I pass through Penn Station whenever I take the LIRR. The LIRR Concourse in Penn Station looks…read morelike the terminal building of an airport because of the numerous digital departure boards, fast food restaurants and specialty shops, but unlike an airport, the Concourse has a limited number of open public seating and moving walkways. Penn Station was renovated to look like a luxury mall. I was impressed to see a boutique liquor store. It is called Penn Cellars, and they sell my favorite sparkling rosé--Hampton Water (by Jon Bon Jovi and Son)--refrigerated and at room temperature. The Concourse also has a boutique nail spa, a bagel cafe, a speciality chocolate shop and more. All that is nice, but there needs to be better operational integration. There ought to be moving walkways to transport passengers from the LIRR to the subway, buses, AMTRAK, and NJ Transit. I get out of breath sometimes, walking to where I need to go. Also, it would be nice to have staff guide and assist passengers to their connections, especially individuals with disabilities and heavy luggage. Penn Station will be undergoing a multibillion dollar renovation starting in 2027. I hope that the architects design a station that is more functional and efficient. Until that is done, Penn Station is basically a mediocre station for commuters.

Celebrating its 115th birthday this year, Penn Station is decidedly not new--pan to the sections…read morethat look straight outta the late 60s--but to look on the brighter side at least part of the station looks better as of 2021! A welcome update if you ask most New Yorkers. Most recently renovated in 2020 to expand into the Farley Post Office building, this extensive transportation hub is situated between 7th and 9th Avenues, between 31st and 33rd Streets. To understand a little more on how this landmark fell from the general public's graces I delved into Penn's history: - built in 1910 to support the ambitious project led by Alexander Cassatt of the Pennsylvania Railroad company to connect Manhattan via under river tunnel to the vast railway network along the East Coast and Midwest. - designed by architect Charles McKim, the original structure was an immense Greco-Roman masterpiece modeled after St Peter's Basilica in Rome, with Doric columns wrapping around two city blocks, vaulted ceilings, a soaring glass dome, shopping arcade, mezzanines and massive waiting rooms with murals, friezes and sculptures. - peaked in 1945 at over 100 million annual passengers but but declined in volume and revenue through 1963 due to increases in automobile, airline and other public transit options, leading to the 1954 selling of air rights to sections above ground to Madison Square Garden. - demolished in 1963-66 with only the underground remnants and some sculptural elements saved, the station layout maintained separate concourses for Amtrak, NJ Transit (which operates the former PRR commuter lines from NJ), and the LIRR. The outdated design and crammed layout received much vitriolic denunciation and caused much traveler aggravation over the past several decades. - credited to senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, plans were hatched in the 1990s to build a newer version of a train hall, with two phases of construction that was finally completed by January 2021. This newer section, located between 8th and 9th Avenues, services Amtrak trains and includes a food hall, retail stores, and a glass roofed waiting lobby inspired by the past station's architecture. Don't forget to checkout the famous escalator with mural map of the surrounding NY metro area. Sooooo (yes with 5 Os) much nicer than the basement maze that is the section between 7th and 8th Avenues. Interesting fact: the only transit organization in business under the same name at Penn Station from inception to now is the MTA Long Island Railroad (LIRR). For much more extensive info: https://www.nytransitmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Penn-Station-Train-Talk-at-Plaza-33.pdf https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/the-rise-and-fall-of-penn-station-penn-station-today/

We always come in and out of Moynihan Train Hall when visiting NYC. It's celebrating its 10 year…read moreanniversary as well. This is such a welcomed sight from coming into the older, darker Penn Station across the way. This new train station also has a food hall with a variety of food vendors, stores (including a Walgreens/Duane Reade), and a bar as well. There is a dedicated Amtrak lounge for first class ticket guests, and one for regular ticketed guests. All in all, this is my go to train depot when coming in and out of NYC by train.

