can you help with our Washington DC Planning

[ClarabelleCowFan]

If you are looking to stay inside DC then check out the Intercontinental Willard hotel (a Holiday Inn property). It is located steps from the White House and is a gorgeous property. We haven't stayed there but did use the parking garage there when we went last week for our White House tour so that we could leave DS2's stroller and our cameras in the car since those weren't allowed inside.

AVOID AVOID AVOID the Doubletree Hotel near the White House. We had 2 rooms booked there in March and had to cancel them 24 hours out (which is what our confirmation email said the cancellation policy was) and were charged for the rooms 5 days later. I spoke with the manager who was extremely rude who claimed the cancellation policy was 7 days out and refused to refund us. He then told me to call the Doubletree Presidents line and gave me the wrong phone number for that and hung up. I disputed the charges with our credit card but lost the dispute even after providing them with the email that stated the 24 hour cancellation. I am STILL fuming and would hate to see anyone else get burned.

 

[DawnM]

We did DC this week. Smithsonian allowed backpacks and food, Capitol building and Washington monument confiscated all food and/or drinks.

Dawn

 

[thatslygirl]

I am looking to stay within a close vacinity of the 4H center. The lady who works there told me Chevy Chase. Does this area have another name? I also want to be very close to the metro.

I had to google "4h center" but now I know what she means. The area is Chevy Chase, so your metro station will be Friendship Heights. The WMATA Trip Planner is a good way to plan your route.

Example travel itinerary
Arrive to Friendship Heights Metro by 9:31am and traveling to Smithsonian Metro should have you there by 9:55am, when everything's open.

However, keep in mind that during non-rush hour sometimes you have to wait 8-15 minutes for a train to come... usually 5-10 minutes is normal but later on at night like around 8-11pm it seems like forever!

Will you be renting a car? Because the 4H Center's website says to reach their place, you need to take a bus after arriving at Friendship Heights (Metrobus L8, Ride-On 1 or 11). I ride the buses a lot but I haven't ridden any of these routes. Metrobus costs $1.35 cash one-way, no transfers. Ride-On bus is operated by Montgomery County, MD (fares are the same price as Metrobus).

Friendship Heights is a high-end area, so you have shops like Neiman Marcus and Saks but there is also TJ Maxx and Filene's Basement. Food options are limited--there's Cosi, Booeymoger's, Cheesecake Factory, Magiano's, McDonald's, etc.

 

[thatslygirl]

Does anyone know anything about the Washington Court Hotel? Someone just recommended it to me, but I'd like to know if any else has heard of it? The website says it's like a 10 minute walk from Union Station, but is it a safe 10 minutes is what I want to know!LOL!!

I used to work in Union Station but I never really walked around much in that area late at night. You have your homeless person but they usually don't bother you. You may also want to check out Hotel George which is also nearby. I am a big fan of the Kimpton hotel group. If you join their frequent stay program you get free wi-fi, which is a nice perk.

Are you considering bidding on Priceline? I've found the Betterbidding Forums to be helpful.

 

[Echo queen]

We arrive June 4th Need all the info I can get.

 

[MEM]

The Smithsonian food is crazy overpriced, but I've been told the Museum of the American Indian has the best food of any of them because they have people rotating in from different Native American tribes and they actually serve their food down there.

We ate at the museum's cafe twice even though we weren't touring the museum those days and I can highly recommend the "Indian taco", I think it was called. I thought the salmon was overcooked but DH liked it. The servers we had were not Native Americans but perhaps the chefs/cooks are.

 

[Nik's Mom]

We arrive June 4th Need all the info I can get.

If you see another lost family roaming Washington DC, it's probably going to be mine. We arrive the 3rd. I'm still trying to figure everything out.

 

[blewis]

Better Bidding and the Smithsonian Cafe info websites have been very helpful. Thank you for all the great tips!

