Used some DVC points to go to Washington DC

[billybobblockhead]

Hadn't seen a topic like this posted anywhere on the first 4 or 5 pages, so I wanted to give everyone a heads up on a trip that our family took over July 4. The wife and I had been wanting to go to Washington DC for some time, and our ownership in the DVC really allowed us to do that. The DC hotel that we stayed in was the Mandarin Oriental and man was it nice. If you price it on the web, you will be lucky to find a room less that $300/night and there are several that go into the thousands per night. I dreaded the drive from NC, but it was fairly simple, especially since we didn't go up the parking lot known as I-95. We chose to come through the Shannendoa (sp??) valley in Virginia and we didn't have any traffic problems whatsoever until we got within 5 miles of the hotel. This, according to many who have traveled to DC many times, was excellent as the traffic can be terrible during the afternoon rush hour(s). Our room looked right out over the Patomic River toward Reagan National airport. The hotel is 3 blocks from the Mall and 2 blocks from the Smithsonian subway station, which will take you just about anywhere you want to go within the city. If your drive is too far and you have to fly, there is a subway station at Reagan National that will deliver you to the Smithsonian station. Or, if it's raining and you don't want to make the 3 block walk, you can take a cab that is relatively inexpensive.

Now, you did have to pay a $95 charge for them to do the search, but if you are planning to stay 3, 4, or 5 nights, the $95 is a drop in the bucket considering the nightly price of the hotel. Hope that many of you will take advantage of this, because the hotel really is in a great location that makes it easy to get around the city to see any of the sights that you would want to see.

 

[christa112]

That is good to hear. Our kids our getting older and we thinking they would really love to see DC in the future years, and actually so would I, it has been close to 20 yrs since I have been.

How far ahead did you need to book ressies? I have heard mixed reviews on the DIS about not being able to get ressies.

Hadn't seen a topic like this posted anywhere on the first 4 or 5 pages, so I wanted to give everyone a heads up on a trip that our family took over July 4. The wife and I had been wanting to go to Washington DC for some time, and our ownership in the DVC really allowed us to do that. The DC hotel that we stayed in was the Mandarin Oriental and man was it nice. If you price it on the web, you will be lucky to find a room less that $300/night and there are several that go into the thousands per night. I dreaded the drive from NC, but it was fairly simple, especially since we didn't go up the parking lot known as I-95. We chose to come through the Shannendoa (sp??) valley in Virginia and we didn't have any traffic problems whatsoever until we got within 5 miles of the hotel. This, according to many who have traveled to DC many times, was excellent as the traffic can be terrible during the afternoon rush hour(s). Our room looked right out over the Patomic River toward Reagan National airport. The hotel is 3 blocks from the Mall and 2 blocks from the Smithsonian subway station, which will take you just about anywhere you want to go within the city. If your drive is too far and you have to fly, there is a subway station at Reagan National that will deliver you to the Smithsonian station. Or, if it's raining and you don't want to make the 3 block walk, you can take a cab that is relatively inexpensive.

Now, you did have to pay a $95 charge for them to do the search, but if you are planning to stay 3, 4, or 5 nights, the $95 is a drop in the bucket considering the nightly price of the hotel. Hope that many of you will take advantage of this, because the hotel really is in a great location that makes it easy to get around the city to see any of the sights that you would want to see.

 

[Yankee fan]

We tried to book at the last minute for the Mandarin for July 4th and couldn't get a room.

I am dying to see the fireworks in DC and am planning on doing it next year.

How far in advance did you book?
What size room did you stay in?
How were the crowds?
How were the fireworks?
Is there dining options there or do you need to go out?

Send details, I am so looking forward to doing this next year.

Thanks!

 

[rigsby25]

Thank you so much for posting. We are getting tired of WDW and would like to use our points elsewhere. But we really don't know how to go about doing this.

 

[magicaldisney]

We have also been considering going to Washington D.C.

If you don't mind me asking....size of room? length of stay? number of points?

Thanks for posting!! This is such a great way to get answers!!

