Pre-Trip Report: It's Going to be a Capitol Vacation!

[Charleston Princess]

Hurray for a hotel! I hope the ex doesn't mess up the plans!

 

[golfgal]

I'm probably going to be called a dork for this.. but DH and I went to Washington DC for our honeymoon. We were young kids and didn't have much money and needed to be only a few hours drive from NJ.

DC offered good night life, free attractions, and well a very quiet atmosphere. We love it there!

PS... Don't waste your money on the Spy Museum. It isn't a free musuem and it seems to be a lot of money for what you get.

We saw several people there on their honeymoon. I think it is a great spot for that. I also agree with the Spy Museum, unless your kids are about 8, it isn't worth going, even then they really need to be into James Bond to enjoy the place.

 

[cristit14]

Welcome back home! How was your trip? How many days were you there? Would love to hear some details. That's one thing I worry about our trip. I know it's ALOT of walking and I don't want to wear anybody out. I'm thinking of doing a 3/4 day somewhere during our trip but don't know if that would work.

Thanks, our trip was fun. We were there from 19th-29th. I have an uncle that lives in Arlington so we didn't have to get a hotel. We went down to Williamsburg for two nights in the middle of our trip. We hit Busch Gardens and Colonial Williamsburg. The first day in DC we did the American History Museum and that was it. Seeing the flag that was the inspiration for the Star Spangled Banner was definitely a highlight for me. The second day we did the Crime and Punishment Museum. It isn't part of the Smithsonian. It was interesting, but expensive. The kids had either wanted to do that one or the Spy museum. After we got done there we went to National Archives and then headed home. On Monday we had our Capitol tour. I was a little disappointed in this. You get to see the rotunda and then a statue room and that is it. You can get passes for the galleries from your congressman and we didnt' do that. Maybe that would have been interesting. After the Capitol we walked down the mall to the WWII memorial (boy is that a long walk). Then on Tuesday afternoon we drove down to Williamsburg and came back on Thursday evening. Friday we saw the White House Visitor's center, a little bit of the Natural History Museum and the Washington Monument. Tip for that if you want to go up in the Washington Monument order tickets ahead of time on the internet, otherwise someone will have to wait in line on the morning you want to go starting at about 7 am.(guess who got to do that ). Oh yeah, I forgot that after we did the Capitol we took the tunnel over to the Library of Congress building. That is very beautiful inside. If you are over there I would recommend going in even if just for a few minutes.

 

[golfgal]

Thanks, our trip was fun. We were there from 19th-29th. I have an uncle that lives in Arlington so we didn't have to get a hotel. We went down to Williamsburg for two nights in the middle of our trip. We hit Busch Gardens and Colonial Williamsburg. The first day in DC we did the American History Museum and that was it. Seeing the flag that was the inspiration for the Star Spangled Banner was definitely a highlight for me. The second day we did the Crime and Punishment Museum. It isn't part of the Smithsonian. It was interesting, but expensive. The kids had either wanted to do that one or the Spy museum. After we got done there we went to National Archives and then headed home. On Monday we had our Capitol tour. I was a little disappointed in this. You get to see the rotunda and then a statue room and that is it. You can get passes for the galleries from your congressman and we didnt' do that. Maybe that would have been interesting. After the Capitol we walked down the mall to the WWII memorial (boy is that a long walk). Then on Tuesday afternoon we drove down to Williamsburg and came back on Thursday evening. Friday we saw the White House Visitor's center, a little bit of the Natural History Museum and the Washington Monument. Tip for that if you want to go up in the Washington Monument order tickets ahead of time on the internet, otherwise someone will have to wait in line on the morning you want to go starting at about 7 am.(guess who got to do that ). Oh yeah, I forgot that after we did the Capitol we took the tunnel over to the Library of Congress building. That is very beautiful inside. If you are over there I would recommend going in even if just for a few minutes.

I think the Library of Congress building is probably the most ornate building in DC (that we saw anyway). It is well worth going to. I think we had about 15 minutes to tour the building so it can be a quick stop. The Capital tour was a waste. I don't know if you can just tour the building on your own, didn't ask, but if you can, do that.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

I think the Library of Congress building is probably the most ornate building in DC (that we saw anyway). It is well worth going to. I think we had about 15 minutes to tour the building so it can be a quick stop. The Capital tour was a waste. I don't know if you can just tour the building on your own, didn't ask, but if you can, do that.

golfgal: I know I should probably ask this on your thread as I have asked you many questions there but I am thinking of this here. Did you do the tour that your congressperson set up with the Capitol or did you do the one that doesn't require that? We have one set up through our congressperson.

