Tell me about Washington DC with kids

[My2CrazyGirls]

I keep reading posts about how much people love going to DC. We have lived in MD for 6 years and I avoid DC like the plague! I remember going to DC in college, out to come restaurants, some museums, monuments etc. My husband thinks we should take the girls (7 and 9) to DC but I think it will be too boring. Our 7 year old does not have the best attention span. What do you all think?

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

I keep reading posts about how much people love going to DC. We have lived in MD for 6 years and I avoid DC like the plague! I remember going to DC in college, out to come restaurants, some museums, monuments etc. My husband thinks we should take the girls (7 and 9) to DC but I think it will be too boring. Our 7 year old does not have the best attention span. What do you all think?

Go go. I have an autistic child and have taken her all her life. Check out www.kidfriendlydc.com
There is the zoo, museums, monuments, and more.

We especially love the air and space, spy museum , American history museum, national building museum, and zoo.

Check out the national Xmas tree. So much to do its amazing.

 

[mmaikisch]

I actually thought I would have the same problem as my dd's are 4, 7, and 12 To my surprise, they all absolutely loved it and my 7 year old wants to go back for her birthday this spring. We only did a few of the museums, we did the National Museum of American History, National Museum of Natural History (their favorite), and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (my oldest dd wanted to do this one). When we go back, we are going to stay more than one day to see some of the monuments, do the zoo, aquarium and the National Air and Space Museum etc. I say go for it, they might surprise you My 4 year old is still talking about the dinosaurs lol.

 

[My2CrazyGirls]

Thanks!

Do you suggest driving all the way in or parking further out and taking the metro? What is the metro like?

 

[Tinatoo]

Avoid metro during the "rush hours" 6-9am and 3-6ish pm. Packed, generally standing room only. I've lived in the area most of my life (except some time away while in the Marines and before 2nd grade) I loved coming downtown and my DD (7) and DS (5) love the zoo, air and space museum and the natural history museums.

 

[My2CrazyGirls]

Avoid metro during the "rush hours" 6-9am and 3-6ish pm. Packed, generally standing room only. I've lived in the area most of my life (except some time away while in the Marines and before 2nd grade) I loved coming downtown and my DD (7) and DS (5) love the zoo, air and space museum and the natural history museums.

Yeh that is what I thought, which is why the Metro does not appeal to me. I don't like being squished with other people. Is there anyplace good to park instead? Maybe we will just try the zoo first.

 

[bumbershoot79]

Yeh that is what I thought, which is why the Metro does not appeal to me. I don't like being squished with other people. Is there anyplace good to park instead? Maybe we will just try the zoo first.

The zoo has parking, but if it's a nice weekend day you'll want to get to the lots before 10am in possible. While the zoo is free however, parking is not.

I generally use bestparking dot com to scope out the parking lots and prices before I go. Personally, I wouldn't metro. By the time you pay for parking and all of the fare passes, it'll cost more than parking for a day.

 

[pixieMandy]

We did DC when my girls were 5 and 7, and they really enjoyed it. There were so many neat things in the museums, and the zoo was nice. They especially loved the American Indian Museum, they had some fun things for kids to do there. It's a pretty cheap trip too since most of the museums and the zoo have free entry.

 

[GraysMom]

We took DS for the first time when he was 8 (last May) and we all had a good time. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn very near the White House and a Metro stop. Riding the Metro was one of DS' favorite parts of the trip! We didn't specifically try to avoid rush hour times but it happily worked out that way and we all sat together on every trip with plenty of empty seats around the cars.

The second highlight was the Udvar-Hazy Museum out by the airport. It's a branch of the Air & Space Museum, so free entry, but much larger with wall-to-wall aircraft, including one of the 4 remaining space shuttles which was very neat to see. We stopped by here before we went into DC and our hotel.

We also enjoyed the zoo, Nat'l Air & Space on The Mall, Natural History, Spy Museum and walking around the Washington and Lincoln Memorials as well as the Vietnam and Korean Memorials.

Hill Country BBQ, right down the street from Ford's Theater, is delicious

 

[Swimalie]

Thanks!

Do you suggest driving all the way in or parking further out and taking the metro? What is the metro like?

If you go on the weekend, you can park at the Reagan Bldg for $15. The driver has to have id and they will check your car briefly but other than that, it's seamless and ample parking. The building has restaurants if you get hungry while there and it us 1 block from the American History Museum. You can go on weekdays, too, but then the parking availability is a lot less and it's semi-valet which means you tip and may have to leave your key.

On weekends a lot of Metro track work goes on so there are delays or closures. Once you pay for parking and the travel, I find it cheaper and easier to drive in to DC.

I also recommend the Udvar-Hazy museum. We go often and enjoy it each time. The museum if free but parking is $15.

 

[Megkel]

On the weekends as long as their isn't a major event going on, metro is a breeze. The only bad thing is the entrance to the zoo from metro is downhill on the way in and up hill on the way out. There are benches along the way but that can be a big task for adults and kids sometimes after walking all day.

