Traveling to Washington DC This Summer

http://www.weta.org/local/attractions

Here are around 100 placed to visit around DC. You can even watch a short video about it. I hope you have fun here and bring good walking shoes and lots of water to drink. August is a hot and humid month here. Have Fun !!!!

We've been a couple of times for conferences and extended our stay for some enjoyment.

I agree seeing everything in the day is great but the monuments at night are beautiful.

At one conference, we were off the beaten path for the tourist sections so while hubby was in meetings, daughter and I got on the metro and went in to the city to see sights. Our hotel was not far from the Zoo and we LOVED the zoo. We walked from our hotel, probably 2-3 miles but we are walkers and don't mind the exercise. My daughter still talks about riding the Metro and the huge tall escalators that took us underground.

Enjoy and wear good walking shoes!

The Philips Gallery is a must see if you like art museums. It's not part of the Smithsonian, so it's not free, but well worth the price of admission if you love art.

By the way... this may sound like a "duh", but the Smithsonian is not just one museum. Before I went to DC for the first time, I thought it was one enormous museum... But it's actually lots and lots of different museums within several blocks of eachother. Try and get some info online if you can so you can get an idea of which ones your family is most interested in seeing in case you can't get to them all. For example, the Air and Space is awesome for most kids, though not if your kids aren't interested in that sort of thing. And there are several art museums (like the National Gallery, which has artists you may recognize) and the Hirschhorn (which is my absolute favorite!) and there are museums dedicated to history or specific cultures. My husband loves the Native American Museum but I got easily bored there, so it's a matter of preference. Union Station is cool-- it's a ridiculously huge train station. All of the monuments are awesome--plan to do a lot of walking!

My husband & I went last summer. My favorites were the Holocaust museum & Mt. Vernon. Lots to do. I would plan out which smithsonians you want to see before going. Tour the Capital building. You need tickets in advance. We didn't get to go to the National Cathedral although I have been there before. Stay close to the metro/subway & use it for transportation. Parking can be extremely difficult. As someone else said take a confortable pair of tennis shoes. Maybe even 2 pair. You will be doing A LOT of walking. Give yourself time to relax. You could spend weeks in DC & not see everything. DC is one of my favorite places to visit. Enjoy!

You might want to arrange ahead to get tickets to the Marine Corps Sunset & Evening parade. By the Silent Drill Team. It's at the Washington marine Corps barracks and it really IS something to see!

I was lucky to have grown-up in the DC area and still have family there.

You could spend the entire 5 days going to the Smithsonian Museums. You will probably need to determine in advance which you really want to visit and which would be "nice" to see.

If you have kids, I'd not recommend the Holocaust Museum, but I would definitely recommend it for adults. I'd also recommend seeing all the monuments: Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Vietnam and Korean Memorials, Iwo Jima, etc.

I'd visit Arlington Cemetery and the Custis-Lee Mansion, Mount Vernon, and Sully Plantation.

The new Air and Space Museum at Dulles Airport is amazing!!!!

I'd also recommend taking a walk in Old Towne Alexandria - it's very romantic and has lots of shops/stores kids would like.

If you're staying at a hotel, ask the Concierge what are the "must see" places. The Spy Museum is supposed to be really cool - though we've never been (as well as the Newseum).

You can also take a trip to Manassas Battle Field or even down to Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's home in Charlottesville). Another great place is the National Aquarium in Baltimore - worth the drive.

The DC area is SO rich in history, you won't be able to fit it all in. But, you'll have plenty to keep you occupied.

S.,
It is such a great place to visit! Every time I go I do the Monuments at Night tour. They are even more spectacular at night.
If you like walking, the Jackie Kennedy Walking Tour is great.
Have fun!
Victoria

S.,

I lived in D.C. the year I had my first son. I was not working so I had a TON of time to see all the sites. I LOVED IT!

Will you be traveling with kids? If so, what are their ages?

There is so much to see. Some things that I particularly enjoyed were the Library of Congress, the Renwick Gallery (an Art's and Craft Museum). Of course all the Smithsonian's are amazing. The newer Native American Indian museum is great. You can really taylor your visit to meet your interests since all the museums are amazing. Art, history, science - you pick.

Some of the most popular sites have timed entries. Arrive there in the morning, get your entrance ticket (usually free) and then come back during your time slot to get in. It saves on waiting in line. I think that the Archives can be like that on busy days, and when I lived there some of the busier museums had that as well.

There are also great neighborhoods to walk if you are interested in the history or architecture. Georgetown is super fun, and has an interesting historic canal (which I believe you can take a ride down - I never did). There are also boat tours that leave from Georgetown and take you down the river.

I lived near Dupont Circle, which is where all the embassy's are, which are interesting as well.

I also agree, that a walking tour of the monuments at night is great! I walked down there regularly with my husband and we always felt very safe after dark. Especially if you are right around the main ones between the WWII and Lincoln Memorial.

The Smithsonian Zoo is also fun for kids - they have elephants, pandas, and other unique animals you don't often see at smaller zoos.

Send me a message if you want more info.

If you have specific questions, let me know. I could probably answer or make recommendations.

** One more thing - D.C. can be REALLY HOT and HUMID in the summer. Keep the climate in mind when planning your days. Plan to see museums during the hottest parts of the day. If you think you want to spend time walking in Georgetown, I wouldn't go during the afternoon, rather plan it for the a.m. or for evening - it's a great place to get dinner.

Jessica

We loved walking across the bridge and going into Arlington National Cemetary. Try to time it so that you are there during the changing of the guards...that was very moving to see. Not sure if you are going with kids or not, but my husband and I just hoped on the subway and hopped off and different stops to walk around.

I'm sure I am in the minority here, but I was not impressed by the Smithsonian. There are multiple buildings and it was pretty overwhelming. We enjoyed the Holocaust museum. Even if you don't get a tour of the white house, the museum next to it was really cool.

We had a blast in DC. Have a great trip!

The Air and Space annex (Udvar Hazy center) out on route 28 near Dulles Airport is nice. Also the National Cathedral and Bishops Garden are beautiful, too (I LOVE all the gorgeous stained glass windows) and they are not too far from the zoo.