I am booking a trip with ff miles and will be staying with my husband while he is on business in Mclean VA - I am flying out of DFW -

The times that work best for me are to fly into IDA but returning to DFW from DCA -

I have only been to DC one time and did not fly in or out -

I searched back (as I was going to do this last year and ended up not doing it) but cannot find out if it is REALLY hard to get to DCA from Mclean - Tyson corner to be specific on area.

It depends what time you are going. There is tons of traffic in that area and I think a bunch of construction also. I assume you will be taking a car service or taxi.

I will be providing my own transportation - either public, or car/taxi - depends if it is feasible?

The times are:

Arrival 2:50 pm into IDA on a Friday

Departure from DCA on a Thursday at 10:50 am

McLean is probably a little closer to DCA, but not by much. Either is fine.

A taxi all the way to DCA will probably hit traffic (it's Northern Virginia, traffic is omnipresent for us). It is a pretty long taxi ride too.

You could instead get a taxi to the East Falls Church metro station. That's the orange line, so you will need to change to blue at Rosslyn and then go a few stops to the airport. Depending on where you are in Mclean, it might be closer to taxi to the Rosslyn station, which would put you right on the Blue line.

The metro stops right at the airport at DCA and is very convenient. I love DCA- a beautiful space with nice food and shopping options.

Frankly, a taxi to either IAD or DCA (note that Dulles is IAD, not IDA) in the morning is very likely to hit traffic. That corridor is filled with traffic going in both directions during most rush hours. At least once you are on the metro to DCA, traffic isn't an issue.

You will likely be heading to DCA during a.m. rush hour.

Dulles is IAD (not IDA). Probably just a typo but I wanted to point it out so you don't accidentally make that mistake when booking.

thanks - yes, it was a typo

I will see if I can change it around to other times not in rush hour -

In Mclean it is the Tyson corner Marriott.

Swimmer that sounds like a good plan - I will look into it more. I prefer metro if possible.I will just have a carryon bag.

I was able to switch it to departure at 1:35 pm so hopefully that will work out better with the traffic.

If you are at Tyson's then Dunn Loring metro might be closer than East Falls Church. The hotel will know. I think there is a bus to Rosslyn from there- check the Metro trip planner.

Right now the Metro is being extended out to Dulles, so there is tons of construction right around Tyson's, a snarl even without the traffic. Lots and lots of shopping in that area!

You would want to use the West Falls Church or Dunn Loring Metro stations, not East FC.

Okay I will check with the Marriott - and now I am flying in and out of DCA -

On Monday or Tuesday I would like to go into DC and see some sites so will figure out transportation for that as well.

The Dunn Loring Metro station is closest - a 3 mile taxi ride from the Tyson's Marriott.

You'll also be able to easily Metro from DCA to Dunn Loring when you arrive (transfer trains at Rosslyn) and easily taxi from the Dunn Loring station to your hotel.

The Metro is super easy to navigate. We stayed in Arlington, just north of DCA, when we were in DC in October, and it only took us a few minutes to get into the District.

www.wmata.com is the city transportation website; you can use to find times, routes, etc. There is also the DC Circulator bus www.dccirculator.com and if you're up for a bike ride, check out Capital BikeShare www.capitalbikeshare.com

Fodor's Washington DC guide has a very good map of the Metro and the District. I checked out a copy from the library and took the map with us.

Check my trip report for more info. Have a great time!

Lee Ann

Thank you Lee Ann! I will check your tr - I will also post for some tips

Agree with others...the Metro is easy to navigate

When is your trip?

The first weekend in Feb. I will email you.

Okie dokie

A bus from West Falls Church Metro Station heading to Tysons Corner would probably have a stop directly in front of the Marriot on the same side of route 7.