Originally Posted by
skoenig
Well, DCA isn't an option for international flights except a couple to Canada. I am not a big fan of BWI-- dearth of restaurants, no shops that even sell TSA locks, etc.-- but it sounds less chaotic than IAD (an airport I never did like much, at least until I got to the concourses). The wild card, of course, is fares. For some routes, flying into DCA can be more expensive. IAD is certainly the worse in terms of transportation options.
I've done DCA-ORD-FRA and DCA-ORD-CDG. As I live in D.C. itself, there is a transportation advantage to using DCA. But another important reason is that the DCA experience is markedly superior to IAD. Also, I like the longer flight from Chicago than D.C. for transatlantic so I can get enough sleep. And this being Flyertalk, of course you get more miles...