Hi,
My mother alerted me to this post. I just wanted to take a quick min. to explain the airport situation in the DC area.
There are 3 primary airports in the DC area:
BWI – Baltimore/Washington International Airport which is between DC and Baltimore off of I-95 in Maryland
IAD – Washington Dulles International Airport which is west of DC in Virginia
DCA – Washington National Airport which is right outside the city in Virginia.
Information about IAD and DCA can be found here:
http://www.metwashairports.com/
Information about BWI can be found here:
http://www.bwiairport.com/
Of the three airports the Washington subway system, referred to as “Metro”, only stops at DCA. Amtrak runs to BWI and then stops at a couple different Metro stations with Union Station being the largest and probably you’re best bet for getting to the mall/rally site or jump on a Metro train from there and get off at the Smithsonian station to save yourself some walking. I do not know Amtrak’s current policy of buying tickets and if they have to be bought in advance. Please check Amtrak’s website or call them for details about how to get tickets and ride from BWI to Washington DC.
There is no train service that runs to IAD. The Super Shuttle is a good idea for getting into the city from IAD. There are a few different options provided by Washington Flyer; the official transportation company of the Dulles Airport. The first option is taxi which is probably the fastest and most convenient. A trip from IAD to the heart of DC in a taxi will be about $50 according to the Washington Flyer website (
http://www.metwashairports.com/dulles/ground.htm). A far more economical way to get from IAD to the city is the Washington Flyer Coach or bus service. The coach service runs at regular intervals from IAD to the West Falls Church Metro station which is on the Orange line. The one way fair is $8.
Directions from DCA were provided in the mailings about camp according to what I’m told.
A note about the Washington Metro system – it is easy and convenient to use. The website is
http://www.wmata.com/ and you’ll find a map of the system and trip planners. This page
http://www.wmata.com/riding/riding_metro.cfm gives you a good overview of the system. It is important to remember the ends of each colored line. This is an indication of which direction you are going. For example, the Orange line runs from east and west from Virgina, through the City, out to Maryland. On the Virginia side the last station is Vienna/GMU and on the Maryland side it is New Carrolton. Once in the city if you are on the Orange line and want to go west you’ll board the Orange Vienna/GMU train and if you want to go east you’ll board the New Carrolton train. There are certain routes where you may have to transfer trains. For example the blue line and yellow line run to DCA. If you are going directly to the camp you’ll want to board the yellow line towards Mt. Vernon Square. Get off at Gallery Place Chinatown. You’ll then find the signs for the red line towards Shady Grove. After boarding the red line towards Shady grove get off at Friendship Heights. Then board the bus to the camp site. Montgomery County (county where the camp is) bus system is called Ride On and both bus 1 and 11 go to the camp. Metrobus, the Washington Metro bus system, also stops at the camp and is served by bus L7 or L8. When you get to the Metro station at the DCA airport you’ll notice Farecard machines. You’ll need to purchase a farecard at this time. The card will get you through the turnstiles and into the Metro system. Each passenger must have a farecard except for children under 4. You can transfer between trains without leaving the system. If you are going to transfer by bus make sure you get a transfer ticket from the “transfer” machine before leaving the station. When you leave the station you will need to use the same farecard you used to enter to pass back out of the turnstiles.
Getting from DCA to the rally site is very easy. You’ll find the Metro station at DCA and purchase your farecard at the machine. Enter the turnstile and board the blue line train towards Largo Town Center. Get off at the Smithsonian station. That’s it.
If you get lost in the Metro system do not hesitate to go back to the entrance of the station and ask one of the attendants. They are very helpful even when you get off of a long flight and start asking for trains that don’t exist at that station which I did once and the gentlemen kindly corrected me and sent me on my way.
So, don’t forget to check your tickets to make sure you know what airport you are flying into and have a safe flight everyone. I look forward to seeing everyone, it’s been too long.
I hope this helped.