 

[golfgal]

golfgal: I know I should probably ask this on your thread as I have asked you many questions there but I am thinking of this here. Did you do the tour that your congressperson set up with the Capitol or did you do the one that doesn't require that? We have one set up through our congressperson.

My Dad set one up through his Congressperson. I hope they have a better one that they do usually. Most people in our line for the tour did not have something set up through their Congressperson-it is on your badge that you get--so I don't know if there are a couple different ones or not.

 

[jillyb]

I've got the next installment typed up but for some reason I'm having trouble copying and pasting it. I'll try again tomorrow.

 

[jillyb]

I told Clay about the deal I’d found at the Embassy Suites and that I’d booked it for August 13-August 18. Now all that was left was for him to talk to the Ex. We had Alison the weekend of Hannah’s birthday and when we picked her up on Friday Clay told the Ex they needed to work out the schedule for the summer. Yes! Finally! The Ex advised that Alison would be going to the beach in July to spend some time with her Grandmother and also with Clay’s Aunt. Clay told her that was perfect since we weren’t going to Washington until August. Yes! As it stands now, we will pick Alison up the evening of August 12th so we can get an early start on August 13th and we’ll take her home the morning of August 19th. Now, none of this guarantees that the Ex still won’t try to throw a monkey wrench in our plans (she conveniently lost track of time when she was supposed to drop Alison off for Father’s Day weekend and tried to throw a kink in dropping her off this past Tuesday) so as it stands now the trip is on. *happy dance*

On to the itinerary! I’ve spent a lot of time looking at the various things to do and see. I’ve received a packet of information from the Smithsonian and from the Metro. In the information from the Smithsonian there is a really huge map that shows the attractions and various Metro stops. From the Metro there are really huge route maps of the Metro routes for Virginia and Washington, D.C. and Maryland and Washington, D.C. These have been a great help in figuring out where everything is located and how to get from Point A to Point B. And just because I’m anal like that, I’ll probably do the Trip Planner on the Metro website. LOL Here’s what I’ve come up with so far (and, of course, if anybody just happens to live in the VA/DC area and has some words of advice for me please chime in!):

Thursday, August 13 (travel day):
Check in to Embassy Suites and get settled in room
Swim a couple of hours then get cleaned up, check out the local area and find someplace for supper
Get to bed early (no later than 10:00)

Friday, August 14:
Breakfast at hotel; either take shuttle or drive to Dunn-Loring Metro station
Arlington National Cemetery (2 hours)
Theodore Roosevelt Memorial
Lunch at Old Post Office Food Court
The Mall (FDR Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, Washington Monument, 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial)
International Spy Museum
Metro back to Dunn-Loring and go to supper before returning to hotel
Swim before bed?

Saturday, August 15:
Breakfast at hotel
National Archives
Library of Congress (guided tours @ 10:30, 11:30, 1:30 and 2:30)

Lunch at the Capitol Cafe
Sculpture Garden
If time allows may do the Capitol Visitor Center
Supper in Tysons Corner before returning to hotel

Sunday, August 16:
Breakfast at hotel
National Space Museum
National Museum of American History
Lunch ?
Ride the carousel
Anything else in this area we have time for/want to see or may go back to the hotel for a rest/swim
Supper in local area

Monday, August 17:
Breakfast at hotel
National Zoo
Lunch ?
National Museum of Natural History
National Geographic Society Explorers Hall
The White House Visitor Center (maybe)
Return to hotel; supper

Tuesday, August 18 (departure day):
Breakfast at hotel
Mount Vernon
Head for home

One problem I’m having is finding places to eat for lunch in D.C. When you have one child that thinks macaroni and cheese is a main meal (Alison) and another who always wants to eat chicken nuggets and french fries (Hannah) finding somewhere to eat can be a challenge! The UG to Washington, D.C. has lots of nice restaurants but they all seem more geared to adults (or at least to families whose children are more adventurous eaters than ours!) and Fodor’s Family Washington D.C. with Kids has limited restaurant listings. I’m open to suggestions! So, that’s it for now. I may do some tweaking here and there on the itinerary. Any advice/comments welcome!

 

[golfgal]

You are not going to have time to do all of your Friday activities. I would skip the Spy Museum-it is expensive and NOT worth it. Stick with the free ones. There is a lot of walking to get to all the memorials, I would plan 2 hours to do all of that. The one thing we had planned and didn't do that I wish we would have was the Monuments at Night tour. Trade your money from the Spy Museum for the Monuments at Night tour .

As for a good place to eat with "selective" eaters--eat at the Library of Congress Cafeteria. It is in the Monroe (or Madison) building, not the older, historic one. They had a great selection of basic foods, even mac and cheese I think. Another option would be the ESPN Zone up near Ford's Theater. I KNOW they had mac-n-cheese because my little cousin had some.

