World City Guide

Getting There By Air

Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)
Tel: (703) 572 2700.
Website: www.metwashairports.com/dulles

The airport is located 42km (26 miles) west of the city and operates both domestic and international flights. Over 17.2 million passengers used the airport in 2002. Two recently opened facilities provide public parking for 20,000 vehicles.

Major airlines: 34 passenger airlines fly out of Dulles. They include Aeroflot, Air Canada, Air France, AirTran Airlines, Alaska Airlines, All Nippon Airways, American Airlines, Austrian Airlines, bmi British Midland, British Airways, BWIA British West Indies Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines, Grupo TACA International Airlines, JetBlue, Korean Air, Lufthansa, KLM, Northwest Airlines, Saudi Arabian Airlines, SAS, Swiss; United Airlines, US Airways and Virgin Atlantic. Several regional carriers and cargo carriers also use the airport.

Airport facilities: These include bureaux de change, ATMs, visitor information, several car hires including Avis, Dollar and Hertz, duty-free, shops, restaurants and bars. Dulles is a non-smoking facility.

Business facilities: Business service centres are located at the east end (tel: (703) 572 2963) and west end of the upper level of the main terminal. They provide bureau de change facilities, insurance, fax, stamps, photocopying and notary services. They are open daily 0700-2100.

Transport to the city: The Washington Flyer Coach Service (tel: (888) 927 4359 (WASHFLY), toll free in the USA and Canada, or (703) 572 8400; website: www.washfly.com ) operates a service linking Dulles with West Falls Church Metro station every 30 minutes 0545-2215 during the week and 0745-2215 at weekends (journey time – 25-30 minutes). A one-way fare is US$8 or US$14 round-trip. Washington Flyer Taxi Cabs (tel: (703) 661 6655; website: www.mwaa.com/dulles/ground.htm#flyertaxi ) depart from the lower level of the main terminal and costs about US$44-50 to Downtown (journey time – 30-45 minutes, depending on the traffic). SuperShuttle buses (tel: (202) 296 6662 or (800) BLUE VAN or (800) 258 3826, toll free in the USA and Canada; website: www.supershuttle.com ) operate a 24-hour service downtown costing approximately US$22 or US$40 round-trip plus US$10 for each additional person (journey time – 50 minutes).

Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI)
Tel: (800) 435 9294 or (301) 261 1000.
Website: www.bwiairport.com

The airport is located 55km (34 miles) northeast of downtown Washington and 20 airlines, both domestic and international, use this facility. About 19.01 million people passed through BWI in 2002, a decrease of 6.7% on 2001 figures.

Major airlines: Southwest Airlines (tel: (800) 435 9792, toll free in the USA and Canada; website: www.southwest.com ) use Baltimore/Washington as its hub. Other airlines serving the airport include Air Canada, American Airlines, British Airways, Continental Airlines, Delta, Icelandair, Northwest Airlines, TWA, United Airlines and US Airways.

Approximate flight times to Baltimore: From London is 8 hours 30 minutes; from New York is 1 hour; from Los Angeles is 5 hours 45 minutes; from Toronto is 1 hour 45 minutes and from Sydney is 20 hours.

Airport facilities: These include bureaux de change, ATMs, visitor information, several car hires including Alamo, Avis and Hertz, duty-free, shops, restaurants and bars.

Business facilities: Thomas Cook facilities, located in various terminals, offer fax and photocopying and mailing services.

Transport to the city: SuperShuttle buses (tel: (800) 258 3826, toll free in the USA and Canada; website: www.supershuttle.com ) operate a request service to downtown costing approximately US$30 one way with additional passengers costing US$10 (journey time – 1 hour). MTA/MARC trains (tel: (410) 539 5000 or (800) 325 RAIL (7245) locally and (888) 226 5515 tickets by mail; website: www.mtamaryland.com ) cost US$6 each way and connect the airport with Union Station Monday-Friday 0500-2400 (journey time – 40 minutes). Amtrak trains (tel: (202) 484 7540 or (800) 872 7245 (USARAIL), toll free in the USA and Canada; website: www.amtrak.com ) run a regular service from the airport to Union Station starting at US$9. The fares for the speedy Acela and Metroliner train begin at US$38. The taxi fare to Downtown costs approximately US$55.

Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA)
Tel: (703) 417 8000.
Website: www.metwashairports.com/national

The airport is located five kilometres (three miles) south of the city along the Potomac River. The airport’s three terminals serve 64 domestic destinations and three Canadian/Caribbean ones. In total, 20 airlines and about 12.9 million passengers use the airport each year.

Major airlines: Ronald Reagan National Airport serves Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, America West, American Airlines, American Trans Air, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Midway Express Airlines, Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and US Airways. Several regional airlines also use this airport.

Airport facilities: These include bureaux de change, ATMs, visitor information, car hire (Avis, Budget, Dollar, Hertz and National), shops, restaurants, bars and cafés.

Business facilities: Fax, photocopying, notary and other services are provided by the customer service centres (tel: (703) 417 3200 or 3201) in Terminals B and C daily from 0700-2100.

Transport to the city: Metrorail lines (tel: (202) 637 7000; website: www.wmata.com ) link National Airport to Downtown. SuperShuttle buses (tel: (800) 258 3826, toll free in the USA and Canada; website: www.supershuttle.com ) operate a regular service to downtown costing approximately US$10 plus US$9 per additional passenger (journey time – 30 minutes). Limousine service is available for approximately US$42. Taxis to Downtown normally cost between US$9-19.

Approximate flight times to Washington, DC: From London is 7 hours 45 minutes; from New York is 1 hour 15 minutes; from Los Angeles is 4 hours 45 minutes; from Toronto is 1 hour 30 minutes and from Sydney is 20 hours.

Arrival/departure tax: This is included in the ticket price.