During my Aria Suite Adventure to Hong Kong, I had the chance to check out the Capital One Landing at Washington National Airport (DCA), which is the credit card issuer’s new airport lounge(ish) concept.
My gosh, this is such a lovely facility, and it’s so simple yet innovative. I’m delighted to see the creative ways that some card issuers are improving the airport experience, and can’t wait for more of these locations to open over time.
In this post:
Basics of the Capital One Landing concept
The Capital One Landing concept is intended to complement the Capital One Lounges that the card issuer has been opening at airports in recent years. To put it as simply as possible, think of Capital One Landings as being a great airport restaurant that eligible cardmembers have access to, with all food and drinks included.
What makes this different than a traditional airport lounge? Well, there’s much less of a focus on lounging around, and more of a focus on great food and drinks, which are available quickly.
Capital One Landings are described as a chef-driven, culinary-focused concept, intended to bring an elevated experience to the heart of airport terminals. The concept is offered in partnership with Chef José Andrés, who designs Capital One Landing’s food and beverage menu, focusing on Spanish-style tapas.
The idea is for this concept to primarily be at domestic airports, where passengers might be looking to grab a quick bite to eat or a drink, but don’t necessarily have hours to lounge around. The next location will be opening at New York LaGuardia (LGA).
Capital One Landing Washington DCA location
The Capital One Landing Washington DCA is located in Terminal 2, which is used by airlines like Alaska, American, Delta, JetBlue, and United (Air Canada, Frontier, and Southwest, leave from Terminal 1, which isn’t connected airside).
When you’re in the National Hall, the Capital One Landing is located right near Concourse D. So you’ll see the signage for gates D34-45, and immediately next to that you’ll see the facility.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA hours
The main part of the Capital One Landing Washington DCA is open daily from 6AM until 9PM. So it doesn’t cover all departures from the airport, but it does cover most.
There’s also the Capital One Landing On The Fly concept, which is open daily from 5AM until 10PM. I’ll talk more about that in a bit, since it’s not complimentary, so it’s a different concept.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA access requirements
Who can access the Capital One Landing Washington DCA? This is primarily intended for those with the Capital One Venture X (review) or Capital One Venture X Business (review), who receive complimentary access on a space available basis. Cardmembers can bring one guest for free, and additional guests for $45 each.
On top of that, those with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (review) or Capital One Spark Miles for Business (review) can purchase access to the Capital One Landing for $45 per person.
Meanwhile others can purchase access to the concept for $90 per person. The cost in all cases is the same for kids, except those under two, who can access the space for free with an adult.
The Capital One Landing facilities can be accessed up to three hours before a departing flight, or if you’re connecting, can be visited earlier than that.
These access requirements are specifically for the main Capital One Landing area, while the Capital One Landing On The Fly concept is open to all, and you can purchase items individually.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA reservations
Reservations aren’t required for the Capital One Landing Washington DCA, but they are recommended. If you don’t make a reservation, then access is available on a first come, first served basis. Capital One does hold back some tables for those without reservations, so it shouldn’t be impossible to get a table without a reservation.
However, if possible, it’s best to make a reservation in advance. This can be done through the Capital One app. Just log into your account, click on “Travel,” and then click on “Lounges.”
On the next page, you’ll see all the lounges listed, including Capital One Lounges and Capital One Landings. Scroll down to Capital One Landing Washington DCA location.
Then click on “Make a reservation.”
There you’ll see all availability, and can reserve your table.
Obviously reservations can be a bit tricky, given the unpredictability of travel. Officially, your reservation will be canceled if you don’t show up within 15 minutes of the scheduled time, though I’m not sure to what extent that’s enforced.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA seating & layout
The Capital One Landing Washington DCA is roughly 5,500 square feet, with seating for around 90 guests. As you arrive, it feels like a restaurant experience, with a host stand. The friendly lady staffing the desk confirmed my reservation and asked for my card. She then explained the concept to me, and walked me around the facility, and asked where I’d like to sit.
The Capital One Landing basically consists of one, big rectangular room, which opens up into the terminal. It has a nice variety of seating options, thanks to how the space is broken up.
