Going to Washington, flying into Baltimore?

[Claire&TheBoys]

Thinking about a future trip to DC and wondering about how to get there. We can fly non-stop to BWI cheaply on SW - it's much more expensive to fly to Dulles or Reagan. I can look on a map and see the relative distance from BWI to DC, but how far is it really with traffic? I'm thinking it would be better to take some sort of car service from the airport to a hotel in the DC area where we could use the Metro to get around, rather than renting a car. Our main focus would be to see the main attactions in the DC area. Another option would be to stay somewhere between BWI and DC (where?), but I'm worried about spending a lot of time commuting to the DC area.

Thanks for helpful information!

 

[englishteacha]

I'm only guessing, but a friend lives in Annapolis, MD. I flew into BWI to see her and it was a short drive to her place in Annapolis. She works in DC, and I know it's less than an hour from Annapolis to her workplace. So I'd guess it's less than an hour into DC proper from BWI. Keep in mind, this is just a guess from someone who recently visited Annapolis and skipped the city entirely.

 

[KelNottAt]

BWI is quite often the airport of choice for Washingtonians. To be honest, the traffic between Dulles and DC can often be worse than the traffic from BWI to DC.

Enjoy your stay.

 

[NotUrsula]

On weekdays you can take a MARC train to DC's Union Station directly from the BWI station ($6 pp/ow), but on weekends the station is only served by AmTrak (between $15-35 ow, depending on what time it is.) It is also possible to get a shuttle to the Greenbelt Metro Station on the Green Line, but that's a lot more complicated if you have kids in tow. That's right around $11 each way.

If you have several people in your party the ground transit prices can add up, so consider that when pricing the airfare, as National is right on top of the district and can be reached by regular Metro trains.

On possibility is to split the difference and fly into Baltimore on a weekday and out of National on a different airline, or vice verso.

It also can work out to plan to pick up a car and drive in one of the directions, if you are also planning on doing some of the outlying sites, such as Mount Vernon, Udvar-Hazy, or the nearby Civil War battlefields.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

If you are just going to visit DC and not rent a car, National would be the most convenient airport by far. BWI is a trek; about an hour long drive without traffic.

I agree that you need to factor in the cost of transport and extra travel time between BWI and DC before deciding National is that much more expensive than BWI. I would definitely look for a hotel near a metro stop.

 

[Halle]

We've flown into BWI on Sunday/Wednesday evening/Friday mid-day. Car rental was very economical. Friday - Sunday $52.00 in October. Time wise Sunday 55 minutes to Arlington in traffic, Wednesday evening 45 minutes (Dh didn't know where he was going). I wouldn't fly into Dulles, can't remember the name of the road you take from Dulles to DC but do know that it has major road work and ridiculously long traffic lights.

 

[swilshire]

I always fly into BWI when working in northern VA because it's $500 cheaper than Dulles. Last week it took me 1 hr 15 minutes to get to Falls Church. About the same to get back.

BWI gets crazy and last Friday was typical. Tons of flights cancelled. Long story short, it took me 33 hours to finally get home a day later. In the process, Continental put me in a cab to National Airport. The voucher was for $110. I didn't time it exactly, but it wasn't much more than an hour airport to airport.

Rental cars are economical at BWI. Traffic can be a bear, but that's true throughout the area.

Sheila

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Thanks for the information! I haven't pin-pointed a time to go, maybe in the fall or next spring, but trying to get my preliminary footwork done. I'll be filing all these tips away!

 

[famousmockingbird]

We just got back from a trip to DC this June. We flew into BWI and rented a car, as we were spending time in both Baltimore and DC. We spent two days in Baltimore, then drove over to DC and stayed at National Harbor. If you stay there, a car is pretty handy to get to all of the sights and activities. We would drive over to the metro stop, then ride in for the day. It was a little awkward, but we had 8 people in our group. I would recommend staying as close to a metro stop as possible. Our first trip (5 years ago), we stayed in Crystal City and were two blocks from a metro stop. If you did that, then taking a car service in and not renting a car would be perfect.

