I. Getting to/from the Airport We followed Rick's advice on taking the Metro from the airport. We decided he is biased though from traveling with his pack-mule producer. Transferring to the Red line involved climbing several flights (no escalators) with luggage. Okay for the way in but, on the way out, we opted to pay the ~33 euro to have a taxi get us there. II. Airport Connections
Avoid Heathrow at all costs. Connect through Newark or JFK.
Posted by
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
265 posts
Taxi, taxi and then again taxi for me. I've tried that pack mule road and I have to say "NOT FOR ME"!!!
Heathrow, the worlds largest airport. My wife almost killed me for taking her into Heathrow and we were going to London!!! I had no choice? We were going to London. Three hours to go through customs and immigration and then walking to the Piccadilly line to take us to our hotel. Doable, but not enjoyable when I'm on vacation and trying to chill out. Actually the easiest connection we ever made was in Venice. We got the the bus outside the airport that took us to Piazza Roma, hopped on the the Vaporetto line one, got off at our stop and the rest was painless.
Posted by
South Yorkshire, UK; formerly St. Louis, MO, USA
317 posts
I've done the 'pack mule road' as well. Me? I didn't mind it as much. It took me very close to where I needed to go, and was quite happy to take the Metro. It also meant I didnt have to spend another ~33 Euro to get home. To each his own, I guess. I'll Metro. As to Heathrow - that airport is always hit or miss, doubly so now with the Olympics. I've done the T3-T5 shuffle quite a bit, as well as immigration at both terminals. Yes, the queue's can be massive at times, but Chicago, Houston, and Dallas can be equally as bad in my experience.
Posted by
OP
Gloucester, MA, USA
10 posts
We did metro everywhere during our stayIt was just that initial transfer from the purple (?) line, and I don't know if it was unique to our route from the airport (Santo Domingo stop) but we had to climb up several flights from the depths to transfer to the red line, and all of the escalators traveled in the 'down' direction so, it was stairs all the way! Also, it was ~104 on the ground that day Madrid and not much cooler below. We arrived at our hotel drenched in sweatnot a big deal because there were showers there, but we didn't want to arrive back at the airport in a similar state. :)
Posted by
Bloomington, IL, USA
9371 posts
In Madrid there is also the Aero City van service which takes you right to your hotel door and is cheaper than a taxi.