Itinerary for D.C.

[MidgeD79]

We arrive around 5 PM on Tuesday July 6 and leave early Saturday morning July 9. We want to do a nighttime memorial bus tour, Mount Vernon, National Air/Space Museum, Museum of Natural History, Museum of American History, and the Zoo. How would you suggest we group these together? We're staying in fairfax and will use the Metro for everything. TIA

 

[MomNeedsVacay]

We arrive around 5 PM on Tuesday July 6 and leave early Saturday morning July 9. We want to do a nighttime memorial bus tour, Mount Vernon, National Air/Space Museum, Museum of Natural History, Museum of American History, and the Zoo. How would you suggest we group these together? We're staying in fairfax and will use the Metro for everything. TIA

I would group the museums all together b/c there all on the mall. Mt. Vernon is in Virginia---I would do that seperately and maybe rope into lunch in Old Town Alexandria (where I live! The Zoo is on the other side of town.

 

[MidgeD79]

Could we do the 3 museums in one day? I was thinking the bus tour on day of arrival, Mount Vernon, 2 museums, and a museum plus zoo. It it's possible to to 3 museums in one day, I could add something else.....

 

[Hoodie]

If you want to do 2 museums, American History and Natural History are next to each other. Air and Space is on the other end of the Mall and they also offer a shuttle to their Dulles location. That would be close to all day though (travel to Dulles alone will be about an hour, esp. with DC traffic). The National Archives (Constitution, Declaration, Bill of Rights) is also on the Mall.

For the zoo, it is on the other side of town. Metro would probably be the best option.

 

[CruiserMom]

Could we do the 3 museums in one day? I was thinking the bus tour on day of arrival, Mount Vernon, 2 museums, and a museum plus zoo. It it's possible to to 3 museums in one day, I could add something else.....

I can't imagine you could do more than 2 Smithsonians in one day. Those museums have so much in them, especially the Natural History museum. I would just choose 2 museums to do one day, then Mount Vernon one day and the memorials tour that night, and then the zoo the other day. If you finish up at the zoo early you could try the Air and Space Museum that afternoon.

 

[dizzy99]

I think you could do all 3 Museums in one day.

I work in the tourism industry and the average guest spends less than an hour in Air and Space.

 

[golfgal]

I think you could do all 3 Museums in one day.

I work in the tourism industry and the average guest spends less than an hour in Air and Space.

We must be above average then because we spent about 2 1/2 hours there.


We planned a museum in the morning, lunch, a museum in the afternoon and filled in with things we saw along the way. We had plenty of time to do what we wanted. Don't forget to go to the National Archives and the Library of Congress. They are both good "fill in" things as they don't take very long. Get tickets for the National Archives before you go. Also, the Holocaust Museum is a MUST do so add that to one day.

I think your plan of doing the monuments at night tour the first day is a good one. Oh, and Arlington Cemetery is something you will want to see.

 

[lovemygoofy]

We arrive around 5 PM on Tuesday July 6 and leave early Saturday morning July 9. We want to do a nighttime memorial bus tour, Mount Vernon, National Air/Space Museum, Museum of Natural History, Museum of American History, and the Zoo. How would you suggest we group these together? We're staying in fairfax and will use the Metro for everything. TIA

You are flying? Renting a car at all? How are you planning to get to Mt Vernon? The metro does not go to Mt Vernon. You'll need a plan to get there like using a tour or a taxi or the water taxi. If you do a night time tour, make sure you pick a tour that you can get off and on the bus as some night time tours are strictly 2 hours never leaving the seat.

I was at Mt. Vernon yesterday for about 5 almost 6 hours and didn't see everything. It is very worth spending the money to buy the timed ticket to get into the Mansion. The line yesterday for people without timed tickets at 10am was well into an hour and half.

I think you can reasonably do two museums in a day, possibly 3 because some of the museums are into their summer extended hours but you will be in information overload and tired of the people.

 

[akhenaten]

I think you could do all 3 Museums in one day.

I work in the tourism industry and the average guest spends less than an hour in Air and Space.

Wow I find that very hard to believe... we took longer than that and even went back another day! ( and we did not go to Dulles)

OP you could do two but do not forget that the Mall is extremely large...
everything is very spread out in DC..

