Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

This was my first time visiting this airport as well as DC. When my crew and I were heading down the escalators there was a heavenly smell. I want to say fresh clam or a seafood chowder. Unfortunately, I didn't get to stop at the seafood restaurant the delicious aroma was coming from but I will next time.

The airport features a distinctive, aesthetically pleasing ceiling design, similar to those of old churches, contributing to its overall charm despite its relatively compact size. The facility is consistently clean, enhancing the traveler experience. A prominent Christmas tree in the central corridor is a popular photographic location for visitors wishing to commemorate the holiday season. However, the check-in process is slower than in larger airports within the region.

Title: DCA: The Gold Standard for Convenience and Comfort! Review: Flying in and out of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) this holiday season was an absolute breeze. Its prime location just a short metro ride from downtown Washington, D.C., makes it the go-to choice for travelers seeking efficiency and convenience. The metro station is directly connected to the airport, making transit seamless and stress-free. Check-in and security were quick and professional, reflecting a well-managed system. The airport itself is spotlessly clean, with plenty of restrooms and a wide range of shops and dining options to keep you occupied. I especially appreciated the festive holiday decor—Terminal 2’s Christmas tree was a delightful touch, adding to the welcoming atmosphere. DCA strikes the perfect balance between efficiency and ambiance, making it an excellent gateway to the nation's capital. Whether you're visiting for business or pleasure, this airport sets a high bar for traveler satisfaction. Five stars without hesitation!

Very nice and small airport extremely close to everything in Washington DC. The signage in this airport is easy to understand, and I especially appreciate a fantastic poster they made up to help people decide which door or area that need to go to to be picked up by a shuttle or a rideshare. There are choices for sit down food as well as many grab and go options in very modern vending machines.

This is a very nice airport. Terminal 1 is a very nice old building and is definitely worth checking out and photographing even if you're not flying out of it. Then when you get to terminal 2, that is extremely easy to navigate and is a very nice building as well. The staff are also extremely helpful and friendly. Overall this is a very nice airport with good places to eat, shop and hang out while waiting on your flight.

We think it’s great airport cause it located 15 mins from downtown Washington DC, the airport is compact, easy to find everything. Easy transportation lookup The only thing I don’t like it’s not enough stores especially no brands at international airport.

FRIENDLY! It’s been decades since I’ve been to this airport. Flew in for training last week and they do a terrific job of getting you in and out quickly! Very well lit and spacious also. Fast and friendly service.

arriving at this airport was smooth and quick. there is a metro station that takes u to the city for only $3.05 but u have to pay $2 for a smartcard. departing from this airport was the same. the security line was insanely quick. no line at all. the machines are weird tho and it made me get a pat down on my groin area because i had shorts under my pants although i never had this problem before.

Maybe I'm just feeling generous, but I enjoyed my last trip out of Reagan/DCA. It took me a while to return to flying after the core pandemic years, and things were different at DCA when I got back. There have been upgrades to streamline the layout, improve the bathrooms, and upgrade food vendors. I barely knew my way around after many years of flying out of here! And I liked it. Word of warning: security lines can get really long here, so plan to arrive early. There is almost always a large volume of business travelers, as well as visitors who may (or may not) be well versed in what to do while going through security. DCA is just outside of downtown DC and can be reached via public transit, including Metro. This is hugely important, as far as I'm concerned. It is also easy to get here via car or ride share. I'd pick DCA over Dulles Airport almost any day, especially if you're planning to hang out in the District, Arlington, or elsewhere within the Beltway. I hope that the DCA improvements keep coming!

DCA is a nice small airport but we almost missed my flight because parking lots were unavailable. There was no advance warning so this was unexpectedly alarming. Had I known i would have taken the metro. It was stressful having to find another parking garage in the nearby Crystal City just to make our flight. And worrying the whole vacation time whether our car will be towed... Never flying out of DCA any longer if i can help it. So this review was about the experience that day which started badly. Made the flight and as global entry members helped get through quicker. Return flight was okay took uber to the garage where we parked and fortunately all's well car was still there so it was lucky break. Still unhappy of the parking situation at dca which will prevent me from using this airport if i can help it!

We always have a good experience when flying into or out of DCA. It's such an easy airport to navigate. There's always someone around the American Airlines departures area that will answer any questions during the check-in process. They are happy to assist. The TSA process is usually fast & efficient. They have quite a few full-service restaurants (even for breakfast), and many quick-service options once you get past security. We usually go to El Centro DF or Kapnos Taverna for breakfast. We also like Legal Sea Foods for lunch or dinner. The location is perfect. It's just minutes away from DC. The view of the Potomac River and the monuments from the airplane is always a bonus.

