Public Transportation Directions vs Car Rental - Camden

We are going to Philadelphia over Labor Day and staying at the Courtyard Marriott downtown. My son will be moving to Camden, NJ, for a year long Urban Mission assignment. Doing the parent thing we would like to go there to see where he will be (I know this is a very high crime/unemployment area). We would like to go around Camden a little bit that weekend (during the day). Questions about transportation:

1. Airport to Hotel - R1 line - what station are we looking for? How far is the Courtyard from this station. On the SEPTA site we saw 16th and JFK and then walk .6 miles. Is this the best option?

2. What about Courtyard to Camden, NJ? Use PATCO, what stations? OR - do we rent a car for the day?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Public Transportation Directions vs Car Rental - Camden

As to the first question take the R 1 to Suburban Station. The walk is maybe 3-4 blocks

As to second question, for safety sake I would not walk around Camden at all.

Public Transportation Directions vs Car Rental - Camden

Yes, your best bet is Suburban Station and then walk (or cab). It depends on how much luggage you have, really.

Yes, you can take PATCO to Camden, but then what? You%26#39;re on foot, and you won%26#39;t see much.

I think your best bet is to rent a car at the airport. This solves your problem of getting to the hotel, and also to and around Camden.

There is not much to see or do in Camden and it is really not safe walking around there. In fact, unless you know where you are going, driving in Camden is also not safe. This is not a city you cruise around in. The safe areas are around the aquarium, the Tweeter center (only when there is an event), or going to see Battleship New Jersey. You can use Patco to get over to Camden, but then what will you do there? Sorry to be so negative, but that%26#39;s the truth. If you want to drive around or walk around a bit after visiting Camden, about 15 minutes from Camden is Collingswood, with some very nice restaurants and shops. You might want to rent a car, just to help your son locate the closest grocery stores, shopping areas, etc, to Camden.

Not to keep harping on the danger of Camden, but let me put it this way: My wife teaches in Trenton. Many people consider that an extremely dangerous city. Some of the kids she teaches come from gang families (like The Bloods). Finding out that a student%26#39;s parent was murdered is not rare. And while I feel okay with her teaching in Trenton, I would never let her teach in Camden.

Thanks to everyone for your candid responses to my post. This confirms my reading about Camden and I do wish he had chosen another city for his mission work. We will likely rent a car, map out some very specific directions, and focus on the location for grocery stores, police station, and other necessities. Thanks again....

Close to Camden is Route 130. Not a pretty highway, but there is about every necessity in terms of grocery stores, fast food, gas stations, etc that you can think of. There is also a nice walking/jogging path that goes around the Cooper River in Pennsauken/Cherry Hill, if he wants to take a walk (it%26#39;s safe).

Most of the better shopping/restaurants will be in Cherry Hill where there is plenty of shopping and a decent mall (not anything like the King of Prussia mall, unfortunately). If you need any suggestions, I would be happy to provide them.

Camden is a very small, poor, high-crime city. The downtown area surrounding the federal courthouse, the Rutgers campus and the aquarium/ballpark areas are, during a weekday or when there%26#39;s a lot of foot traffic in the area say during an event, relatively friendly for the casual visitor. Most areas are not. I went to Rutgers there and even as a sheltered suburbanite taking the bus every day through shockingly extreme poverty, I was fine. It%26#39;s not pretty and it%26#39;s never safe, but it is possible to visit without being the victim of a crime. I think it%26#39;s a good idea for you to see where your son will be working but the best advice is probably to contact the group he%26#39;s working with and getting their input about where to go and when.

PATCO - the Walter Rand Transportation center is the stop in the center of town; the RiverLine goes from there to directly in front of the aquarium/ballpark/concert venue. A car is probably a better choice if you%26#39;re going out of the center of town.

I realize you%26#39;re concerned for your son, but he couldn%26#39;t have chosen a better spot for a mission - Camden needs all the help it can get. I%26#39;ve seen the Mormon kids in Camden (hard to miss, they%26#39;re 18-year-old blonde white kids wearing suits) and they seemed to get along ok. Always in pairs.