Rally to keep my sanity?

October 20, 2010 6:40 PM

What's the best way to commute from downtown Baltimore to Washington DC during the weekend?

Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I will be attending the Rally to Restore Sanity/Fear in Washington DC next weekend by myself. As a result, I booked a hostel in downtown Baltimore and elected to figure out everything else later. I will be arriving there Thursday night and leaving on Sunday. By the looks of it, I can take the MARC train on Friday but I'm confused on how to get myself to DC on Saturday. Worst come to worst, I guess I could take a taxi, but I was wondering if the Hive Mind could help me out here?

posted by Geppp to Travel & Transportation (18 answers total)

why not take the amtrak
posted by dipolemoment at 6:42 PM on October 20, 2010

Yeah, you want Amtrak. There are probably buses, as well. Taking a cab will cost you a zillion dollars.
posted by rtha at 6:49 PM on October 20, 2010

Best answer: Looks like Greyhound has routes as well. Cheaper than Amtrak, but takes a little longer.
posted by rtha at 6:56 PM on October 20, 2010

Response by poster: Round trip with Amtrak will cost me 50 bucks, which is a bit much for my wallet =\
posted by Geppp at 6:57 PM on October 20, 2010

Take the bus, then. A cab will be more than 50 bucks one way, I'm guessing. They're 40 miles apart.
posted by rtha at 6:59 PM on October 20, 2010

There's a bus leaving from Fells Point that you could hitch a ride on.
posted by youcancallmeal at 7:08 PM on October 20, 2010

You could do megabus for $16 roundtrip, but for the way back, you'd have to leave DC at 4:35am on Sunday to get back to Baltimore, which doesn't seem worth it.
posted by three bear minimum at 7:10 PM on October 20, 2010

If you need to be really cheap, there's some lengthy process that includes taking Baltimore's lightrail to BWI airport, and then taking a bus from there to...I believe it's Reagan National Airport, and then another bus from there that will connect you to the DC metro line. It'll take a few hours, though.
posted by needs more cowbell at 7:22 PM on October 20, 2010

There's a DC metro bus that goes from BWI to the subway, which is then a straight shot to downtown DC. You could also take Amtrak from BWI or the Supershuttle from BWI. Why not just stay in DC? Is the HI hostel booked?
posted by Skwirl at 7:41 PM on October 20, 2010

Response by poster: Ah, thanks for all the suggestions. I forgot greyhound even existed. And I guess 22 bucks round trip won't kill me.
posted by Geppp at 7:52 PM on October 20, 2010

Looks like there is at least one chartered bus planned. Call these guys.

Amtrak is gonna be expensive.
posted by empath at 7:57 PM on October 20, 2010

If you need to be really cheap, there's some lengthy process that includes taking Baltimore's lightrail to BWI airport, and then taking a bus from there to...

Pretty sure there's a bus from BWI to New Carrollton, at which point you can jump on the metro for ~ $4 (price is very approximate, no idea what it is off-peak; can't imagine it's more than that though).
posted by inigo2 at 9:18 PM on October 20, 2010

Seconding inigo's advice-- AFAIC the ONLY way to travel into DC is by picking up the Metro at one of its termini and riding into the District in comfort and style, passing by all the poor suckers with cars while you're at it. If memory serves I think that some Greyhound routes even have a secondary stop at an outlying Metro station.
posted by The White Hat at 9:31 PM on October 20, 2010

The cheap-ass way is as follows:

Baltimore light rail runs from downtown Baltimore to BWI.

There is a WMATA express bus from BWI to Greenbelt metro station. (I'm not sure why everyone keeps saying New Carrollton! If there is a bus from BWI to New Carrollton, the BWI people don't know about it.)

It's possible that doing this via the airport isn't the best way. I've never had to get from BWI to Baltimore, only from BWI to Washington, and most of my Washington knowledge dates back to 2002-04 when my girlfriend lived there.
posted by madcaptenor at 9:32 PM on October 20, 2010 [3 favorites]

Light rail to BWI is a breeze, and Metro in from Greenbelt is similarly a breeze. I have never taken the bus from BWI to Greenbelt, and since it's only once every 40 minutes, you would not want to miss it, but the WMATA trip planner can help you schedule it.
posted by OmieWise at 5:15 AM on October 21, 2010

I know the Bad Decisions/City that Breeds people and that would be a great way to go. They are all awesome. I highly recommend it.
posted by josher71 at 7:36 AM on October 21, 2010

If you're taking Metro, be aware of when the trains stop running.

Also if you're taking Metro to and from the rally, the trains will probably be crazy, crazy crowded that day, so wear closed-toe shoes that you don't mind walking in, and be ready to walk to a further-out Metro if it seems like that will be easier (ie, print and bring a small map of DC and where the metro stops on your route are).
posted by LobsterMitten at 2:09 PM on October 21, 2010

needs more cowbell: "If you need to be really cheap, there's some lengthy process that includes taking Baltimore's lightrail to BWI airport, and then taking a bus from there to...I believe it's Reagan National Airport, and then another bus from there that will connect you to the DC metro line. It'll take a few hours, though."

Actually, you'd walk over to the Lexington Market Light Rail stop, catch a BWI (*not* a Cromwell train) going south, get off at BWI Business District (you can go to the last stop, too, but this is easier). Wait at the stop for the B30 Metrobus. It comes about every 40 min. That will take you to the Greenbelt Metro station, where you can get the Red line to Union Station, then walk over to the Mall.

In other words, take Amtrak. The nice folks at the hostel (great hostel, btw) can direct you to the free bus up to Penn Station. The sooner you buy your ticket the cheaper it will be.
posted by QIbHom at 10:48 AM on October 22, 2010