 

[dlander]

So glad you posted! We are thinking of going to DC in April 2010 and wondered how the Mandarin was. We have used our DVC at many different locations and have been pleased with all of them. Thank you for being clear about the location and subway stations available

 

[gramjulie3]

Was very excited to see your post, we are looking at Wash DC for 4th of July week of 2011. We decided that since our kids will be high school and middle school it would be a great time to do Wash DC, New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Gettysburg. They both like history and since we live on the Oregon Coast we have never been back there. Any info on what you did, the room and how the actual 4th was would sure be appreciated. Thanks so much

 

[5forDiz]

We travelled to DC second week of July and had considered using points for Mandarin Oriental but decided to save them for trip to HHI or WDW later in year.

But I researched extensively hotels appearing on bidding for travel dot com and bid 3.5 star level on priceline for Convention Center/Capitol Hill area
( have bid priceline before in other places and would never bid below 3.5 star level because hotel quality starts to get ~dicey~ ). We got Marriott Metro Center at G & 12th Street which was what I was hoping for at $65 per night, think it came to $83 with tax/fees - - it was EXCELLENT and well located and was well over $300 per night on other travel sites ( hotels dot com, expedia etc ) - - interestingly it is closer to White House than Capitol.

Part of the purpose of our trip was our girls were going to Jonas Brothers concert at Verizon Center - this hotel was easy walk to it and many other attractions - theatre where Lincoln was shot, house where Lincoln died, Spy Museum is closest but it's only approx 6 block walk to Mall and the Smithsonian Museums located there (closest was Natural History). Valet parking was $40 per day typical DC price ! but they offered unlimted in and out privileges and we were allowed to leave the car there until 5pm on our check-out day which was a plus as we did alot of sight-seeing that day too. For the most part we walked everywhere and right outside the hotel was the Metro Center stop but we didn't use it at all because walking was not a problem.

Lincoln Diner, Harry's at Hotel Harrington ( great burgers & grill/pub style eats - reasonable ) is open until 1 AM if you need a bite late and has nice sidewalk cafe style seating & also a good number of other places to dine are in immediate couple block walk of hotel and the Marriott itself has Starbucks in lobby and a restaurant - didn't eat there but the prices didn't look too outrageous.

 

[ToddyLu]

We went to DC in May 2008 for 5 nights. My MIL booked 2 rooms about 5 or 6 blocks up from the White House. She paid $400 a night for both---but she wanted a nice room in the heart of everything. We got that and it was great. Steven Speilburg walked through the restuarant into a private area with a hotel escort. He had an actor with him that my hubby says he has seen in military type movies....so that was exciting. We left just before Memorial Day and I must say if you go that is a great time. We visited Arlingtom and the soldiers were dressed in fatigues placing the flags at each tombstone--hundreds of soldiers and thousands of flags.

We ate at Legal Seafood twice and it was DIVINE! We also ate at Todd English's Olives twice..also very good and very close within 3 blocks of the White House. Do not miss the National Conservatory located right outside the capital building. It was wonderful and the gem of our trip. We didn't really know about it and stumbled onto it. Beautiful orchids and other flowers.

DH and BIL (fireman and engineer) both really liked the flowers and took hundreds of photos. Oh.....and when you look from the National Monument to the Mall and Lincoln Memorial and think "it is just over there, not a bad walk"....take my advise and get a cab. Why did I listen to my DH??

 

[rentayenta]

This is great! DH and I were talking about taking the kids to DC in the next 2 years!!!

 

[billybobblockhead]

We booked about 4 months in advance an had no problem whatsoever in getting a room.
The room that we had contained 2 queen beds that had awsome matresses on them. If I were guessing, it was that good memory foam stuff because when I got up early in the mornings to go run, the bed didn't move at all and wake up my wife. Bathroom was HUGE, with separate whirlpool tub and shower. The towels were the best quality and about 5 feet long; actually, they were the best towels I've ever used in a hotel. They did have a desk and free wireless in the room, but we were computerless this trip so it didn't matter.

We stayed for 4 nights and it cost 148 points (Thurs., Fri., Sat., & Sun. nights). I think that there is a "better view" room for more points, but we really liked the view from our place. Like I said earlier, looking at Reagan airport (which was great for our son b/c he got to watch the planes take off and land). We also overlooked the harbor, and the noise from the airport, harbor, and roads was minimal.

