Baltimore Airport Parking

[JustineMarie]

We are flying out of BWI for the first time. We usually use Philly's airport and are very nervous about flying out of Baltimore, but the price was $600 cheaper than PHL, so we are going to try it!

My daughter has class until 11:30am on our departure day and then we will be leaving directly from her school and heading to the airport. The airport is about 1 hour and 45 min from our house. Our flight leaves at 4:30.

Im trying to figure out if one of the parking lots at the airport would be better for us to park at. Id like to use onsite parking just bc I think it will be easier. Can we walk to the airport from any of the parking lots or do we have to take a shuttle? And if we have to take a shuttle, what would be the fastest parking lot. Im worried that we are cutting it a little close so I want the fastest option possible.

Thanks for any help!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You have to take a shuttle from the parking lots. I park in the Daily Lot; it's a quick ride to the terminal. Parking is fairly cheap; only $12 a day at the Daily Lot:

http://www.bwiairport.com/en/parking/information-rates

 

[JustineMarie]

Thank you! I wasn't sure whether walking would be possible. I appreciate you replying! I'm told that the security lines are usually much shorter at BWI than at PHL so I am hoping that we are going to have enough time to make our flight.

 

[PlutoPony]

We typically park at Airport Fast Park on Nursery Road. Easy to get to. Shuttle picks you up and drops you off at your car, very convenient. This one has a few covered spots and we've been fortunate to nab one in the summer. Nice to come back to a car that hasn't been baking in the sun for a week +. Price is a little cheaper than BWI long term at $7.40 / day.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

We typically park at Airport Fast Park on Nursery Road. Easy to get to. Shuttle picks you up and drops you off at your car, very convenient. This one has a few covered spots and we've been fortunate to nab one in the summer. Nice to come back to a car that hasn't been baking in the sun for a week +. Price is a little cheaper than BWI long term at $7.40 / day.

With the airport Daily Lot rate only $12 a day, it's worth the convenience to me to park there. It's in a garage, so your car is protected, and all spots are numbered!

 

[maciec]

Never parked at the Daily Lot before, but have used several of the off site lots. Used Fast Park & Relax the last time and liked how close they were. I will be using them probably in the future. With that being said they are all pretty much the same. Never had a problem with the ones we have used

 

[mikec442]

We typically park at Airport Fast Park on Nursery Road. Easy to get to. Shuttle picks you up and drops you off at your car, very convenient. This one has a few covered spots and we've been fortunate to nab one in the summer. Nice to come back to a car that hasn't been baking in the sun for a week +. Price is a little cheaper than BWI long term at $7.40 / day.

+1 on Fast Park

We also use Fast Park and Relax. They follow you to your car as you enter the lot, help with luggage, and it's a short ride to the airport. Very convenient on the return too.

They also gave us an activity kit for our kids on the plane and a newspaper... as well as water for the drive home.

 

[DopeyDame]

We usually use the daily lot. You do need to take a shuttle but it's a short trip. (The economy lot shuttle can take forever!) There is an hourly lot from which you can walk, but it's pricey. It's an option if you end up really needing it.

 

[firegurl]

I'm cheap. I won't use the daily lot. I prefer long term parking because it is only $8 a day. The shuttles really don't take that long. A tip that I learned at BWI from one of the Airtran desk agents, the security line to the left of the Airtran/Southwest desk (Gate B I believe) is usually packed because that is where everyone tends to go. If you walk just a little bit further, you can go to gate C and it is much less busy. It is just around the corner from Gate B but most people don't realize it.
I also see groupon and living social deals constantly for parking. It is usually for 1 week at half price. My parents have used them several times.

 

[mikehn]

Where ever you decide to park, just try to be in the terminal 2 hours ahead of your flight. Not sure what airline you are taking, but Southwest has the longest lines, particularly if you need to check baggage. And then another line for TSA, which is unpredictable. So you are likely to need every bit of 2 hours.

 

[rwdavis2]

The Daily Lot is convenient in that there are only 4 pick up spots on the entry level. So you don't have a lot of stopping. Since it is in a garage you won't get hit by any weather. A bit more expensive but not bad.

Also, with a BWI-owned lot they have free service available for dead batteries. I had to use it a couple years ago. Just use the emergency phones in various places and showed up fairly quickly.

 

[JustineMarie]

Thanks for all the responses! We are using Southwest so now Im nervous that maybe I should take the later flight instead of chancing not getting there 2 hours early. It's my daughter's last class of the summer so she may not be done exactly at 11:30. Im figuring we should be on the road by 12 at the latest. Then with with little to no traffic (hopefully), we should arrive at the parking garage by 2:15. We are only taking carry-on's and will have our boarding passes printed ahead of time so we will be able to go straight to the security line but do you think that will give us enough time?

I think that we are going to try to park in the daily parking garage, since that seems to be the best choice when limited in time. Worst case I can pay the 22$ a day to park in the hourly lot and just walk to the terminal but that kinda cancels a lot of the savings that we got by flying out of BWI instead of PHL. Decisions decisions...

 

[rwdavis2]

Thanks for all the responses! We are using Southwest so now Im nervous that maybe I should take the later flight instead of chancing not getting there 2 hours early. It's my daughter's last class of the summer so she may not be done exactly at 11:30. Im figuring we should be on the road by 12 at the latest. Then with with little to no traffic (hopefully), we should arrive at the parking garage by 2:15. We are only taking carry-on's and will have our boarding passes printed ahead of time so we will be able to go straight to the security line but do you think that will give us enough time?

I guess worst case I can pay the 22$ a day to park in the hourly lot and just walk to the terminal but that kinda cancels a lot of the savings that we got by flying out of BWI instead of PHL. Decisions decisions...

I don't think you will save that much time parking in the hourly lot. Your biggest risk is traffic although you will be traveling during non rush hour. I do believe there is construction on I-95 north of Baltimore. I also think there is construction on one the bridges south of Baltimore as well.


Taking a later flight is probably a good idea.

 

[JustineMarie]

I ended up switching my flight for a flight that leaves an hour later. Didn't realize they offered non-stop flights that close together. So at least this way I feel better in case we hit any traffic.

Thanks everyone!

 

[bookwormde]

always good to play it safe the first time at a new airport.

We have started using BWI in stead of PHL despite having similar drive time differentials. We use the airport economy parking for $8 and have never had an issue with the shuttle.

It is much quicker to get though BWI as compared to PHL.

If you walk to the 3rd TSA area beyond SW it is often walk up with no line

 

[rwdavis2]

I ended up switching my flight for a flight that leaves an hour later. Didn't realize they offered non-stop flights that close together. So at least this way I feel better in case we hit any traffic.

Thanks everyone!

Excellent! BWI is a Southwest hub so we're kind of spoiled here. If you have time try the wine bar in one of the SW terminals.

 

[Iamthequeen]

We always fly out of BWI and park at the Long Term parking lot. The shuttles run frequently and we've never had to wait very long for one. The difference in price between the daily and long term probably doesn't matter too much for the convenience of being closer to the airport. SW is the first stop off the shuttles and as a previous poster said, go to the gate "C" to the left of the check in desks. It is rarely crowded and getting through security is fairly painless.