Capital One is known for its airport lounge network, with current locations in Dallas (DFW), Denver (DEN), and Washington (IAD). In late 2022, the company announced the Capital One Landing concept, a twist on the traditional airport lounge concept. Think of it as more of a complimentary airport restaurant than anything else.
Well, there’s now an exciting update, as the first Capital One Landing location has just opened, at Washington National Airport (DCA). This is a great development, and comes just months after the opening of the Amex Centurion Lounge at the airport.
In this post:
Capital One Landing Washington DCA basics
The Capital One Landing at Washington National Airport has opened as of today, Tuesday, November 19, 2024. This is a totally new airport concept — think of it as being somewhere between an airport lounge and a restaurant.
The culinary-focused concept is in partnership with Chef José Andrés and his team, who are also involved in Capital One Dining. The idea is to address the general issue that many people have with food at airports — they may be hungry and may not have much time, but still want something decent to eat. Capital One even claims that this space will offer a dining experience that people would be excited to encounter anywhere, and not just at an airport, a rarity for an airport.
The Capital One Landing Washington DCA is located in Terminal 2, right off the National Hall, near Concourse D. The main space is open daily from 6AM until 9PM, while the On the Fly space is open daily from 5AM until 10PM. The Capital One Landing is 5,500 square feet, with seating for 90 guests. There are power outlets at every seat, high speed Wi-Fi, and luggage nooks.
As far as the dining concept goes, the menus are all created by José Andrés Group, and offer a taste of Spain with Chef José’s take on tapas. When you arrive at the lounge, you’ll be assigned a specific table, and guests can then select made-to-order small plates and beverages via a QR code, which will be delivered directly to their seats. All food and drinks with this concept are free (assuming you have access, of course — more on that below).
In addition to the main part of the Capital One Landing, there’s also an “On the Fly” section, which offers breakfast items, sandwiches, salads, snacks, and drinks, prepared for purchase, and packaged for takeaway. The entrance to this is totally separate from the rest of the Capital One Landing space.
This is open to the public, and isn’t free for anyone. However, those with the Capital One Venture X (review) or Capital One Venture X Business (review) receive 50% off all food and beverage purchases. So while the “sticker” prices may be high, it should be a decent deal for eligible cardmembers.
The Capital One Landing’s design is described as drawing inspiration from Capital One Lounges and José Andrés restaurants, focusing on lush textures, warm colors, and ambient lighting, alongside touches of whimsy brought in through abstract and realist art and greenery.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA menu & drink list
What kind of food and drinks can you expect at the Capital One Landing? As a reminder, for the main Capital One Landing experience, you can order as much as you want, and it’s all included if you have an eligible card. Capital One states that all food and drinks will be delivered in less than 20 minutes, given that many travelers don’t have a lot of time.
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.
Separately, Capital One Landing has the On the Fly concept, which is open to the public, and allows you to purchase food and drinks to go. This isn’t free for anyone, so think of it as a separate concept.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing On the Fly breakfast sandwich menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing On the Fly lunch & dinner sandwich menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing On the Fly snack menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing On the Fly salad & sandwich menu.
Below you can find the Capital One Landing On the Fly juice, fruit, and sweets menu.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA access requirements
Access to the Capital One Landing concept is complimentary for those with the Capital One Venture X (review) or Capital One Venture X Business (review). Those cardmembers can enjoy unlimited access to the space for themselves and up to one complimentary guest per visit, with additional guests costing $45 each. This differs from Capital One Lounges, where two complimentary guests are allowed.
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 can be accessed up to three hours before a departing flight, or if you’re connecting, it can be accessed earlier than that.
As a reminder, these access requirements are specifically for the main part of the lounge, as the On the Fly section is open to the public, with all items available for purchase.
Capital One Landing Washington DCA waitlisting & reservations
Lounge crowding has of course become a major issue in the United States, given the number of people with premium credit cards. How does Capital One plan to address this? Well, the card issuer is taking a slightly different approach with the Capital One Landing concept.
For one, reservations will be allowed for the Capital One Landing between one day and six months of a desired visit. There’s a 15-minute grace period, at which point tables will be given away. You can make as many reservations as you’d like, and there’s no penalty if you miss your reservation (though of course you shouldn’t be a jerk about this, because you may be preventing others from enjoying the experience).
However, at least initially, not all tables will be made available for reservations, so that there’s plenty of room for walk-ins. The Capital One Landing will be available for everyone else on a first come, first served basis. In situations where the space is at capacity, digital waitlisting will be possible, as is the case at Capital One Lounges.
I imagine demand for this concept will be high, though I think the hope is that tables are turned pretty quickly, since this concept is specifically about being able to dine quickly. Frankly I view even the On the Fly concept as being a pretty good perk, since I imagine the quality will be excellent, and at 50% off, the pricing shouldn’t be too bad.
Bottom line
The Capital One Landing at Washington National Airport (DCA) has just opened. This is an exciting new concept from Capital One, in partnership with Chef José Andrés. Think of it as a top notch airport restaurant that’s free for those with an eligible credit card.
I absolutely love this concept, and I think it’s such a good idea for an airport like DCA, where most people are just looking to get a quick bite, rather than wanting to lounge around for hours. I can’t wait to check out this concept myself, as it’s unlike anything else we’ve seen from a card issuer.
For what it’s worth, another Capital One Landing location is planned for New York LaGuardia (LGA), but that’s only expected to open in late 2025.
What do you make of the Capital One Landing DCA concept?