I have taken my daughter to DC since she was a baby. We have done the Christmas trees, the zoo and the museums. She loves the museums and wants to visit the monuments this year. There is a lot to look at and keep busy in DC your kids will be very entertained!

 

[Momof1redhead]

I agree with everyone else. We took our son when he was 8 and he enjoyed all the museums, the National Mall AND riding the metro. We went over spring break - museums, restaurants and the metro were fairly crowded but we didn't have any problems. We took a backpack and had a picnic on the mall one day. It really was a great trip. We've since been to NYC and he felt like a pro riding the subway there because of our DC trip.

If you're looking for places to stay, consider airbnb.com. People rent out their homes/apartments so you get a great deal and a chance to live like a local. We did that for NYC in January and got a place in Brooklyn for $60 a night!

 

[danygirl]

When the kids were young like yours we did short days in DC- one museum or one event and then out. Living close by there is no reason to exhaust your kids. We went to natural history a LOT when my son was in his Dino phase!

My son still talks about a trip to the spy museum with his dad, sister and best friend, each of whom has add (including my son). He said it was the "short attention span trip" lol

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

During the week metro is best. We like to drive in on the weekends and park at the Reagan bldg.

 

[distherapy]

We just had a great time with our 9 year old twins on 2 trips.

We booked a capitol tour http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/plan-visit/book-tour-the-capitol which was very interesting and the kids liked the "whisper gallery" (not called that, I'm sure). You see more during the week and when Congress is in session.

We also emailed our Senator's office and got White House tour tickets. Those are the hardest things to schedule as you're at the mercy of the scheduler and we didn't get a lot of lead time.

Kids loved Air & Space and Natural History and American History, but do try and hit those earlier in the day. Crowds can be a bit much. The American Indian museum was great and has an incredible cafeteria (but not cheap).

We drove in and parked using street parking, because we don't mind that. With 4 of us, weekend street parking was cheaper than Metro. We used the Parkmobile app to pay for parking and that was great.

Dinner at Old Ebbitt Grill was really nice. We stayed in Old Town Alexandria, but just because we used to live there.

 

[thenewgirl]

I took DS and DD once on my own (DH had to work) when they were 7 and 1 and then again when they were 10 and 4 (and we went on to add Baltimore and NYC on that 2nd trip). Both kids loved it both times.

We rented a townhouse near the Capital, which was very, very convenient (and cheaper than a hotel, especially when you add in the meals we cooked at "home" instead of going out). It was less than a block away from the Metro, so we were able to park our car at the townhouse and use the Metro for getting around. Awesome trip!

 

[Eureka]

I keep reading posts about how much people love going to DC. We have lived in MD for 6 years and I avoid DC like the plague! I remember going to DC in college, out to come restaurants, some museums, monuments etc. My husband thinks we should take the girls (7 and 9) to DC but I think it will be too boring. Our 7 year old does not have the best attention span. What do you all think?

We live in MD too and have been taking the kids into the city for years. When they were 7 and 9 they liked Air and Space and Natural History but weren't crazy about the monuments. But if you do it on a nice day with breaks on the Mall, it could work well for you. Bring a picnic lunch. My kids loved the merry go round until they were about 8 too, so that's a nice break too.

Meant to add that when they were younger, taking the Metro was half the fun for them, so we rarely drove in. Now they are over that (lol) and we drive.

 

[bdcp]

We've lived in NO VA for 18 years and for 10 years before that in MD with our kids. DH and I grew up in MD too. My parents and DH's parents took us downtown all the the time and DH and I took our kids a lot. I was driving in DC by the time I was 17 and it doesn't bother me in the least. The boys favorite museum was Air and Space. We have been in almost every museum and monument as well as other buildings in the city over the years as well as the zoo many times. We have pics of our boys in the museums when they were babies. They are now grown and occasionally go downtown themselves. Oldest DS (30) goes a couple of times a year by himself to play tourist. Youngest DS (27) and DDIL used to go for concerts, museums, etc when they were dating before they got married and moved south. DH and I keep saying we need to go play tourist on a nice Saturday soon. We also live about 8 miles from the Udvar Hazy Air and Space museum near Dulles and have been there several times.

I've also been on many school field trips as a chaperone to the city too.

 

[Rose23]

If you start with the Air & Space Museum with the kids, you'll have them captured for the entire trip to see what is next. The Natural History one is just as fun with the dinosaurs.

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[natenapril]

If you start with the Air & Space Museum with the kids, you'll have them captured for the entire trip to see what is next. The Natural History one is just as fun with the dinosaurs.

Have a wonderful trip!

I recently read an article about the Dinosaur exhibit being closed starting in April for renovations. And it's going to be closed for quite awhile.
We are a Air Force family briefly stationed here and do enjoy going to the museums.