Places to Stay

Rest & Relax at one of Howard County's wide range of hotels for every taste and budget. 

Restaurants

Dive into Howard County's unique culinary & craft beverage scene.

Things to Do

Thriving arts, rich history, unique shopping, and family fun! 

Events

Find upcoming live and virtual events in Howard County, Maryland.

Neighborhoods

Explore Howard County neighborhoods!

Accessible Transportation to Howard County:

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Howard County is conveniently located near three major international airports—Reagan National Airport, Dulles International Airport and Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)—all within a 60- to 90-minute drive from most parts of the county. Each airport provides extensive accommodations for travelers with mobility, visual, hearing, and sensory disabilities.

Planes

All three airports offer accessible ground transportation with ramps and lifts, including shuttles, rental car shuttles, taxis, MARC train, and Metrorail. Accessible restrooms are available, as well as service pet relief areas. Additional amenities include play areas with interactive game displays, elevators with raised Braille buttons and electronic voice announcements. Public telephones are wheelchair accessible and equipped with Telecommunication Device for the Deaf (TDD) telephones.

BWI has teamed up with Aira to connect blind or low-vision travelers with remote human agents to guide them through a smartphone visual interpreting app. TDD services and free video calls for the Deaf are provided throughout the airport.

BWI provides adult changing tables in six of its 12 family restrooms. These spacious restrooms include a lay-down bed, toilet, and sink for individuals using wheelchairs. All restroom design is compliant with the American with Disabilities Act Architectural Guidelines.

For detailed accessibility information about each airport before you fly out, please visit: https://www.flyreagan.com/customer-service/services-patrons-disabilities (Reagan); https://www.flydulles.com/customer-service/disability-services (Dulles); and https://bwiairport.com/flying-with-us/accessibility/ (BWI).

Travelers with hidden or “invisible” disabilities using Dulles or Reagan can obtain a Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Lanyard at the information desks or check the Dulles and Reagan websites for more information on how to get your lanyard. BWI hopes to launch the Sunflower Lanyard program in 2025. For a list of airports around the world that participate, visit here.

Discounts

Taking Amtrak from BWI? Discounts are available for passengers with disabilities. Amtrak offers a 10 percent rail fare discount to adult passengers with a disability. Passengers with a disability traveling on Downeaster trains (Boston, MA to Portland, ME) are eligible for a 50 percent discount. Child passengers with a disability are eligible for the everyday 50 percent child discount plus an additional 10 percent off the discounted child's fare, regardless of the service they’re taking. Amtrak also offers a 10 percent discount for persons traveling as a companion with a passenger with a disability. Be sure to review Amtrak’s discount policies and accessible Amtrak accommodations before booking your trip. 

Automobiles

Both Lyft and Uber offer wheelchair-accessible ride options, though availability varies by location. Uber WAV provides affordable rides in wheelchair-accessible vehicles when available in your area.

Whenever possible, schedule your ride in advance to increase the likelihood of securing a wheelchair-accessible vehicle. Lyft works similarly to Uber for passengers needing a wheelchair-accessible ride. Enter your destination in the Lyft app to request one of Lyft’s XL vehicles that can provide ample storage for manual wheelchairs and other mobility aids. To request a wheelchair-accessible vehicle in the Lyft app, go into your app settings and toggle on the “Wheelchair access” button. Input your current location and your destination to see if wheelchair-accessible vehicles are available in your area. Wheelchair-accessible vehicles are not available in every city, but many are available throughout Howard County.

Trains

The Regional Transportation Agency (RTA) of Central Maryland offers fixed-route and paratransit services across Howard County, Anne Arundel County, Northern Prince George’s County, and the City of Laurel. RTA Mobility provides paratransit service in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. All RTA Mobility vehicles are wheelchair accessible. For more information, contact RTA Mobility at 1-800-270-9553.