SF Bay to DC IAD vs DCA?

Old Sep 28, 2019, 10:20 am
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by Often1
IAD is a major PITA because it is a hassle to get from curbside to the gate, whereas DCA is 5-10 minutes with Pre-Check and no more than 15 without. The PP differential would have to be a Michelin-starred restaurant before I schlep from Crystal City to IAD over DCA.
I have had a different experience. At IAD, I regularly make it from dropoff to gate in seven minutes. If I have to wait the max of 4 min for a train, 11 min curbside to gate tops. I find the TSA Pre line is consistently short at IAD and the IAD-SFO gate is in the international terminal, which is a quick one minute ride on the underground train and at the top of the escalator.

At DCA, Ive found TSA Pre security can take 10-20 min at 4:30pm, the time I would arrive curbside for the DCA-SFO flight. Lastly, Alaska still runs IAD-SFO service 2x per day (yes, severely cut from the 3-4x a day it used to be, but still better than 1x) which provides valuable flexibility for SDC and IRROPS, whereas DCA-SFO is 1x per day. Aside from the trip to IAD, I find IAD preferable for AS flights in every way.
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 11:08 am
  #17  
 
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From which gate do the IAD-SEA flights go? Are they also near the Turkish Airways lounge? I'm facing the same DCA/BWI/IAD choice in November.
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 12:18 pm
  #18  
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AS uses gates 63 and 65 at IAD ... they’re not too far from the TK lounge
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 1:41 pm
  #19  
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Originally Posted by Often1
On cost alone, $100 more xDCA is a bargain vs. IAD. Time is money.
Is $125 extra a bargain? $150? $200? What's your crossover point where you fly Alaska out of BWI or IAD for a savings compared to DCA? It's an easy decision for me as the savings are consistently over $100. Get down to $25-50 and I'd take a look at DCA if the schedule works from there, but $100 and more has me looking elsewhere.

Does the Alaska schedule from DCA work for you? Where do you fly Alaska to? Isn't the SFO service still once a day? Having IAD or BWI, going seasonal soon, certainly offers some other flight options.
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 2:31 pm
  #20  
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Originally Posted by tom911
Is $125 extra a bargain? $150? $200? What's your crossover point where you fly Alaska out of BWI or IAD for a savings compared to DCA? It's an easy decision for me as the savings are consistently over $100. Get down to $25-50 and I'd take a look at DCA if the schedule works from there, but $100 and more has me looking elsewhere.

Does the Alaska schedule from DCA work for you? Where do you fly Alaska to? Isn't the SFO service still once a day? Having IAD or BWI, going seasonal soon, certainly offers some other flight options.
I figure roughly $200 or thereabouts for IAD and $300 for BWI. But, if I'm going to schlep to IAD for TCON, I'm almost certainly going to book UA because of the frequency (and occasional internationally configured Polaris seat).
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 4:44 pm
  #21  
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Originally Posted by Often1
But, if I'm going to schlep to IAD for TCON, I'm almost certainly going to book UA because of the frequency (and occasional internationally configured Polaris seat).
Do you have Alaska elite status? Sort of wonder if you were a Gold (40K) or 75K flyer if you might think otherwise. Bringing in 11,000 miles from any DC area airport to SFO on an economy ticket is at the top of my list right now as I redeem those miles on international, including separate trips this year to business to Australia and New Zealand, and with a 97% upgrade rate can't complain. I flew over a million miles at UA and have left them behind for domestic travel. Bringing in 2,000 miles SFO-IAD doesn't work for me, let alone no chance at an upgrade as lifetime Gold on an elite heavy route.
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Old Sep 28, 2019, 5:14 pm
  #22  
 