Have fun!

 

[klmall]

There is also another new option since March, although it may only appeal to those basing their Washington stay in Gaithersburg, MD which many do or for those who will hop onto Metro in non-rush hour. A $5 commuter bus with no stops from BWI to Gaithersburg (http://www.mtaiccbus.com/) could take you to stay at one of several hotels at walking distance from the end of the Metro Red Line or allow metro travel to anywhere in the system.

By the way, I have lived here all my life and we have used all 3 airports quite a bit and BWI is our favorite by far for ease and modern features. Dulles is our second choice and is getting better but can be a pain from a local's viewpoint because of commuting to and from! We absolutely hate Reagan and feel it is a far, far, third choice for a number of issues and don't fly it all! But remember, we are locals and have different reasons than tourists!

My advice is to stay near Metro and use it to get around!

 

[Racemom17]

Have lived in the Northern VA area for 27 years...would say...if you don't need a rental car...fly into BWI and take a shuttle to your hotel in DC. Staying in the city for your visit will save you time of having to commute in everyday....money much better spent than paying extra to fly into Dulles or National. You wouldn't gain anything by flying into Dulles......if you fly into National...you could use the metro to get into DC...so I would compare the cost between National/BWI and having to hire a car to get from BWI...

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

You can take the amtrak train from BWI to Union station in D.C Then you can catch the metro at Union station the cost to take amtrak is $10 each way. It take 35 minutes to go from BWI to DC

Dont forget if you rent a car you will have to pay to park the car at the hotel and its not cheap.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

BWI is quite often the airport of choice for Washingtonians. To be honest, the traffic between Dulles and DC can often be worse than the traffic from BWI to DC.

Enjoy your stay.

We live in NoVA and we will use BWI sometimes. Better flight availability, especially for SW since it is a hub. In fact, when I was still living in FL and hubby would fly down, we mostly scheduled out of BWI as, if there was a flight issue, better shot at him catching the next flight.

It takes about 1 hour 20 minutes from my home in NoVA to get to BWI sans traffic. Took me 2 hours last time in daytime--traffic issues on the beltway.

No traffic, I am about 40 minutes from downtown DC to give you some perspective.

I am only about 25 minutes, no traffic, from Dulles. About 40 minutes with traffic.

Dulles SEEMS closer to DC--but it has lots of traffic to get through in daytime.

 

[crjack]

We flew into BWI last year for a trip to DC and used a car service to get us to our downtown hotel. The rest of the time we used the Metro or occasionally a taxi.

We were only there for 4 days and wanted to see a lot so it worked out best for us to have our hotel be fairly close to the museums and monuments.

It wasn't a bad ride into DC at all but we also timed our flight to arrive late morning. (Only flew in from Boston so not a long flight)

Some hotels charge to park so we opted not to rent a car and have it sitting there. The car service was plenty big and air conditioned.

There are lots of free things to do in DC so it can still be a great value if you use a car service.

 

[Redwitch]

http://www.bwiairport.com/en/travel/ground-transportation

BWI web site has all options linked.

 

[nunzia]

We did this for a vet convention a few years ago. Easy shuttle ride to DC, then stayed at a hotel close enough to walk to the metro with no problems. We took the metro everywhere, and felt safe and the people were friendly. A really great trip!

 

[binkblum]

We have lived in NoVa (Northern Virginia) for almost 10 years and typically fly in and out of BWI or Dulles - first choice is obviously out of Regan but due to costs but usually due to costs, BWI or Dulles wins. And typically BWI. If you take early flights - I mean EARLY - 6 am or so, you will find traffic not as bad on the Baltimore - Washington Parkway or I-95.

BWI has shuttles and look into the hotel where you plan on staying...most hotels offer free or for a minimal fee shuttle services.