Washington DC questions

[welovedisneyx4]

I hope you all can stand some more questions about the DC area. We are headed up there soon to take DD to Georgetown U. for a Volleyball camp. We will stay w/ my Uncle in Alexandria, so we don't have to worry about motels. We will use the Metro for most everything. So here are some of my questions...any suggestions would be appreciated.

1. The Huntington Metro station is the closest to Uncle's house. Will we have any problems w/ finding parking there during the week? Also, do we pay to park there?

2. We want to eat dinner in Chinatown one night. Any suggestions? We are looking for a Mongolian bar or a buffet, if possible. Also, there used to be a United Colors of Bennetton store soon after you got out of the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro, is it still there?

3. I was looking for opinions on the 18.00 seats at the Washington Nationals baseball stadium. I thought that might be a fun event for DH, DS and myself while DD is at her camp. Will we be able to see the game very well w/ cheap seats and where should we try to get seats? Are the food/drink prices outragous there?

That is all my questions for now. TIA for any help anyone can offer.

[Christine]

I can't answer it all but I'll try:

Originally Posted by welovedisneyx4

1. The Huntington Metro station is the closest to Uncle's house. Will we have any problems w/ finding parking there during the week? Also, do we pay to park there?

Yes, you will have problems if you don't arrive early enough. All Metro lots fill up with commuters fairly early. I don't know of any lots that really remain empty. You do have to pay for parking and you must do it via a SmartCard. As far as I know, there are no more attendents at the lots.

2. We want to eat dinner in Chinatown one night. Any suggestions? We are looking for a Mongolian bar or a buffet, if possible. Also, there used to be a United Colors of Bennetton store soon after you got out of the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro, is it still there?

Can't really help here but someone will. It's been years since I've eaten in Chinatown but my impression is that these are restaurants with table service. No real buffets. I bet Bennetton is still there.

3. I was looking for opinions on the 18.00 seats at the Washington Nationals baseball stadium. I thought that might be a fun event for DH, DS and myself while DD is at her camp. Will we be able to see the game very well w/ cheap seats and where should we try to get seats? Are the food/drink prices outragous there?

Haven't personally been in the stadium but know people who do get the cheap seats. I don't know how well you can see but most people have a good time. Yes, the food and drink prices are outrageous!
That is all my questions for now. TIA for any help anyone can offer.

[Janet Hill]

I believe that parking is now $4.50/day. I know that at one time you could not get a parking spot here after about 7:45; however, they have recently added additional parking spots and parking is generally lighter in the summer.

If you add the cost of parking to metro fare for 3 it may be cheaper to drive into DC. You can generally find parking for $15/day and if you get there in time for the "early bird" you can park for as low as $10/day.

I don't go to Nationals games, but I know that the folks who do go swear by Stub Hub for great tickets. As you know they are not doing well this season and you can usually get good seats for $15.

[welovedisneyx4]

Thanks for the info.

I am going to have to talk to my Uncle about exactly how close he is to the Huntington station. When we were in DC before, we did fine using the Metro and the cost wasn't bad at all, but we were in a motel across the street from the Crystal City Metro Station. We really, really don't want to drive into DC. LOL!! The last time we drove into the city, we ended up the wrong way on a one way street and almost got in the middle of a car chase!! (Of course, this was late at night w/ just DH and I...we don't plan on any of that this trip! LOL)

[lvanleer]

If you want Mongolian BBQ in Chinatown....check out Tony Cheng's.....it's actually two restaurants...a seafood place and a Mongolian BBQ place.....basically the BBQ place is on the entry level and the seafood place is upstairs.....the chefs cook your selections in the center of the restaurant.....we actually went there before the Paul McCartney concert in 2005 and then I went with a co-worker before the American Idol concert in 2006.....it's close to the Verizon Center.....and near the Gallery Place Metro stops.

[Claire L]

Originally Posted by lvanleer

If you want Mongolian BBQ in Chinatown....check out Tony Cheng's.....it's actually two restaurants...a seafood place and a Mongolian BBQ place.....basically the BBQ place is on the entry level and the seafood place is upstairs.....the chefs cook your selections in the center of the restaurant.....we actually went there before the Paul McCartney concert in 2005 and then I went with a co-worker before the American Idol concert in 2006.....it's close to the Verizon Center.....and near the Gallery Place Metro stops.

