Long layover at IAD

Hi all,

I've got a long layover on a return trip in the spring. Basically,
after taking into account disembarking and time to be at next gate of
departure, I've got roughly 5 hours to kill.

Are there any tours that can be booked from the airport? I've already
ready about the tranportation situation around Dulles to anywhere...
Options?

Thanks in advance.

//Eva

"bunster" <lmcevch@> wrote in message
news:1104807605.704582.225680@c13g2000cwb. o...
> Hi all,
>
> I've got a long layover on a return trip in the
spring. Basically,
> after taking into account disembarking and time
to be at next gate of
> departure, I've got roughly 5 hours to kill.
>
> Are there any tours that can be booked from the
airport? I've already
> ready about the tranportation situation around
Dulles to anywhere...
> Options?

Will you bags be checked through?

AFAIK, there are no organised tours available from
the airport. You could go into central DC.
Transportation would eat up about half your 5
hours - less if money is no object and you bought
faster transport. That would leave "enough" time
for one major museum or gallery.

Visit the Smithsonian Air & Space Annex which is
on the south side of the Dulles airport grounds.
AFAIK you'll have to take a taxi to get there -
and back. Entry is free. Taxi is not free.

>I've got a long layover on a return trip in the spring. Basically,
>after taking into account disembarking and time to be at next gate of
>departure, I've got roughly 5 hours to kill.

I'd recommend taking a taxi to the new Air and Space museum on the
south edge of the airport. You shouldn't have any trouble finding
five hours of stuff to see. It's open from 10 to 5:30.

Hi all,

Thanks to all who replied to my post! Unfortunately, for cheap airfare
this is the itinerary I chose (YUL-IAD-NRT-IAD-YUL) flying ANA. The
alternative would have been YUL-LGA-JFK-NRT, which would have required
finding one's way from LGA to JFK :-p. The luggage is suppose to be
checked back in once we clear US Customs upon arrival, since this is an
incoming international flight.

It seems that the consensus would be to spend those hours at the Air
and Space Annex. They offer a shuttle between the two museums, but
it's too bad they don't offer the same service between the airport and
the annex. But it does look like this is the most viable option
without breaking the bank!

Thanks again!

Mark Hewitt wrote:
> <kbecke@creighton.edu> wrote in message
> news:Pine.HPX.4.53.0501041854020.14113@Bluejay.cre ighton.edu...
> > But, be aware that by leaving the airport you will have to
> > go through security again. This took one and a half hours
> > last month when I did it. Actually, I was travelling from
> > Vienna to Chicago, but still had to leave the secured area
> > and be re-screened. Dulles was a nightmare.
>
> He's going to have to do that anyway. International arriving flights
seem to
> dump you landside and then you have to go through the security as if
you'd
> just turned up at the airport from within the country.

It took me a bit to understand why, but it's because you are
"exposed"
to your luggage. You can carry stuff in your luggage that you can't
carry on board and if you weren't rescreened, you could get to that
stuff there. The hard part here is that if they leave Dulles, they'll
still have to go through security IIRC on the way out since it
typically "dumps" you back into the secure area before you can get out
of the airport all together.