Something to consider for the future…
I commuted out to farms and lived in Jersey City/Hoboken. The commute to work wasn’t terrible and there’s plenty to do in Jersey City and Hoboken. The public transit is pretty reliable during the week, but can be frustrating on the weekends and late nights.
The upside? You get to skip tunnels and bridges and can just shoot out to the barn. I rode out in the Somerset/Hunterdon County area (Bedminster area and out by Pittstown).
You’ll still have to pay for parking, but it’s considerably less than you pay in Manhattan… and you don’t have to keep moving your car for alternate side of the street parking. Leasing a car is an option if purchasing isn’t in the budget or of interest.
I’ve been out of the NYC Metro for a few years now, but from what I know from friends still there, you may be able to find some options around $3k. But the travel budget should actually be factored in, as no matter what way you go, figure you’re going to be out another $800-$1000 monthly with potential tolls, gas, and car fees… and that’s just figuring that you’re riding on weekends.
Something to keep in mind that most barns are going to wrap up by 7-8pm on weekdays. With a realistic NYC office schedule, you will be really stretched to get yourself out there during the week without slipping out early. I’m sure that there are people that make it happen, but for me, it just wasn’t an option, so I was a weekend warrior.
Good luck!
A few people have mentioned this now, so I just wanted to chime in and say that a drive from JC/Hoboken/NYC to any of the areas mentioned will blow throw the allotted miles of a lease insanely quickly. I’ve considered it multiple times and it just doesn’t make financial sense compared to buying… I’m not on my second owned car in the city and really wanted to swing a lease on a Polestar (electric) this time around but for anyone making that 100-mile roundtrip drive even thrice weekly, the numbers just don’t work. 
Then, frankly, horses are not part of your reality. We have one barnmate without a car. I honestly don’t know how she does it. What I do know, is that she gets up at 5am to take the train to a barnmate who does have a car.
True… as you’d have to look into an extended mileage package. I was banking more on twice a weekend and looking at closer to 200 miles, which would keep them under the usual 12k-15k limit.
Honestly, it would probably make more sense to just buy a reliable used honda and park it wherever.
It’s been a minute since I had a car in Jersey City/Hoboken, but I think it was around $350/400 per month when I was there. They also had pretty good Groupon deals with some garages and you just had to move car every 90 days or so when groupon ended, but these hidden costs add up. The tolls alone were terrible and if the Turnpike Extension is under repair, you’re completely screwed.
This!
Even my EVENTING barn where a lot of event riders are very self sufficient by US standards (trailer themselves alone to Training Level and higher events, etc.) does not allow boarders to jump outside of a lesson.
Every HJ barn I have been to in the last 15 years required you to be in a program and had serious rules about riding outside of lessons (times, what arenas, etc.) and absolutely no jumping without a lesson.
I had a look at their website, it does sound like a lot of fun! I won’t be around on June 11 but will definitely consider their next events.
One more cultural difference I guess , and one more reason I won’t bring my horse. This topic has been super helpful to help me realize that, beyond the initial logistical question!
The barn I was at in Europe has no opening hours (I left at 9-10pm a few times, as long as you didn’t make too much noise, it was fine), you can ride on the flat wherever and whenever you wanted, and jump on your own as long as you didn’t disturb others. Of course that only applies to people who owned (not leased) their horses and were experienced enough to do this without having or causing an accident, and the trainers would keep an eye on it.
Again, not hating on the US model, I think a lot of horses are better treated here - it’s just hard to adjust to when you’ve known something else for 20+ years
the US liability laws and legal system (and toxic individualism and lack of imposter syndrome) just doesn’t support this model LOL. We ruin so much for ourselves over here 
I’ve seen it as a kid watching adults and teens think they were proficient riders, jumping 1.0m+ alone and crashing their mounts (when they were jumping cross poles in lessons) or riding a lame horse or doing other inappropriate things…
I could jump on my own in all the places I boarded at when I lived in the US. There were no rules regarding that stuff. Two of the barns had little XC courses, and you could pop over those whenever you fancied. None of these places really had ‘training programs.’ I avoided ones that did like the plague because I didn’t (and don’t) want that kind of micromanagement in my horsey life. There were – and hopefully still are – many yards/barns that are a bit more laissez-faire.
I don’t know if it’s different now (I’ve been abroad since 2006) or if it just depends on what kind of barns you board at.
NYC is still a shite place to keep horses, unless you have a deep and abiding love for the BQE or the NJ Turnpike.“Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike…” What else are you going to do? You’re not moving.
I don’t have any experience with boarding while living in Manhattan, but gosh, I just wanted to say to the OP that I feel like the tone of this thread is super negative.
I know people are trying to be realistic, and they are not wrong. But it might be beneficial to find something a step up from “lessons only” to get a feel if bringing your horse over is doable. Like maybe a short-term part-lease to see how it goes?
