TOTALLY OT: Washington D.C.

[stitchlover]

We are considering a trip to Washington D.C. this summer but we know nothing about the area. Can any of you here help me out with suggestions of areas to stay in and which areas to avoid? DH and I would have to get out there with my 13 year old daughter and being staying in an unsafe area.

Also...rental car or no?

Any information that anyone can share with us would be really appreciated.

TIA!

 

[mrzrich]

Its hard to find parking in DC. There are bus companies with hop on- hop off service that stop at most of the famous DC sights. I reccomend finding a hotel on a tour bus pick up route, then using this type of service.


This is the site for DC tours. I know there are some other companies too.
http://www.dctours.us/tours/tourDetail.cfm?tour_id=8827

The price listed on that site is good for 2 consecutive days of touring.

Also the DC metro line is also a very good alternative. Try to find a hotel near a station.

 

[WLfan]

Georgetown is a fun place to walk around ... stores and restaurants, but there is no metro there to travel elsewhere. You'll need a car. Many hotels have parking (like the Holiday Inn Georgetown which is a little removed from the main part of Georgetown though), but you sometimes have to pay a nightly fee. I went to school there and have been back many times to visit. I've stayed at the Mandarin Oriental which is right next to the mall (where all the museums and monuments are), but it is VERY VERY expensive. If you stay in Woodley Park on Connecticut Avenue, you are right next to the zoo (which is free) and the Metro is also right there. You will have to ride the Metro (subway) to get down to where the museums are. Dupont Circle also has lots of shops and restaurants and also a metro stop.

NW DC is the nicest of the four sections. Of course, if you are right on the mall (where the four quadrants meet) the NW, NE, SW, SE doesn't really matter.

The metro is easy to figure out and safe to ride. It's the cleanest subway I've been on.

If you have a car, take a ride to Old Town Alexandria. It has beautiful cobble stone streets, a marina, shops, restaurants, and gas street lamps. Very pretty. Also if you have a car, a great place to get brunch is the Carlisle in Virginia right outside DC. They have really, really good food.

Make sure you see main museums (Air & Space, American History, Natural History). The Holocaust Museum is incredible, it's presented so well, it is very, very, very moving. The WWII memorial is relatively new and very nice and don't forget the FDR memorial which is often overlooked, but one of my favorites.

I usually stay with friends when I go, but when we want to play tourist we will sometimes go and stay in a hotel. Like I said we stayed at the Mandarin once which was incredible, but a one time thing because of the price. Generally, we stay in Georgetown, but we drive to DC so having a car helps. If you can find an affordable hotel right on the mall, stay there. Otherwise, try those other areas I suggested on the Metro line if you don't plan on renting a car.

Have fun! If you have any questions, I'd be glad to try to answer them. PM me.

 

[Leigha]

There is an Unofficial Guide for D.C. like there is WDW. I found it helpful. We had a great trip using cars, boats, buses, planes and trains on our trip to D.C. There is certainly never a dull moment! I think you really have to do your research to decipher what you want to see and in what order to get it all in. Aren't you supposed to contact your state's senator to get passes etc. I think the sooner the better in that case. I think this would be a good time to use Priceline as well since you can pinpoint a certain area but maybe not a certain hotel you want. I like www.biddingfortravel to see what my priceline bid will likely go toward and the approximate price as well.

 

[jcb]

D.C. in summer can be every bit as hot as WDW in summer so be prepared - I have done both in the summer (which is why I now go to neither at that time).

I never get a car. The Metro system is first rate and very easy to use to get around to most places (I agree about Georgetown, however).

Also, if you go to marriott.com and put in promotional code C77 (I hope I'm allowed to tell you this) there are some fantastic rates for D.C. hotels (at least there were as of 1/29/09) and that is code is supposed to be good through the end of the year.

I took my DD when she was 14 and never felt we were in unsafe areas. I stuck to downtown, used the Metro extensively, did the National Cathedral, Capital, China Town, and the Museums on the Mall.

