Westchester
Helicopter tours from Westchester: the longest flights over New York
Westchester County Airport sits forty-eight kilometres north of Midtown, and the four flights that leave from it are the longest on this page — thirty to forty-five minutes rather than fifteen to twenty-five. It is also where every private cabin over New York departs from. Here is what the extra minutes buy and what the trip north costs.
Quick answer
Helicopter tours from Westchester County Airport are the longest shared flights over New York: thirty to forty-five minutes from $391. The route comes south down the Hudson past the Palisades, reaches Manhattan from the north and circles the island before returning. Every private listing on this page — the couples cabin at $937, the charter at $1,610 and the flight lesson at $663 — also departs from here. Allow about an hour each way from Midtown.
Flying from Westchester, at a glance
- Where it is
- White Plains, NYabout 48 km north of Midtown Manhattan
- Flights from here
- Four of twelveand all four private cabins on this page
- Shortest
- $39130–45 minutes, the scenic tour
- Private for two
- $937295 reviews at 4.9
- Charter for up to six
- $1,610one price for the aircraft
- Flight lesson
- $66390 minutes including the ground briefing
- By train
- About 40 minMetro-North from Grand Central to White Plains
- From the station
- About 15 minby cab to the airport
- By car
- About an houroutside rush hour
- Whole trip
- About four hoursdoor to door, including the visit
The route
What a Westchester departure shows you that a city departure does not
River, cliffs, the island end-on, and time that is actually spent flying.
The Hudson approach. A flight from Westchester comes south down the river rather than starting at the bottom of it, which means the first ten minutes are countryside and cliff before the city arrives. The Palisades — the wall of dark rock along the New Jersey bank — run for kilometres below you, and the Hudson widens and narrows beneath the aircraft the whole way down. Nobody books this flight for the Palisades and almost everybody mentions them afterwards.
Manhattan arriving from the north. The island comes into view end-on, as a shape, rather than as a wall you are already beside. You see the George Washington Bridge from above first, then the length of the island laid out in front of the aircraft with the harbour at the far end of it.
More time in the air, and less of it spent getting into position. Thirty to forty-five minutes rather than fifteen to twenty-five. On a short flight from Pier 6 a real share of the time is manoeuvring in and out of a busy pad; from Westchester the aircraft is in open air almost immediately.
A quiet terminal. A county airport rather than a city pad with a queue behind you. Smaller groups, a slower walk to the aircraft and a crew who are not turning the cabin around in eight minutes. For a nervous passenger, or for an occasion, that matters more than it sounds.
Getting there
Westchester County Airport from Manhattan, three ways
Train and cab is the reliable version. Allow four hours whichever way you go.
Metro-North and a cab. The Harlem line from Grand Central to White Plains takes about forty minutes, and a cab from the station to the airport is roughly fifteen more. This is the option that does not depend on traffic, and it is the one we would take.
Driving. About an hour from Midtown outside rush hour, and considerably more inside it. There is parking at the airport. Going north out of the city in the morning is the easy direction; coming back in the evening is not.
Ride-share. Works, costs a good deal, and leaves you dependent on getting one back from a county airport in the evening. If you take this option, book the return in advance rather than assuming.
Build four hours into the day. An hour out, ninety minutes at the airport — check-in is an hour before the slot even here — and an hour back. The flight is the short part, as it is everywhere.
Which Westchester flight
Four listings, four different reasons
They leave from the same terminal and they are not the same product.
- The scenic tour, $391
Thirty to forty-five minutes, shared cabin, 75 reviews at 4.7. The longest shared seat on this page and the cheapest way to get the Hudson approach.
- The private cabin for two, $937
Same length, nobody else on board, 295 reviews at 4.9 — the best-evidenced private flight here. This is the one to book for an occasion.
- The charter for two to six, $1,610
One price for the whole aircraft. Split four ways it is cheaper per head than the couples flight; split six ways it is cheaper than the cheapest shared seat in the city.
- The flight lesson, $663
Ninety minutes with an instructor and your hands on the controls for most of it. Not a sightseeing flight — a lesson with New York outside the window, and the hours count toward a private pilot licence.
Every private cabin over New York leaves from here. Here is when the whole aircraft is worth the money.
Private flights explained→Common questions
Westchester departures, answered
Where is Westchester County Airport?
Outside White Plains, New York, about forty-eight kilometres north of Midtown Manhattan. Metro-North from Grand Central takes about forty minutes, plus fifteen by cab.
Why are the Westchester flights longer?
Because the route comes all the way down the Hudson before it reaches the city and then circles the island. Thirty to forty-five minutes in the air, against fifteen to twenty-five from a city pad.
Is it worth going all the way to Westchester?
If you want the longest flight, a private cabin, or a flight lesson, yes — all of those only exist here. If you want the cheapest way into the air over New York, no: take a Pier 6 departure from $253.
How do I get to the airport without a car?
Metro-North Harlem line from Grand Central to White Plains, then a cab. About an hour in total and it does not depend on traffic.
Do Westchester flights fly over Manhattan?
They circle the island after coming down the Hudson, so you get the full length of it from the north and then the harbour. The crossing routes that put Central Park directly below you are the New Jersey departures.
How long should I allow for the whole trip?
About four hours door to door: an hour each way and a ninety-minute visit. Check-in is an hour before the slot here as at every other departure point.
Go deeper
More on flying over New York
What it costs
From $253 to $4,415, and what a minute in the air is worth.
The verdictWhich flight is best
One recommendation for each kind of visitor, and why.
The islandManhattan from the air
What the grid looks like from above, and which flights cross it.
After darkFlying at night
The same city lit from the inside, and what it costs.
The heliportsWhere they depart
Three departure points, and how each one changes the flight.
New JerseyFrom New Jersey
The routes that fly over Manhattan instead of around it.
