Hi, we are two couples who will be there March 1-8. We%26#39;re staying in Rockville, MD, and although we do have a car we will plan to use the metro to visit the major DC tourist spots. We%26#39;ll have a net time of 5.5 days in the city, although we may drive to Wiiliamsburg one day.
Okay, I have read the metro website and am confused!
It seems the best bet is to purchase the SmartTripcard? But how much should we load onto it? Once loaded, is it good for travel at any time?
It seems the SmarTripcard is also good for buses, since it mentions TheBus?
Would it be cheaper to buy a day ticket each day? Would that cover all lines/areas? But then I read something about there are no more ';paper transfers';?
Sorry to be rather dense here . . . but I don%26#39;t get it!
...p.s. I did search this forum, but did not find anything on this topic within the last 15 pages or so.
Question about Metro fares? Help!
You used to get a ticket leaving the Metro that would give you a discounted bus fare. No more. Now you get the discount only if you use the SmartTrip card. The card costs $5 unloaded and you add money to it. It is good for travel at any time, on MEtro trains and on Metro buses and you automatically get the transfer discount if applicable coming from Metro (not going TO Metro).
How much to add depends on how far you are going. Most trips are under $3.00 but the ones from the ends of the lines during rush hour can be more. You can play around on this page to see fares http://www.wmata.com/fares/
You could buy a paper fare card when you get here and add fare to it as you go, but you would not get the transfer discount. If you don%26#39;t plan to take any buses, no matter. But there can be lines at the fare card machines.
For 4 days riding, I would get a SmartTrip or paper card with $20 on it for each person and add to it as you go, if need be. Frankly, I find the buses a pain and avoid them, preferring to walk.
To help us help, where will you be staying and where do you hope to go on Metro/bus?
Question about Metro fares? Help!
I don%26#39;t know if the SmartTrip card is the best option, but yes they are good for any time. You might need a SmartTrip card if you will be parking at a Metro lot. You will have to check the particular lot for that answer.
There are no more paper transfers for the rail to bus and bus to bus transfer. The transfer discount happens automatically when you use SmartTrip on both Metrorail and Metrobus. Are you actually planning to take the bus while you are here?
';Would it be cheaper to buy a day ticket each day?';
I guess you mean the one-day pass for $7.80? Can%26#39;t really answer that. Depends if you would be spending more than $7.80 on Metrorail per day.
There are a couple of other passes as well (some with time restrictions like the One Day Pass)
www.wmata.com/fares/purchase/passes.cfm
I always tell people to just buy a regular fare card and load a large amount of money on it.
So go to any machine, purchase a regular fare card, and put say $20.00 on it. It%26#39;s not good for the buses but I can only imagine that you really won%26#39;t be using the bus as much as you think you will just to save a little change.
%26gt;%26gt;To help us help, where will you be staying and where do you hope to go on Metro/bus?%26lt;%26lt;
We%26#39;ll be staying at the Legacy hotel in Rockville, which I%26#39;m guessing is located near the ';Rockville'; station on my Metro map?
We%26#39;d probably take the train to somewhere downtown (Metro center? Smithsonian?) each day. Our Smithsonian visits will most likely be split over three days.
We%26#39;ll be taking the HOHO trolley for two days of sightseeing and I figured that will take us to all the major sights.
Is there any reason to take regular buses anywhere?
The Legacy is across Rockville Pike from the Twinbrook Metro Station, I believe - a telephone call or email to the front desk can confirm.
As far as buses go, you probably won%26#39;t be needing one, as the Metro takes you to all the tourist sites (with the exception of the National Cathedral), so a farecard should cover all of your anticipated travel. And if you do need to take a bus somewhere, it%26#39;s only $1.35 per trip (the SmartTrip card only gives you a 50 cent discount on the bus fare).
Slight correction: The SMARTrip card gives you a 10 cent discount on bus fares ($1.25 versus $1.35) and a 50 cent discount when transferring from rail-to-bus or bus-to-rail. I think the convenience of not having to dig for change outweighs the cost of the card, even for people who are only going to be in town for a week, but given your plans I suspect you will not be riding the bus, and would be better off buying a paper ticket.
half-Brit,
I just wanted to jump in and suggest that you do a search on ';Legacy Rockville'; on this forum. You will find some very positive things said and it will reassure you of your great location in regards to the metro and shopping/dining. From what I have read, it sounds like the walk from the hotel to the metro is quite easy! My family is also staying at this hotel this coming summer--we have two rooms for five nights following our visit to Williamsburg.
One more thing--after poking around on the Metro website and using their trip planner program, I have decided that we will probably do just what MrsMaryland suggested and load each card with about $20 or so for our four full days in Washington. From the cost calculations given, I think that should just about cover us. You might want to have a look at www.wmata.com for yourself and see if you think that will work for you, as well. Just remember that you start in Twinbrook, then plug in a destination like Gallery Place. It will probably tell you something like $2.35 for each leg of your trip (not including little hops on the metro you may want to take during the day--just your long ride out from Twinbrook.
you can save yourself a little time by purchasing your farecards ahead of time thru the wmata website....I ordered a couple of $10 cards the other day and they were in my mailbox 2 days later!
If I may ask , without opening a new post , can two persons travelling together use one card or do we require two seperate cards ? Thanks .
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