How to Get to Albany International Airport from the Adirondack Northway

From Exit 2E

1. 1
   Find your way to Wolf Rd. Northbound and southbound cars should be aware of the dual exit nature of exit 2 as 2W and 2E. Both car directions should take exit 2E, but they will arrive at different points.

   • If you are heading northbound on the Northway (locals know it by the shorter name - the "Northway"), once you come down and arrive at the offramp traffic light intersection, you'll be aligned and ready to head down Wolf Rd. (There's a no-left turn there onto NY-5.)
   • If you are heading southbound on the Northway, you'll have to take the off-ramp (which circles) until you reach NY-5 (with Wolf Rd directly in front of you). But then get in your left lane quickly past the underpass to the Adirondack Northway and proceed down to the next traffic light where it intersects with the northbound exit to head down Wolf Road. At the point where you'll be turning, you'll see Colonie Center (mall) on your left in front of you, with Wolf Road just before it.
2. 2
   Travel down Wolf Rd. Travel down it for a distance of approximately 2.6 miles. ^[1]
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   Watch out for the numerous traffic lights on this route. Pass traffic lights at all the mall exit/entrance roads, Sand Creek Rd, Computer Drive E-W, Metro Park Rd, Marcus Blvd, exit 4 offramp, and the one at Albany-Shaker Rd.

   • You'll need to pass Colonie Center, Wolf Road Shoppers Park, and several fast-food eateries. Along with an IHOP across from Colonie Center, there are also two Starbucks locations, Taco Bell and Panera Bread, Chili's Grill and Bar, Hooters, Smashburger, Chipotle and Texas Roadhouse, McDonald's, Denny's, Arby's and Outback Steakhouse, Red Lobster and Olive Garden, Dunkin Donuts and a Pizza Hut - all within that strip. Other smaller restaurants can also be found down the Wolf Rd strip - as Wolf Road is overrun by commercial buildings galore.
   • There are several other restaurant retailers inside Colonie Center - including a Cheesecake Factory, Five Guys, Dunkin Donuts (though you'll find a Dunkin on airport premises on the unticketed side near the parking lot overpass), a sandwich shop, and several others there - where there are none along Wolf Road otherwise.
     • Yes, there are delivery services here including GrubHub, DoorDash, and UberEats, though they can't deliver to anybody on the ticketed side of the gate!
   • You'll pass hotels and motels. Besides the Holiday Inn on your left side, most are found on the right side of the street, though the Staybridge Suites is off the one side of the parking lot to the Colonie Center. These hotels include a Travelodge Inn and Suites, Marriot and Fairfield Inn and Suites, Red Roof Inn, Surestay, Homewood Suites, Ramada, and a Hampton Inn.
   • Several smaller motels also make an appearance but are so small they are not well known and are mostly mom-and-pop varieties.
   • On this route, you'll also spot various banks and gas stations. You'll see Trustco Bank, SEFCU, NBTBank, KeyBank, and Chase Bank (formerly a Bank of America) among the banks. There are only a few gas stations on the route - Mobil, Speedway, and Sunoco.
4. 4
   Get in your left lane and make a left turn onto Albany-Shaker Rd. At the corner, you'll spot a Sunoco gas station, and straight ahead, you'll see the onramp back onto the Northway for exit four heading northbound.
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From Exit 3

1. 1
   Know that this is a brand new exit, only beginning its life in late 2019. This might very well be the exit route that your navigation app should take you - if it's been recently updated with this exit detailing. Paper maps will not have been updated with this exit if they were printed before 2019.
2. 2
   Exit off the Northway. From both directions (northbound and southbound), you'll need to be in the right lane to exit and be looking for exit 3 signage.
3. 3
   Turn off and proceed around the bends.

   • Northbound visitors will see increased curves (first to the right, then to the left (crossing over the interstate then to a slight right again as it nears Albany Shaker Rd until they arrive at a corner where northbound and southbound merge into one lane (northbound merges into southbound).
   • Southbound visitors need to round one bend to form the U-shape required of the merge and exit.

   Warning : The exit road has tight shoulders and a guardrail that makes this area feel like you are running luge - until you come to the traffic light at the end.
4. 4
   Take a left onto Albany-Shaker Rd/NY-155. The Desmond Hotel will be on your right, and you will need to take the same left as you would've had you been coming from all the other exits.
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From Exit 4

Exit 4 was an initial Albany International Airport-only before exit 3 came. But there's talk of removing the left turn from the traffic light, pushing those onto Wolf Road heading towards the commercial buildings only, and making turns from this offramp a right-turn-only! ^[2]

1. 1
   Travel the Northway to exit 4. Signage lists it as just Wolf Rd/NY-155 (northbound) and NY-155 (southbound). However, older interstate users will remember its designation of "Albany Airport" on green highway signage.
2. 2
   Get to Albany Shaker Rd.

