Parts of DCA are good (the convenience to the Metr...

Parts of DCA are good (the convenience to the Metro and the District, the shops & restaurants), most is okay, and then there's Gate 35X, DCA's re-creation of the worst of 3rd world airports. 35X serves roughly 10 planes parked on the tarmac, each of which seats 50 people. 50 x 10 = 500. 35X has about 250 seats, which produces both crowding and surly fellow customers. Then you get on the buses. Each bus serves a plane of 50 plus crew (3 or 4). The buses would appropriately handle 40 at most, so 50 means we all pack in like sardines with our arms in the air holding onto the ceiling rails or the posts. As we stand, typically for 10 minutes before leaving, you watch the blood drain from your hands and arms since you have no space to lower them. Back packs crush you in all directions. It's an appalling entrance or exit to a capital city in the developing world, probably acceptable for an airport in *rural* Bolivia or Kyrgyzstan, only this is Washington. So while DCA's convenience is great, 35X makes it my least favorite airport in the US. And I travel a lot.