I love the Moynihan Train Hall for the most part. I've probably taken 50+ rides starting/ending at…read moreMoynihan the past three years. I feel pretty good on commenting about the experience here. Overall though... Moynihan is big, it's spacious, it's bright. Outside, the architecture cannot be understated. Inside, it's beautiful. The modern upgrades it's gotten do not go unnoticed. Bathrooms are decent sized and always clean. Moynihan connects to Penn Station which is nice. The Food Hall is on the west side of the building, not too bad. Signs throughout the Train Hall help with directions for new travelers. Announcement for your rides can be overheard but it's best if you stay near the gates. There are ways to circumvent the long gate lines to get your preferred seat on the train, but I won't give away my secrets hehe. Note: if you have an early train (before 5am) you have to enter Moynihan through Penn Station which can definitely confuse new riders. My biggest gripe is their lack of seating. This isn't a new thing, it's been known. Passengers and visitors rely on the floor for rest. There is a boarding seating area for paying passengers but it gets full quickly, and it's tucked away which disallows users to use the benefits of the new Train Hall. Passengers can find seating in the Food Hall as well, but it's not the same thing as a few benches near the gate entrances.

Grand Central Station is one of the most ancient and historic landmarks of New York City. I…read moresometimes pass by here if I have any plans in midtown and the whole station is very nice to be in. I love the high ceilings and old marble all over the station. It smells really clean and fresh when I'm come here. There are elevators and escalators besides the stairs to get to your train. This station houses the Metro North trains and recently they started to have the LIRR but got to expand on that. The ticket booth looks very ancient and nice to buy tickets at. This train station hub is dimly lit with big heavy chandeliers. There are quite few wooden benches to rest in while you wait for your train. The cool thing about this train station is it connects to the MTA subway train lines of the 4, 5, 6, and 7.

I come here about once every other month to head enroute to CT. Every time I come here, I am in awe…read moreof this place. It looks I am in a movie scene lol place is heavily surveillances by NYPD so I feel safe. I could never remember the track I have to go to. I usually walk up to the help desk counter. I received assistance from a lovely male staff who assisted me with finding my track. His customer service was A1! My train is always on time and I always find a good seat. The train is always clean too!

The Subway is a great way to get around if you know what you're doing. It can be crowded and…read moreconfusing for the first timer. The subway is well used by locals and visitors. Agents can help you figure things out.

Lots of trains and lots of music. Obviously not the cleanest station. Expect long walk to…read moretransfer for some lines. I think there are some nice mosaic art pieces to see. But it's most interesting to always see a crowd gathering for the varied musicians. A mix of tourists and NYC commuters pause for a smile.

Amtrak is a what we need across all of the United States…read more For the most part Amtrak is a cheaper, safer, and more reliable way to travel. For me, the service inside the train cars have always been cordial and kind. Any issues I've had with Amtrak has always been a weather issue which resulted in delays, yes I can get upset at that but like I don't because at the end of the day I'm in a comfortable seat with proper airflow and food available. That's better than a plane in my opinion.

Would highly recommend anyone that's Interested in traveling…read more Would recommend you get a room on the Train They come to around dinner time and inquire if You would like to dine with another Couple they also have times you can eat I really enjoyed doing this We did this many years ago ! Don't have nothing bad to say ! We got on as strangers & got off We knew everyone on the train ! Very enjoyable !!

Modern looking train station at Hudson Yards and glad that the 7 train extended all the way here as…read moreit is very convenient given there are no other trains stop over there and it is a very long walk from the next closest train station or waiting for the bus. It has 5 escalators at the main entrance and it is steep walk up /down if they don't work or being repaired. Elevator available for those with accessibility needs. Staff available at the station if any questions or if one needs help with refilling or purchasing at the machines. Crews clean the trains as they pull in. Watch your step while boarding and in the station as it does get slippery when wet esp during rain and snow.

You know I never been to this station in my life. Its actually really beautiful and my photos show…read moreit no justice. I didn't realize how steep that escalator was jesus. Theres also some cute artwork on the ceilings and such. I should have taken my camera out for that but that ride going up made me very dizzy. I really wish this train stop was around when I was a teen. I cant imagine having to walk up steps thought. You're seriously so underground. I'm not sure if I saw any elevators here, I hope for ADA reasons.

