Must see in DC in July

[DancingBear]

Eating on or around the Mall--

There are food courts/cafeterias in the American Indian (tasty but pricey and a multiple-station setup), Air and Space (mostly fast food), Natural History (eh), American History (haven't been since they reopened), also at the Reagan building and the Old Post Office. We like the cafe in the National Gallery Sculpture Garden located between the Gallery and Natural History (and across from the Archives). The food in the National Gallery itself (including in the underground walkway between the National Gallery and the East Wing is generally a little better than the average food court/cafeteria stuff. During the week you can eat at the cafeteria in the Department of Agriculture building (near the Holocaust Museum, Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Smithsonian Metro stop and the Smithsonian Castle building), I haven't tried that either. Walking 1-3 blocks North of the Archives (in the vicinity of the Spy Museum, Museum of Crime and Punishment, and the Smithsonian Museums of American Art and National Portrait Gallery) leads to lots of options.

You can schedule ahead on-line for:

National Archives
Washington Monument
IMAX at Air and Space or Natural History
Planetarium at Air and Space
Capitol tour
Holocaust Museum
Spy Museum

 

[golfgal]

Did you try to contact your Congressman about tix to a Capitol tour? It's a great tour and easier to get than the White House.

This would be the first thing I would skip on a short trip. You spend more time waiting in line then you do on the actual tour. Poke your head into the visitor center and look around then take the tunnel over to the Library of Congress--a MUST see--the building is AMAZING. If your kids are into the National Treasure movies they will recognize this building. It is BY FAR the most stunning building in DC.

I would plan 1/2 day at each museum. When we were there in June it really wasn't all that busy and we were able to get through most museums in about 2 hours-but then you need to factor in getting to the museum, etc. On the map they look close but the buildings are HUGE and most take up about 2 city blocks or more. Plan on walking MORE then you do at Disney.

The bus tour for the Monuments at night is worth the price. There are no metro stops around the monument so you either take a bus tour or walk. With little kids, walking will be more difficult. http://www.trustedtours.com/store/Monuments-by-Moonlight-Night-Tour-C211.aspx I just looked online and here is one for $31/adult, $17 kids over 4.

Another skip for a short stay is the Spy Museum, first it costs money and second, we didn't like it at all. Before the trip this was the one thing the kids were the most excited to see, they ended up being the most disappointed in this.

SC Minnie--for one day I would pick your favorite Smithsonian museum and the Holocaust Museum. Our favorites were the Natural History and Air and Space. I would try to get to the Library of Congress as well.

 

[minniebeth]

This would be the first thing I would skip on a short trip. You spend more time waiting in line then you do on the actual tour.
We arranged a tour with a staffer from one of our Representatives and it was an awsome and very thorough tour. We did things that the regular ticket tour does not. I would suggest if you could arrange this type of tour, it would be worth it.

When we were there in June it really wasn't all that busy
It is much more busy in July than it is June. Many Northeast schools are still in school until the third week in June.
SC Minnie--for one day I would pick your favorite Smithsonian museum and the Holocaust Museum. Our favorites were the Natural History and Air and Space. I would try to get to the Library of Congress as well.
Totally agree!

The above bolded responses are mine, I couldn't edit around it.

 

[golfgal]

The above bolded responses are mine, I couldn't edit around it.

We were there the last few days of June until July 3rd and it wasn't that bad. We also had a tour arranged with a congressperson and on a short trip with limited time, I wouldn't do it again. We were there for 7 days so it was fine but if the OP is going to be there for 3 days, it is a waste of an afternoon I think.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Taking notes....

yes, I sent for tickets for Captial & White House...I can remember going there & being amazed @ how beautiful it was - but don't remember anything about the tour as a kid

I didn't put in for the Library of Congress - again I can barely remember going there -all I can remember is looking down from an upstairs windo into a library with 1,000s of books - but nothing else -just books - LOL

I also requested for Bureau of Engraving & Nat'l Cathedral

 

[luvmyfam444]

We are southerners so we're a bit used to the heat - we even did WDW in a tent a couple years ago in July (with those misting fans of course!) so if we can handle that I think we'll be okay - there will still be a bit of whining I'm sure - but dh will be okay.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Yes, we plan to take dd to Holocaust museum - though I've heard its terribly depressing - I'm worried it'll put a damper on her trip. Whatcha think? She has studied about it in school - but I'm not sure how graphic it was - they read a story about it - there were pics of starving people but not bodies

 

[locolala]

