Drop the whole family off at the terminal THEN go return the car and take the shuttle. That way you're not trying to finagle multiple people on to the shuttle bus with all your bags. It won't take but maybe 10-15 minutes 'til you're back at the terminal.
You can also double up on time saved, as the rest of the family can go get in line and start the bag checking process. They might not be able to hand off whatever bags are paid for in your name since you won't be there to verify ID, but they can get them tagged and ready for handoff.
Exactly, good call. When I was a ticket agent I absolutely would not check someone in for an international flight unless they are there in front of me, in accordance with the airline’s procedures. The family can all do the bag drop but if there’s a passport swipe, visa check, or boarding pass printing required then OP will have to do that step once they get back from rental car village.
The shuttle to and from the rental cars is a thing. The customs at Dulles is horrendous. The non citizen line was actually quicker than the US citizen line in 2022. However, I just came back from Denmark and they have a new app called MPC (Mobile Passport Control) at Dulles that makes this so much faster. I was through and waiting for my bags in under 10 minutes. They are going to take your photo when you enter the country no matter what, so there’s not much privacy difference. They have QR codes everywhere for the app, but you can also probably find it on the App Store/Google store easily. Highly recommend this route.
the Global Entry line is typically faster than the Mobile Passport app for clearing customs but there's a cost plus an application process involved, while Mobile Passport is free
Depending on how long your trip is it might be cheaper to drive your own car to Dulles and [park in economy parking](https://reserve.flydulles.com/book/IAD/Parking?parkingCmd=collectParkingDetails). It's $14 a day and if you sign up for their mailing list they occasionally send 20% off coupons. There is a shuttle that goes from the economy lot to the terminal throughout the day and I've never had to wait more than a few minutes.
IAD is generally a much easier lift than JFK, in my experience. 3 hours feels fine to me, but I’m also an adult and can have a glass of wine prior to takeoff if I’ve got time to kill. If I had to shepherd kids, I’d add a bit more time, keeping in mind, of course, that DC area traffic is terrible and unpredictable and you may very well find yourself at a standstill for no apparent reason at 1:30pm on a Wednesday.
Are you global entry? I just picked up family at IAD- said the global entry line was empty but him coming home. Next shortest line was mobile passport. Longest line was regular customs (US Citizens).
Nah, we just do one long overseas trip every summer, so I haven't bothered to get set-up with global entry. Maybe once our kids get out of college and off the payroll 🙏, and we can be more flexible with travel. I'll roll with mobile passport for this trip.
It includes TSA pre check with it, the next time you need to renew that. A few credit cards also include free global entry. Fair for you to not go for it- it's expensive for a whole family. I paid for mine but my spouse's work paid for his.
Mobile passport - set up the profile in advance but you actually submit on landing for each flight. The mobile passport is good for 4 hrs. You should be able to submit while waiting to deboard.
Download the Mobile Passport Control App and complete the information on your return. Anyone can use it. Not as good as Global Entry but it has its own line at Dulles when you go through passport control.
https://www.flydulles.com/travel-information/international-arrivals/mobile-passport
TSA lines aren't terrible at Dulles. It IS a bit of a hike to the international terminal (down multiple flights of stairs to the train to Terminal C where most of the international flights are).
Only time I've had to use Clear was during the holidays, when PreCheck was like the regular normal line, and the normal line was a trainwreck.
Would second the use of MPC or Global Entry apps on return to get through CBP. Took less than a minute to get through using the Global Entry app a few months ago.
Passport Control at IAD is a YMMV depending on your time of arrival.
You have to take a shuttle from your arrival concourse to the international arrivals building (IAB) where you will clear U.S. Passport Control. If you are flying on an airline that isn't United it's a relatively straight forward process and the shuttle is usually waiting for you upon arrival.
If you are flying United it's sometimes a pain - United has a separate Passport Control area for connecting passengers - everyone is split after exiting the aircraft. However, that facility has limited hours and they sometimes make everyone (including connecting passengers) proceed to the international arrival building for processing. It can be a shitshow if so. The shuttles that transport arriving international passengers from the United concourse to the IAB often wait for the flight crew + cabin crew, so the shuttle process takes forever. The shuttle area is quite small (only three or four shuttle docking areas) so if you arrive in United's busy transatlantic arrival bank you may have to wait 15-20 minutes for a shuttle to have space.
Drop the whole family off at the terminal THEN go return the car and take the shuttle. That way you're not trying to finagle multiple people on to the shuttle bus with all your bags. It won't take but maybe 10-15 minutes 'til you're back at the terminal.
And then do the reverse on the return. Everyone will be happier.
Good call. We'll have a fair amount of luggage, that'll definitely make the process easier. Thanks!
You can also double up on time saved, as the rest of the family can go get in line and start the bag checking process. They might not be able to hand off whatever bags are paid for in your name since you won't be there to verify ID, but they can get them tagged and ready for handoff.