   • Northbound cars will need to take a left onto Wolf Rd, then take the next left at the same Sunoco station (on your left).
   • Southbound cars need to take a left onto NY-155 and travel it to where it intersects with the Northway's continuation at the end, and at the Desmond Hotel, take a right.
     • Southbound cars mustn't be fooled by the road called "Terminal Rd" just to the exit's right. That road is a dead-end that doesn't even come close to ending at the terminal entrances.
3. 3
   Learn the substitute method if you feel shaky turning left at that light (for northbound cars) or if it's become a right-turn-only. Turn right instead. Head down to the next traffic light (near Ted's Fish Fry and Marcus Blvd, and make the left. (Do not U-turn anywhere in between! Essentially, you'll be making a U-turn but utilizing the parking lot as a pass through.) Come back out to Wolf Rd and take a right. But be careful, because you'll be turning with two lanes of oncoming traffic.

   • There's a Courtyard Inn at the point just after the turn on the left instead. However, it may be too soon to get over in the left lane to make the turn.
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1. 1
   Stay in either lane as you pass Albany-Colonie's Desmond Hotel. The Desmond Hotel is rather ritzy but within eyesight distance of the airport's runways and express parking lot.

   Heads up! : This airport is guarded by metal shock fencing, and you can't enter onto the runway from the outside - regardless of how much you try to do so.
2. 2
   Continue past the Economy lot (lot E) off Jetway Drive on Albany-Shaker Rd, then past the Airport Cell Phone lot. You'll see the airport runways over to your right, then their airport buildings for Million Air.
3. 3
   Watch out for the hard median guardrails in several spots. Although the median between the entry point near the exit 3/Albany Shaker Rd is painted, from the point where the cellphone lot is til Million Air, you'll find the median to be a hard median with guardrails covering the entire length.
4. 4
   Take the access road to the right when the road splits, then follow one of two paths.

   • Staying on NY-155/Albany Shaker Rd will see a quick rename to Peter J. Dalessondro Blvd until it' intersects back with Airport Access Rd and NY-155's exit split (Near the traffic light).
   • If you take the split to the left, you'll end up continuing on NY-155 past the parking structure's external overflow lot and external long-term parking lot that's not guarded.
   • Detour into the garage if necessary. After the split, you'll find an extra entrance alleyway into Long Term parking from the outside followed by a quick entrance into the parking structure which is further split into Short Term Parking and Garage Parking, but you'll need to stay in the left lane. Take the access road to the left if you need to head to the parking garage, then navigate the parking garage situation. The parking garage is split into two types of parking: Garage parking is for those only planning to spend a few hours inside or Short Term is for those planning to spend even more time than that. Long Term parking is outside, and once you select "Short Term," go left, and parking is outside only.
     • There's outside parking for those going for Garage parking if garage parking is full.
     • Short Term parking is suited primarily on the upper levels of the parking garage.
5. 5
   Stay right, if you need to continue to the airport terminal check-in desks, and don't need to park or return a rental car. Continue to the Airport terminal entrances (near the ticketing booths) by following this right. Avoid the left lanes light the plague- there's no stopping in this lane, and it only allows for rental cars to turn left into rental car return later or that to exit the parking lot.

   • If you need to return a rental car, after the check-in desk areas and baggage claim at this airport, you'll need to make a left turn to turn into the rental car return for most rental car agencies - so stay to your left.
6. 6
   Look for the appropriate entrance - if necessary. Signs are labeled in a reddish-brown color at all entry points, baggage claim is on the same level as check-in desks, and doors nearest them can be entered and can be accessed accordingly.

   Did You Know : Did you know that there is a direct entrance to the security checkpoint area after passing from the parking garage over Access Road and into the airport? Take the parking garage elevators up to the second floor (P2) and take two lefts. (The first left gets you out of the elevator and walking towards the walkway, the next left leads you onto the bridge taking you to the TSA area.)
7. 7
   Know the terminal layout. Get to know this airport. You can't access the security area until you get yourself up either the escalators or elevators here. Escalators are nearest the Dunkin Donuts location (near check-in facing in the direction of baggage claim), and elevators are just to the left of the check-in desks. (Elevators need to be taken to level 2 to get to see the security checkpoint.

   • On airport level 3, you'll find a pre-security lookout point that overlooks the runways and airplanes and even a breakroom for airport staff with clear glass windows that overlooks the action on level 2, and going in the opposite direction is an art gallery. If you've visited this airport, you've most likely noticed the windows but didn't know what was there.
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