If you're from the south, then you should be ok with the heat. It is VERY hot and humid during the summers here, and there isn't much shade out on the mall. I would take a trip up to Baltimore if I were you, the aquarium there is AMAZING. The aquarium in DC is horrible and you couldn't pay me to go there. Splurge and get tickets for the dolphin show. It's worth it. I've never done the bike tours in DC, but to be honest it's gonna be hot and icky so probably won't be any fun. Be aware that thunderstorms can come up very quickly and be pretty strong, so be prepared for that. Ride the metro when you can, parking is horrible in the city, especially around the Mall.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

We enjoyed the National Museum of the American Indian a lot. We didn't see the whole museum...lots to see and absorb, but had fun looking around outside for the 4 directional markers. It's a beautiful museum building, both inside and out. The food court is wonderful, abeit expensive and time consuming to actually get the food. Worth it, though, especially if you like trying different types of food.

The Tourmobile might be worth doing so you don't have to do so much walking in the heat. You could hit all the monuments and memorials without wilting too much.

Does The Bureau of Printing and Engraving still have tours? I have enjoyed that in the past, but not sure if they still do them.

Living in the area I don't end up eating out much down there...when we go we usually just go there for a few hours. Actually, I don't even get into DC to go to the museums and monuments very often.

The Holocaust Museum is not the easiest thing to tour, but you can choose to spend lots of time looking at things and if it gets to be too much you can leave. The hardest part for me was towards the end when there was a film showing individuals and their stories. That was tough. My mother and I went with one of my young sons. I think he was 3yo--young enough to not understand what it was about (and too short to see over the display walls) and was a great distraction to people touring (I got lots of comments thanking me for having him there--I noticed lots of people turning to watch him quietly playing in his stroller when they needed a break from the exhibits...). That was my middle son--my youngest NEVER could have behaved well enough at that age to quietly entertain himself for hours.

Hmmm, I'm sure I'll think of more things to do....past my bedtime right now and my brain has shut down.

 

[DancingBear]

Arranging a tour of the Capitol through your Congressperson is hit or miss. You might get a very good tour guide who can take you places the standard tour might not go, or you might get a summer intern that doesn't really know anything. Or you might just be scheduled to join a standard tour. I'd stick to the standard tour, which you can reserve on-line directly.

http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/Visit/Page - Tour Information.html

I'm not sure what you requested tickets for at the National Cathedral, generally you can just go there anytime they're open (although they have tickets for certain events). If you go don't miss the Bishop's Garden. Also keep in mind it takes some effort to get to the Cathedral on public transit, as there is no Metro stop within easy walking distance.

 

[DancingBear]

Same lines/waits apply to the National Archives.
Others like already mentioned, have timed tix.

National Archives now has timed tickets that you can book online:

http://www.archives.gov/nae/visit/reserved-visits.html

I should have mentioned above that Ford's Theater also now has online pre-booking:

http://www.fordstheatre.org/home/plan-your-visit/daytime-visits-fords-theatre

 

[luvmyfam444]

I'm not sure what you requested tickets for at the National Cathedral

Me either - there was a form with a bunch of choices for tours I was interested int on my Senators website so I checked it -

 

[luvmyfam444]

National Archives now has timed tickets that you can book online:

http://www.archives.gov/nae/visit/reserved-visits.html

I should have mentioned above that Ford's Theater also now has online pre-booking:

http://www.fordstheatre.org/home/plan-your-visit/daytime-visits-fords-theatre

ooo - the archives tixo will help a lot - I remember waiting in that line to see somthing in a glass box that I couldn't really see- LOL

 

[Katie Dawn]

Yes, we plan to take dd to Holocaust museum - though I've heard its terribly depressing - I'm worried it'll put a damper on her trip. Whatcha think? She has studied about it in school - but I'm not sure how graphic it was - they read a story about it - there were pics of starving people but not bodies

Yes, it's sad... but it is important.

Visiting this museum will make a total difference in her report. You will walk through a cattle car that was used to transport people to concentration camps. Reading about it and seeing it/touching it is a completely different experience.

The Holocaust Memorial is done very tastefully and sensitively. The victims of the Holocaust are treated respectfully. So you will see normal portraits of people... hundreds and hundreds of portraits. It brings home the sheer number of people affected, but it does it in a way that respects them. There is one section where they do have video playing of some of the medical experiments that were done but the TV screens are almost on the floor and you have to intentionally look over top of a wooden wall to see it... so you don't have to look at it if you don't want to.

I can tell you that in college I took an entire class devoted to the Holocaust. We read several books, including several autobiographical accounts. The Holocaust Memorial, though, is what brought it all together for me.