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Originally Posted by tom911
Do you have Alaska elite status? Sort of wonder if you were a Gold (40K) or 75K flyer if you might think otherwise. Bringing in 11,000 miles from any DC area airport to SFO on an economy ticket is at the top of my list right now as I redeem those miles on international, including separate trips this year to business to Australia and New Zealand, and with a 97% upgrade rate can't complain. I flew over a million miles at UA and have left them behind for domestic travel. Bringing in 2,000 miles SFO-IAD doesn't work for me, let alone no chance at an upgrade as lifetime Gold on an elite heavy route.
15,000+ with the Double Miles promo
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 12:00 am
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by bon mot
15,000+ with the Double Miles promo
7,862 as 75k with double mikes promo. Where do you get 15k??
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 12:15 am
  #24  
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SFO-IAD round trip is just over 4,800 miles. 75K bonus is another 6,000 miles. The current coast to coast double miles promo brings in another 4,800 miles. Add it all up and you're over 15,000 miles in your account. Looks like you may be looking at the one-way numbers?
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 12:40 am
  #25  
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This is a no brainer unless you are staying or working near Reston or Tysons Corner. The DCA flights are fantastic - saves me at least 1 hour for every arrival or departure - sometimes more depending on traffic into Washington. IAD has been a pit for decades - yes there are some nice *A and PP lounges but they are not convenient to the UA terminals. DCA has some great PP restaurants now but that is not a factor for me. The only reason I would not fly into DCA would be timing as AS and UA only have 1 flight a day.

As for security - you're joking right? With Clear I'm through in about 2 minutes - maybe a little longer with PreCheck. The only time security is a PITA is when you are connecting from International to Domestic at IAD.
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 1:02 am
  #26  
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one more time ...

Newtons Law of the Online Forum for every self-proclaimed expert opinion, there is at least one equal and opposite self-proclaimed expert opinion
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 1:05 am
  #27  
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Boraxo-

Sounds like the price of the flight isn't a consideration? Often1 said he'd consider IAD if the fare was $200 less than DCA. Do you have a dollar savings that would move you out to Alaska at IAD if the flights from DCA and IAD departed around the same time? If the Alaska flight from DCA was $500RT, but IAD was $300RT, would you make the move to IAD to save the same $200? Not looking at things like lounges or security line but just the airfare.

I usually stay in Crystal City and spent a good 17 years as a top tier AA flyer with DCA as my primary airport in that region, as AA was competitive on price for me and had plenty of flights with connections to the Bay Area. Just haven't found the same with Alaska with DCA always coming in at a higher price for me compared to IAD or BWI. In fact, BWI has had some great sales the last two years with fares in the low $200 range (which probably explains why it's going seasonal - hard to fill those planes in the winter when you have such a sparse DC area presence to begin with and routes like BWI and DCA that only run once a day from SFO).
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 1:11 am
  #28  
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Originally Posted by jrl767
Newtons Law of the Online Forum for every self-proclaimed expert opinion, there is at least one equal and opposite self-proclaimed expert opinion
This is the time of year we see a lot of interest in Alaska because of the October 1 status match window opening. I think a vigorous discussion of the pros and cons of flying Alaska to the DC area benefits everyone, but particularly those that may be looking to make the move to Alaska as their primary carrier, something I did three years ago this week. Alaska is not for everyone because there are weak spots in their system and workarounds that may not be ideal, some of which have been highlighted by posters in this thread.

Did you have anything to add on Alaska's presence in the DC area, particularly as it relates to fares and routes? This forum is generally pretty slow compared to the UA and AA forum, so I'd welcome comments on the topic by you and others.
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 1:21 am
  #29  
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a lot depends on when you’re booking ... in my case (SEA/LAX<—>WAS, anywhere from 7-45 days out; ~75% reimbursable; splitting loyalty between AS and DL) the cost and time of to-ing and fro-ing are basically irrelevant

someone upthread said AS having 2x daily IAD<—>SFO/LAX/SEA was good for SDC ... in paid F, DL has a dozen or more options

Last edited by jrl767; Sep 29, 2019 at 1:32 am
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Old Sep 29, 2019, 11:42 am
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by tom911
SFO-IAD round trip is just over 4,800 miles. 75K bonus is another 6,000 miles. The current coast to coast double miles promo brings in another 4,800 miles. Add it all up and you're over 15,000 miles in your account. Looks like you may be looking at the one-way numbers?
Ah yes, i was thinking one-way. Wanted to make sure I wasn't missing out on some other bonus. Thanks for clarifying.
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