Naturally, it was crowded, especially on the 4th. But to be honest, it wasn't as crowded as I was expecting it to be.

Food was the kicker, at least for me. They do have a restaurant on site, but it naturally is expensive and we didn't go in it. We went across the street to Starbucks and had breakfast (coffee, bagles, juice, muffins) for about 13-15 bucks for a family of 4. There is a McDonalds a couple of blocks over (L'Enfant Plaza), but the hours are really wierd (something like 10-6.....). There are more dining options in all of the Smithsonian museums, and to be honest the options there really remind me of a Disney food court. You do have more options as you venture more in to town and closer to the White House, which we did only once.

Fireworks were awesome. You have to understand that I am from a very small town in NC and our fireworks on July 4th are 1 at a time and last for about 30 minutes. The DC fireworks are intense from the start. They only last about 15-20 minutes, but man...... You really can't compare them to the Disney fireworks, though, simply because the Disney firewords are a HUGE production, while the DC fireworks are fireworks only with about 6 to 7 in the air at all times. I will say that we were about 50 yards from the Washington Monument during the fireworks, and I can honestly say that being in the Nation's capitol on the 4th, at the Monument, watching fireworks, was a really cool experience.

Parking does suck at $40/day, but since we were travelling in a party of 7 in one van (ours!!!), the folks not staying at the Mandarin took the van with them to their hotel where it only cost $20/day, so I can't speak to the in/out priviledges at the Mandarin.

I would do this trip again, easily. There is so much to see and the 4 nights/5 days we were there weren't nearly enough. We didn't get to the spy museum, the Ford Theater, or the old Post Office, all of which were on our list. Nor did we get to the majority of the Smithsonian places. But it sure was a cool trip.

Hope some of this helps.

 

[christa112]

Thanks for all the info. I can't believe you got a room 4 months out, that is awesome. I will be definately be looking into this within the next few yrs. I can just imagine what the fire works were like in DC that would be incredible to see. Any idea if the room could hold 5 people? We are a family of 5 so we may need a bigger room or cot if they would allow one.

We booked about 4 months in advance an had no problem whatsoever in getting a room.
The room that we had contained 2 queen beds that had awsome matresses on them. If I were guessing, it was that good memory foam stuff because when I got up early in the mornings to go run, the bed didn't move at all and wake up my wife. Bathroom was HUGE, with separate whirlpool tub and shower. The towels were the best quality and about 5 feet long; actually, they were the best towels I've ever used in a hotel. They did have a desk and free wireless in the room, but we were computerless this trip so it didn't matter.

We stayed for 4 nights and it cost 148 points (Thurs., Fri., Sat., & Sun. nights). I think that there is a "better view" room for more points, but we really liked the view from our place. Like I said earlier, looking at Reagan airport (which was great for our son b/c he got to watch the planes take off and land). We also overlooked the harbor, and the noise from the airport, harbor, and roads was minimal.

Naturally, it was crowded, especially on the 4th. But to be honest, it wasn't as crowded as I was expecting it to be.

Food was the kicker, at least for me. They do have a restaurant on site, but it naturally is expensive and we didn't go in it. We went across the street to Starbucks and had breakfast (coffee, bagles, juice, muffins) for about 13-15 bucks for a family of 4. There is a McDonalds a couple of blocks over (L'Enfant Plaza), but the hours are really wierd (something like 10-6.....). There are more dining options in all of the Smithsonian museums, and to be honest the options there really remind me of a Disney food court. You do have more options as you venture more in to town and closer to the White House, which we did only once.

Fireworks were awesome. You have to understand that I am from a very small town in NC and our fireworks on July 4th are 1 at a time and last for about 30 minutes. The DC fireworks are intense from the start. They only last about 15-20 minutes, but man...... You really can't compare them to the Disney fireworks, though, simply because the Disney firewords are a HUGE production, while the DC fireworks are fireworks only with about 6 to 7 in the air at all times. I will say that we were about 50 yards from the Washington Monument during the fireworks, and I can honestly say that being in the Nation's capitol on the 4th, at the Monument, watching fireworks, was a really cool experience.

