is where the Airtrain to JFK is, passing through a churro vendor on the platform whose pastries I graciously denied.

Turns out there’s a Q10 bus which gets you to JFK, but as adventurous as I am I didn’t have that time. I paid $8.25 by card (it’s $11 with cash since you need the transit card) and hopped on the automated train.

This all took an hour and I’d say it’s worth it unless you don’t want the hassle of dragging bangs around not the chaos. Thanks to Urban Caffine for outlining how to do this, though it covers how to come from JFK to Manhattan.