Need help from Baltimore to DC....
 

Hi,
We are planning a vacation to DC in July. We will be flying to BWI at 4pm. We are thinking to either spend on night in Baltimore then drive to DC the next morning or drive to the DC directly from BWI airport(maybe around 5pm after we got our rental car) ,so we can have one full day to explore DC instead of half day. We are worried that if we leave around 5pm from BWI to DC,will there be bad traffic? Or do you think that if we leave BWI next morning to DC,the traffic will be much better?
Really appreciate your inputs!! Thanks.

I think you are hung either way unless by waiting til morning you are able to leave on Saturday rather than a weekday.

Those roads seem to me to be crowded all the time.

The beltway gets jammed by 3 pm it seems.

BWI is closer to DC than you think. Just step outside the BWI terminal, board the B30 express bus, and it will take you to the Greenbelt Metro station. Each of you will need $3 in one-dollar-bills to pay for the bus, which runs every 40 minutes, 7 days per week. The car rental offices at BWI are off-premises and require a shuttle, so IMHO you wouldn't save time or hassle, and certainly not money.

Please don't bother stayng at BWI overnight. It doesn't get dark around here in July until almost 9:00. That's gives you a lot of time to get to DC and do a few evening activities. There's nothing to do near BWI (which is not actually in Baltimore). Traffic will probably be worse going into DC in the morning anyway.

Have you considered taking the commuter train from BWI to DC? The station is just a short shuttle ride from BWI, and it goes right into Union Station. It's inexpensive., and much easier than driving thru traffic.

Don't rent a car for DC. You do not mention the length of your visit, but if you need a car for a portion of your trip, pick one up on the day you leave DC. It is easy to get to the car rental offices at Union Staion and National Airport by Metro, and you may find that drop-off at BWI is considered local. Inquire of several auto rental companies.

I've rented from different companies (Avis, Hertz, Budget) in the DC area, and each of those have no drop off charges when picking up or dropping off at BWI, DCA & IAD

But do you really need a car? Is your visit pretty much confined to DC?

On a weekday, I always prefer MARC commuter rail to get back to BWI, as I'm worried about traffic jams. Otherwise, I do the GreenLine/B30 combo.

Or do you mean you're thinking about staying near BWI in order to explore Baltimore? If so, let me suggest a Sleep Inn and/or a Comfort Inn in North Lithicum (both owned by same company, next to each other) that have shuttles to BWI, BWI-Rail, and are a short walking distance from the Light Rail, that will take you right into "Bahwmor", which is a nice visit in its own. Take the hotel shuttle the next day either to BWI for the B30, or BWI-Rail for a MARC train. Amtrak serves too, but costs a lot more then MARC.

to clarify- the Light Rail will take you into Baltimore (under $4 r/t), not the hotel shuttle. Shuttle will probably drive you to Light Rail, should you not wish to walk the short distance.

You don't need the rental car for just BWI to DC. Take the MARC train from BWI to Union STation.

If, however, you are driving on from DC somewhere, know that yes, there will be traffic, but it won't be so bad that you should pay to stay near BWI. There's nothing to do there, and traffic in the morning will be worse than at night (at night, you'll be going against most of it). Sure, it might take you an hour and a half, but it's NOT that awful.

Thanks so much for your prompt and detailed suggestions.We plan to stay in DC for two nights and we will be driving to Harrisburg after DC, that's why we need a rental car. Do you think if we drive from BWI to DC around 10am the next morning(which is Thursday),would the traffic be better? Or if it's better to drive directly from BWI to DC during the night time ,what is the best route to follow to avoid possible jam? Thanks again for your help.

I don't see any advantage of waiting until the morning to drive to DC. Sure, there's going to be traffic. But it's not a parking lot and definitely not so bad you can't drive into the city.

As for avoiding jams, there is no best way. I would take the BW Parkway, which is closer to BWI. If it's slow, it's slow.

What is your main anxiety about the traffic?

If you don't like driving in traffic, then why not wait and rent the car when you're ready to leave DC? It's only a liability while you're there -- you'll be paying rental fees and parking fees for days when you're not even using it. I prefer the B-30 express bus as mentioned above, but the MARC train is also an alternative, which would avoid traffic issues.

An alternative that nobody has mentoined is taking a taxi from BWI to DC, which would cost about the same as a day's car rental (especially if you add in hte evening's parking fee). The traffic would of course be the same, but somebody else would be dealing with it. In the early evening, you would be heading INTO DC, while most of the traffic would be heading OUT.

I'm still baffled why you're willing to give up half a day of vacation, especially half a day out of 2 days' total, just in order to avoid an extra hour's transit time, if the highway is moving slowly.

Listen to Anonymous and take a cab. If you stay at BWI you'll actually miss almost a whole day - the afternoon of your first day and the next morning. There are tons of things you can see and do in Washington in that amount of time. And the earlier in the morning you start your sightingseeing, the better. You won't be able to check into your hotel until 3:00 anyway.

You do not need a car in DC. Do your sightseeing there. Then rent the car on your last day. This will save you the aggravation of driving in DC traffic, it will save you time spent trying to find parking spaces, and will also save you a few days of rental car costs.

Seeing the DC area is much easier without a car.

To clarify the ease of renting your car when you're leaving DC: You will not have to trek out to an airport to rent it. All of the car rental companies have outposts at Union Station, and most of them also have offices at various locations in the northwest part of the city, where your hotel probably is located.

Uhoo, do you mind saying where you are staying in DC? You could get a lot of very specific advice here from people who know DC very well.

Another vote for heading to DC in the evening. The DC monuments are beautifully lite at night.
I agree with the others that the train or bus is your best route into DC. DC is definitely a great city for walking. We always park our car for the day & walk everywhere. Parking is a hassle If you really feel the need for the car from BWI to DC, why not get a bite to eat near BWI and then head to DC - most of the traffic will be gone by then.

Agreeing again with Anonymous - get into DC by public trans or cab. Either rent car at end of stay, or go back to BWI, where you'll be outside the Capital Beltway, since you have traffic concerns, and can easily be on your way to Harrisburg from there.

I'd only stay near Baltimore if you actually WANTED to visit there, not as a means to avoid traffic. Having a car in DC is a liability, not an asset.

If you're worried about traffic, why not just have dinner somewhere before hitting the road and heading to DC? I bet someone here could recommend a decent place to eat not far from BWI and not out of the way. Then you'll kill a bit of time eating rather than sitting in traffic.

I would guess that traffic depends on the day of the week, as well. My experience with the beltway has been limited to late in the evening and on the weekend and we've never had traffic issues.