At the end there is a circular room lit with candles where you can sit and just process for a few minutes. The people who created the memorial knew that some of us would need that.

That said, I don't think you'll be depressed. I wouldn't plan on lots of activity for the rest of that day, but you don't have to stop your vacation either.

Get those timed tickets online though as soon as you know your date... they go quickly! Here's the link:
http://www.ushmm.org/visit/
Click "Online Purchase In Advance" under the "Passes are Required" section... you'll get a good idea of how many passes are left on the day(s) you might go.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Which art museum do you suggest? I remember hitting them all regulary (mom was an artist) so we did them all -she took classses at the Torpedo factory!

 

[stego]

I kinda laughed out loud at that. I took the family 2 years ago for our annual family trip. I applied what I've learned through planning our trips to WDW and was very organized and had planned out our days. We were fortunate that our hotel was close so we could have an hour of down time in the pool. That helped more than I can put in words.

I created plans of action each day to maximize efficiency. I pored over guides with so much detail. What it came down to was I had to make a committement to what we were going to see.

The fact is that the big museums do take time. Yeah, I could have rushed through them, but is that really the point? I will say that because of my planning we saw more than most people did in a 5 day stretch.

I will concur on dining in the museums. Talk about sticker shock! Lunch for 4 of us was at the musueum of natural history was $53. I AM NOT KIDDING.

My plan of action has always been to leave the week our son gets out of school to avoid the summer crowds. We did that...and still saw many tour groups with kids. Also, several of the days we were there DC was having a heat wave. DC is a city of walkers. I paused, and looked at all the buildings. Guess what? They are full of people! And what happens when the workday is done? They all come out of the buildings and start walking around and using the metro. Avoid rush hour on the metro...that was interesting.

I also agree on the nighttime tour. I was so happy to let someone else do the driving and bring us right up to the front of the memorials.

There were several things that had a big impact on me:
The Arlington cemetary. If you don't take the shuttle/tram in the cemetary, there will be lots of walking. We got to see the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknowns. When a tourist stepped outside of the barricade, the guard stopped and called out loudly. So many people don't realize they have live rounds in their rifle.

The museum of the American Indian. The most recent museum. If I had to do it all over again, I would plan more time here. To slow down and appreciate the exhibits. And also, to sample the cuisine.

The Korean war memorial. Close by is the Vietnam memorial, so that gets lots of attention...and rightly so. At the WWII memorial I observed many veterans coming in and all I could think about was how these men and women gave their lives for our freedom.

As a cyclist, I specifically planned on riding for a morning and seeing SOME of the memorials that way. DC has a LOT of cyclists, and the MUT's are FULL of people who commute that way. It gave me a way to see the city that a lot of tourists don't.

 

[Tink's Pixieduster]

Depending when you will be here, the American Folklife Festival on the National Mall is always an adventure - and except for food or souvenier purchases the attendance is free. This year the festival runs from June 24–28 and July 1–5. You can read more about it here http://www.festival.si.edu/.

 

[DancingBear]

Further to Stego's point, one thing I say over and over to people is that distances on the Mall are deceiving. The buildings are so big, and it doesn't look like it's a big deal to walk from, say, the Air and Space Museum to the American History Museum--but that's 6/10 of a mile. From the Capitol steps to the Archives is nearly 3/4 of a mile. The Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial is 2 miles.

So, use the on-off busses (Old Town Trolley or Tourmobile), also the DC Circulator busses can be helpful:

http://dccirculator.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27&Itemid=11

And, like for a WDW trip, plan on some downtime.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Further to Stego's point, one thing I say over and over to people is that distances on the Mall are deceiving. The buildings are so big, and it doesn't look like it's a big deal to walk from, say, the Air and Space Museum to the American History Museum--but that's 6/10 of a mile. From the Capitol steps to the Archives is nearly 3/4 of a mile. The Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial is 2 miles.

So, use the on-off busses (Old Town Trolley or Tourmobile), also the DC Circulator busses can be helpful:

http://dccirculator.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27&Itemid=11

And, like for a WDW trip, plan on some downtime.

Is the Circulator just a bus that runs the mall? Is it a hop on off kinda thing or are you paying each time?

 

[Geoff_M]

Here's a quick note if your July DC trip will be in the July 22 - 25 range. In addition to the normal Summer crowds, you'll be sharing The Mall with about 30,000 Boy Scouts on their way to Ft. AP Hill in Virginia for the National Jamoree that starts on the 26th.