Metro For 2 Days - Prices?

Can anyione comment on how to get the best fares on the Metro for 2 people for two days usage?

Thank you.

Metro For 2 Days - Prices?

Depends on how far you%26#39;ll be travelling, how many times you%26#39;ll be riding, what time of day, and whether you%26#39;ll need parking. See www.wmata.com for the types of passes available. If you have specific questions after reading through their listing, ask away! :-)

Metro For 2 Days - Prices?

Step one is considering how many times per day you will ride the MetroRail and MetroBus. It seems to me, the average number of times per day is six:

1. Hotel to National Mall

2. National Mall to Lunch or Sidetrip

3. Lunch or Sidetrip back to National Mall

4. National Mall to Hotel

5. Hotel to Dinner %26amp; Show

6. Dinner %26amp; Show back to Hotel

Almost all bus and rail fares are between $1.00 – $1.50, so if we multiply the number of times you plan on using public transportation by the fare price, you’re looking at an average of $6.00 to $9.00 per day to use public transportation.

I did some reading on the wmta website, and discovered how confusing the whole process can be! There are various ways to go about it, but only ONE way combines parking, bus and rail into one pass, and that is SMARTTRIP. Unfortunately, SMARTTRIP is geared to residents, not visitors, and costs $5 just to obtain the card, so it doesn’t sound too cost-effective for a two day visitor.

The MetroRail UNLIMITED DAILY PASS sounds good—until you realize that you can’t use it before 9:30 am. For those who like to get an early start on the day, you’ll have to buy a FARECARD for your first trip in the morning. FARECARDS are just cards with a specific dollar amount on them, and each time you use the MetroRail, the fare is deducted from the card, so there’s an additional $1.35 (average price from Hotel to National Mall) you have to pay for that first morning trip.

The problem with FARECARDS %26amp; PASSES is, you have to buy SEPARATE ones for BUS %26amp; RAIL. The Bus doesn’t use a FARECARD—it uses EXACT CHANGE instead, which can be a real headache. If your bus trip is a segment of a trip that includes MetroRail, then you can get a coupon good for 90 cents off the bus ride at the MetroRail station. But who wants to walk around with a whole bunch of quarters, nickels, and dimes in your pocket?

If you simply want the EASIEST way to go, then buy the UNLIMITED MetroRail pass for $6.50 per day, and the UNLIMITED MetroBus pass for $3.00 per day. This bus pass is also good on the DC CIRCULATOR bus, which stops regularly around the National Mall, and goes out to GEORGETOWN too. And then all you have to worry about, is paying an additional $1.35 for that first trip from the Hotel in the morning, if you leave before 9:30 am.

If you are CERTAIN you won’t be making that many trips, then buy the MetroRail FARECARD for less (maybe start with $10.00), and if you run out, you can always buy another FARECARD. As far as the Bus is concerned, I still think $3.00 for an unlimited daily pass is the way to go, because then you can use the DC CIRCULATOR around the National Mall as many times as you want, and it will also pay for any other bus rides you might need.

Personally, I’m kind of glad I’m going to be there for a week—I can just buy the UNLIMITED MetroRail weekly pass for $32.50 (with no 9:30 am restriction), and the UNLIMITED MetroBus pass for $11.00, and leave the daily computations and calculations to the bean counters. ;-)

GON2DC,

Very informative reply again from you! I am curious as to how often you would see yourself needing the circulator bus and in what instances. Thank you!

Readaloud,

Here%26#39;s a map of the DC Circulator:

http://www.dccirculator.com/map.pdf

You can see that it makes a continuous revolution around the National Mall. Since my schedule will be based a lot on attending special events and lectures at the various venues, I can see having to use the Circulator several times a day, at the very least. One other aspect of this service, is being able to sit and rest my weary feet. So even if I%26#39;m going just a couple thousand feet, from the Air and Space Museum to the Museum of Natural History, for example, instead of walking, I can hop on the Circulator for a brief respite. This might appeal to you and your group as well, because the little ones and even the fickle teens will appreciate taking a load off every so often. Not to mention the parents!

Another leg of the Circulator goes up toward the Convention center, with stops at the Portrait Gallery, International Spy Museum, etc. Many of the theaters (stage plays) and good restaurants in the revitalized downtown area, are situated along this route as well.

And the third leg of the Circulator goes through the heart of Georgetown, then all the way to Union Station. I don%26#39;t know if I%26#39;ll want to venture out that way, but having a regular bus at distinctly marked stops will definitely make it easy.

According to the Circulator information, there is a bus at every stop within 5 to 10 minutes, so you don%26#39;t even have to worry about memorizing a schedule.

One thing some people may not realize, is that the MetroBus and Circulator both will go to more places than the MetroRail goes. For a paltry $3 per day, or $11 for a weekly bus pass, an individual can literally have easy access to all the key points of DC!

If you%26#39;re looking to save money, it might be better to get the weekly bus pass, and only use the MetroRail occasionally--you can purchase a MetroRail farecard for each member of your group (maybe only put $5-10 on them), and save $20 per person over a weekly MetroRail pass.

Just a suggestion! ;-)