The White House Visitor Center doesn't take all that long to go through. It is only one large room of information/displays. It is right across the street from the White House, which I don't see on your list. If the sidewalks to the back of the White House are blocked off, walk to the front for a great view and pictures.

We didn't make it to the Smithsonian Castle but it looks pretty cool. I would put that on your list after the Sculpture Garden.

Plan to stand in line at the Archives for at least an hour.

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Sounds like you are going to be one busy family! I have no clue as to what to tell you about eating since we've never visited, but one of my friends from DIS chat is from there. I will give her the link to your pre-trippie and hopefully she can give you some suggestions!

 

[jillyb]

You are not going to have time to do all of your Friday activities. I would skip the Spy Museum-it is expensive and NOT worth it. Stick with the free ones. There is a lot of walking to get to all the memorials, I would plan 2 hours to do all of that. The one thing we had planned and didn't do that I wish we would have was the Monuments at Night tour. Trade your money from the Spy Museum for the Monuments at Night tour .

As for a good place to eat with "selective" eaters--eat at the Library of Congress Cafeteria. It is in the Monroe (or Madison) building, not the older, historic one. They had a great selection of basic foods, even mac and cheese I think. Another option would be the ESPN Zone up near Ford's Theater. I KNOW they had mac-n-cheese because my little cousin had some.

The White House Visitor Center doesn't take all that long to go through. It is only one large room of information/displays. It is right across the street from the White House, which I don't see on your list. If the sidewalks to the back of the White House are blocked off, walk to the front for a great view and pictures.

We didn't make it to the Smithsonian Castle but it looks pretty cool. I would put that on your list after the Sculpture Garden.

Plan to stand in line at the Archives for at least an hour.

The Spy Museum is Alison's "must do" so I can't take it off the list. She went a couple of years ago (I think) with her Mom and Stepdad and really liked it. Other than that everybody is giving me free reign on the planning.

If we can't get to all of the monuments on Friday I think we may have time to catch what we miss on one of our other days. I really don't want to be in D.C. at night with the kids but will play that by ear; maybe see what Clay thinks. The one memorial we might skip is the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial. It's on an island and not real easy to get to from what I can tell. We could take the Metro from Arlington Cemetery to Rosslynn but I don't know how long of a walk it would be from there to the island. I do know there's a footbridge there.

Thanks for the reminder about the Library of Congress Cafe! I'll definitely check it out. Alison will eat more than mac-n-cheese; it's just finding a place with viable options.

I originally had the White House Visitor Center on the itinerary, as well as the Capitol Visitor Center, but wasn't sure they'd be worth it. I'm wanting to carry a bag with snacks, water, etc. (like when we were at WDW) and I know they don't allow bags. I might be able to add them in somewhere.

 

[jillyb]

Sounds like you are going to be one busy family! I have no clue as to what to tell you about eating since we've never visited, but one of my friends from DIS chat is from there. I will give her the link to your pre-trippie and hopefully she can give you some suggestions!

I know; I may end up having to prune some things!
Thanks for sending a native my way!

 

[golfgal]

The Spy Museum is Alison's "must do" so I can't take it off the list. She went a couple of years ago (I think) with her Mom and Stepdad and really liked it. Other than that everybody is giving me free reign on the planning.

If we can't get to all of the monuments on Friday I think we may have time to catch what we miss on one of our other days. I really don't want to be in D.C. at night with the kids but will play that by ear; maybe see what Clay thinks. The one memorial we might skip is the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial. It's on an island and not real easy to get to from what I can tell. We could take the Metro from Arlington Cemetery to Rosslynn but I don't know how long of a walk it would be from there to the island. I do know there's a footbridge there.

Thanks for the reminder about the Library of Congress Cafe! I'll definitely check it out. Alison will eat more than mac-n-cheese; it's just finding a place with viable options.

I originally had the White House Visitor Center on the itinerary, as well as the Capitol Visitor Center, but wasn't sure they'd be worth it. I'm wanting to carry a bag with snacks, water, etc. (like when we were at WDW) and I know they don't allow bags. I might be able to add them in somewhere.

You can bring in bags, you can't bring in any food or drink so if you eat it all before you go in you are fine.

We walked from Arlington Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial, it was about a mile walk. The walk from Rosslyn would be longer I think. You are probably better off either taking a bus over after Arlington or going to one of the stops on the Washington Monument side (but the you have to walk all the way back to get the metro again). The monuments are not easy to take the metro to. The Monument at Night Tour is a trolly tour if that makes a difference.

