see also:

• travel for international conferences - visas and travel authorisations
• events and conferences relevant to ED professionals
• travelling to Canada for conferences
• travel insurance

• as for all travel to USA, you will need a travel visa - see travel for international conferences - visas and travel authorisations

• transfers to Manhattan:
  • rail transfers and other modes
  • avoid the MTA metro trains unless you travel in daylight hours with only a single luggage bag, no young kids, and you catch the new AirTrain (change trains at Jamaica Station - eg Long Island Rail Road (LRR) takes you to Penn Station, or you can catch a cheaper subway E train which take you to Midtown and then to Penn Station)
  • catch a taxi (takes 45-60min - longer in peak hour) - flat rate $45 plus ~$6 tolls plus after 4pm peak or night surcharge $1, plus 15-20% cabbie tip
  • Private car and limousine companies provide convenient 24-hour door-to-door airport transfers for roughly the same cost of a taxi.
  • a shuttle bus service at ~$15 one way may be the best option for many but you may need to pre-book to get transfer to your hotel door

• most flights land in Los Angeles first where you will need to collect baggage, go through customs, security before going to next flight.
• Qantas have a new flight Sydney-Dallas as of May 2011.
• Customers travelling to the US may purchase duty free after Immigration and the primary screening point, provided it is delivered by the Duty Free concessionaire/Qantas Group representative to the aerobridge (post gate security). Customers transiting through Auckland en route to the US, however, should not purchase duty free in Australia. Duty free purchases must be made at Auckland Airport transit area or inflight from Auckland to Los Angeles.
• Customers travelling to the US with connecting flights are advised that any duty free purchased inflight must be placed in your checked baggage after clearing Customs and Immigration. If this is not possible, do not buy duty free goods on board. Any purchases made on board and carried in hand baggage will be confiscated at transfer points.

• ~20% more expensive than Virgin's V-Australia
• if travelling to NY from Melbourne, less stopover time in LA so can be a bit rushed to get through customs for next flight to NY, but this means you get to NY about 6pm instead of 10pm as on V-America.
• In addition to Qantas Club lounges, you can relax in British Airways lounges (Terraces and Executive Club lounges) and American Airlines® Admirals Club lounges. To access a partner airline lounge, present your Qantas Club card or Platinum or Gold Frequent Flyer card at check-in and again with your boarding pass at the lounge reception. You may also invite a guest. If you do not have these cards or are not flying Business class then you do not have access to Qantas lounges or the partner lounges.
• International Economy:
  • 17.5“ wide seats, 31” seat pitch (? leg room), 6“ recline, USB recharge for devices, meals included, 23kg checked baggage included, 6.4” screen
• International Premium Economy:
  • ~?% more expensive than economy
  • as for economy but seats 38-40“ seat pitch (? legroom), 9” recline, 19.5“ wide seat, a welcome glass of wine, noise-cancelling headsets, workstation with laptop power, 8.4” screen, premium menu, additional hand luggage allowance, priority check-in
• International Business:
  • ~? the price of Premium Economy
  • as for premium but, SkyBed seat converts to bed, ?“ leg room, built-in massage, 10.4” screen, doonas, amenity kits, priority check-in, etc, Qantas lounge access including 1 guest, Qantas partner airline lounge access including 1 guest, 69kg checked baggage, refundable flights.

• check V-Australia website for bookings and updates to the following info which was valid in 2011
• International Economy:
  • 32“ leg room, 6” recline, USB recharge for devices, seat-to-seat chat, meals included, 23kg checked baggage included
• International Premium Economy:
  • ~35% more expensive than economy
  • as for economy but leather seats, 38“ legroom, 9” recline, a welcome glass of wine, noise-cancelling headsets, workstation with laptop power, 10.6“ screen, access to the bar, premium menu with dessert liqueur, email and SMS connectivity. Access to Virgin Blue domestic “The Lounge”.
• International Business:
  • ~double the price of Premium Economy
  • as for premium but, seat converts to 6'2” bed, 77“ leg room, built-in massage, 12” screen, doonas, PJ's, amenity kits, priority check-in, etc, V-Australia lounge access including 1 guest, partner airline lounge access but not for guests, 69kg checked baggage, refundable flights.

• via New Zealand

• Amtrak train schedules

• these trains leave from Penn Station in New York (located at 32nd St - 10 blocks from Times Square) - you may need to catch a subway Metro train to get to it - eg. Seventh Avenue trains will get you to nearby Times Square and those along Broadway, but you will need to catch a 2nd subway train to get you from Times Square to Grand Central Station
• the minimum seat class on the Acela Express is Business Class.
• Niagara Falls:
  • 7hr 20min train trip on the Empire train service - departs from Penn Station NOT Grand Central Station!
  • you will need travel documentation to cross the US-Canada border to get to Niagara Falls station but you can get off at Buffalo station on the US side and view the falls from that side.
  • some trains continue on to Toronto (an additional 4 hour train ride from Niagara Falls)
• Boston:
  • 3hr 40min train trip on the Acela Express departs from Penn Station NOT Grand Central Station! arrives at South Station, Boston, includes free WiFi, costs ~$99 one way business class
  • the slower North-East Regional train will take 5hr 25min and costs ~$49 one way
  • flights take ~1hr 20min and will cost ~$US120 one way
• Washington D.C.:
  • 2hr 50min train trip on the Acela Express departs from Penn Station NOT Grand Central Station! includes free WiFi costs ~$162 business class one way depending on time of day.
    • stops at Philadelphia which is 1hr 12min from NY, and Baltimore
  • the slower North-East Regional train will take 3hr 50min and costs $49 one way ($36 if just go to Philadelphia which is 1.5hrs trip), and the Vermonter train takes 3hr 15min and costs $49 one way.

• Playbill tickets for Broadway and off-Broadway plays, theatre, etc
  • New York Pass gives you 10% discount on theatre tickets via Applause ticketing
• American Museum of Natural History Central Park West 79th Street; Open 7 days a week except holidays;
• The MET - The Metropolitan Museum of Art Fifth Ave 82nd Street - Rembrandt, Vermeer, Degas, Van Gogh, and Matisse and much more. Closed Mondays!
• MOMA - Museum of Modern Art 11 West 53rd Street (between 5th/6th Avenues) Closed Tuesdays!
• Guggenheim Museum 1071 Fifth Avenue (at 89th Street); Closed Thursdays!
• The Cloisters Museum and Gardens - sculptures, tapestries Fort Tryon Park; Closed Mondays.
• Empire State Building Observation Deck 8am-2am and the New York SkyRide movie
• Statue of Liberty ferry
• Circle Line sight seeing cruise Pier 83, West 42nd Street at 12th Avenue
• Bloomingdales department store 1000 Third Avenue (between 59th/60th Streets)
• Century 21 Department Store 22 Cortlandt Street (between Church and Broadway)
• BH Photo video store 34th Street at Ninth Avenue; Closed friday afternoon/evening and Saturdays.
• Macy's department store 151 West 34th Street (between Broadway & 7th Avenue)
• Top of the Rockefeller building views
• Day return flight to Niagara Falls ~$US520pp includes ferry ride at base of falls

• $36 each way taking 1.5hrs from NY's Penn Station, arriving in 30th St Station in Philadelphia
• Philadelphia Museum of Art 25min walk from train station