 

[WLfan]

I looked at the Marriott website for you. There is one on Pennsylvania Ave right near the mall, there is one at Metro Center which is the hub for the Metro. It is only one short stop away from the Smithsonian (Mall) stop. That might be a good location. There is also one in Georgetown. Some are Marriott Renaissance and some are Courtyards.

The summer is VERY hot and humid. You will be doing a good bit of walking on the mall to see the memorials and museums. It's a long walk from the Lincoln to the Capitol.

 

[mrzrich]

The summer is VERY hot and humid. You will be doing a good bit of walking on the mall to see the memorials and museums. It's a long walk from the Lincoln to the Capitol.

Which is why I liked the hop on, hop off bus. I got off at the Washington Monument, got back on, rode it down to the Lincoln, back on, over to Jefferson, etc.

This was the company I used. They had a lot of stops.

http://www.tourmobile.com/index.php

 

[chirurgeon]

The L'Enfant Plaza Hotel is right above a Metro stop. We stayed there in November 2007 for a weekend. It was a nice hotel. And very convenient with the Metro just below. And it is really easy to use the Metro, you can buy fare cards out of machines at the stop. I did like Georgetown, but like a pp said, there aren't any Metro stops there. I didn't do the driving, but the hotel did have valet parking. I don't remember what it cost.

Kim

 

[ms*mountaineer]

I don't know what kind of place you're looking for - but we have stayed at the Washington Hilton a couple of times - it's near Dupont Circle. (It's the same hotel where Pres Reagan was shot - that's not to deter you, it's just a point of interest). It's a few blocks walking from the hotel to the Dupont Circle Metro Station - there are restaurants (Italian, Thai, Greek, etc.) and shops all along those few blocks. We felt it was a nice section to be strolling around in - and the Metro can get you wherever you need to go.

The Metro in DC is very nice to use. It's absolutely the best way to get around.

 

[Renysmom]

You can stay in MD or VA for a lot less money, but you want a place on the metro line. You do NOT want to drive into DC, the traffic and parking are awful..I lived outside of DC my entire life (until 3 years ago) and I never drove to the city. Also, plan to come in early summer if you can.. You do not want to be in DC in August. It is miserably hot and humid.. No fun at all...

Don't miss the national zoo, it's a blast.

 

[pal-mickey]

My family went to DC last summer. I don't remember it being overly hot or humid, but we might have just lucked out. What i didn't realize until I started to do my research is that all the museums are free. We were on a limited budget and this really helped. The National Zoo was great and so was the Holocust Museum. We also visited the Air and Space Museum and Arlington Cemetery. There is alot to see. We were there for 4 days and it just was not enough time. I'd like to go back some day. We used the Metro one day and it was clean and easy to use. I also noticed that some museums had extended hours(instead of closing at 5pm they would be open until 7pm).

 

[rtobe]

Hotel Options:
In Maryland - Look for hotels walking distance to Metro in Silver Spring, Bethesda (find out how far exactly). There may be other places along the Red line of Metro but I'm not as familiar with Maryland.

In Virginia - Look in the following areas of Arlington - Rosslyn, Ballston, Crystal City (near National Airport - here not everything is walkable to Metro easily though). If you are arriving by plane to Dulles Airport - you want to stay closer to town.

In D.C. the DuPont Circle area has good dining options and some nightlife.

Washington DC is divided into four quadrants, NW, NE, SE, SW. Avoid SE and SW and NE with the exception of some hotels near Union Station which are in NE I think (but within 2 or 3 blocks of the Capitol) and L'Enfant Plaza. While these areas are not all bad, if you are too far away from Capitol and/or National Mall they can be suspect. I work in SE near the new baseball stadium. The area is changing a lot but I'm not sure I'd stay at the Marriott hotel near my office as a tourist.

Tour Options:
Tourmobile - you pay one fee get on/off all day. Good value for getting around. It goes to Arlington National Cemetary if you are interested. Also it pulls up close to some of the monuments so you can conserve your energy for walking around museums

Old Town Trolley - similar to Tourmobile

Metro - D.C.'s subway system had one day pass which may work out to be a better value than just putting money on farecard, you have to look at how much you are using it. I think the farecard may be better option but check the fares between stations.