There is a little bit for everyone at this airport. Dick and choose what you want to eat where you wanna sit, and have a view of the airplanes coming and going. Perfect for layovers.

Airport Ok like others. I do like the food options in terminals E and D. AA service counters were very convenient and got me where I needed to go. Can't complain even though many do.

DCA is a decent airport that gets the job done if you're trying to directly to the DC area. Many things at the airport are under construction or coming soon. The rail system getting you to & from the airport is very nice.

We took the Metro many times while visiting Washington, DC. I noticed that Ronald Reagan Washington National airport is one of the metro stops. How convenient would this be for traveling? It would be good to keep this information in the back of my mind for future travels.

First of all; the architecture of this airport is beautiful, historical, bright and spacious. Definitely one of the nicest airports I have been to. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), is actually located in Virginia, but within 3 minutes you enter D.C., I was traveling to Maryland and my hotel was 15 miles away. With that being said, this location is incredibly convenient if you are traveling to D.C, Maryland or Virginia. If you are going to downtown D.C. it's a short drive. Traffic: according to my Uber drivers "rush hour" is between 1pm to 7pm, and yes! it was heavy! just like the 405 in L.A. bumper-to-bumper traffic...FUN! But it's only in D.C once you enter Maryland it's a breeze. TSA: Staff is efficient, making the security process smooth and quick. No ridiculous lines. View: wow! beautiful! The views of the Potomac River and the monuments during takeoff and landing are breathtaking. I highly recommend this airport for anyone traveling to or from our beautiful Nation's Capital.

Clean, well kept. Easy to find what you need and navigate. Love the large flag in the concourse and of course the best views of DC as you fly in and out.

Great for arrival - luggage came out quickly, decent sized airport, and best of all, it's close to everything in the hub of DC, so it's 10-20 min ride to the major attractions. For departure, if you fly southwest, it can be terrible. There was the longest bag drop line I've seen, not enough counters opened to deal with the crowd so the line for bag drop took 15-20 mins... the southwest staff there wasn't particularly helpful either, not letting people in a hurry to go first which caused me a lot of stress. Then the TSA pre check and regular lines were confusing after the turn as the two lines got merged into one line which was unfair for those who had precheck. The airport couldve had some more line dividers and signs to make it clear. Luckily one TSA staff came to sort it out otherwise I would be stuck in the long regular line. Overall, not a great experience departing from DCA because of its inefficiency. If you fly out from this airport (if I ever fly out from this airport again), please allow ample time to get to the airport!

DCA is a familiar haunt for me. I fly in and out at least once per month. Despite this familiarity, it leaves something to be desired every time I visit. Room for improvement: There is always construction for new restaurants/shops leaving half the airport unused (it's not very sightly), a lack of outlets (those that exist do not always work), a lack of comfortable seating, and spread out gates. Areas of Strength: easy navigation with clear signage, easy access via public transport (exit straight to the metro), and easy airport pick up for Lyft/uber/taxi/hotel shuttles.

The airport itself was pretty easy to get around in once you got through security. It was also nicely located in DC so it only took about 20 minutes to get there. The only somewhat confusing part was the JetBlue departures dropoff was a pretty long walk away from the security checkpoint line. Thankfully, my friend from DC knew to drop me off right at the security door (as opposed to the JetBlue Departures doors) but it was still somewhat confusing. It wasn't until I got to the security line that I saw any sign of JetBlue again so for a hot second I was nervous I was not in the right place. I did save a good chunk of time by getting dropped off directly at the security doors and not the JetBlue ones though!

Good old Ronald Reagan International, another spot I love passing through. Good store and food options to choose from and burn the time between flights. Nobody likes a long layover but this is a good airport to spend one in.

Clean bathrooms with hot water, easily accessible, working outlets for charging devices, friendly staff, efficient TSA, uncomplicated layout..

Flying out again, this time after a visit in DC. Easy drop off for departures. Got to experience security and baggage drop, all of which were pretty efficient in the Delta terminal (and I took CLEAR). Employees were all helpful with directions and tips. Pretty clean airport (yes, I know I met a mouse friend while here last time, but that's part of the game), high ceilings, lots of windows. And a lot of shops, as I mentioned before. Super quick trip from midtown DC.