We ate at Tony Cheng's upstairs, last month, and the food was wonderful not just seafood but meat dishes as well

Claire

[golfgal]

You might be able to take a bus to the Metro station--check that out on the metro website.

There is a Bennetton in Georgetown if the one you saw isn't there. I just saw it when we were there a couple weeks ago.

[mominwestlake]

OP, I hope you don't mind me asking a question in your thread but I didn't think people would want another DC thread. We are a family of 7 who will be staying by Capitol Hill. We want to visit Arlington and are near the Federal Center SW metro station. I looked at the map and saw we could take the blue line to Arlington. My question is about cost. Would it make more sense for us just to drive to Arlington and park- we plan on taking the tourmobile tour there? Or would it be easier and cheaper to take the metro both ways? We'd still have to pay for the tourmobile.

I see they sell a faresmart card. Does anyone know if you can put $50 on it and use it for seven people?

I would appreciate any help. I know golfgal recently was in DC and used the metro a lot. She made it sound easy. For the most part we can walk to attractions like the museums and Washington Monument. I know we'll drive to Mount Vernon and plan on driving to the zoo on our last day and leaving for home from there. I'm thinking we can even walk to Ford's Theater. We do plan on taking a Monuments at Night tour. Perhaps if we took the metro to Arlington we could take it to Union Station after.

Can anyone help? I never knew there was so much to plan for DC!

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by mominwestlake

OP, I hope you don't mind me asking a question in your thread but I didn't think people would want another DC thread. We are a family of 7 who will be staying by Capitol Hill. We want to visit Arlington and are near the Federal Center SW metro station. I looked at the map and saw we could take the blue line to Arlington. My question is about cost. Would it make more sense for us just to drive to Arlington and park- we plan on taking the tourmobile tour there? Or would it be easier and cheaper to take the metro both ways? We'd still have to pay for the tourmobile.

I see they sell a faresmart card. Does anyone know if you can put $50 on it and use it for seven people?

I would appreciate any help. I know golfgal recently was in DC and used the metro a lot. She made it sound easy. For the most part we can walk to attractions like the museums and Washington Monument. I know we'll drive to Mount Vernon and plan on driving to the zoo on our last day and leaving for home from there. I'm thinking we can even walk to Ford's Theater. We do plan on taking a Monuments at Night tour. Perhaps if we took the metro to Arlington we could take it to Union Station after.

Can anyone help? I never knew there was so much to plan for DC!

You can plug in your trip on the Metro website and it will tell you how much it will cost but it will be in the $1.50 range, give or take, per person. No, you can't buy a Faresmart card to use for 7 people-I asked that for our trip too. We were there for a week and used the Metro constantly. We got the week-long passes for $35 or whatever they were. We got our money's worth out of them for sure. The metro is SIMPLE and I have NEVER used a system like that before. You can take the metro and then a bus out to Mount Vernon too. The bus was $1.35/person each way. Take it to the end of the metro and then hop on the bus-super easy.

You can walk to most things in DC if you are willing to walk. We walked from Arlington to the Lincoln Memorial and over to the Washington memorial-stopping along the way. It was just a LONG walk. Ford's Theater is only a few blocks from the Metro and the museums. Not a difficult walk at all.

Personally I would skip the Tourmobile at Arlington and use that money for Metro rides. The walk around Arlington is not all that bad.

[mominwestlake]

The kids we will have with us are ages 6, 9, 11, 12, and 15. I wonder if they could handle the walk at Arlington on a hot, humid day? There is so much to think about!

Does anyone know what the parking situation is like at Union Station if we wanted to park the car there and visit the postal museum?