Things to see /do
White House - check out what you need to do to get in, it may take advance planning

U.S. Capitol Bldg - just opened the visitor center. If you contact your representative/senator office they may be able to get you gallery passes to watch debate on the floor.

Smithsonian Museums - check website, just like Disney there are lots of places and you can spend a lot of time seeing things. The cool part is most of it is free. The major museums on the Mall are American Indian, National Art Galleries (several and one of the best food places is in National Gallery), American History, Natural History, Air and Space

Spy Museum - near Gallery Place Metro. Admission fee has interesting activities and exhibits.

Newseum - roughly at 6th and Pennsylvania. News reporting museum, very interactive

Holocaust Museum -

Bureau of Engraving and Printing - see money printed - this is a tour that is free but only weekdays. Check their website also for hours.

Depending on how much time you have - a car is helpful for going to Mt Vernon -George Washington's home but your hotel should be able to arrange a tour as well.

DC in August is hot and muggy more often but it can be hot in July too. If you are coming for July 4th the fireworks are great, it will be very crowded.

Baseball - if the Nationals are in town, stadium is very metro accessible and a nice place to watch a game but food at stadium is expensive.

 

[stitchlover]

Thank you all so much for your suggestions and information. I am a little concerned about the heat. We live in Texas I hate the idea of leaving the heat just to go to the heat. Our daughter mentioned Key West but I figure it has to be worse.
So I am still thinking D.C. At least there are all those buildings with A/C.

Let me know if you guys come up with any other ideas. Now could you plan my 20th anniversary trip in August?

 

[jcb]

Well,

Now that you asked for other ideas, I never miss National Cathedral, there are several different docent led tours or you can just wander around or you can arrange to have high tea on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Air and Space museum near Dulles is unreal. MK with wings, if you like those kind of toys.

If you do the Metro, Google Earth is great help in showing the station locations and what is around them. The Station Masters Guide (order from Amazon) is also helpful. It took me several time before I learned which "exit" to take out of each stop so I didn't end up walking a block or two more than necessary.

 

[bcvdreamer]

You have to do the DC by Foot walking tour...it was awesome and FREE! Ok, you do tip the guy, but it's the best kept secret in DC.

http://www.dcbyfoot.com/dcbyfoot.com.html

We did it last summer with 3 kids (14,11,8) and they all liked it. The guides are great.

The Spy Museum was great too.

 

[FireDancer]

I've been to DC many times and one of my friends live there. My recommendation would be to stay outside of DC near one of the metro stops. It is very inexpensive to get a day or week pass and ride the metro into DC. You can also get around very easily and you don't have to worry about parking, which is not only hard to find but expensive.

My recommendation is to stay in the Tyson's corners area which is in the Vienna, VA area, drive down to the Orange line (Vienna/Fairfax stop or Dunn-Loring depending on your hotel) and take the metro in.

Here is the website for the DC are Metro.

 

[HillPete]

We stayed at the Marriott Key Bridge last summer. It's in Rosslyn, VA and about 1 1/2 blocks from a Metro station. It was super easy to get around on the Metro and staying across the river cut the rates significantly. We also walked across the Key Bridge to 'M' Street in Georgetown and had zillions of choices for shopping/eating.

If you look on a map, it will seem like a lot of walking, but nothing near Disney walking! Be sure to hit Arlington Cemetary. We were down for DH's uncles' funeral and we spent quite a bit of time wandering thru Arlington after the service. It was much more interesting than it looks on TV. Try to watch the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknowns. I found the attention to detail fascinating (and they do it every half-hour!).

 

[crazytp93]

I highly reccomend the hotel: Liasion on Capitol Hill (an Affinia Hotel)
Its a beautiful completely remodeled hotel. We stayed their last April.
Its steps away from the Capitol building. It was great!