About Guide to DMV Airports
Great lounges, hacks to make travel easier, where to eat before a flight, and more.
Simplify Family Trips
Traveling with kids—lugging car seats, pushing strollers, wrangling toddlers—is a marathon of patience-testing. Enter airport concierge services, which can offer relief for families, seniors, or anyone needing extra help. At BWI, Bethesda-based SkySquad can meet you curbside, carry your bags, assist with check-in, and help you breeze through security (starting at $149). They’ll even watch your bags at the gate. “We’re like the friend you needed at the airport,” says founder Julie Melnick. Similar services are available at Dulles and Reagan National and through certain airlines such as United. Book at least 24 to 48 hours in advance.
Skip the Coffee Line
Navigating the airport is stressful enough, but adding hunger and caffeine withdrawal to the mix? Turbulence ahead. (Let’s be real: Who among us hasn’t had that sinking feeling at the sight of a long Starbucks line before a morning flight?) But you can actually bypass those waits and get to your gate faster by preordering food and drink online. Visit IADOrderNow.com or DCAOrderNow.com to browse spots like Cava and Chef Geoff’s. As for that coffee queue? Use the Starbucks app to place an advance order for your flat-white so it’s ready to sip after security.
Speed Through Customs
Long lines at customs during peak travel can be a hassle, and trusted traveler programs such as Global Entry require advance appointments, approvals, and a fee. But Mobile Passport Control is a free, fast trick for expediting your time in passport control—which can make all the difference after a lengthy international flight. Download the app and submit passport details and customs declarations when you land and MPC will provide you with a QR code that lets you go through a separate customs line from other travelers. MPC access is available at BWI and Dulles.
This article appears in the July 2025 issue of Washingtonian.
