Washington Dulles Airport

A 60s throw back at check in but speedy rail transit to spacious new departure gate areas with plenty of space light and amenities - although no baby changing tables in the restrooms which would have been welcome for our 11 month old. Immigration had no queue and taxi into Arlington was $60 with tip. There's an unusual bus transfer from the gates to immigration but overall a really good experience - so much nicer entering the US here than other airports we've been to.

Such a contrast between arriving at Dulles and departing from it. Arrival was as horrid an experience as I have encountered in the US. After my plane landed about 2 hours late I found myself at the end of a long snaking queue for immigration. As a non-US citizen it took me almost an hour to reach an agent’s desk. Ahead of me was an elderly man about 80 far too polite to ask to go to the front of the queue who was clearly in some distress. After I got through immigration I waited for half an hour for my bag to reach the designated carousel. On a trip to the restroom I found my bag with others piled up on the floor. The carousel screen was wrong and all the bags from my flight had been delivered. To my surprise my return trip from Dulles went just fine. Security was quick and then I was able to take the moving walkways to the brand new B concourse as good an airside space as I’ve seen anywhere. Very spacious (10-15 minutes walk from end to end) and plenty of shops and eating places.

Flew through Dulles to get to Sao Paulo on 7 January and back on 16/17 January. As with all US airports I have used I feel they must scour the country for the most charmless people they can find and employ them all here. It always makes for a depressing if not downright stressful and unpleasant experience. My case arrived off the carousel broken and searched with various unwrapped presents. A similar experience on return. This airport needs a makeover - it doesn't look much nicer inside than a prison with comparatively few retail outlets as well.

Breezed through immigration and passport control staff polite. Internal transportation a nightmare a single car of a people mover expected to accomodate an entire aircraft? That's just not going to work. Baggage claim looked worse than many former Soviet countries public transportation to the city was sketchy and the lack of a decent information desk took its toll. Food facilities completely inadequate.

IAD tends to be a miserable experience but it provides almost all the international options in the DC area and it should get better. Immigration/customs formalities are relatively efficient although it's still necessary to use the people mover (often crowded) to reach the immigration area. The ambiance and dining/shopping options vary by concourse. The United commuter concourse is the worst. The main C/D concourse (used by United for mailine flights) has gotten better over time. Departure security has gotten more efficient and there is now a second security area on the lower level near baggage claim along with the new security mezzanine. I recommend the lower level location as it is still lightly used. The new train system will connect to the smaller infield terminals before opening to the C/D. The opening of the train has been delayed but should occur early this year. Getting to the airport remains a hassle - the 5A bus to Rosslyn and L'Enfant Metro stations remains the cheapest option but is poorly promoted although information can be found on the DC Metro website. The buses to West Falls Church are the next best option; there used to be service to DC but it was not used enough to be profitable. Staying near Dulles means being carbound and having limited dining options. Service within the airport tends toward the indifferent. Allowing 2 hours before a flight will work outside of rush periods but 3 hours is more realistic during the usual business travel rush.

I was connecting from Narita (Japan) to Connecticut and since Dulles was my first US stop I had to go through immigration. Originally I landed at 2:15 and my flight was at 4:20 so I thought this would have been enough time to get through immigration recheck my bags and board my next flight. After spending 3 hours in the immigration line I sprinted to my gate only to find that my flight had already departed. Then came the long lousy customer service line where all the other who missed their flight because of the shocking immigration slowness were lined up to rebook their flight. Then I get to the front of the line only to find that the next flight is all booked and I am standby #5. Then to spend the night in the dreary old boring airport to board the earliest flight out to Connecticut the next morning at 8:30 and missing the first day back to school after winter break in the process. Terrible service and they really should work on that ghastly immigration line.

I actually rather enjoy flying through Dulles. I've never had any problems there and it's comfortable enough. I can understand that it may be a little confusing for some people who do not travel through large airports very often but I find it simple enough. I have only connected when flying on United so I cannot comment on the majority of airlines service at IAD.

I have used IAD a few times but never arrived on an international flight until last a week ago. We arrived in terminal C on a UA flight from LHR I believe the international arrivals facility is new and it did not require the mobile lounges. Maybe it was because it was early (10:30am) and there was only one flight being processed but I was very impressed from coming off the plane we were through immigration within 10 minutes and our bags were waiting and we were through customs and had the bags rechecked for our connection within another 2-3 minutes. I must say all the TSA staff were very friendly. The facilities are rather limited and with a +2 hour wait for our connection it was tempting to eat junk food out of boredom

Arrived on Austrian from VIE Saturday afternoon in October. The mobile people mover was very crowded and slow. Three different hurdles to jump; customs baggage retrieval and another entrance through security. TSA personnel were absolutely the rudest most impatient and unhelpful I've encountered in the years since TSA was born. An elderly foreign woman was castigated in front of everyone for daring to have a small (one ounce) bottle of hand sanitizer in her purse. The TSA people yelled instructions which were difficult to interpret in the crowded conditions and generally made my wife and me embarassed for our country which used to have a reputation for welcoming visitors and citizens. There's no excuse for this mess which represents entry into our capitol city. I've traveled six continents and never seen worse. At both LAX and IAD the reception of air travelers to our country is in need of drastic overhaul.

I arrived at IAD on a Wednesday afternoon from Geneva. I had a connecting flights 2.20 hours later to JFK. It took me 2 hours to go through immigration I almost missed my connection. I was lucky that the gate for the flight to JFK was not far away. Otherwise I would have missed my flight. I will try to avoid IAD for my next flights to the US because I will always be afraid of missing my next flight. EWR or ATL are far better for the immigration process.