Guide to the D.C. Area Airports

· Hourly : Garage next to the main terminal. First hour free, $4 for 61 to 90 minutes, then $2 for each half-hour, with a daily maximum of $20. Pay and Go kiosks in skywalks to garage let customers prepay for the hourly garage and exit through special express lanes. You must exit within 30 minutes of paying.

· Daily Garage: At Aviation Boulevard (Route 170) and Elm Road, just beyond the terminal near the Four Points by Sheraton hotel. $2 an hour, with a daily maximum of $10. Shuttle buses to the terminal run every five to eight minutes.

· Express Service Parking (ESP): BWI's new ESP lot is at Aviation Boulevard (Route 170) and Elm Road, directly across from the Daily Garage. $3 an hour, up to $14 a day. ESP offers luggage assistance and immediate shuttle service that picks up passengers at the space where they've parked. On return to BWI, the shuttle delivers them directly to their cars.

· Long-Term Parking : On Aviation Boulevard just north of the airport. $1 an hour, with a daily maximum of $8; every seventh day is free. Shuttle buses to the terminal run every 10 to 15 minutes.

· Cell Phone Lot : At Aviation Boulevard and Elm Road directly across from Daily Garage, this free short-term parking area allows motorists to wait for arriving passengers. The lot has about 50 parking spaces where drivers can wait with their cars until they make cell phone contact with the arrivals.

· More info: 800-468-6294, or listen to radio station 1040 AM.

Getting There

· By train: Amtrak and MARC trains travel from Union Station and New Carrollton to the BWI Airport Rail Station, where a free shuttle bus connects you to the airport.

·  Amtrak: From Union Station, trains run from 5 a.m. weekdays and 5:25 a.m. on weekends until 10 p.m. daily. Departures from New Carrollton are approximately 10 minutes later. Return service from BWI starts at 6:23 a.m. and ends at 11:32 p.m. weekdays and 11:55 p.m. weekends. The trip is 30 minutes to/from Union Station and 15 minutes to/from New Carrollton. $14 each way from Union Station or New Carrollton. Info: 800-872-7245, http://www.amtrak.com/ .

·  MARC: MARC trains depart Monday through Friday nearly hourly; no weekend service; limited holiday service. Service from Union Station is from 5:54 a.m. to 10:40 p.m.; from New Carrollton, 6:05 a.m. to 10:51 p.m.; from BWI, 5:04 a.m. to 9:46 p.m. The trip takes 35 to 40 minutes. Cost is $6 each way to/from Union Station and $5 each way to/from New Carrollton. Info: 800-325-7245, http://www.mtamaryland.com/ .

· By subway/bus: The BWI Express bus (No. B30) runs nonstop from the Greenbelt Metro station on the Green Line to BWI's Concourse E. Buses depart Greenbelt every 40 minutes from 6:10 a.m. weekdays/8:45 a.m. weekends and holidays until 10 p.m. daily. $3 each way. Info: 202-637-7000, http://www.metroopensdoors.com/ .

· By taxi: Fares are about $60 one way from downtown D.C. and $65 from Bethesda, $65 from Reagan National and $90 from Dulles.