Getting To and From Dallas
🛬 Flying
🚘 Driving
Getting Around Dallas
🚗 By Car
Other Parking
🚕 By Hired Car
🛵 By Scooter
🦶🏽 By Foot
🚈 By Public Transportation (DART)
Buying DART Tickets
✈️ Getting to and from the airports
➡️ DFW to Hotel (Akard Station)
From DFW via Hired Cars
➡️ Love Field to Hotel (Akard Station)
From Love Field via Hired Cars
➡️ Akard Station to the Adolphus
⬅️ Returning to Love Field or DFW after the Convention
⬅️ Akard Station to Love Field
⬅️ Akard Station to DFW Airport
⬅️ Hired Cars to the Airports
Dallas has two good airports for you.
The larger airport is DFW (Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport). The locals call it “DFW”. This is your airport if you are coming in from another country. DFW is a hub for American Airlines, and many other airlines also have flights to DFW. A ride from DFW to the hotel via hired car will cost about $30-40 and take about 30 minutes.
The smaller airport is DAL (Dallas Love Field). The locals call it “Love Field”. This airport is a hub for Southwest Airlines. There are also limited flights from Alaska Airlines and Delta. A ride from Love Field to the hotel via hired car will cost about $20 and take about 15 minutes.
Both airports are connected to public transit, called DART. From DFW, the cost will be $3 and take about 45 minutes. From Love Field, the cost will be $3 and take about 25 minutes. The walk from the DART station to the hotel will take about 5 minutes. See more info below
The hotel is located at 🗺️ 1321 Commerce St, Dallas, TX, 75202. If you put that into any GPS app, it will lead you straight to the front entrance, which is where you want to be. The valet driver will meet you and park your car for you. Grab your luggage and come on in!
Dallas was built for cars. Outside of the downtown district, streets are wide and parking is free. Use your favorite GPS app and explore the city. If you are parking at The Adolphus, parking is $32, valet parking only, with unlimited ins and outs. This is a special negotiated rate for us, so make sure you ask for the NPL rate and are only charged $32. There are cheaper lots nearby, and detailed information about those is below. There are several toll roads in the Dallas area, including tolled lanes on otherwise free highways. If you are driving your own car, you will be mailed a bill for any tolls that you incur. If you are renting a car, ask the rental agency how to handle the tolls.
The Adolphus has a large SUV which will take you from the hotel to any point within 2-3 miles of the hotel between 10:00 am and 10:00 pm. They do not commit to bringing you back, although I am told that you can ask, and if they aren’t doing anything, they will pick you up and bring you back.
If you want to rent a car, there is an Avis Car Rental next door to The Adolphus, at 🗺️ 1303 Commerce St (Disclaimer: This car rental might not be an Avis at the time of the con, but it should still be a car rental.)
There are three parking lots near the hotel, and they each have pros and cons.
🗺️ 1408 Elm St - $15/weekdays and $10/weekends. Credit cards only. This is the cheapest of the three options. You are about one block away from the hotel. You can leave your car overnight. The only con is that one of the online reviews mentioned extra fees of a few dollars added on when they exited.
🗺️ 1322 Elm St - $20/day. Credit cards only. The hours of this parking garage could not be verified. It could not be verified if you can leave your car overnight. You probably can, but you will want to verify that before checking in.
🗺️ 1212 Jackson St - This one is not recommended, and is only listed here to explain why it is not recommended. The signs are confusing. They say that it closes at 10pm on weekdays or midnight on weekends, but also say that all cars must be removed by 3am. If it does close at 10pm/midnight, then you will either miss part of the con or be locked out of your car. Park here at your own risk.
Cabs, Uber, and Lyft are all available in Dallas. See more info on getting to/from the airport below
Instead of a bikeshare program, Dallas has a scootershare program. The scooters are powered by electricity so that you can enjoy the breeze without exerting yourself. They are dockless – pick them up wherever you see them, and leave them wherever you are done without blocking any walkways. Three companies rent scooters: Bird, Lime, and Spin. Apparently there is a rule that all scooter companies must have four-letter names. If you plan to use the scooters, download an app or two before you come. Be warned – the scooters are fast, so be careful when you use them!
Many things are within a five-minute walk of the hotel. Look under the Restaurant and the Entertainment sections for more information on things that are close by. If you are going to walk for more than a few minutes, make sure you grab a bottle of water (they are free at the hotel’s front desk). Be aware that, depending on where you come from, pedestrians may be lower on the food chain here than in your home city. Obey the traffic lights and watch for cars and scooters as you walk about Dallas. Dallas is built for cars, not pedestrians, so if you plan to walk outside of the downtown district, make sure your route is pedestrian friendly.
Public transportation in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex falls under the purview of DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit). DART has buses, light rail, commuter rail, and trolleys.
