Washington to Boston by Air: DCA Terminals, Baggage Fees and the Silver Line

Washington to Boston is a route where flying is the quick option: Metro from downtown to Reagan National, an hour and twenty minutes in the air, then the free Silver Line into Boston. No taxi is needed at either end, and check-in and security are simpler than on an international flight.

Several airlines fly it, frequencies are high, and fares move a lot. What follows covers terminals, check-in and bags, security and boarding, then the arrival at Logan. Fares, baggage fees and schedules follow the airlines' own pages.

1. Reagan National: two terminals, Metro at the door

Reagan National (DCA) is small, with just two terminals. Terminal 1 handles the A gates — mostly Southwest, Frontier and Air Canada. Terminal 2 handles gates B to E, which is where Delta, American, JetBlue, United and Alaska sit. The two are separate buildings, and picking the wrong one costs about ten minutes on foot. The airport sits on the Potomac a few kilometres from downtown.

The Metro is the easy way in. Take the Blue or Yellow line to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport station; a covered walkway runs to Terminal 2, while Terminal 1 is a few minutes further on foot. Tap in with a SmarTrip card or a phone wallet. Fares are charged by distance and time, roughly $2–6 from downtown, and the ride takes about 15–20 minutes — more predictable than a taxi.

2. Check-in and bags: economy usually means carry-on only

With no checked bag, self-service check-in and a mobile boarding pass take you straight to security; with a bag you need the staffed counter. Most US domestic economy fares do not include a checked bag: the free allowance is one carry-on plus one personal item, with size and weight limits set by the airline.

Checked bags are bought separately, around $35–40 for the first one, and adding it online in advance is usually cheaper than at the airport counter. When a ticket is issued through a third-party site, the add-on sometimes only appears the day before departure, so do not leave it to the airport. Reagan has a convenience worth knowing: the Delta counter sits between the Metro exit and the terminal entrance, so you can drop bags and print a boarding pass before walking to the right concourse.

3. Security, the concourse and boarding

Security is standard TSA: ID and boarding pass, jacket and belt off, pockets emptied, liquids in containers of 100 ml or less. With TSA PreCheck you use a dedicated lane and keep your shoes and laptop in place, and the queue is usually far shorter. Terminal 2 has several checkpoints, so choose the one that feeds your concourse; morning queues build, which is why two hours before departure is the safe rule.

Past security there are coffee and snack counters and workstations with power outlets and wireless charging, and the Wi-Fi holds up. Boarding runs by zone, with the gate screen showing which zone is open, so watch the screen and the announcements; boarding usually starts about 30 minutes before departure, so do not wander too far. The flight takes about an hour and twenty minutes, usually on a regional jet, and the cabin air conditioning runs cold — bring a jacket.

4. Landing at Logan: the free Silver Line into town

Logan (BOS) has five terminals, A to E, and Delta uses Terminal A. After landing, collect bags downstairs and follow the Silver Line signs. The Silver Line is Boston's rapid bus route, free from the airport, and it runs into South Station in the city.

At Terminal A the stop is directly opposite door A104, so the sign is visible as you come out. From South Station you can change to the Red Line, to commuter rail or to long-distance trains; the run from the airport takes about 20–30 minutes depending on traffic. The alternative is the free shuttle to the Blue Line's Airport station and the Blue Line into town, which is also frequent, but the Silver Line drops you inside the subway station and is easier with a case.

Terminals are linked by free shuttle buses, so a wrong turn does not mean leaving the airport. Besides the Silver Line, Logan Express coaches run to Back Bay and elsewhere, and a taxi or ride-hailing car to downtown is around $25–35; for one person with luggage, the Silver Line still wins.

5. Details worth knowing in advance

Neither airport is large, but security and bags are where the time goes, so two hours before a domestic flight is the safe calculation. Fares swing widely — weekday early flights and red-eyes are usually cheaper — and baggage fees belong in the comparison. Gate numbers on the boarding pass can change, so check the boards before security. Boston's subway charges a flat fare per ride, with a CharlieCard slightly cheaper than a paper ticket, and South Station is only a few stops from downtown. If a train or coach follows the flight, South Station is the nearest hub, with the transfer inside the same building.

Related links

• On this site: United States (US)
• Wikipedia: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Logan International Airport
• Baidu Baike: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Logan International Airport

Metro fares, baggage fees and security and boarding times follow the current notices of the Washington and Boston transit agencies and the airlines, and schedules change. Image credit: WeChat travel guide.