Originally Posted by golfgal

You can plug in your trip on the Metro website and it will tell you how much it will cost but it will be in the $1.50 range, give or take, per person. No, you can't buy a Faresmart card to use for 7 people-I asked that for our trip too. We were there for a week and used the Metro constantly. We got the week-long passes for $35 or whatever they were. We got our money's worth out of them for sure. The metro is SIMPLE and I have NEVER used a system like that before. You can take the metro and then a bus out to Mount Vernon too. The bus was $1.35/person each way. Take it to the end of the metro and then hop on the bus-super easy.

You can walk to most things in DC if you are willing to walk. We walked from Arlington to the Lincoln Memorial and over to the Washington memorial-stopping along the way. It was just a LONG walk. Ford's Theater is only a few blocks from the Metro and the museums. Not a difficult walk at all.

Personally I would skip the Tourmobile at Arlington and use that money for Metro rides. The walk around Arlington is not all that bad.

[bumbershoot]

"The last time we drove into the city, we ended up the wrong way on a one way street and almost got in the middle of a car chase!! (Of course, this was late at night w/ just DH and I...we don't plan on any of that this trip! LOL)"


Oh dear!


I used to live in Burke, VA, about a 20 minutes no-traffic drive away. I had a mobile chiropractic practice, so couldn't just take the metro in, had to drive. And what I found to be of immense help was one of those touristy, almost 3-D, maps. They are the plastic, fold-out kinds, they cost about 7 bucks, they have the big buildings shown in drawings where they are, lots of local labels on it. Those were SO much better for me than the normal maps.

That said I highly support Metro!



And no one has asked, but I highly recommend seeing (and walking through) the Korean War Memorial. I'm not sure that I've seen the WW2 one yet, but of the others that I know I've seen, the Korean one is just so powerful (that used to be reserved for the Vietnam one). The statues are *just* slightly oversized, and as you walk amongst them it's like you become one of them....so amazing.

FDR one is cool too.

[bigmerle1966]

Originally Posted by bumbershoot

And no one has asked, but I highly recommend seeing (and walking through) the Korean War Memorial. I'm not sure that I've seen the WW2 one yet, but of the others that I know I've seen, the Korean one is just so powerful (that used to be reserved for the Vietnam one). The statues are *just* slightly oversized, and as you walk amongst them it's like you become one of them....so amazing.

I didn't get to see the KWM when we were there last but WW2 is so beautiful.

[Christine]

Originally Posted by mominwestlake

The kids we will have with us are ages 6, 9, 11, 12, and 15. I wonder if they could handle the walk at Arlington on a hot, humid day? There is so much to think about!

Does anyone know what the parking situation is like at Union Station if we wanted to park the car there and visit the postal museum?

Union Station has a parking garage and it has always had spaces. I've driven over and gone to lunch there.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by mominwestlake

The kids we will have with us are ages 6, 9, 11, 12, and 15. I wonder if they could handle the walk at Arlington on a hot, humid day? There is so much to think about!

Does anyone know what the parking situation is like at Union Station if we wanted to park the car there and visit the postal museum?

Our kids are 14 and 16 and did just fine. The little ones, as long as you aren't walking too fast for them, should be fine as well. There is quite a bit of shade on the paths. It was fairly warm and humid when we were there and it wasn't bad.

It sounds like you plan on driving around a lot. Traffic in DC is not good. You really want to investigate the metro more, especially since your hotel is so close to a metro stop. Are you driving to DC? If not, you can skip a rental car altogether and use that money for metro passes. Torinsmom parked her car when she drove in at a lot that was $8/day. Since you are probably paying $35/day at your hotel, you might want to investigate some other options and just use the metro. Union Station has parking for $15/day.

[welovedisneyx4]

Originally Posted by lvanleer

If you want Mongolian BBQ in Chinatown....check out Tony Cheng's.....it's actually two restaurants...a seafood place and a Mongolian BBQ place.....basically the BBQ place is on the entry level and the seafood place is upstairs.....the chefs cook your selections in the center of the restaurant.....we actually went there before the Paul McCartney concert in 2005 and then I went with a co-worker before the American Idol concert in 2006.....it's close to the Verizon Center.....and near the Gallery Place Metro stops.

That sounds like the place we ate before. We just happened to stop there by chance. It was very good, we were just kind of wanting to try a different place.