I agree that people have not been super optimistic, but that’s what I needed to hear! I would rather get all the bad news now and decide with all the info, than to spend $10k+ to bring my horse and then find out it’s not working out. For example, the comment above on the NJ Turnpike made me smile, but I don’t want to live it 3 times per week
I am definitely open to part-leasing a horse if he’s nice to ride (or has the potential to become nice to ride) and in a barn accessible with public transit
Unfortunately, it won’t solve my budget issue - I’m just not willing to pay $5,000+ a month for boarding, commuting to the barn and competing. True, I could bring my horse and put her in a cheaper barn, but I would get too frustrated not being able to show or even school at the level I would like to
Def has changed since 2006. Im 33. last 15 years have really cracked down on liability. I’ve lived in all over the US:
Washington DC area so NoVa, MD.
CA (LA and SD)
WA (Seattle and up north near the border in Western WA)
I rode at and/or toured & took a handful of lessons at probably 40+ barns in the last 15 years. None allowed jumping outside of a lesson.
When I was a kid (2006 - I was 16) - plenty of barns in NJ allowed jumping under 3’ outside of lessons on your own if you owned or fully leased your horse.
Liability and cost of horsekeeping, etc. I personally think are the influences. In the US, barns do NOT make money on boarding only clients. Training (horse and rider) is how barns survive in the US.
Private farms on someone’s property that boards a few private boarders without a resident trainer etc. definitely let you do whatever, but most of those situations are word of mouth, you have to find your own trainer who will travel to you, and likely do arena hires (which barely exist in the US) as they don’t often have great jump footing or arenas.
OP doesn’t want to lease or buy a car or even use Zipcar - there is no way she’s buying a truck and trailer to get herself to arena hires or shows boarding at a private facility where it is not super likely that you’ll have access someone (nor does OP presumedly want to pay for concierge trailering) who will cart you and your horse around to shows, etc.
I’m encouraging OP to ride - part lease, and hell even compete in a different discipline. Maybe try the hunters LOL you’re in the US afterall!
But don’t go through the hullabaloo of importing your mare (longer, harder, more expensive import and export than a gelding) to be disappointed with the experience and cost and maybe even go backwards in training / progress.
I’m sorry if I sounded pessimistic.
For context. I drive from the City to NJ 4-6 times a week to the barn. I have a hybrid (so I save on gas), park on the street in Brooklyn (free), and don’t work a 9-5 (so I can go when convenient and when traffic is minimal) and my barn is more affordable than most for a show barn (even for NJ, which is cheaper than NY). And even then, I spend over $2100 a month before vet and farrier and supplements and showing.
The tolls are abysmal, and I spend hours on the road almost every day, and that’s with me being able to get in car and go directly. It’s going to get worse next year with congestion pricing.
In my opinion, having a car is essential. And it’s a huge commitment both financially and in terms of time. I adore NYC, but after 21 years I am looking to leave.
I should add that anywhere where you’re looking to have others jumping 1.10-1.20+ and a trainer putting in pro rides 1-2x a week is going to cost you at least $2200- $2500 a month in board and training alone before any other expenses. And that’s the low end. And not near public transportation. At least not that I know of.
And I agree with others, I have never boarded anywhere in my over 40 years of life in the US that allowed jumping outside of lessons.
The OP, being from Europe, may not need a trainer or be used to being in a program. I don’t know about other European countries, but many riders in the UK just get on with things themselves. Doesn’t change her New York problem, of course. I’m just struggling to get my head around the idea that there are no – or very few – barns left in the US where people do their own thing, jumping or otherwise. Those were not that hard to find 20 years ago.
That all said, from what I have heard through some grapevines, one of the places I boarded at – my undergrad uni’s barn – has become much more of a show barn in the last decade and probably would not let a fiercely independent weirdo like me in now.
Not to derail the thread, but I’m at an eventing barn where you can jump on your own, so they still exist.
I have ridden on both coasts. I am currently in a program, but don’t get pro rides, which works for me and my horse and saves money. That said… I can’t opt out of a training program, and I cannot jump outside of lessons. There are not many, if any, places to board that don’t require you to be in some type of a program for many reasons, but mostly because boarding horses isn’t lucrative. Also because yahoos doing their own thing isn’t good for anyone.
I think the only true barrier you’re up against here is your unwillingness to Zipcar or lease/buy a car. As I’ve said, you could have your horse in a full-training program in NJ, an hour west of Manhattan, for ~$2k, as I do, and spend your remaining $1k on transit costs.
Also, I’ll add that while this thread seems negative, I absolutely love living in the city and wouldn’t trade it for the world. I know not everyone feels that way, but the lifestyle works well for me even though I sacrifice a ton to be able to afford horses and a reasonably good quality of life here. Living somewhere where my husband can easily occupy his time when I’m spending hours at the barn or showing is a win-win for my relationship, too. 
Do you get 1-2 pro rides a week for that? If so, I am desperate to talk to you!
