[memason]

We are traveling to Washington D.C. to take in the sights, this summer. Since lots of you worked and lived in the D.C. area, I'm hoping you can give me some recommendations on where to stay. We would prefer to use the Metro to get into/around the city.

Thanks, in advance, for your help!

[JourneyOfLife]

The last time we went (15 years ago), we stayed at the Lowes L'Enfant Plaza hotel. Very nice hotel, a little pricey, but super convenient! Same street as the aerospace museum.

We could walk to many sights. L'Enfant Plaza has a small indoor shopping center near the hotel with an undeground metro station.

The only problem... it is the hotel and plaza are under renovation and won't reopen till 2015.


IMO, it is worth a little more money to stay right in the city at a major hotel near the sights, rather than deal with a daily commute!


If we were going, I would get some hotel quotes from Kayak.com and read some reviews on tripadvisor to help narrow down my choices.

For travel guides.... I found "The Unofficial Guide to Washington, D.C." to be a great book with a lot of information about how to make effective use of time, what needs to be pre-arranged (tickets), what sights might appeal to what age group, etc. I looked at the other major travel books at the time too. But IMO, it was the best... hands down! But, that was 15 years ago... so YMMV. The new 12th Edition edition will be available on May 6, 2014 according to Amazon. It is not very expensive.

You can probably find the 2011 version of the book at your library.

[Ohiogirl]

Just a suggestion. 2 years ago we took a train from Cary, NC (where my daughter lives) to D.C. (actually Alexandria, but there is also Union Station in downtown DC as an option. It was about a 6-7 hour trip from about 10:30 am to about 5:30 pm. We found it a delightful way to travel and very inexpensive if you get your tickets in advance. The Cary Station is safe to leave your car, IMO. There are probably stations further south from which to depart as well.

A few weeks ago, I took a different train from Deland, FL to Charleston, SC. It continued on to D.C. overnight. Would have been a long trip without a roomette booking, which I think is expensive.

We then took a free trolley up King St from the train/metro station in Alexandria and walked to our hotel, but would also have been a short taxi ride if you have more luggage. We travel light.

We did not want or need a car in DC. For us (being from Ohio), train travel is kind of fun. We enjoyed the roomy seats and brought our own small, collapsible cooler with a good lunch instead of purchasing/eating bad (again, MO) food on the train. There was only a snack bar on the train we took to DC.

If you don't have friends/relatives to meet up with on the way, like we did, you could extend your trip a day or two and see something interesting on your way to NC. Raleigh itself is well worth a visit if you have never been there. Nice walkable downtown with a free trolley loop, oldest working statehouse and other historical sights.

[Golfingnut]

National Mall Walking Tour, Washington, D.C. Map

DC Metro Map - D.C. Transit Guide

Study away. The farther out you stay the less expensive for hotels with similar amenities.

[memason]

Thanks for the suggestions....

[Irishmen]

No use taking water or the like as you'll be asked to throw them away at the entrance to most buildings. At the Senate, we had packed water snacks and such and wasn't allowed to bring any in. We lost it all. If you go when congress is out of session, you'll have better luck finding accommodations closer to DC.

[Sable99]

I worked in DC for 26 years. DC is a beautiful city.

Traffic is always better in the summer. More so, because the colleges are out than Congress. To name a few: Georgetown University, GW University, Catholic University, Galludet University and Howard University.

My suggestion would be to stay in Virginia and take the Metro (train) into town. Crystal City, Pentagon City and Old Town Alexandria are right across the river and are an easy ride. You only have to take an elevator ride down in some of those hotels to get on the Metro! There are many stops in DC. Union Station and Capitol South are near Capitol Hill. The Metro is wonderful: its clean, safe and runs about every 10-15 minutes. Its not as frequent during off-peak hours or very late at night.

One of the easiest way to see the city is the blue Tourmobile. I can't remember the name of it. You get off at a stop and stay as long as you want and get a another bus to go to the next stop They even go out to Arlington Cemetery and Mt. Vernon. Mount Vernon is about 20 miles from DC. It is beautiful and right on the Potomac River. Some of the more uncommon places to visit are: National Cathedral, the National Zoo and the Kennedy Center. The new Pentagon Memorial for 911 is beautiful and worth a visit

Almost everything else is right in the Mall area: The Smithsonian, Union Station is beautiful and has a Mall in it, Library of Congress, National Archives to name a few.

Make sure you contact your Member of Congress as they can get you in the Senate and House galleries and make arrangements for a Capitol tour. I'm not sure if they started giving White House tours again. They stoppped them after 911

Remember that almost everyhere you go you will get your bags checked! Somethings they may keep until you are ready to leave; i.e., usually a camera.

Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. I could go on and on about DC!

[Sable99]

I forgot one thing. I always check out hotels on tripadvisor.com. They have never let me down.

[Irishmen]

Originally Posted by Sable99

I worked in DC for 26 years. DC is a beautiful city.

Traffic is always better in the summer. More so, because the colleges are out than Congress. To name a few: Georgetown University, GW University, Catholic University, Galludet University and Howard University.