Parking does suck at $40/day, but since we were travelling in a party of 7 in one van (ours!!!), the folks not staying at the Mandarin took the van with them to their hotel where it only cost $20/day, so I can't speak to the in/out priviledges at the Mandarin.

I would do this trip again, easily. There is so much to see and the 4 nights/5 days we were there weren't nearly enough. We didn't get to the spy museum, the Ford Theater, or the old Post Office, all of which were on our list. Nor did we get to the majority of the Smithsonian places. But it sure was a cool trip.

Hope some of this helps.

 

[PattiPB]

We just returned from a drive from FL to Williamsburg then DC then Daytona, back to Tampa. I couldn't use points in VA or DC (no availability), but used my other timeshare in Daytona (Wyndham Ocean Walk---AWESOME!!). My problem is always having five people in the fam---makes it hard to Priceline or stay in standard hotels.

In DC, I booked the Capitol Hill Suites through AAA. It was on C & 2nd street across from the Library of Congress. It's in a residential neighborhood (2 blocks from Metro Capitol South), and is a refurbished former apartment building. We had a deluxe studio with 2 queens, sofabed, full kitchen and dining room. It was absolutely awesome---especially when you add in the price of $91 per night in mid-July! They also didn't charge me the $30 per night parking fee that advertised.

Highly recommend this place if you are heading to DC and don't want to (or can't) use points.

 

[cindy_k]

My son and I stayed at the Manderian Oriental on points about 5 years ago.

For convience to all the Mall, Musuems and Monuments, the hotel is in an awesome location. My room even looked over the Tidal Basin.

We went for the Cherry Blossom festival, but it was a cold spring so no blossoms.

The food as the original poster mentioned is the biggest issue.
The hotel restaurant is rather expensive. We ate mainly breakfast there.
Lunch we would eat at a Smithonian Museum, and dinner we would take the subway over to Union Station which has a normal mall in it with a food court.

I left my car parked in the hotel garage for the entire stay.

The hotel has an Indoor pool, which was great in the evenings after a day of walking around DC. Lots of walking... and don't expect to see it all.
You have to walk through the lovely spa to get there.

The hotel is very upscale and lovely.

 

[vakamalua]

We live near DC and am so happy to hear you had a good time in our "hometown" where most of the major sites are free and the public transportation is great. The Mandarin Oriental is a lovely, posh hotel in a great location. You WILL walk your legs off so it's important to have a great hotel to relax in, especially if you're here in the summer (typical forecast: 3 Hs--Hazy, Hot and Humid).

There is so much to see and do in DC. Do some research on the best kid friendly places and they will love it and learn a lot.

As for less expensive food, you can go by car or subway (but not in rush hour) into the close-in Virginia suburbs for lots of fast food and chain restaurants or up Connecticut Avenue to the Dupont Circle, Woodley Park (near the zoo) or Cleveland Park area for small interesting restaurants. Getting out of the museum/monument area gives you a taste of the real DC.

 

[toniosmom]

Thanks for your posting. I have been wanting to go back to DC for many years now. Being in NJ, it isn't too far -- plane not needed -- I like the train. When my son gets a bit older and starts learning about history in school, I would love to take him there. Thank you for posting about your DVC trade.

 

[musical2]

I live in Maryland, but work only about a 10 minute walk from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. It is a great location, but restaurants aren't that plentiful in that particular area. There is a Phillips Seafood restaurant on the waterfront which is only a 10 minute walk from the hotel. You can also get freshly made seafood dishes from the seafood market down on Water Street near the Phillips that you can bring back to your room or eat outside if it is nice out. There is also a Jenny's Asian Fusion restaurant between the Phillips and the seafood market. Or you can take the metro over to the Verizon Center/Chinatown area (Gallery Place/Chinatown metro stop). The red, yellow, and green lines all converge there. There are quite a few good restaurants over there of all types.

 

[Snow Shoe]

Thanks for a great trip report. My wife and I have toyed with the idea of doing a DC trip and staying at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. This convinces me now, that sometime in 2001 we'll make that trip ourselves.