Peter Greenberg: Inauguration Deals

By: Peter Greenberg | Source: AARP.org | 2008-12-18

I want to go to the inauguration. Please tell me the best deal(s) in the area. I understand there are packages. Thanks.
–Jean, Southern Pines, N.C.
 
Nearly 1.5 million people are expected to attend the inauguration of President-elect Obama, according to William Hanbury of Destination D.C., the city's tourism department. With such an inflow of visitors, the 95,000 hotel rooms in the area are already reportedly booked solid during the week of the inauguration. And if they aren't already booked, the prices are very steep. Instead, try Baltimore, Wilmington, Del., or the Hagerstown area of Maryland.
 
One good idea might be to reserve a room in one of these far-flung areas and then start calling around a few days before you depart to find out if any rooms have opened in D.C. hotels that may have received cancellations. Be prepared for minimum-stay rules of three or four days during inauguration time. Alternately, services like Craigslist.org, A1vacations.com, and CyberRentals.com offer condo and apartment rentals. Keep in mind, though, that many of these services are seeing big jumps in cost during the inauguration.
 
As far as transportation, plane tickets have jumped in price, especially to Washington-Dulles (IAD) and Washington-Reagan (DCA). If you want to fly, it would definitely pay to consider alternate airports, especially Baltimore (BWI) or even Harrisburg, Pa. (MDT).
 
And don't forget Amtrak. Our nation's capital has better rail connections than most cities (just ask Joe Biden!) and a ticket on the Carolinian line, from Charlotte, N.C., to D.C. is $88 each way. On this Amtrak line, it takes about nine-and-a-half hours to reach Washington. Unlike the airlines, though, Amtrak doesn't seem to have jacked up its prices for the inauguration.
 
But in your case, definitely consider driving. Southern Pines, N.C., is about 340 miles from the Washington, D.C., area, and it is a rather pleasant drive of five or six hours. And since you'll probably have to stay fairly far away, the car could be useful.
 
There are inauguration travel packages, but none include tickets to the inauguration itself. Tickets to the inauguration are only available from your senator or representative, most of whom have been deluged with calls asking for the tickets. The few that people have put up for sale, and the tickets for the various inaugural balls, are reportedly going for as much as $40,000. Of course, since tickets are going to be distributed just a few days before the event, trying to buy one may be practically impossible, especially since auction sites, such as eBay, and ticket resellers, such as StubHub, have removed all inauguration tickets.
 
But even if you can't attend the actual inauguration, you can still watch the parade down Pennsylvania Avenue and celebrate with the millions in attendance. There are also plenty of other events still being organized that should be open to the public.