A colleague and I will be attending a conference in the DC area in February; specifically, it’ll be held in the Adams Morgan neighbourhood, close to the National Zoo. We’re trying to figure out how many nights to book at the hotel; my colleague is giving a talk that ends at 5:30 PM on the last day of the conference (a Tuesday), and there’s a potential flight home leaving BWI at 7:55 PM that evening. It seems like it would be doable on paper if we took a cab, but I’ve also heard horror stories about DC-area traffic.
So, to those of you who have knowledge of “conditions on the ground”: Would it be feasible to get to BWI by 6:45 or 7:00? I’m assuming it would be tight, if it’s even possible, and that the added time involved in using an airport shuttle or public transport would make it impossible; is this impression correct? Or should we just pony up the extra dough to stay in DC for an extra night?