We are arriving in DC on Father's Day, and still haven't found a hotel. I'd like a kitchenette (on the MD side) to save on cost of dinner, but am starting to wonder if it all works out the same in the end. This is our first vacation with another family, and I'm worried we'll have difficulties w/ logistics b/c we're not staying at the same location (they have free room and board w/ a friend of a friend).

I've been to the city several times, but never w/ kids. Would like to hear more about Tourmobile. Also, the Wash. Monument is free, right? One just needs a ticket to get in. Lastly, how can I find out if Toy Story 3 will be playing at the IMAX?

 

[n2mm]

I work in a federal building next to the White House (30 years now). There are lots of restrictions. My building has the White House Visitors Center and store on the ground floor. You can not take any food or drink into the building. THis is the place to buy White House items (like Christmas ornaments or Easter eggs, and other stuff). The lines get long, and security is strict -- mostly because it is a Federal Building and we are in it. There is also the National Aquarium in the basement (there is a small fee to go). Across the street from us is the Ronald Reagan Building. This is where there is a huge food court. I often tell folks this because you can't see it from the street. Again, you go through security and x-ray machines/scanners. But the food court is huge and has all of the regular stuff you find at the mall. This is all on 14th/15th streets & Pen. Ave & Constitution Ave. (pretty much the heart of the touring area). You can get to the R. Reagan building on the RED line on the Federal Triangle Stop. (Don't confuse this with Federal Center as that is a different stop). If you're not on the red line you can switch at Metro Center.

As for crowds, it's a combination of vacationing folks and working folks, and rush hour can be evil. The worse crowds still are during the weeks around the Cherry Blossoms celebration and the 4th of July. But keep in mind the weekend of the 4th of July, Monday July 5th is the official Federal Holiday, so USG will be closed, but most of the tourist buildings will be open. (You'll have to keep an eye on what might be closed that day.) The subway trains run closer together during the peak rush hour times. I commute to and from DC via a communter train (though I was born in Wash. DC and grew up there). I go in and out of Union Station every day and it can be crazy busy there. They also have food courts and shopping.

When I first started working in DC I use to spend my lunch hour walking to the Smithsonians, Lincoln Memorial, and other landmarks. That got old fast and now I never do any of that stuff. I guess seeing the Washington Monument outside the window is something you take for granite. Though I do know when the Prez is coming and going as I can hear his helicopter take off and land from my desk and I've gotten use to the 21 gun salutes and know not to panic!

 

[n2mm]

Not to sound ignorant, but what type of blocks? City or regular, someone said that "a block" in DC could be a very long distance.

A city block is not very big. I walk from Metro Center to my USG building. It is 4 city blocks and takes 10 minutes. My USG building takes up an entire block (14th, Pen. ave, 15th, Const. Ave). I walk around it at lunch time for exercise. One time around is 1/2 mile. (I walk around it 6 times a day to get a 3 mile walk in each day.)

 

[Bearvet]

When we went to the Holocaust Museum a few years ago, they did a very thorough screening. We had bottles of water with us (it was July and extremely hot - 108 degrees!) and if the bottle was not sealed, they had us drink from it while they watched! I've never experienced that anywhere else - still not sure why they did that? Poison? Chemicals?

The Holocaust Museum was well worth it - our boys were 17, 13 and 11 and we did the entire building. DH actually broke down at the end - he grew up in a Jewish neighborhood and knew survivors of the concentration camps. The museum is very well done and I think it's an important part of history for people (including children old enough to handle it) should know about.

Other favorites were Ford's Theater, Washington Monument (we got timed tickets ahead of time), National Archives, the Capitol (we had a tour here) and the Library of Congress. The Spy Museum was just okay and wasn't free. We only did 1 Smithsonian - Air & Space and my boys didn't care for it. Oh, DS13 requested to go to Washington National cathedral - he loves architecture. It's a bit out of the way, but was wonderful!

 

[Nik's Mom]

Better Bidding and the Smithsonian Cafe info websites have been very helpful. Thank you for all the great tips!