My suggestion would be to stay in Virginia and take the Metro (train) into town. Crystal City, Pentagon City and Old Town Alexandria are right across the river and are an easy ride. You only have to take an elevator ride down in some of those hotels to get on the Metro! There are many stops in DC. Union Station and Capitol South are near Capitol Hill. The Metro is wonderful: its clean, safe and runs about every 10-15 minutes. Its not as frequent during off-peak hours or very late at night.

One of the easiest way to see the city is the blue Tourmobile. I can't remember the name of it. You get off at a stop and stay as long as you want and get a another bus to go to the next stop They even go out to Arlington Cemetery and Mt. Vernon. Mount Vernon is about 20 miles from DC. It is beautiful and right on the Potomac River. Some of the more uncommon places to visit are: National Cathedral, the National Zoo and the Kennedy Center. The new Pentagon Memorial for 911 is beautiful and worth a visit

Almost everything else is right in the Mall area: The Smithsonian, Union Station is beautiful and has a Mall in it, Library of Congress, National Archives to name a few.

Make sure you contact your Member of Congress as they can get you in the Senate and House galleries and make arrangements for a Capitol tour. I'm not sure if they started giving White House tours again. They stoppped them after 911

Remember that almost everyhere you go you will get your bags checked! Somethings they may keep until you are ready to leave; i.e., usually a camera.

Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. I could go on and on about DC!

The White House Tours were stopped after the Obama approved sequester. Until last Nov 5th, Only friends of Obama were allowed in but they have a limited schedule now.

[FLSun]

Carry an empty water bottle. Refill and drink. There is a McDonald's in Air and Space. There is a suite style hotel across from the Alexandria (Duke) metro station. Walk to Whole Foods and restaurants. Include George Washington Masonic Temple and Patent and Trademark Museum (walkable).

[Whalen]

Originally Posted by Irishmen

The White House Tours were stopped after the Obama approved sequester. Until last Nov 5th, Only friends of Obama were allowed in but they have a limited schedule now.

The White House is still open.

Tours & Events | The White House

We're also planning a trip.
Thanks to Sable and everyone else who gave such great advice.

[Sable99]

How could l forget the Memorials! Lincoln, Washington Monument, Korean, Viet Nam, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King. The Roosevelt Memorial is huge!! And, of course, the World War II Memorial. In my opinion, the World War II Memorial should be seen both in the day time and again at night! It is beautiful at night! My former boss had a lot to do with the World War II Memorial and was particularly concerned about having enough handicapped parking!

I haven't done this for years so I'm not sure they still do this or not. But, used to love to go to the Washington Monument at night. The city was beautiful from the top.

The Holocaust Museum is very good but dark and depressing. Its a lot of reading. You used to have to get reserved tickets. I think I paid $8 for each ticket. You din't have to pay but that way you had reserved reservations and were assured to get in.

The Bureau of Printing and Engraving is about two doors from the Holocaust Museum. You can watch our money being printed.

Ford's Theater. Where Lincoln was shot and the house across the street where he died. Free but you need a ticket. You can still go to the theater there but you pay for it. I went to a show once and it was pretty amazing to sit there and think of the history behind the theater.

Arlington Cemetery. The Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial, is in Arlington Cemetery. Its on a hill so you can take beautiful pictures of Washington, DC below you on a great day.

I retired in 2005 so I'm going from memory. This is some of the information I had for my house guests over the years.

Don't forget almost everything in DC is free to visit. Mount Vernon and the Tourmobile is about the only thing you have to pay for.

[Ohiogirl]

and there is lots to see right there as well, and also wonderful restaurants, many with outside venues in nice weather. We were there slightly before the spring tourist season - I think it must have been in March, and not all of the water ferries were running yet, or maybe we just didn't have time, can't remember, but I think you can also take a ferry from Alexandria over to Mt. Vernon - but could be wrong on this one.

There were also water taxis. Google this stuff or look on Trip Advisor.

We did a paid walking tour of Alexandria one day that left from the visitor center. Also walked down to the waterfront (Potomac) and happened to see the space shuttle being flown up (or down) the river to Dulles prior to being installed in the new building that I think is part of the Smithsonian Air and Space museum. How cool was that? Just followed a bunch of people walking out of their convention meetings at lunchtime and asked what was going on. We tend to be a little out of the loop when we are traveling .

D.C. has so much to offer that a trip every 3-4 years there, and probably staying in different places, is a great idea. Just seeing that beautiful city gives a great feeling of national pride. What a showplace.

[Richard1366]

Chances are you will visit the Vietnam memorial, do yourself a favor and walk across Constitution avenue and look at the Albert Einstein memorial, fantastic. Remember, the Smithsonian is not just one building it's lots of buildings Air and Space and American History are the most popular. You can stay in Arlington or anywhere the Metro runs, it's the best way to travel around. Plenty of great restaurants in DC, look on line at the food section of the Washington Post to see reviews. Don't know how long you will be there, but if there is any way to get out to the Dulles Airport area to see the Udvar Hazy Air and Space museum, go; they have a space shuttle and SR-71 an SST the Enola Gay and lots more. Honestly the tours through Congress are rather boring. On the mall, best food is in the Indian Museum. Enjoy