Travel to washington! HELP!

[mauAQP19]

Hey Guys, i need some HELP!

next weeek im going to washington, and want to know, how time is between the airport of dulles, to the train station of armtrak! please

[Eerik]

Originally Posted by mauAQP19

Hey Guys, i need some HELP!

next weeek im going to washington, and want to know, how time is between the airport of dulles, to the train station of armtrak! please

Depends on the time of day you'll arrive at Dulles airport.

I realize you're asking about airport to train station, but keep in mind the following:

Whenever I fly through certain cities (such as Amsterdam) you can tack on an extra 30-minutes just to get off the plane since police will use canines to search each passenger for narcotics. This even before you arrive in the Customs Hall.

Tack on another 15-minutes to load one of those ridiculous passenger buses to shuttle you to the arrivals hall, 30-minutes to present your passport, at least another 30-minutes to claim your baggage, and 15-minutes to pass through declarations. Depending on what mode of transit you're looking at to getting into town (Shuttle? Friend? Taxi?) at least another 15-minutes to leave the airport territory.

I would tack on at least another hour to arrive at Union Station. (I assume you're catching an Amtrack train at Union Station in Washington and not one of the suburban stations heading south?) And I assume your train ticket is already purchased?

So, plan on at least three hours from gate to gate...an hour from station-to-station. I have several friends who have totally missed the mark by not anticipating delays at Dulles.

[NovaWolverine]

Make sure you know exactly how you're getting from the airport to downtown. It may just take an hour, but it can take longer than that. I'd say 2 hrs is a safe estimate.

[yamota]

Also keep in mind that Union station is undergoing extensive repair after last August's earthquake so the layout might be a little bit different, but it is open.