We are arriving in DC on Father's Day, and still haven't found a hotel. I'd like a kitchenette (on the MD side) to save on cost of dinner, but am starting to wonder if it all works out the same in the end. This is our first vacation with another family, and I'm worried we'll have difficulties w/ logistics b/c we're not staying at the same location (they have free room and board w/ a friend of a friend).

I've been to the city several times, but never w/ kids. Would like to hear more about Tourmobile. Also, the Wash. Monument is free, right? One just needs a ticket to get in. Lastly, how can I find out if Toy Story 3 will be playing at the IMAX?

Here's the tourmobile website. http://www.tourmobile.com/ It has lots of information on there. It's one of the tours we are considering. I'm a little nervous because there were some bad reviews on Trip Advisor.

I just switched our ressies from the Doubletree to the Embassy suites. Another Dis'r mentioned on a thread that they had an awful experience with Doubletree and credit card charges. Hopefully this Embassy suites is a good choice for us. At least we know we will have a nice breakfast every morning.

 

[4Seasons]

This is a good resource as well:

http://www.culturaltourismdc.org/

 

[thatslygirl]

Hi everyone,

These are some of my fave websites for steals and deals in DC!

Groupon
Living Social
Tippr (just launcedh in DC)
And also Goldstar events.

Occasionally they will offer steep discounts to the Spy Museum, Phillips Art Museum, Crime & Punishment Museum, and Madam Tussand's. Mostly the discounts are for restaurants.

 

[Tiana]

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[Nik's Mom]

We live in the area, and so, EVERY time someone comes to visit we do DC, plus we go in for most of the Holidays (St. Patrick's, 4th of July, Labor Day, etc.)

Tourmobile sucks! The trams are old and dirty and noisy.

Take the double decker bus with www.opentopsightseeing.com. That is the only one I will use to take guests sightseeing. It's $35 bucks, but the tickets are good for 2 days and it goes all the way up to Georgetown and the National Cathedral. The buses are new and the bottoms are air conditioned, with unlimited hop on/hop off.

If it's a weekend or holiday, we just drive in. We always park right by the Botanical Gardens, the Tidal Basin, or that little side street by the Capitol building... always get a spot. There was that one 4th of July where we didn't get there until 1 p.m. and had to park in the last lot over behind the Jefferson Memorial. Weekdays, we just take metro. I always get parking at Union Station too.

E-mail your congressman to get tours set up for Archives, LOC, Capitol, etc. so you don't have to stand in the regular lines.

The cafeteria at the Museum of American Indian ROCKS!! Old Ebbitt Grill also rocks. Georgia Brown's is good too...

There is a tour & tea at the National Cathedral that the women in my family enjoy going on, check the website for info.

Thanks! I'm taking notes on all of this. I had my eye on the Opentop tour. So glad you gave it a positive review. I think we will go with that one. I'm thinking that on our last day (Saturday), we'll drive to Arlington Cemetary and park outside. I think we have to take a tour bus to get inside though.

 

[MEM]

We liked the Old Town Trolley service that we used when we were in DC this past March. It was too cold for a double decker bus!

 

[Tiana]

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[Nik's Mom]

We've used that one before too, but the view is no where near as nice as the double decker bus. Plus, a one day ticket on the trolley is the same price as a TWO day ticket on the double decker. Also, I *believe* that if you buy your ticket after 3 p.m. it's good for the rest of that day, plus the next two days... but check, just to make sure. Again, having done them all, NOTHING beats riding through town on the top of that double decker

Nik's Mom: There is plenty of parking in the garage at Arlington Cemetery and it's very reasonable rate wise. There shouldn't be a lot of traffic on a Saturday. I took my dad 4th of July weekend and no issues with parking. Why would you have to take a tour bus??? Are you going with a group or something??

Thanks for the parking info. No, we aren't part of a tour. The guide book that I read made it seem like you have to pay for a tour bus ticket in order to see everything. Can we just walk right in, or is it too big to do that?

 

[Tiana]

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