Join Date: May 2012
Location: DCA, lived MCI, SEA/PDX,BUF (born/raised)
Programs: Marriott, IHG, Hyatt, Choice, AS, UA, WN
Posts: 10,669
If you land at 930 and leave at 3 pm…
subway( metro) or a cab? There is a smart phone app you can download and use. Outside the baggage area is where the cabs are located. Special cabs for where you go like DZc will have certain cabs while alexandria has others.
There are 3 exits from the secure area.therr is an exit atvthr end of D where it hits thr main hallway. E woukd also exit this way. Therr is a middle exit aligned with C and a south exit aligned with B.
from D/E you exit going downstairs then to the left into baggage claim area. C has two exits after going downstairs. The Right turn is from American. Left for other airlines. Outside from here is where you can find cabs or Uber/ Lyft. Around the mid point therr is an escalator up. Whrn going up you will cross a bridge to a parking garage. Themetro is before the garage.
Metro heading north is largo ( blue) mt vernon sq( yellow). South is Franconia ( blue) or Huntington ( yellow).
yellow is the better way for DC mall. You exit at L’Enfant to Maryland exit puts you behind air and space museum.
from lenfant station u can take blue/ orange/ silver to Franconia/ vienna/ ashburn one exit to smithsonian ehivh puts you on the mall closer to Washington monument
You want to be back airport by 2 pm fora 3 pm flight. Right after your flight you getting to thr mall might be around 10:20 am so you want to be at metro or in a cab/Uber/ Lyft by 130 pm.
thr DC mall does not have restaurants. The museums have basement restaurants. There are food trucks all around thr mall are options.
food options along metro stations ( close to exit)
pentagon city is a shopping mall area the main exit from metro has a left or right. Left bring you to a mall which has a typical food court on the floor you enter the mall. On the other side of street ( going right) you have a chick fil a and a few other chains
king st alexandria has a bunch of restaurants. There is a free trolley down king st.
on the north side of the mall with galleria place, metro center, faragut, Foggy bottom, roslyn, and courthouse and Clarrndon on orange/ silver there are a bunch of places just off of metro station.