<p>We are planning to be in Dulles/Reston for a few days in about a month. We want to check out the Reston area where S will be living an then I have some meetings in Bethesda. We plan to stay at a highly rated Residence Inn in Dulles near IAD and then I will stay at the meeting hotel in Bethesda.</p>
<p>Does anyone have recommendations about whether to keep the rental car we will have when we’re staying in Dulles or return it & catch a taxi from Dulles to Bethesda & back? I’m conflicted. Got a pretty good rate of under $200 for a week rental in Dulles but keep getting different taxi estimates for getting between the two places. Reimbursement for graound transportation is $200.</p>
<p>We definitely want a car around Dulles, as we are told by the hotel clerk it would be very helpful.</p>
<p>Also, anyone have thoughts about staying at the a Residence Inn near Dulles? It’s said to be near upscale car dealerships & in an OK area.</p>
<p>Are your meetings in Bethesda near the metro station? It’s possible and fairly simple to take a shuttle bus from West Falls Church metro station to the Dulles airport, or you could have someone drop you off at West Falls Church and go on there. You would need to go into DC and then transfer to the Red Line to Bethesda. It would probably be faster to drive, but depending on time of day and traffic, may end up being a wash.</p>
<p>Dulles to Bethesda by cab could be very, very expensive depending on traffic. Those same traffic headaches cause me to recommend not driving your rental to Bethesda. A hybrid transportation method would be to take a taxi from your hotel to the metro. Or ask your hotel if they have a free shuttle to Metro.</p>
<p>The hotel does NOT provide shuttle & does not mention how far/close it is to the metro. According to the paperwork we are provided, it is estimated that taxi far one-way IAD to the hotel/meeting is $60-65/direction. Perhaps it would be less nerve-wracking for me if I just catch the taxi.</p>
<p>I do not know my way around the DC/Bethesda/Dulles area well and can get lost quite easily. I will also be carrying quite a bit of luggage.</p>
<p>The good thing is that the meetings will all be at the hotel I will be staying at in Bethesda, so won’t have to wander about looking for the meeting location & can network with the other attendees at the hotel.</p>
<p>Are you uncomfortable driving the rental with a GPS? Would you be able to time your trip from Reston to Bethesda to avoid rush hour traffic? Although the metro might be an option I would recommend for a single person traveling with a backpack, it would not be my first choice for someone with luggage (nor my second or third…). You already have the car at a decent rate.</p>
<p>If you can avoid traveling at rush hour(s), it is not difficult to get from the Residence Inn to Bethesda (where is the hotel in Bethesda?) - though I would definitely recommend a GPS too. The bad news is that there is a large construction project (the Metro extension project to Dulles) that impacts the Toll Road and also work on the Beltway. It doesn’t really cause delays, it just may be a little confusing if you’re not used to it. But with luggage, etc I’d say to drive, just not at peak times.</p>
<p>I know the Residence Inn that you’re talking about (the upscale car dealers tipped me off - there’s a Maserati and Ferrari dealer, plus other low-class dealers like BMW and Volvo ) It is in a shopping center that has a Wegmans and also some smaller stores and casual chain restaurants, all of which you can walk to. You’re also not far from Dulles Town Center Mall (but that would involve driving.) Reston has lots of good restaurants and is only about 10 minutes from your hotel.</p>
<p>If you are going straight back from Bethesda to Dulles, whether you want to drive to Bethesda or not depends on</p>
<p>A) Where your hotel is in Bethesda </p>
<p>B) What time your plane departs from Dulles</p>
<p>If you will never leave your hotel and/or it is very close to a metro station, you won’t need a car and you will have to pay to park it at the hotel. </p>
<p>If you would need to drive in rush hour to get to the airport, you are better off taking a cab.</p>
<p>In addition to my2sunz and happymom’s ideas, it would help to know:
How many of you will be making this trip?
Will you all be heading to Bethesda?
Will son already be in his apartment, or is part of this journey to help him find one?
Will you be departing the area on the same day that your meeting ends?</p>
<p>ummm…the Residence Inn to the West Falls Church Metro is 19.8 miles per Google maps – 27 minutes, not counting rush hour. I’d assume 45 minutes right there. Then there’s the Metro ride from West Falls Church to Bethesda – which is an additional another 45 minutes on the Metro (with a transfer) to the Bethesda station. Depending on where the meetings are, it could be a walk or a cab ride.</p>
<p>Driving – 26 miles, about 55 in traffic. That’s pretty accurate for crossing the American Legion Bridge.</p>
<p>Personally, I’d drive, but I’m used to the insane traffic here.</p>
<p>DH occasionally takes a cab from Dulles back to our house, and it’s ~$75 one way w/tip. Usually it is cheaper for him to drive there and pay for parking, or even cheaper, he leaves directly from work, takes the shuttle bus to Dulles, and I pick him up on the back end.</p>
<p>I’m in Rockville (two exits from Bethesda on I-270) and Happykid did a couple theater tech gigs in Reston last year. On Sunday mornings, we made the trip in about 35 minutes. Other days it was an hour. I always allow an hour from here to Dulles. </p>
<p>From the airport to the hotel in Bethesda, you could take Super Shuttle [SuperShuttle</a> Airport Shuttle Service LAX SFO DIA PHX DFW TPA JFK BWI IAD SAN DCA SMF MCI IAH LGA MSP EWR AUS SNA HOU BUR DAL OAK BNA ONT LGB RDU SJC AZA ISP PTP PIE CDG ORY BVA Airports](<a href=“http://www.supershuttle.com/]SuperShuttle”>http://www.supershuttle.com/) Today the website quotes a rate of $29 for the first passenger and $10 for the second to the same address. Check the website for coupons, if you have AAA you may be able to get a discount. If you leave your meeting at the same time as everyone else, you should be able to share a ride back to the airport with Super Shuttle, or your hotel can get a cab for you.</p>
<p>The government contractor says they will NOT allow me to rent a car, even if the car rental is significantly cheaper than the taxi. They will allow me up to $200 for all ground transportation, including cab fare between Dulles & Bethesda. I guess I will stop agonizing. I am not sure that any of the other meeting attendees will be staying over until Wednesday; they will all probably try to fly out on Tuesday. </p>
<p>Thanks for all the input. We will be bringing our GPS & use it for the rest of our trip, but I’ll let the cab driver figure out how to get us between Dulles & Bethesda. I don’t feel any particularly great desire to go to IAD to catch a supershuttle to Bethesda, but there is a free shuttle from my Residence Inn to IAD, so I can change my mind & may help save some money–depending on mood. Supershuttle was NOT listed as one of the options for getting to the meeting; wonder why?</p>
<p>Or maybe they can’t recommend any one specific business?</p>
<p>I haven’t had any problems with Supershuttle, and I see them several times a week somewhere in town so I do know that they are full operational! If you call them, they may be able to pick you up at hotel A and take you to hotel B without the detour to Dulles.</p>
<p>Well, I’d still have to get back to a major airport from Bethesda, so it IF I were to rent a car, it would make sense to take it back to the airport before flying out. Nonetheless, it doesn’t seem that I am allowed to rent a car, just pay taxi fares.</p>
<p>Oh well, I will go with the flow.</p>
<p>S is thinking of coming with us to look at places to rent, so it may be an interesting weekend. :)</p>
) It is in a shopping center that has a Wegmans and also some smaller stores and casual chain restaurants, all of which you can walk to. You’re also not far from Dulles Town Center Mall (but that would involve driving.) Reston has lots of good restaurants and is only about 10 minutes from your hotel.</p>