Skip to main content
US Trip Planner Logo
US Trip Planner

Trip from Great Neck Gardens, NY to New York City, NY

Pin this trip

Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 26, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

37m

Distance

19.9 mi

32 km

Drive Score

8/10

Great drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$3

one way

EV Charging

Good

8 stations

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 9 min
4 AM
0h 35m ★
6 AM
0h 38m
8 AM
0h 44m
10 AM
0h 40m
12 PM
0h 39m
3 PM
0h 40m
5 PM
0h 44m
8 PM
0h 36m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly
Google Maps Waze Apple Maps
Download GPX
Downtown Great Neck Gardens, NY, NY

Great Neck Gardens, NY

Abhishek Navlakha

most populous city in the United States

New York City, NY

Wikimedia Commons

Trip Overview

Great Neck Gardens, NY to New York City, NY is 19.9 miles and takes about 37 minutes via Long Island Expressway, with a fuel budget near $3 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This route stays within New York, connecting suburban Nassau County to the bustling metropolis of New York City. Given its short distance and duration, it's ideal for a single-day trip, offering a quick transition from a more residential area to a dense urban environment. Plan for potential traffic, especially during peak commuting hours, as you approach the city.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Long Island Expressway 8.8 mi 12m
Brooklyn-Queens Expressway 2 mi 3m
Williamsburg Bridge 1.9 mi 4m
Great Neck Road 1 mi 1m
Northern Boulevard 0.9 mi 1m
Douglaston Parkway 0.6 mi 1m
Delancey Street 0.5 mi 1m
Broadway 0.5 mi 1m
Longest stretch: Long Island Expressway — 8.8 mi, about 12m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Great Neck Gardens, NY and New York City, NY.

1

Start on Plymouth Road

22 ft · 3 sec · Plymouth Road
2

Turn left onto Oxford Boulevard

0.2 mi · 52 sec · Oxford Boulevard
3

Turn right onto Station Road

0.4 mi · 56 sec · Station Road
4

Turn left onto Gilchrest Road

0.3 mi · 45 sec · Gilchrest Road
5

Turn right onto Grace Avenue

0.2 mi · 34 sec · Grace Avenue
6

Turn left onto Barstow Road

0.1 mi · 16 sec · Barstow Road
7

Enter roundabout onto South Station Plaza

20 ft · 0 sec · South Station Plaza
8

Continue on South Station Plaza

0.1 mi · 18 sec · South Station Plaza
9

Continue on Great Neck Road

0.8 mi · 1 min · Great Neck Road
Use the straight lane.
10

Continue on Great Neck Road

0.2 mi · 31 sec · Great Neck Road
Use the straight / left / right lanes.
11

Turn slight right onto NY 25A

0.9 mi · 1 min · Northern Boulevard
12

Turn sharp left onto Douglaston Parkway

0.6 mi · 1 min · Douglaston Parkway
Use the left lane.
13

Take the ramp

523 ft · 12 sec
Toward I 495 West: Long Island Expressway, West Manhattan Use the straight / right lanes.
14

Keep slight left at fork

0.3 mi · 40 sec
Toward I 495 West: Manhattan Use the straight lane.
15

Merge onto I 495

8.8 mi · 12 min · Long Island Expressway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
16

Take the exit

1.0 mi · 1 min
Exit 17W Toward I 278 West: Brooklyn Use the straight / slight right lanes.
17

Keep slight right at fork

0.1 mi · 10 sec
Toward I 278 West: Brooklyn, 48th Street
18

Keep slight left at fork

0.4 mi · 31 sec
Toward I 278 West: Brooklyn Use the slight left / slight right lanes.
19

Merge onto I 278

2.0 mi · 3 min · Brooklyn-Queens Expressway
20

Keep slight left at fork onto Williamsburg Bridge

0.7 mi · 1 min · Williamsburg Bridge
Exit 32A Toward Williamsburg Bridge, Manhattan Use the slight left / slight right lanes.
21

Keep slight left at fork onto Williamsburg Bridge

1.2 mi · 2 min · Williamsburg Bridge
Use the slight left lane.
22

Continue on Delancey Street

0.5 mi · 1 min · Delancey Street
Use the straight lane.
23

Continue on Kenmare Street

0.2 mi · 57 sec · Kenmare Street
24

At end of road, turn left onto Lafayette Street

0.2 mi · 43 sec · Lafayette Street
Use the left lane.
25

Turn right onto Howard Street

510 ft · 24 sec · Howard Street
26

Turn left onto Broadway

0.5 mi · 1 min · Broadway
Use the straight lane.
27

Arrive at destination

Broadway

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 19

5 decision points cluster between mile 3.2 and 16.5 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

7
3.2 mi into trip | ~7m in | Douglaston Parkway

Turn sharp left onto Douglaston Parkway

Sharp turn - reduce speed on approach. Lane positioning matters here

Use the left lane.
7
3.8 mi into trip | ~8m in

Take the ramp toward I 495 West: Long Island Expressway, West Manhattan

Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the straight / right lanes. Toward I 495 West: Long Island Expressway, West...
8
3.9 mi into trip | ~9m in

Keep slight left at fork toward I 495 West: Manhattan

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight lane. Toward I 495 West: Manhattan
7
13.1 mi into trip | ~22m in

Take the exit toward I 278 West: Brooklyn

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes. Exit 17W Toward I 278 West: Brooklyn
9
16.5 mi into trip | ~27m in | Williamsburg Bridge

Keep slight left at fork onto Williamsburg Bridge toward Williamsburg Bridge, Manhattan

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the slight left / slight right lanes. Exit 32A Toward Williamsburg Bridge, Manhattan

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$3.23 one way

$6.47 round trip

$4.13/gal 25.4 MPG avg 7 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.47 $3.50 $7.00
premium $4.87 $3.81 $7.62
diesel $5.40 $4.23 $8.47

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$3

Estimated CO2 emission: 7 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-20.