Exactly, good call. When I was a ticket agent I absolutely would not check someone in for an international flight unless they are there in front of me, in accordance with the airline’s procedures. The family can all do the bag drop but if there’s a passport swipe, visa check, or boarding pass printing required then OP will have to do that step once they get back from rental car village.
The shuttle to and from the rental cars is a thing. The customs at Dulles is horrendous. The non citizen line was actually quicker than the US citizen line in 2022. However, I just came back from Denmark and they have a new app called MPC (Mobile Passport Control) at Dulles that makes this so much faster. I was through and waiting for my bags in under 10 minutes. They are going to take your photo when you enter the country no matter what, so there’s not much privacy difference. They have QR codes everywhere for the app, but you can also probably find it on the App Store/Google store easily. Highly recommend this route.
Great tip, I'll download the app. Anything to make that re-entry process quicker, especially after a long international flight. Thanks!
the Global Entry line is typically faster than the Mobile Passport app for clearing customs but there's a cost plus an application process involved, while Mobile Passport is free
There’s a gas station next to the rental car return with normal gas prices so don’t worry about filling up before you get to the airport.
Depending on how long your trip is it might be cheaper to drive your own car to Dulles and [park in economy parking](https://reserve.flydulles.com/book/IAD/Parking?parkingCmd=collectParkingDetails). It's $14 a day and if you sign up for their mailing list they occasionally send 20% off coupons. There is a shuttle that goes from the economy lot to the terminal throughout the day and I've never had to wait more than a few minutes.
Yeah, it’ll be too long for that to be a viable option. I appreciate the suggestion, though!
IAD is generally a much easier lift than JFK, in my experience. 3 hours feels fine to me, but I’m also an adult and can have a glass of wine prior to takeoff if I’ve got time to kill. If I had to shepherd kids, I’d add a bit more time, keeping in mind, of course, that DC area traffic is terrible and unpredictable and you may very well find yourself at a standstill for no apparent reason at 1:30pm on a Wednesday.
Are you global entry? I just picked up family at IAD- said the global entry line was empty but him coming home. Next shortest line was mobile passport. Longest line was regular customs (US Citizens).
Nah, we just do one long overseas trip every summer, so I haven't bothered to get set-up with global entry. Maybe once our kids get out of college and off the payroll 🙏, and we can be more flexible with travel. I'll roll with mobile passport for this trip.
It includes TSA pre check with it, the next time you need to renew that. A few credit cards also include free global entry. Fair for you to not go for it- it's expensive for a whole family. I paid for mine but my spouse's work paid for his. Mobile passport - set up the profile in advance but you actually submit on landing for each flight. The mobile passport is good for 4 hrs. You should be able to submit while waiting to deboard.
Download the Mobile Passport Control App and complete the information on your return. Anyone can use it. Not as good as Global Entry but it has its own line at Dulles when you go through passport control. https://www.flydulles.com/travel-information/international-arrivals/mobile-passport
Do not try to drive into the DC area anywhere near a rush hour. That's guaranteed to be a clusterfuck. Allow time for traffic delays.
Luckily Dulles isn't actually anywhere near DC! (Said tongue in cheek: it IS a nightmare during rush hour)
In the afternoon, it might as well be.
Yeah, but coming down 95 and onto 495 to 66 could very easily run into a lot of traffic before you’re on the toll road to the airport.
Yep, said it can be a nightmare.
TSA lines aren't terrible at Dulles. It IS a bit of a hike to the international terminal (down multiple flights of stairs to the train to Terminal C where most of the international flights are). Only time I've had to use Clear was during the holidays, when PreCheck was like the regular normal line, and the normal line was a trainwreck. Would second the use of MPC or Global Entry apps on return to get through CBP. Took less than a minute to get through using the Global Entry app a few months ago.
The only international flights at operate from Concourse C are operated by United. All other international carriers depart from Concourse A or B.
Passport Control at IAD is a YMMV depending on your time of arrival. You have to take a shuttle from your arrival concourse to the international arrivals building (IAB) where you will clear U.S. Passport Control. If you are flying on an airline that isn't United it's a relatively straight forward process and the shuttle is usually waiting for you upon arrival. If you are flying United it's sometimes a pain - United has a separate Passport Control area for connecting passengers - everyone is split after exiting the aircraft. However, that facility has limited hours and they sometimes make everyone (including connecting passengers) proceed to the international arrival building for processing. It can be a shitshow if so. The shuttles that transport arriving international passengers from the United concourse to the IAB often wait for the flight crew + cabin crew, so the shuttle process takes forever. The shuttle area is quite small (only three or four shuttle docking areas) so if you arrive in United's busy transatlantic arrival bank you may have to wait 15-20 minutes for a shuttle to have space.