All my friends and family in the Washington DC area has forever told me to call it National airport....That said, the airport is one of three in the DMV area and is the closest if your destination is District of Columbia. The airport is clean, efficient TSA security process, has all major airline carriers and several shops, restaurants and novelty stores. To date, I haven't experienced any flight cancellations or major travel disruptions. The airport is easy to navigate and simple baggage claim and ground transportation process.

This was my first time flying into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and I found it to be one of the nicest airports. The airport is very clean. The floors have a nice tile appearance to them. We arrived pretty early in the morning and were able to find a fair selection of breakfast and coffee places open. The bathrooms were also very clean. Would overall recommend flying through this airport.

This is probably my 2nd time flying into this airport with the last time being 2 years ago. I prefer IAD as it is bigger and the UA Club is bigger but the tradeoff to DCA is that it is smaller and easier to complete the TSA process. With regards to a ride share from this airport to your final destination, I cannot coment on that but can tell you that the Avis rental is off-site (Huh? It is usally Enterprise or the Off Brand Rental Companies) so one has to take a shuttle bus. No comments regarding the retail or restaurants at DCA as I spent my time at the UA Club on both trips. Overall I prefere a larger airport as there is more to do if one is not a member of an Awards or Airline Club.

Very easy to disembark at Reagan. We got off the plane & passed many shops & restaurants. At the info both I was given a map, a metro map with instructions & tourist info. It was an easy walk to the metro where I found an employee who helped me purchase a card . It was a quick metro ride to downtown Washington DC about 10 minutes and $2.70 each way. I returned for my flight home & was looking for a lunch spot. PF Changs, Wolfgang Puck, Carla Hall's Page, Matsutake Sushi, Legal Seafood, Kapnos Greek Taverna, Magic Pan, Smashburger, Timber Pizza, Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, Taylor Made, Grille District, Cava Mezze Grill, Elevation Burger, EL Centro D.F, Ben's Chili Bowl, French Reservoir, Lucky Buns sandwiches... Jose Andres is bringing his empire to the airport. A lot of new restaurants & shops are coming. There were many clean well stocked restrooms. I enjoyed browsing in the Smithsonian shop.

Nice airport - close to down town. Clean, clear announcements. Nice choice of places to charge phone or wait for the flight.

Checking in to the airport is easy, but then it's not. I was going through security, and the signs were not onky confusing to me but to otger passebgers as well. Someone needs to look at the boarding process from start to finish and imagine they never flew from here before. Basically, imagine they didn't know the boarding process. Maybe hire someone and get their experience might be best. For example, the TSA approved versus standard boarding sogns are no5lt clear. Increasing security is great, but making everything understandable to a newbie would be better.

If I never have to leave from this airport again, I'll be good. This was my first time flying in or out of this airport and only did so for work. This airport opened in 1941 (googled it) and it looks every bit of it. I sure hope it is on a list of airports needing to be remodeled in the very near future. Staff- rude and their mannerisms clearly show how much they either don't want to be there or like their job. Gate- I left from gate A8. If I'm not mistake a1- a10 were all crammed in one section. The worst! Will I use this airport again..... My layover can be 10 hours in the Bikini Bottom airport before I even think of stepping foot at Reagan. I can fly half way around the world to get home before I use this depressing, archaic airport again. Their Dunkin Donuts didn't even have latte! Go figure!

This is probably the most bright and airy-feeling airport that I've been in recently! The architecture is beautiful is some spots, and there are lots of windows that look out onto the taxiing area, so you can watch planes arrive and depart. This seems to be a family-friendly airport, too. There's a little kid's play area just outside of Terminal 2 across from a Chick-fil-A, with a twisty slide. There's also a nursing room a little ways away, and lots of space for kids to run and stretch their legs. I've never seen a Smithsonian store inside an airport, but there's one here. (Which makes sense, because the Smithsonian is pretty close.) There are also stores with political paraphernalia in them (called America!), like Trump hats and Biden t-shirts. Lots of American flags and celebrating of veterans here -- there was a section where some veterans were deboarding and people were clapping for them. It's an interesting airport.

I recently flew into Ronald Reagan airport and even though I didn't spend too much time in the airport. It still seems the same as if it were many years ago when I flew in. The airport is surprisingly outdated and its amenities are limited. Getting from one concourse to another is relatively easy and the signage is helpful. While in the airport I found it easy to get to transportation and the metro is located onsite which is convenient. Between Ronald Reagan and Dulles, Dulles is far better in all areas. Overall, Ronald Reagan airport serves its purpose and can accommodate your basic needs.