 

[OhMari]

Hi,
We did Washington DC a couple of years ago in August, and remember DC is in a marsh and it can be very hot, as in 100 degrees hot with high humidity. Most of congress and the President is gone the month of August and tourism tends to be at a slower pace, probably because of the hot weather.

I would invest in the metro and also the trolley, where you can get on and off at different stops throughout the day.

Also, if you ride the metro; small tidbit, if you don't want to walk up or down the escalator stairs, stay to the right, don't block the left, the locals will yell, if you are standing on the left side. You have to go underground to ride the metro's. My dd did the Presidential school her Junior year of highschool and she said ride the Metro to Union station, and they have great resturants that are not so expensive.

Arlington Cemetery is a lot of walking too. You have to climb to the top to see the Kennedy plots and don't miss the changing of the guards at the Unknown soldiers. I'm sure you will see a funeral proceedings, it is very humbling watching the horse pull the casket.

Have fun.

Have a great time.

 

[rtobe]

Hi, you're coming to my home town. Wigdoutdismom suggested I add my two cents.

Embassy Suites in Vienna -- is this the one near Tyson's Corner on Leesburg Pike? You definately need to drive to Metro from here or get the shuttle from hotel. Dunn Loring is near the end of the Orange line so you should get a seat. It is probably a 30-40 minute ride in to DC once you get on the train. Tyson's Corner Mall has a great food court (lots of options), and good restaurants (mostly chains). I stayed there last year when my air conditioning died (in June) and it was nice.

Parking at Metro can fill up on weekdays - even in August. Check Metro's website for details on parking at Metro Stations. http://www.wmata.com especially payment.

One thing I did with out of town friends who wanted to see Arlington Cemetary and the monuments was get Tourmobile Tickets. This is like the Old Town Trolley, you get on and off around town and you can listen to the tour guide. http://www.tourmobile.com/ This may be a good option since DC is a swamp and there is a reason the locals leave in August (not much difference between DC and Orlando weather that time of year). This may be a good option for after the Spy Museum.

The Spy Museum is near the Verizon Center (basketball, ice hockey arena) there is a Gordon Biersch across the street, a Fuddruckers up the street, Clydes near Verizon Center (good variety). I think I would start with Spy Museum, then lunch then get on Tour Mobile and you will see all the monuments and can get on/off as you wish. If you do the tour with Arlington Cemetary you see it (maybe not as long as you like depending on schedules but you can get more in this way). The Spy Museum is cool. Have not been in years but really liked it.

Your Monday schedule may be too many things. The Zoo is on the Red line - Woodley Park. From downtown about 15 minutes by train - a little less if you are on Red line train. National Explorer's Hall is roughly 17th and M St, and Connecticut NW The Zoo is around 30th and Connecticut (would not recommend walking too far) the you are heading to the White House Visitor Center and the Mall (Natural History is at 10th and Constitution). The Zoo can be a whole day although I think about half a day should do it. There may be some food options around the Zoo that are kid friendly (don't know - have not needed to think about that).

Sunday - Air and Space has a cafeteria which should have kid friendly options. The Museum of the American Indian could be interesting. Which sculpture garden did you want to see - there is one near the Hirschorn which is next to Air and Space. The other one I can think of is near Natural History.

Drop me a PM, happy to answer questions as best I can. Have fun!

Remember that to get in most museums and buildings you will at a minimum need to have bags inspected and/or x-rayed. Archives does metal detector and no flash pictures of the documents. Archives also has other interesting things besides the major documents.

Another museum that is good - not free though is the Newseum.

 

[Nancy for Disney]

Just thought I would jump on board your PTR and let you know that we leave tomorrow. I will let you know how it went we get back next week.

 

[iluvwdw4ever]

Have a great time everyone!!!!!! We just spent the 4th of July in DC and had an absolute blast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jillyb]

Just thought I would jump on board your PTR and let you know that we leave tomorrow. I will let you know how it went we get back next week.

Sorry I didn't see this sooner. Hope you have a great trip and I look forward to hearing about it!

 

[jillyb]

You can bring in bags, you can't bring in any food or drink so if you eat it all before you go in you are fine.

We walked from Arlington Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial, it was about a mile walk. The walk from Rosslyn would be longer I think. You are probably better off either taking a bus over after Arlington or going to one of the stops on the Washington Monument side (but the you have to walk all the way back to get the metro again). The monuments are not easy to take the metro to. The Monument at Night Tour is a trolly tour if that makes a difference.

Thanks for the tip on the bags and the walk to the Mall/monuments.

 

[jillyb]

Hi, you're coming to my home town. Wigdoutdismom suggested I add my two cents.