One of the main seating areas is along the interior of the lounge, with a long booth across from chairs, and tables seating two to four people.
Along the windows of the lounge are even larger “U” shaped booths, which could easily seat four people.
There are also some smaller tables along the windows, each seating two people. If you can get a table near the windows, the lounge has awesome apron views.
There’s more seating back toward the entrance of the Capital One Landing, overlooking the terminal, with tables each seating two to four people.
There’s also a bar area, should you want to dine (or just have a drink) at some of the high-top seating there.
There’s also some counter seating overlooking the terminal.
I appreciate that the Capital One Landing has power outlets accessible from each seat, so you can easily keep your electronics charged. There’s also complimentary high speed Wi-Fi.
While you can keep your luggage at your seat, there are also some luggage storage areas underneath some of the furniture.
All-in-all, I think the Capital One Landing has such a cool design. It has the vibe of a high-end airport restaurant (which… almost sounds like an oxymoron). I also kind of like how this is more of a restaurant than a lounge, since you’ll never feel like it’s crowded in the same way as some lounges, assuming you can get in, as you’ll never have to share a table with someone.
I was also surprised that the facility was nearly empty during my visit, around 8PM. There were maybe a handful of people there.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA food & drinks
The Capital One Landing Washington DCA is all about the food and drinks, all of which are designed in partnership with Chef José Andrés.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing breakfast menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing lunch & dinner menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing drinks list.
So, actually getting your hands on food and drinks works in one of two ways. Each table has a QR code, so that you can order most drinks and some of the food. On top of that, there’s a display area with food, where you can go to request certain items, and one of the employees will plate it for you, to take back to your table.
I’d describe the service in the lounge as being a hybrid between a typical restaurant and an airport lounge. When you arrive at a table, silverware and a glass will already be there. A server then stops by and offers you some water. Anything beyond that is ordered through the QR code ordering system, but the servers frequently come around to clear plates.
The lounge’s food display is where you can pick up anything except the hot dishes. So that can be customized however you’d like, and doesn’t require waiting.
I didn’t get anything from the display, but instead ordered some of the hot dishes from the menu. Since this is tapas-style, the idea is that the portions aren’t huge, and you can order multiple things.
I figured I had to give the drink list a try, so to start, I ordered a negroni cortado, with gin, sweet vermouth, campari, and palo cortado sherry.
Later on, I ordered the landing G&T, with barr hill gin, mediterranean tonic, citrus, and sakura.
These cocktails were both phenomenal, not by airport lounge standards, but by general bar standards. Like, it’s not often you get a big cube in your drink in an airport lounge(ish)!
To eat, I decided to order three dishes — the gambas al ajillo, the eggplant & tofu donburi, and the grilled zucchini (that last one wasn’t on the printed menu, but was on the QR code menu). All three dishes were delivered at the same time, around 10 minutes after I ordered them.
The gambas al ajillo consisted of red shrimp confited with extra virgin olive oil, garlic, chili, bay leaf, and oloroso wine.
The eggplant & tofu donburi consisted of tofu and eggplant, steamed rice, red onion, avocado, and pickled nabo.
The grilled zucchini consisted of zucchini with yogurt, garlic, cumin, and fresh herb.
I thought all three dishes were excellent, and I would’ve been happy with them in a restaurant. What a treat to get this as part of a credit card benefit!
While there’s not a proper menu for the dessert, the counter has several options, including burnt basque cheesecake and warrior bites, so I asked to try each.
While you can also order barista coffee through the QR code, there’s also a station with self serve drip coffee, tea, soda, and water, which guests can help themselves to.
You really can’t ask for more when it comes to the quality of food and drinks at an airport, so as far as I’m concerned, Capital One knocked it out of the park.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA bathrooms
The Capital One Landing Washington DCA has two gender-neutral bathrooms, located in the back corner of the lounge. These are certainly nicer than you’ll find in the terminal. As you’d expect, there are no showers here.
Capital One Landing On The Fly Washington DCA
Adjacent to the main part of the Capital One Landing Washington DCA is the Capital One Landing On The Fly. This has a separate entrance, and is open to the public. This essentially offers food and drinks for purchase, packaged for takeaway. It has everything from breakfast items, to sandwiches, to salads, to packaged snacks, to drinks.