Nice, clean airport. They're doing a lot of construction and yet there's still enough space for everyone to move around. Depending on what terminal you're in, you may only have access to 1 bathroom instead of 2 right now. I like the food options, and they're getting more, which is a huge plus. It's easy to navigate.

I was delayed getting out of DCA, but the return trip was easy and we arrived early. We didn't even have to wait for a gate. After a quick stop in the ladies room, I was at baggage claim just as the luggage arrived. I grabbed my bag and was off to wait for my rideshare. I know a lot of people avoid traveling out of DCA, but I find it to be quite convenient and efficient.

DCA is a good airport. Easy to navigate and get around. Lots of good shops and restaurants so easy to spend a bit of time waiting for your flight. I prefer this to Dulles any day of the week.

I like that this airport isn't filled with fast food and chain restaurants. There are plenty of options for passengers to choose from, and they're open early and late, which is very convenient. However, my only issues are that it's not very clean, and there seems to be a limited number of bathrooms, which can result in long lines.

Nice Airport. Huge and bustling. Lots of restaurants . Clean . Good service. Friendly customer service

Horrible! Customer and quality of service is less than poor! The District area employees are the epitome of why WTF! Slow and contributory to unnecessary stressors why in world does TSA PRECHECK, etc. open at 4AM daily when flights throughout the airport begin boarding at 4:30. There are literally 100s of people waiting in queue while the attitude rich agents (TSA and airline) casually take their time booting up terminals and making ready. THEN THEY RUSH US BECAUSE THE QUEUE IS SO LONG F*ucking hell!

This airport is the closest one to DC and is not that large, which makes it easy to navigate. Terminal 2 is bigger with the main airlines, while Terminal 1 is just Southwest. It takes awhile to get your luggage in Terminal 1, due to there only being one main carousel used for multiple flights. It will be congested in that area, so be prepared. I often get frustrated with the delays compared to other airports, so plan accordingly.

(This review is for Terminal 2.) Major passenger traffic: Give yourself ample time to enter the airport and to pass through screening. Plenty of workers at the security checkpoint: TSA pre-check went smoothly and quickly. Standard line was packed but had several screening lines open. Roam everywhere: After screening, we strolled down National Hall, a corridor with high ceilings and stunning architecture. This hall let us wander around different gates and concourses as leisurely as we pleased. There's a good variety of food, beverage, and retail shops. (I was so excited to see Chick-Fil-A and Starbucks here!) Oddly, the waiting area just before the gates looked dull, outdated, and crammed. Otherwise, most of Terminal 2 was quite modern and clean!

First time ever being here in this airport. Had to fly in to attend a meeting in Arlington. I really liked it to be honest. It was set up nicely, plenty of little souvenir shops, shopping, and some really good dining options. Like, maybe I was hungry, but it seemed like the food options here were better than most airports. Clean, not too crowded, flow was good (not many long lines or crowds). For what it's worth, I was flying Mid-October. So, maybe it'll be worse during holidays? I'm about to find out... going back during Christmas. And this time, I'll be renting a car (last time just UBER to Arlington / Ballston). We will see if the flying during holidays, and car rental, change my opinion

Passed by this airport a good 20+ times using the metro. With that being said I never explored it since I was only there arriving in DC and then wait for a few moments to board a flight back home. I don't know if the baggage check lady didn't have her coffee but she was rude and just threw my bag like she didn't care and broke some stuff in my bag...

This is a great airport! TSA was super kind (yes, helpful too!) and the lines were well managed even for pre check. There was a good selection of food options and shopping as well. The airport felt clean even with how busy it was!

I'm not an airport expert. It was clean. Fairly easy to get to Terminal 2 Gate C. Lots of restaurants right there by our gate. Multiple options for fresh healthy food. Sat just a few feet in front of Dunkin Donuts because my husband wanted kruellers. There are recycle bins in addition to trash bins which is helpful.

Clean airport, very efficient workers. TSA was a breeze- did not have to unpack and separate all of my carry-on, was able to leave my shoes and jacket on and they got us through every line quite quickly. Everyone who works here seemed friendly and helpful. But a special shout out to the lovely attendant in the women's bathroom by gate E 58 (E2-920) at 9:10am- she was hustling to keep that bathroom clean. She went into each stall every time someone left and made sure that it was clean and well stocked. Super hard worker -she needs a raise.

