Winter Break for DC College Students: Getting From Campus to DCA, Dulles, BWI or Union Station

Mid-December in Washington has a rhythm every university neighborhood knows. Final exams end, residence halls begin to close, and over a few days thousands of students from Georgetown, George Washington, American, Howard, Catholic and Gallaudet head for Reagan National, Dulles, BWI and Union Station at the same time as the holiday travel rush. This guide is for students and for the parents trying to organize the trip from a few hundred miles away.

Start With the Housing and Exam Calendar

Before anyone books a flight, check two dates: the last exam and the day residence halls close for winter break. Universities publish both, but they are easy to overlook, and the closing date sometimes falls only a day or two after exams end. A flight booked for the day after the final exam leaves little room if a professor reschedules or a make-up exam lands late.

The same goes for the return trip in January. Residence halls reopen on a set date before classes resume, and arriving before that date can mean a night in a hotel. Check your school's housing office for the official schedule each year rather than relying on last year's.

Which Airport Is Best?

DC students have three airports to choose from, and the right one depends on where home is.

• Reagan National (DCA) is closest to most campuses and often the easiest choice for flights along the East Coast and into the Midwest and South. Because of the federal perimeter rule, it has only a limited number of nonstop flights beyond 1,250 miles. Our guide to the DCA perimeter rule explains how it affects which routes are available.
• Dulles (IAD) is the main airport for international flights and for many nonstops to the West Coast. It is farther from campus, so allow considerably more time, especially in holiday traffic.
• BWI often has a wide choice of domestic flights and fares and is a reasonable option from campuses in Northeast and Northwest DC, though it is the farthest of the three from most universities.
• Union Station is the gateway for Amtrak trips up and down the Northeast Corridor, and for many students going to New York, Philadelphia or Boston, the train is easier than flying.

We serve all four, so a single booking can drop several students at different terminals or a station if they're traveling together.

Getting Off Campus: A School-by-School Look

Each campus has its own transit situation, which matters when you're moving two suitcases and a laundry bag.

• Georgetown University has no Metro station. Students usually reach Metro by the university shuttle or a walk to Rosslyn or Foggy Bottom, which is hard work with heavy luggage. Our Georgetown car service page covers the neighborhood.
• George Washington University sits next to the Foggy Bottom-GWU station on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines, which makes Metro easier, but only if the bags are manageable.
• American University is served by the Tenleytown-AU station on the Red Line, with the university shuttle connecting campus and the station.
• Howard University is near the Shaw-Howard U station on the Green and Yellow lines. See our Howard University transportation page.
• The Catholic University of America is next to the Brookland-CUA station on the Red Line.
• Gallaudet University is near the NoMa-Gallaudet U station on the Red Line.

Metro works well for light travelers, but students heading home for a month often have more than they can carry comfortably on escalators and trains. A car from the residence hall to the terminal curb avoids the struggle.

Sharing a Ride With Friends

Students on the same floor or in the same club often fly out within hours of each other. One larger vehicle can take a group to the airport with all their bags: a Chevrolet Suburban seats five and a Lincoln Navigator six, and a Mercedes Sprinter carries up to thirteen passengers. If students are flying from different airports, we can plan the stops in the most efficient order, with the earliest flight first.

For Parents Booking From Home

Many winter break rides are booked by parents who want to know their student will make the flight. A few tips make that smoother:

• Include the student's mobile number so the chauffeur can coordinate directly on the day.
• Give the exact pickup point. Name the residence hall and the nearest street entrance; large campuses have restricted roads and many buildings with similar names.
• Add the flight or train number. We track flights, and knowing the departure time helps us plan around traffic.
• Mention extra luggage so we send a vehicle with enough room.

What to Pack, Ship or Store

Winter break is long enough that many students take more home than they would for a weekend, and what goes in which bag matters.

• Carry on the essentials: laptop, chargers, medication, ID and anything you'd need if a checked bag was delayed.
• Check your airline's bag allowance and fees before packing a second suitcase. Fees and weight limits vary by airline and fare.
• Consider shipping bulky items such as winter coats or books instead of checking an extra bag, and leave enough time before carriers' holiday deadlines.
• Ask your school about storage if you're moving rooms in January or studying abroad in the spring.

When you book, tell us how many suitcases and boxes you'll have, so we can send a vehicle with enough room. A sedan comfortably handles one student with a couple of bags; for more luggage or a shared ride, an SUV or Sprinter is the better choice.

Timing Around Holiday Traffic

Winter break departures overlap with the start of the holiday travel season, when roads to the airports, security lines and parking garages are all busier than usual. For domestic flights, plan to reach the airport at least two hours before departure, and three for international flights from Dulles. Weather can also complicate December travel; our DCA winter weather playbook explains how to handle a storm on travel day.

Coming Back in January

The return trip often matters more than the departure. Students land with full suitcases, sometimes late at night, sometimes during a snowstorm, and need to reach a residence hall that has just reopened. Booking the pickup in advance means a chauffeur is waiting when the plane lands. Airport pickups include complimentary waiting time of 45 minutes on domestic arrivals and 60 minutes on international arrivals, timed from touchdown, and we track flights so a delay doesn't mean a missed ride.

International students returning through Dulles may face long lines at customs during the holiday peak, which the international waiting time is designed to absorb. Train arrivals at Union Station are even simpler to meet, with pickups planned around the train's arrival time.

Booking the Ride

The days around the end of exams book quickly, so reserve as soon as flights are confirmed. Sedans and SUVs can be cancelled free of charge up to 3 hours before pickup, and Sprinter vans up to 12 hours before, so it's easy to adjust if an exam schedule changes. Your quote is all-inclusive. Call (877) 609-1919 at any hour or book online, and if you're also thinking about move-in later in the year, our move-in day guide covers that trip too.