BWI
 

Hi
I am headed to Bwi to travel on air tran and want to park my car there for two weeks. Is it safe? how do you get to the plane from the parking lot, and how long a trip from lot to plane area.Also How far from Phila is BWI OR how far from baltimore harbor
thanks a lot

BWI parking lots seems safe to me and I've come back to the airport at midnight...not a problem...plenty of shuttle buses circling the lot.

It is 10 minutes plus or minus to the terminal on the shuttle.

Baltimore is a quick trip on 95 south from Phila....all good highways. A Mapquest.com search will give the time and mileage.

Road signs are good in Maryland....the first thing I noticed when I moved to Maryland from PA.

Amtrak also stops at the airport so you might consider that from Phila. Do not get off in Baltimore Penn Station...go one more stop to BWI stop and there is a free 5-min shuttle to the terminal....very easy.

If you have extra time, the light rail goes from the airport to downtown, close to the harbor.

http://preflightparking.com/lo-bwi.shtml

I fly BWI all the time for work, all hours of the day and night. I use PreFlight Parking, which is very safe and reasonably priced. They pick you up at your car take you to terminal, and return you to your car, not a bus stop station. With the web coupon its $7 a day, plus the 7th day is free. Cheaper then the official BWI satellite parking lots that use the bus station method. Depending on airport traffic, time of day, plus there is loads of construction at the terminal, from car pick up to terminal give yourself 15-20 minutes. If you return late call Preflight from the baggage carousel to let them know you are there and they will come to your carousel number area outside. Note you must walk out to the outer road to the general pick up area to get their bus. There are instructions on how to reach their parking area on their website.

Not all trains that stop at Baltimore (Penn) stop at BWI as well, but even so, the light rail runs from Baltimore Penn right to the BWI terminal, and the fare is $1.35.

The Convention Center or Camdem Yards stop on the Light Rail will be easy walking distance to the Harbor.

You can also purchase an all day pass for $3 that allows unlimited use of bus, subway, and lightrail.

thanks to you all.
Amie, Does Amtrack go right into the airport????? that does sound easier than driving, I have to decide best way. I am traveling alone( senior citizen) if I take amtrack I wont be able to stop at the harbor, which I suppose could be another trip.
thanks
hi2you

hi alicia,
thanks again for the help.
is the preflight terminal the one with blue or green signage?
hi2ypu

Yes, most (but not all) Amtrak trains running between Baltimore and DC stop at the BWI rail station. Check the schedule to make sure. Then from BWI rail station you must take a 5 - 10 minute shuttle bus to the BWI airport terminal.

Amtrak does not go right into the Airport. The stop is a couple of miles away but there is a constant shuttle between the station and airport. Lots of people will be doing the same as you. The BWI station is very simple, much much smaller than 30th St station in Phila.

You come off the train, cross the tracks (take the elevator up and then down).....then it is just steps to the shuttle. I have come in late at night and there are enough people around and it is well lit.

I am back again (she smiles) I was just wondering,........ when they pick you up at your car and take you to the terminal do you check your bags at the door? they do that in phila and its easy for me. Also what is a reasonable tip for their service (pickups ) thanks again
I'm gettin there
hi2 you

Since you state that you would like to visit Baltimore harbor, but are considering Amtrak..

You might wish to take Amtrak to Baltimore Penn station *IF* they have a baggage check service (I think they do, but check!). See my previous post about taking light rail to convention center stop. You could return to Penn station after your visit, and take light rail right from Penn to the airport. Unlike Amtrak & MARC, the light rail comes right up to the airport terminal. Since that lightrail line starts at the RR station & ends at the airport, you would be boarding a practically empty car, so could get your luggage situated, etc.

If you're driving & parking your car for two weeks, you might be able to find cheaper long-term parking in downtown Baltimore and be able to take light rail as well. Happy Travels.

PreFlight is not part of the "official" BWI parking services aka the Blue and Green parking lots, ESP and Hourly.

PreFlight is an independant parking company that services the BWI airport, there are a few others which I have not tried. I've been happy with PreFlight and with the coupon its cheaper then the Blue and Green lots.

There are no exit signs on the highway pointing the way to PreFlight parking as there are for official BWI parking lots. If you decide to try PreFlight just remember to take their directions off their website when you go.

You may want to consider a "Park and Fly" rate at one of the local hotels. You pay for the hotel room for one night (either the night you are leaving or returning from your trip), and you can park there all week for free. This works well if you have an early morning flight or are returning particularly late. There are many chain hotels surrounding the airport, and if you can get a decent rate, it might be cheaper than paying for parking alone for two weeks. Just a thought.

just want to let you all know I used preflight and it was easy as pie. would do it again
thanks for your help
hi2you

I believe Pre-Flight Parking is now $9 per day, although with the coupons you can find on their website you will save a few dollars.

Whoever runs the regular BWI long-term lots has to be one of the worst providers of parking service. Our experiences, before finding Pre-flight, were always bad when it came to getting one of their shuttle buses. The wait at the terminal to get a shuttle bus back to the lot was NEVER shorter than 10-15 minutes and frequently 20-30 minutes. We have heard of others who have waited 45 minutes to 1 hour for a bus! Truly ridiculous. Pre-flight is worth the extra few dollars. We have never had to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus and the typical wait is <5 minutes.