Terminal 1 is trash. Its amenities are so substandard. The restroom report is a fail. The stench is apparent before you even walk in the door. I guess this ultimately is a perfect match for the airport namesake. The brilliant man who brought about taxation on social security benefits. Yes it smells like that.

Dca is a decent hub or destination airport in my experience: some decent restaurants - of change, legal seafood etc. The A gates area is under remodel thus less user friendly that wing,

This is a smaller airport compared to others. Not many food options. Their security check machine needs to get fixed. This was the first time I ever had to get checked for my private area. It wasn't just me, I looked back and the two guys after me also had to get checked. One star off for that. When I first arrived in DC, it took an awfully long time for our luggage to come up onto the conveyor belt. Our flight was the very last one, so not sure what the hold up was. When we came back to the airport to go back to Chicago, I guess the airport was just snail-like because the crowd waiting for their luggage was massive. When you get towards your gate, it is nice that they have food, souvenirs, drinks, merchandise, etc on both sides of the walkway.

It's a nice small airport. I have never in countered any long lines going thru security. But it always crowd at the gates. Sometimes the baggage carousel is broken on the southwest side. The American lines side is beautiful. But I love the airport. I have never had and problems at this airport.

I recently passed through DCA for a work trip to the Washington DC area flying on American Airlines. Located in the heart of Washington DC, it was conveniently accessible to my hotel and downtown DC. It seemed a little more compact than MIA and was pretty clean. Both during my early morning arrival & late Saturday afternoon departure, the TSA Precheck / Trusted Traveler security lines moved along smoothly and weren't as crowded. My checked bag made it on my flight back home as well. There are a few shops in the terminal for last minute souvenirs, phone chargers, travel pillows and the like. There were about 4 restaurants by my departure gate, of which I ate at Washington Pour Bar. My Buffalo chicken sandwich was tasty with tender meat and a nice helping of sauce as well as fresh lettuce and tomato slice. The guava margarita could have used "secondary screening" though. It was just a pink mixer with no real guava taste and did not taste more like vodka than tequila.Still and all, it did it's job for preflight.

I have flown in/out of here over the years and I have never had any real problems. I like the new terminal 2 and there's a very nice Admirals Club near gate 47.

I love DCA it is always easy to get in and out of, by far the airport of choice for the DMV area for me.

There is not enough room at the gate for all the people at the 9 gates waiting for flights. There is maybe 1/3 of the seating necessary for people trying to eat with food they just purchased at one of the Airport To Go restaurants. It was absolutely a joke to try and find a place to stand and eat (no way we could sit at a table and eat) As for the to go restaurants, there was a great variety of places but all of them were self check out. There was TONS of confusion with people checking out as to different options for customization for your order. It would have been TONS faster to pay an employee to check people out The location of airport is awesome and so easy to get to with the metro BUT Terminal 1 needs to be updated with more seating/tables

Cramped and crowded. Southwest staff curt and no room for people to either sit or stand in their numbered sections. Desperately needs refiguring.

We flew in here and out of here. It's very congested there is a lot of taxis everywhere. It's kind of hard to get around you have kids. There wasn't too many signs we have a lot of luggage do it was hard to get around with kids. They did have a section where you can be at 24/7 if you need to stay overnight. Overall it's okay but there could be a lot of things they can improve on.

This is a large airport with a nice layout. It seems clean and busy all the time. However they could make some changes to be more efficient. At the arrival area they could have numbers for the areas and doors they also have numbers outside for the car share area. To limit confusion it would be best to make this letters and not numbers as you go to the number area and realize it's another number area outside. They have several machines to use but need to be fixed or updated for most or half. When you leave the airport you have to be in a waiting area for a few seconds. Not sure what that is for but it should be explained. Hope you have a safe flight and manage.

DCA airport is conveniently close to where I live and has numerous domestic flights coming in and out daily. For this reason, I use DCA a lot. They recently connected the terminals and the American Airlines Admirals club got a revamp. Check it out if you're an advantage member. It makes the experience much better. The airport made a switch to carry only Pepsi products. For frequent flyers like myself, this doesn't make sense. Airlines don't serve beverages on short flights to NY or the northeast from DCA. Customers are forced to buy a product they don't like or wait until they land at their final destination to get a Coca Cola product (assuming they serve them). DCA modernized their airport but took two steps back by not giving their customers an option to buy the products they want for their flights. Step into future not the past. Customers like variety. Overall, the airport is clean and modern. However, their food and beverage choices are lacking. If your looking for international flights, you'll need to connect somewhere before going anywhere. They don't offer international flights (a few options to Canada but not many!).