I spent 10 minutes in the Capital One Lounge at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and loved it. It is a great addition to the many lounge options at IAD.
Capital One Lounge Washington Dulles Review (IAD)
Capital One opened its Washington Dulles lounge in September 2023.
Hours + Location + Access
The lounge is located in the main terminal just beyond the TSAPreCheck security checkpoint (near the Z Gates). It is on the same level as the PreCheck checkpoint (one level above the regular security checkpoint) and is open daily from 5:30 am to 9:00 pm.
Venture X and Venture X Business cardholders enjoy unlimited complimentary access. Venture and Spark Miles cardholders get two complimentary visits per year. All other travelers are welcome at the standard rate of $65. No reservations are accepted. You can create a lounge pass (QR code) in the Capital One app that is always available in your Apple Wallet.
Lockers
As you enter, 10 lockers (you set your own four-digit combination) were available for luggage storage.
Seating
The lounge is rectangular with the primary seating area clustered on the south and west sides of the lounge. At 5:00 pm, the lounge was pleasantly filled, but not crowded.
Food + Drink
Food and drink options include a buffet, bar, espresso bar, and grab-and-go food.
Buffet
I was hungry and found the afternoon food selections varied and excellent.
The hummus crostini, roasted carrots, and short ribs made for a very nice snack.
Here’s the current menu:
Bar
The bar was the most crowded part of the lounge, with many people enjoying libations.
Most drinks and cocktails are complimentary, but “upgraded” options are available for purchase.
There’s also a self-serve tap with soft drinks in the buffet area.
Espresso Bar
My favorite feature of the lounge is the espresso bar (just to the left of the check-in desk). Sure, the machine is automatic and the coffee is from La Colombe, but my cortado wasn’t half bad nad I love the concept of the coffee bar, the pastries to go with it, and the option to take your coffee to go.
Grab-And-Go Food
If you’re in a rush or want to take some food and drink with you, there are pre-packaged salads, sandwiches, sweet treats, and soft drinks to-go. Bags and containers are provided: that’s the point of this section.
Restrooms + Showers
Rather than communal restrooms, the lounge has a series of private stalls.
There are, however, no shower suites available.
CONCLUSION
Capital One gets so much right with its lounge concept. I love the coffee bar and the food to go, which addresses primary concerns for lounge guests and helps to manage crowds. The food was also excellent and this lounge will be my first stop on future trips through Washington Dulles.
Capital One lounges are very well-designed and executed. They did their research and iterated on the Centurion lounges, figured out what works and what doesn’t.
The individually plated food are much more appealing that the generic buffet trays and the drink selection is very high quality. The additional touches like grab and go and other nice amenities make these among the best domestic lounges.
Right now their problem is footprint. Amex Platinum is still a must for airports like LAX, where there are no other options. If Capital One can grow their footprint, they can dethrone Amex.
Looks nice, I do like the individually plated dishes, reminds me of the Wicked Spoon in The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas. But, as a mostly SkyTeam passenger, these are unfortunately virtually unvisitable by me. DEN? IAD? DFW? Not places I really want to fly into.
At least Chase Sapphire Lounges have, or will have, interesting locations that I would actually want to visit.
I have not visited a Capital One Lounge yet. Your review has enticed me to do so.
The Lounge’s location in the main terminal building should limit crowding. It’s not convenient for connecting pax except for those with very long connections. And departing pax won’t spend large amounts of time there given the time and distance needed to reach most gates.
DFW has started cutting the grab and go stuff. No more soft drinks and sparkling water. Also limited food. If it hasn’t happened at IAD yet, it surely will soon.
The food is like one bite (okay maybe two max) Also, does the toilet seat stay up yet?
Toilet seat stay up?
The food in Capital One Lounges is much better than in Chase lounges. However, Capital One Lounges all seem to have the common problem of insufficient seating.
Has Capital One discovered chicken thighs yet? Once they do, they will be just like Amex centurion.