Newest part of Grand Central Terminal. It's right above Madison Ave so hence the name…read more Plenty of entrances to get here and it's deep below street level. There are escalators and elevators to get you down and there are some vendors on the concourse level as well. Bathrooms too and it does connect with the "main" part of Grand Central. GC Madison mainly serves the LIRR.

There are tons of escalators, so if you need to the catch the 2:17 train, you'll have to be in the…read morearea long before 2:17. And it's not the liveliest of train stations. But I have to award five stars for the clean bathroom. Due to basic geography, the ride itself is faster than Penn, so maybe if they were starting in 1908 they would have built Penn Station here, but consider all the terminated or "maybe someday in theory" rail links it's nice that this thing actually got built.

One of the main train hubs in NYC that connects to the LIRR, Madison Square Garden, Penn…read moreStation/Moynihan Train Hall for the Amtrak. Convenient to stay underground to walk during rain or inclement weather to save a few blocks if one knows the short cuts. Take the A/C/E trains to your destination or transfer to other trains. The boards are updated with incoming train times. With Metrocard retired, tap and go with your credit card or OMNY card. OMNY machines are available to reload. Though stations do need a cleaning...

The Amtrak dropped us off at Penn Station. What a busy place! You can find all sorts of…read moretransportation here. We wanted to ride the subway and had to purchase the new OMNY tickets. Once we found the subway ticket machine. An agent asked how she could help. She directed us asking if we were seniors. We both qualified for the senior rate. We were asked to see the person in the booth. Both agents were extremely helpful and made it easy to our purchase our tickets. Helpful hints were given and we were on our way.

This 50th St. Subway Station, serviced by Eighth Ave. Local Lines (C,E trains), are incredibly…read moreawkward to use at this station. First, while C Train platforms in both directions are "basically," (i.e., they do require a step down,) E trains to both WTC and East Side/Queens require descent one more flight. Second, only the Downtown side is ADA compliant. That said, after going some distance from either street entrance to the fare control turnstiles, you must also go and an additional distance to reach the C platform. Unfortunately, MTA has no immediate plans for making the C Uptown / E East Side & Queens Platforms ADA compliant in the near future. Additionally, platform walls only have the blacked out ad space, making it just feel dismal to me. Outside the Downtown entry, behind the Customer Service booth, MTA installed in 1989 untitled artwork by American artist Matt Mullican, who often uses representative imagery within his pieces. This 68' long sandblasted, 68' long black granite wall creates a form of timeline for this location. After the period when only wildlife roamed, it leads to when a cabin and also reminds viewers that the third Madison Square Garden was located here for over 40 years until 1968. Unsure myself how to interpret all the icons employed in the final left block on the timeline. While there's a bullseye, don't believe it has anything to do with Target, which didn't appear in Manhattan until this century! Please message me on Yelp if you can figure what that panel is trying to say!

I was at this station in midtown several times during a recent trip to NYC. It's conveniently…read morelocated in Hell's Kitchen at 50th & 8th. I'll be back!

Used to stand here all the time after work to catch the Ronkonkoma train for 5:01pm if I can make…read moreit on time or the 5:25pm and I will always have anxiety and panic attacks at not knowing what track the train was going to be. You got to stand there waiting the track number to arrive and then when the track number gets displayed everyone goes running like crazy! I also run like crazy to the track and make sure I am in front of everyone or by the doors so you will know you will get a seat! Knowing that the train takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to get to Ronkonkoma is frustrating when all the seats are taken! This train is always crowded and most of the people have to stand up! Train is fast though like a whirlwind and makes a weird squeaking sound that the subway trains don't make. This train got bathrooms but they are very filthy and floors are really wet all the time. There are coat racks and secret folding bench at the end of each car that you can have privacy. There are racks for luggage above the seats. Seats are leather bound and very comfortable.

I like the LIRR at Penn station. Have taken this train a few times to and from LI, it's pretty easy…read moreto get tickets and know where to go for the train. However, at peak times this train station is very busy. I recommend using the restroom at the train station as it's much cleaner than the train. Seats are always clean and staff is helpful