Planning Vac. in Wash. D.C.

[Denise]

I'm so excited about this trip! DH has a conference in DC in June and I'm going with him! I'll have three days on my own and three day with DH. I definately want to go to the National Portrait Gallery, the zoo and the Natural History Museum. Any nice gardens or sculpture exhibits I should see? Great kitchen stores, independent new/used bookstores?

And of course food!? I'm planning on going to Cowgirl Creamery, any great bakeries, chocolate shops, ice cream stores? Restaurant recs? DH and I tend to prefer interesting, mid-price type restaurants (pizza joints, noodle houses, taco stands) and DH loves seafood so that would be a good splurge.
TIA!

[Lucinda]

I just went to DC two weeks ago. I highly recommend the Museum of the American Indian and the Library of Congress.

The area around the National Mall is very strange-- because it is surrounded by enormous govt agencies, most of the restaurants directly adjacent to the Mall and the museums tend to be closed on the weekend and the restaurants at the museums tend to be PACKED.

I really liked the Dupont Circle area, lots of cool restaurants and boutiques. There was a darling little kitchenware shop (of course I didn't get a business card. :rolleyes: ) on the main northbound thoroughfare in that area. We didn't make it to Georgetown, but I hear it's very cool. We did spend an afternoon in Alexandria, it's just a Metro ride away from DC, very charming, lots of great shopping, with a fun little used bookstore on the main drag.

Enjoy!

[Robyn1007]

Kramer's Bookstore in Dupont Circle is basically an institution. I really like the American History Museum (and last time I was there they had Julia Child's kitchen, not sure if that is permanent or not), the FDR memorial is an absolute must, I won't ever go back without seeing it again and I lived there and saw it often for 2 1/2 years. Pizzeria Paradiso in Dupont is yummy. There are a number of threads here with advice, I'd do a search for washington, wash and dc to come up with most of them. Have fun!

[Minky]

My family was there two weeks ago for spring break, and we had a wonderful time. The American History Museum is closed until next year, but some of the artifacts are being shown at the Air & Space Museum (Awesome museum!). We did not get to the Portrait Gallery, but saw the National Gallery of Art, Museum of the American Indian (liked it alot, and had a yummy lunch there as well,) National Archives, National Zoo, Museum of Natural History, Int'l Spy Museum, Arlington Cemetery, Ford's Theater. We also did the Tourmobile tour, which drops off/picks up at all the monuments/memorials, making it easier to see them all within a reasonable amount of time. $20 per person per day, but they sell 2-day tickets for $25, which would get you to most of the museums/monuments quicker than walking or the Metro. I wanted to get to Alexandria, but we ran out of time!

We called one of our Senators a month or so ahead, and got scheduled for a White House tour (cancelled, no big deal) and a Capitol tour (kids thought it was great, so-so for me.)

Stayed in the Dupont Circle area, with easy Metro access and lots of shops and restaurants nearby. As far as affordable dining, definitely try Pizzaria Paradiso - we ate there twice! Also enjoyed Moby Dick's - a Middle Eastern place recommended by KathyB here on the CLBB. My kids (teenage boys) loved the sandwiches and banana shakes at Potbelly Sandwich works:)

Enjoy your trip!


Sheila

[cookin_healthy]

I'm excited for you! DC is one of my favorite places to visit. One trip was enough for DH, so I only get there now for business trips -- once or twice a year.

The Botanical Gardens is a good place to visit. The Library of Congress and the Supreme Court are well worth the time, IMHO. The Library of Congress is a beatiful structure and the docents offer a very informative tour. Check the web site, the Supreme Court offers tours during the week, but if you are lucky enough to be there when court is in session, you can watch the proceedings for about 15 minutes. Also, The Kennedy Center offers a free concert at around 6:00 each day. Google their web page for more info.

The monuments are well worth some time -- WWII, FDR, Lincoln Memorial & Vietnam memorials are my favorites. Arlington Cemetery is another great tour -- the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is so awesome to watch. It is available as part of the tourmobile package. I also recommend the Tourmobile as a way to see all the major tourist attractions. Very convenient and it goes many places where Metro stops aren't so convenient.

The Metro subway system is very convenient, safe, easy to navigate & economical. You can buy different passes that make it even more economical. I think they have a one week pass.

There is so much to see in DC -- many attactions are free. I'd recommend buying a travel guide and reading through the attractions and dining sections for things that appeal to you.Pick and choose the things that appeal most to you. Organize your visit around attractions that are close together to make the best use of there time. And, take GOOD WALKING SHOES! Attractions are further apart that you might thing from looking at a map.

For food, I'm not much help. I think Legal Seafoods is a chain; I've eaten there and I think it's good. There are a lot of small, ethnic restaurants I've eaten at, but can't remember the names or locations...

Have a great time!

[jmarie]

I wanted to get to Alexandria, but we ran out of time!

DD's best friend lives there. There is a Trader Joes there, as well.

This is a timely thread for DD and myself.

We are actually going up the 8th. of June. DD's friend is doing a 3K walk for the Heart Accociation. The law firm that she works for also paid for DD's and my entry for this Walk. (And we get the T-shirt:D My first walk of this nature!)

We will visit with her on Sunday and then sightsee on Monday and then head to Massanuttin for the remainder of our stay.

After all that has happened, I wasn't going to go to the beach with them this year and DD decided if I wasn't going she didn't want to go, so we asked her dad if she could break our timeshare up so she could do something else. He paid the RCI fee and is paying the fee for her to trade out, so we are going up to Northern VA for our vacation. I am really excited about this!

I will get some restaurant reccomendations, for you, from DD's friend

[Meganator]

On cool thing we did was to go for afternoon drinks and snack at the rooftop bar of the Hotel Washington. It is near the White House, and has a great view - you can even see the snipers on the roof of the White House.

[Denise]

Lots of great suggestions! After checking out menus I have added Pizza Paradiso, Moby Dick's and Legal Seafood to the list of restaurants. Great advice about not much food around the mall. DH and I will definately be spending time there and he short-circuits when he has low blood sugar, so I'll have to plan for that.
I think I'll take DH to the Spy Museum, maybe drinks at Hotel Washington to watch the White House and snipers after that to continue the theme.
We are staying in Arlington, so I may try to spend an afternoon in Alexandria. I'd love to hit a TJ's and the Bilbo Baggins restaurant looks cute.
If I have half as much fun on the trip as I'm having planning it, it'll be great!

Keep the suggestions coming!