The Iron Heart Baltimore Bash - September 18, 19 & 20, 2026

[steelworker]

@Matt said in The Iron Heart Baltimore Bash - September 18, 19 & 20, 2026:

The drive from JFK, if it’s not during rush hour, should only be about two hours.

@Matt 2 hours? Im not gonna get in a car you're drivin.

[pmadison95]

I may be able to make this one it is a little over a 4 hour drive for me as opposed to across the pond. I will have to see what I have going on next year.

[DrPat]

@Tago-Mago The Philadelphia airport is south of the city and next to the highway that leads to Baltimore. It would be an good option.

[yannis]

@Tago-Mago . Dulles to Balrimore is about 65 miles. Philli International to Baltimore is about 90 miles. Traffic is unpredictable either with a slight edge to 95 south coming from Philly. If you are traveling within the US BWI Airport is 15 minutes from Baltimore and the best option.

[Signal11]

Although the US is currently not our favorite wanna goto, this sounds super! Thanks for willing to organize this Matt.
We would love to come too, probably extending our trip some, around the east…

[Oaktavia]

Wouldn't it make sense to just fly into BWI? Am I missing something? I wouldn't want to fly into an adjacent city to my destination if I wasn't spending time there.

[pechelman]

Probably related to options available for direct flights from international locations? I know I'll happily take a little extra drive for not having to have a connection, especially with an international long haul

[goosehd]

Although you have to keep in mind that traffic around Washington DC and Baltimore can get ugly really quick. It can be a giant parking lot depending on the time of day.

[Matt]

Any time of day, any day of the week.

[yannis]

The direct flights from Europe to BWI are very limited. So for most coming from Europe they will need to catch a connection flight to BWI. The hassle is that you will have to go through immigration at the 1st airport you land in the US even if you are catching a connection flight. Which means retrieving your luggage go through customs and then re check your luggage. Its a hassle. I rather drive an hour and avoid that nonsense.

[Matt]

I’m sure you guys will figure out what’s best for you. When we went to Germany we flew from Albuquerque to Dallas to JFK to Spain to Germany. We sucked it up, drank some Bloody Mary’s and had a great time with some of my favorite people in the world. And Mo.

[yannis]

Air Canada has a flight. From Amsterdam or Copenhagen to Toronto and then Toronto to BWI. The beauty of that flight is that go through customs in Toronto and it's a piece of cake. Just an idea worth exploring.

[endo]

BA has daily direct flights from Heathrow to BWI.

[Tago Mago]

@yannis this. It's a pain in the ass. Plenty of time though to figure something out. Who knows what flights and schedules look like next year. Flying via Toronto is a great idea. DId that once before, gate to gate in roughly 35 minutes, including US immigration. ORD on the other hand was an absolute nightmare to connect through

[Oaktavia]

Ahh OK yeah limited direct flights makes sense. Driving a few hours beats a layover.

To reiterate traffic in and around Bmore and DC- it can get pretty bad. Growing up in Maryland, I assumed all highways were crazy like 95, 495, 270, etc. It was a pleasant surprise to learn that was not the case elsewhere. There are times though when traffic in that area isn't bad at all. Earlier this month, I drove from West Virginia to southern Maryland and it was the easiest drive through the state I've had. Even 495 which has four lanes of traffic was totally open. So, expect the worst and perhaps you'll be surprised, although MD/DC/VA drivers really are the worst.

[Tago Mago]

@Oaktavia no idea what the trains are like nowadays. Went from New York to Boston a few years ago on the train, which was actually quite pleasant, very scenic. That would have been my initial idea if I were to fly into another airport

[catdad1]

@Oaktavia we are not ALL bad! But yeah we try to avoid the general area as much as possible. Waze/ Google maps is often a life saver.

[Oaktavia]

@Tago-Mago good point there. Folks might be able take a MARC or Amtrak to Penn Station in Bmore.

[Oaktavia]

@catdad1 said in The Iron Heart Baltimore Bash - September 18, 19 & 20, 2026:

@Oaktavia we are not ALL bad!

This is true but the bad ones distract from that quite a bit.

Also- what part of MD are you from? I am from Frederick.

[Giles]

@Matt said in The Iron Heart Baltimore Bash - September 18, 19 & 20, 2026:

I’m sure you guys will figure out what’s best for you.

Yeah, it's not fucking rocket science.....