Buying a ticket – There are many ways to buy a ticket to ride DART. The easiest way is to use a contactless credit or debit card, or a mobile device such as your watch or phone that has been enabled to make payments. If you register your method of payment on the DART website, or with the GoPass app, DART will automatically charge you the lowest fare every time you ride. There are scanning machines at the train stations and on the buses.
If you want to use cash, there are ticket vending machines at train stations. Buses will accept cash and do not make change.
There are several different varieties of tickets with different prices. A day pass is $6 and allows you to ride all DART trains and buses. Other prices are on the website at www.dart.org.
If you plan to use DART frequently while you are here, install DART’s app on your phone. iOS app Android app It allows you to see when the next bus/train is arriving and you can buy tickets in the app.
The trains are based on an honor system. There is no gate or turnstile before you board a train, but you are expected to have a paid ticket on you. Fare officers frequently patrol the trains and they will ask to see your ticket. If you used a contactless method of payment, they will scan it to ascertain that you did scan it before you boarded.
To take DART from DFW, you will head to the DART station at Terminal A. If you landed at Terminal A, head to gate A10. If you did not land at Terminal A, go outside your terminal and look for the orange ShuttleLink vans. Catch one going to Terminal A. Get off at the second stop at Terminal A. Look for the signs giving directions to the DART stop. You will go inside, take the elevator down one level, then head outside and walk to the right. You should be walking down an airy outdoor walkway with shading tarps, flowers, and jaunty music. Breathe in the warm, nurturing air. Get on any train at the DART station – they are all the Orange Line and they are all heading downtown. Sit back and relax, then get off at Akard Station. (A few Orange Lines do not go all the way to downtown – you will get off at Bachman Lake Station, switch to the Green Line going the same direction, and then sit back and relax.)
Hired cars (Uber, Lyft, etc.) can pick up passengers at the green curbs outside or at passenger pickup signs. Exact locations vary by terminal. After you have your luggage, request your ride through the app, and the app should guide you to the proper pickup location.
To take DART from Love Field, head to baggage claim. (Pro tip: Right after you pass out the security gates, there is a restroom on the right up a short flight of stairs. This restroom never has a line, unlike the ones inside security.) At baggage claim, look for signs directing you to the DART stop. Head down an escalator, turn left and head outside. Turn right outside and walk to the bus stop at the end of the sidewalk. This bus goes to Inwood/Love Field Station. The bus is free, but you will have to buy a ticket at the train station. At the train station, head up the elevator/stairs after buying a ticket and take either the Green Line or the Orange Line south to downtown, then get off at Akard Station.
If you are a member of the Alto rideshare service, you will be picked up at the curb right outside baggage claim. All other hired cars (Uber, Lyft, etc.) are found in Parking Garage B. Follow the signs from baggage claim to use these services.
At Akard Station, exit the train and walk toward the front of the train, then take a right on Akard Street. Walk toward the huge screen that you see a couple of blocks away, until you get to Commerce St. Ignore any signs that say “Adolphus” before you get to Commerce St. Turn right on Commerce St. and walk half a block to the hotel entrance. Enter the elegant Adolphus Hotel and prepare for days of fun and puzzles!
There will be DART construction in the downtown area on July 14 which will affect your travel back to the airport. Allow extra time. If you have questions, please see Neendy. There are many ways to work around the construction, but this is the one that is recommended.
The hotel offers a free SUV ride within 3 miles. Take the SUV to Victory Station.
Walk down to Victory Station after being dropped off and wait for the train without crossing the tracks. You can take the Green Line train marked North Carrollton or the Orange Line marked DFW Airport. You will only go a few stops and then you will get off at Inwood Rd./Love Field Station. Exit the train and head down to the ground, via the elevator or the stairs. Head to the north end of the bus stalls there, to the #5 bus, which will be marked for Love Field Airport. Take that bus to Love Field and get off at the first stop in Love Field. The bus driver can help you if you aren't sure where to get off. Have a safe journey!
Walk down to Victory Station after being dropped off and wait for the train without crossing the tracks. Take the Orange Line train marked DFW Airport. Check to see which terminal and gate you are flying out of, then sit back and relax. It will take about 35 minutes to get to DFW. The airport is the last stop on the Orange Line. When you exit the train, head east toward the breezy shaded walkway lined with flowers. Enjoy the cheerful music. When you reach the terminal, you are at Terminal A. If you are leaving from Terminal A, head on inside and check in. If you are leaving from a different terminal, go inside and take the elevator to the upper level. Exit the elevator, go outside, and turn right. Look for the orange markers for the Terminal Link vans. Catch the van going to your terminal. The vans stop twice at each terminal. The first stop is roughly for gates 17 and above, and the second stop is roughly for gates 16 and below. The driver will help you if you aren't sure where to get off. Have a safe journey!
Love Field: There is only one drop-off point at Love Field. Tell your driver to go to Love Field, and then follow the signs after you are dropped off.
DFW: Find out your departure gate before you hire a car to DFW. There are five terminals at DFW, and your driver will need the gate to know where to drop you off.