Driving Electric?

About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 71% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 6 0 $2.09 $0.96
Efficient EV 5 0 $1.74 $0.80
EV Truck/SUV 8 0 $2.79 $1.27

Gas CO2

7 kg

EV CO2

2 kg (71% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 25, 2026

Origin

Great Neck Gardens, NY

Morning in Great Neck Gardens on Sunday

Local time

7:06 AM

EDT

Current temp

45°F

Chance Rain Showers then Slight Chance Light Rain

SE 10 mph 17% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 25 at 12:05AM EDT by NWS Binghamton NY

Destination

New York City, NY

Morning in New York City on Sunday

Local time

7:06 AM

EDT

Current temp

46°F

Chance Rain Showers then Slight Chance Light Rain

SE 9 to 13 mph 21% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 25 at 12:05AM EDT by NWS Binghamton NY

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

1 degrees warmer at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

37m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This drive is a mixed bag of highway and surface roads, with 57% of the route on highways. You'll experience an 8.8-mile stretch on the Long Island Expressway before transitioning to other main roads like the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and the Williamsburg Bridge. Expect a significant amount of merging traffic as you enter the urban core.

57% highway, the rest on surface roads — varied driving throughout.
27 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 8.8 mi on Long Island Expressway.

How Hard Is This Drive?

10/10

This route mixes highway mileage with some local-road sections near the start or finish. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 3.2 miles in near Douglaston Parkway.

Driving Effort 10/10

Focused - lots of decisions in a short distance, but it is over quickly

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a short but busy drive. With 19 decision points packed into just 19.9 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 37m.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: at 3.2 miles (Douglaston Parkway): Sharp turn - reduce speed on approach. Lane positioning matters here; at 3.8 miles: Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 3.9 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here.

Towns Mentioned on Route Signs

Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.

On the drive from Great Neck Gardens, NY to New York City, NY, road signs begin pointing toward Manhattan along the way.

Manhattan

3.8 mi in | ~8m

About the Cities

Starting in Great Neck Gardens, NY

Full guide →

Arriving in New York City, NY

Full guide →

“The City That Never Sleeps” · Founded 1624

New York (known as "The Big Apple", "NYC," and often called "New York City") is a global center for media, entertainment, art, fashion, research, finance, and trade. The bustling, cosmopolitan heart of the 4th largest metropolis in the world and by far the most populous city in the United States, New York has long been a key entry point and a defining city for the nation. From the Statue of Liberty in the harbor to the Empire State Building towering over the Manhattan skyline, from the tunnels of the subway to the riches of Wall Street, from the bright signs of Times Square to the naturalistic beauty of Central Park, and from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx to Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York's landmarks are quintessential American landmarks. The city's neighborhoods and streets are so iconic they have become ingrained into the American consciousness.

Top landmarks

  • • Statue of Liberty — American icon in New York, United States
  • • National September 11 Memorial & Museum — memorial & museum in New York City commemorating the September 11, 2001 attacks
  • • Plaza Hotel — hotel in Midtown Manhattan, New York City

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 37m. Total distance: 19.9 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

37m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (57%). Some complex stretches to watch for.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 8.8 miles on Long Island Expressway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Yes — we found about 4 rest areas or service plazas within a short detour of the route (from OpenStreetMap). See the Rest Stops tab under Nearby Places for locations and mile markers. Plan to stretch, use the bathroom, and top off fluids every 2–3 hours on longer drives.

It helps. This route has a higher-than-average number of complex decision points, which get harder in the dark. If the last hour of the trip is on surface roads or mountain grades, aim to arrive at New York City, NY before sunset when you can. Check the Trip Plan for departure windows that land you in daylight.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: at 3.2 miles (Douglaston Parkway): Sharp turn - reduce speed on approach. Lane positioning matters here; at 3.8 miles: Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one; at 3.9 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at New York City, NY before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

Was this helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

Your tip has been submitted. Thanks!

/500

Explore More

Continue From New York City, NY

Walden, NY 374.5 mi · 7h 49m Oakfield, NY 353.7 mi · 7h 18m Tarrytown, NY 30.4 mi · 54m Richmond County, NY 16.8 mi · 30m

More trips to New York City, NY

Arkwright, NY 406.4 mi Greig, NY 285 mi Boston, MA 214.1 mi Rotterdam, NY 162.3 mi Westmere, NY 156.6 mi Nassau, NY 153.5 mi
Escape planner: Great Neck Gardens, NY Scenic drives in NY

Explore more options from Great Neck Gardens, NY or browse trips ending in New York City, NY.

Looking for more statewide routes? Browse NY road trips.