 

[mtemm]

mt vernon can definitely take the better part of a day, if not more than that!

it all depends on what is most important to you. here is how I would break it down if I had the same time and wanted to do the same things:

1) mount vernon and nighttime bus tour

2) national history/break for lunch, then natural history

3) zoo, lunch, air and space

but then, I'm good with only spending a few hours at the zoo.

any one of the museums can easily be a full day, but sometimes you have to pick and choose what you want to see and focus on highlights. as for the smithsonian museums, I always start with the one I want to see the most...that way if I get caught up and want to stay, I can decide whether or not to skip the other one, or spend less time there.

 

[justhat]

Whichever day you do the zoo, get there very early. The zoo is very hilly, and if you metro you'll be starting at the top of the hill, which seems great when you are walking downhill. Not so much when you are walking uphill in the July heat and humidity after walking around the zoo for a couple of hours. So I would definitely be there early so that you can master the uphill walk before noon, otherwise you'll just be hot and annoyed.

Also, for the zoo, take the Metro to Cleveland Park, not the Woodley Park/Zoo/Adams Morgan stop. They are equidistant, but the Zoo stop is entirely uphill to the zoo, so you are tired and hot before you even reach the zoo. On the way back, walk downhill to the Zoo station. Plenty of decent local eateries in the Woodley Park area (by the Metro) so you can have lunch there, then head to Air and Space for the afternoon.

 

[dizzy99]

Wow I find that very hard to believe... we took longer than that and even went back another day! ( and we did not go to Dulles)

OP you could do two but do not forget that the Mall is extremely large...
everything is very spread out in DC..

This also takes into account the large number of school groups who go through in 45 minutes - that is all they are blocked off for.

I went to Mount Vernon this spring for the first time and I was AMAZED. Definitely so so so worth the visit!

 

[golfgal]

You are flying? Renting a car at all? How are you planning to get to Mt Vernon? The metro does not go to Mt Vernon. You'll need a plan to get there like using a tour or a taxi or the water taxi. If you do a night time tour, make sure you pick a tour that you can get off and on the bus as some night time tours are strictly 2 hours never leaving the seat.

I was at Mt. Vernon yesterday for about 5 almost 6 hours and didn't see everything. It is very worth spending the money to buy the timed ticket to get into the Mansion. The line yesterday for people without timed tickets at 10am was well into an hour and half.

I think you can reasonably do two museums in a day, possibly 3 because some of the museums are into their summer extended hours but you will be in information overload and tired of the people.

We took the metro to the end of the line and then caught a bus to Mt. Vernon-it was really easy. The bus drops you off at the entrance and they come frequently to take you back.

I agree with getting there early and going right for the mansion if you don't have timed tickets. Skip everything else until you see the mansion. If it is hot, bring an umbrella for shade as there is none while waiting in line. It is WELL worth the trip out.

 

[MidgeD79]

We are driving so we'll drive to Mt Vernon. I just don't want to drive in D.C. My dgd wants to see the Holocost Museum, but nobody else wants to, so I am going to send her and her aunt to see the one in Detroit . I also plan on being at the musems and zoo at "rope drop". What time should I be there if they open at 10 AM?

 

[Teacher03]

Get to Mount Vernon as early as possible. As another has mentioned, the lines can get long. Last year there was a two hour wait to get into the house. We skipped it as we have been there before.

We are actually leaving tonight for DC. My DD lives there, and we haven't seen her since Christmas!!!! I can't wait; I think I am actually more excited for this trip than for Disney!

 

[MomNeedsVacay]

We are driving so we'll drive to Mt Vernon. I just don't want to drive in D.C. My dgd wants to see the Holocost Museum, but nobody else wants to, so I am going to send her and her aunt to see the one in Detroit . I also plan on being at the musems and zoo at "rope drop". What time should I be there if they open at 10 AM?

You can walk through the zoo earlier than 10--- a lot of the houses aren't open until 10

 

[rwdavis2]

I think you could do all 3 Museums in one day.

I work in the tourism industry and the average guest spends less than an hour in Air and Space.

This all depends on how much time you spend reading the exhibits. One time we did all of Air and Space reading each sign/description and it took about 4 hours. But if you whisk through and just look at the planes, etc, an hour will do it. But I would recommend seeing one of the iMax movies. American history will take more than an hour to see it all.

BD