Need advice on Washington DC hotels

[hockeyplayer]

We always stay at the Embassy Suites in Crystal City. It is about two blocks up the hill from the Crystal City Metro. It has a small pool and a great breakfast. And use the metro...it can get you just about anywhere that you'd need or want to go. Besides the monuments and "typical" Smithsonians (Air & Space, Natural History, etc.) I'd recommend a stop at the postal museum. We went there for the first time last summer (after many previous visits to D.C.) and found it a pleasant surprise, especially if anyone in your family is a stamp collector. The Capitol Children's Museum is also nice if you have young children, but you will have to pay an admission, and it is a several block walk from the nearest Metro station. Enjoy - this is one of our favorite cities, and our children always seem to survive (and enjoy) our attempts to cram something educational/historical/cultural into their heads when we visit.