Embassy Suites in Vienna -- is this the one near Tyson's Corner on Leesburg Pike? You definately need to drive to Metro from here or get the shuttle from hotel. Dunn Loring is near the end of the Orange line so you should get a seat. It is probably a 30-40 minute ride in to DC once you get on the train. Tyson's Corner Mall has a great food court (lots of options), and good restaurants (mostly chains). I stayed there last year when my air conditioning died (in June) and it was nice.

Yes, that's the one. Another DISer (janlotz?) stayed there and said it was very nice. She said the shuttle was hit or miss so I'm thinking I'll just get a SmarTrip card to pay for parking, etc. She also was kind enough to send me local restaurant info they got from the hotel as well as a map of the Galleria. I'm thinking of SmarTrip cards for everyone else too since you can also use them on the buses. What do you think?

Parking at Metro can fill up on weekdays - even in August. Check Metro's website for details on parking at Metro Stations. http://www.wmata.com especially payment.

I requested information from them and got a nice packet of route maps, train times, etc. from them. I'll probably do their trip planner on the website too so I can figure out how much money we'll need for tickets.

One thing I did with out of town friends who wanted to see Arlington Cemetary and the monuments was get Tourmobile Tickets. This is like the Old Town Trolley, you get on and off around town and you can listen to the tour guide. http://www.tourmobile.com/ This may be a good option since DC is a swamp and there is a reason the locals leave in August (not much difference between DC and Orlando weather that time of year). This may be a good option for after the Spy Museum.

I'm definitely going to do get Tourmobile tickets for Arlington Cemetery. It will be nice to get off and on wherever we want; not to mention will save us from lots of walking! I'm going to bring the handheld fans we used on our WDW trip last year. The heat and humidity is pretty high where we live so we know what to expect. I'm on the fence about Tourmobile for everything else since it's so expensive.

The Spy Museum is near the Verizon Center (basketball, ice hockey arena) there is a Gordon Biersch across the street, a Fuddruckers up the street, Clydes near Verizon Center (good variety). I think I would start with Spy Museum, then lunch then get on Tour Mobile and you will see all the monuments and can get on/off as you wish. If you do the tour with Arlington Cemetary you see it (maybe not as long as you like depending on schedules but you can get more in this way). The Spy Museum is cool. Have not been in years but really liked it.

Did the Verizon Center used to be called MCI Center? I was looking at the map I got in the information from the Smithsonian and it shows MCI Center but no Verizon Center. It doesn't show the Spy Museum on the map but I was able to figure out approximately where it's located; looks like it's close to the National Archives (?) If that's the case I may rearrange the itinerary to do Spy Museum the day we do the National Archives. Thanks for the tips on the nearby restaurants! Looks like we could hop on the Red Line to Union Station and grab a bite to eat there as well as check out Union Station.

Your Monday schedule may be too many things. The Zoo is on the Red line - Woodley Park. From downtown about 15 minutes by train - a little less if you are on Red line train. National Explorer's Hall is roughly 17th and M St, and Connecticut NW The Zoo is around 30th and Connecticut (would not recommend walking too far) the you are heading to the White House Visitor Center and the Mall (Natural History is at 10th and Constitution). The Zoo can be a whole day although I think about half a day should do it. There may be some food options around the Zoo that are kid friendly (don't know - have not needed to think about that).

I thought Friday was the busy day! LOL I'd really like to get to the Zoo early, before it gets too hot and the animals are more active. What's your opinion on us driving to the Zoo, checking out the Zoo and then taking the Metro from there for other attractions? We'll probably be there for 1/2 day as Hannah is a HUGE animal lover. The biggest issue with planning is not knowing how long we'll be at each attraction. Depending on the interest level it could be anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours; plus I'm looking at the approximate touring times the UG lists for the attractions. Saturday and Sunday may be a lighter days so maybe I can add one or two for each of those days.

Sunday - Air and Space has a cafeteria which should have kid friendly options. The Museum of the American Indian could be interesting. Which sculpture garden did you want to see - there is one near the Hirschorn which is next to Air and Space. The other one I can think of is near Natural History.

We're going to the sculpture garden near the Hirschhorn. Maybe it would make more sense to do the Air and Space Museum after that?

Drop me a PM, happy to answer questions as best I can. Have fun!

Remember that to get in most museums and buildings you will at a minimum need to have bags inspected and/or x-rayed. Archives does metal detector and no flash pictures of the documents. Archives also has other interesting things besides the major documents.

Another museum that is good - not free though is the Newseum.

Thanks for all the information and tips! I'll shoot you a PM if I have any other questions or need some suggestions.