Looks like reservations are pretty much booked for November. I wonder if/how they will tamp down on this in the future if it becomes impossible to get a reservation. It would be hard to impose a no-show fee because someone's flight could be in IRROPS and you could miss your time inadvertently. Maybe they will go the route of Disney World, where passholders can make a certain number of reservations (like 5 at a time) on a rolling basis.
Having A flight from DCA in early January and a Venture X card I was so happy to hear of the opening....until I read its in Terminal 2 after security and for anyone with flights out of the old banjo terminal 1 (Frontier, Southwest and Air Canada) you will not be able to visit. I unfortunately have an Air Canada flight so I will be thinking how close and yet how far it is from me : (
You can visit, it's just a 20 minute or so walk and another pass through TSA screening. So, depending on how long you have, it could be worth it.
Based on the limited space, I predict this will get crowded quickly. Yes, it's for a quick bite, but I"m sure people will just set up their laptop and work for 2 hours straight, taking up the seat.
Centurion Lounge at DCA is already getting crowded and it's been open only a few months and is a lot larger.
I thought this was free for C1 VX members. You say it is 50% off. Can you please confirm? Thanks.
Two different things.
Lounge access and ordered food: free
Takeaway food: 50% off
Reading is fundamental.
It's frickin bank (my bank). How about putting an ATM at DCA so that I can get change, $1 and $5 for cash tips for things like shuttle driver and Starbucks without paying an ATM fee of $3 to $5 elsewhere? Particularly since the Crystal City branch was closed including the ATM.
Last time I was in Crystal City closing all the banks and ATMs was absolutely the answer. Is that new Amazon project helping with the hotel lobby squatters yet?
Surprised there's anyone still paying ATM fees when so many checking accounts reimburse them
Not too long ago, Capital One had a full service branch in DCA (and in IAD) and a bunch of ATMs! They've sadly closed a lot of their branches in the area.
DC based flyer here, thrilled about this. Was at the C1 lounge in IAD recently, it was excellent. Many of my flights leave DC in the morning, love that they have eggs Benedict.
I've been delaying switching out my regular Capital One Venture to the Venture X - these lounges will likely finally convince me. Similarly the Chase Sapphire Reserve is regaining relevance over the Sapphire Preferred as Chase builds out is lounge networks. Very interesting time for credit card lounge access
It is time to reduce the guest you can bring in for free. Even eliminating guesting availability is the right thing to do. But with Capital One, probably adding annual fee to AUs / Employees Cards makes sense.
Agreed, $45 for a guest is reasonable. Amex's new entry rules are the way.
At this location, I bet they are allowing one free guest because it's all assigned sit-down tables and looks like a pretty good number of two-tops.
Suggest you add guidance for readers as to where/how they can make reservations.
And on the hours for breakfast v lunch
Capital One always has their lounge waitlists (and now reservations) in their app.
Understand. Just saying that a lot of readers may not know that
“You shouldn’t be a jerk about this” way to patronize your readers about etiquette as if your on some moral high ground and your readers are buffoons
@ Jerry -- Umm, it's not about moral high ground. I'm just suggesting people be reasonable. That's meant less for the average reader who consistently checks OMAAT, and more for the person who may come across the story online.
I think Ben's point should be made more loudly and more often: most things get ruined because of hoarding in the face of perceived scarcity. It is why you have people buying every last loaf of bread and gallon of milk before a storm, or people cornering the market on yeast for baking bread (people that never baked in their lives were just buying up yeast during the early part of the pandemic). With a...
I think Ben's point should be made more loudly and more often: most things get ruined because of hoarding in the face of perceived scarcity. It is why you have people buying every last loaf of bread and gallon of milk before a storm, or people cornering the market on yeast for baking bread (people that never baked in their lives were just buying up yeast during the early part of the pandemic). With a "free" benefit, people's natural response is often not to think about sharing that resource with others, but rather to figure out how to corner the market on it for everything that they want. In this case, it would be making reservations for any time you think you might be taking a trip. For you, there's no consequence. You could cancel, or just no-show. But the social consequence of hundreds of thousands of people behaving the same way will eventually make the benefit dysfunctional. A lot of restaurants now force people to pay a no-show fee when they make Resy reservations to combat this problem. My guess is that it won't take long for C1 to adjust this benefit or enforce a no-show penalty because of poor behavior.
You should only be offended if you think the description of this anti-social behavior applies to you. But don't pretend it does not exist.
Brent, the phenomenon you (and Lucky) are describing is a well-known social/economic behavior called 'the tragedy of the commons'.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragedy_of_the_commons
@ Jerry -- You would be surprised to know the amount of people who make reservations and don't show up. I've worked in the hospitality industry for decades and this is incredibly frustrating. Imagine me turning you away in DCA because I have 5 reservations only to have 3 not show. I'm sure you would post somewhere that the lines are unacceptable and open seats could be seen from the entrance.
As a local I can’t wait to try this.
“This differs from Capital One Lounges, where two complimentary guests are allowed.”
Aren’t regular C1 lounges unlimited guests for cardholders? That’s always been the case for me.
@ Fred -- Unless I missed something, the limit has always been two guests:
https://onemileatatime.com/guides/capital-one-lounges/
No. Up to two guests per VentureX cardholder is the current policy for regular CapOne lounges. Note that if you say have a family of 6, you can add your spouse as an authorized user (up to 4 AUs are free), and then each adult would be a cardholder, and thus could each guest in 2 children.