This isn’t part of the lounge concept, in the sense that you’re not getting anything for free here. However, if you pay with the Capital One Venture X (review) or Capital One Venture X Business (review), you do receive 50% off. I didn’t buy anything here, but did snap a few pictures.
I must say, the quality of items looked pretty good, better than your typical airport concession. For those who are in a rush and/or who couldn’t get a reservation at the Capital One Landing, it sure would be nice if cardmembers were given some dollar-amount credit they could spend here, to grab something on their way to the gate.
Either way, a 50% discount for cardmembers will put pricing here lower than virtually any other airport concession.
Bottom line
The Capital One Landing at Washington DCA is one of the most innovative twists that we’ve ever seen on the traditional airport lounge concept. Capital One Lounges already innovated the credit card lounge space, with things like cold brew on tap and grab & go snacks. Now the issuer is doing something cool yet again, with restaurant style dining experiences, in partnership with Chef José Andrés.
I have nothing but good things to say about this concept, as the food and drinks were significantly better than you’ll otherwise find in most airport lounges and restaurants. I just wish the Capital One Landing were at an airport that I frequent more often, as I pass through DCA maybe once every couple of years, on average.
What’s your take on the Capital One Landing concept at Washington National Airport?
As DCA is my home airport, I've visited COL a few times and would echo Ben's take. What a total pleasure to grab a bite here before a flight. I recommend the cold brew!
Can this be used on arrival?
@ Mark P -- A departing boarding pass is required.
Is there any expectation to tip? It's not quite a restaurant, not quite a lounge, so the etiquette seems unclear.
@ Anon -- That's a great question. Given that service is generally reactive rather than proactive, it doesn't seem like there's the same expectation to tip as in a sit-down restaurant. Furthermore, you're not just appointed one person, but rather the servers are all just kind of roaming around the place.
I tried to observe the tipping situation a bit, and based on what I could tell, most people weren't tipping.
I was wondering the same thing when I was there. The service is so friendly and helpful and with tasty drinks, so it's unusual given that we (most people) tip for much lower quality drinks in the Admirals Clubs.
You missed the special cart they have which alternates.... mimosas, champagne and caviar and gin and tonics. It is like finding big foot... I am in the landing almost weekly and I have only seen it once. But the staff assures me it exists. I asked if I could have some caviar and they said only when the cart comes out can they serve it.
@ Charles -- Lol, yes, had heard about that, and was curious. Since I was visiting during a quiet time, I wasn't surprised it wasn't around. However, based on what you say, it sounds like a bit of a unicorn.
You say the focus is on quick dining and such as opposed to lounging. Is there any time limit (aside from the 3 hour before flight entrance rule) to the reservations? Are guest subtly encouraged to leave after they finish their drinks and meal? I am assuming no, so I wonder how they deal with guests that stay the three hours
@ Anthony -- I think the idea is that you can get in and out quick if you want, but I didn't get the sense that there was any sort of a rush. So it's fine to sit there, and I don't think they'd nudge anyone to leave, given the general time constraints in place (of having access up to three hours before departure).
On reservations, I’ve been three times and only once with a reservation. I was seated immediately on my first walk-in. During busy “rush hour” traffic between 4-6:30pm, it was a 20 minute wait for me and a guest as a walk-in. Per the agent, there is generally more walk-in space than reservations available (I was quoted 40% reservations, 60% walk-in for January).
Ben, how drawn out vs expedited was the service? For example, how long of a connection would one need to feel comfortable making use of the sit down experience?
@ Andy — Everything was served within 10 or so minutes of ordering. You could comfortably be in and out in 30 minutes, assuming your table is ready. In fairness, maybe things take a little longer when the lounge is slammed, but I think the goal is to get people in and out quickly.
Re: being empty at 8 PM
DCA has a departure bank at 8 PM and 10 PM- so you sort of arrived in the dead zone in between those.
How was flying DCA after the tragedy?
@ 380flyer -- The approach felt a bit surreal, and there was definitely a different vibe onboard among passengers. But in the airport as such, it seemed to be business as usual.