cookie

Friday, April 5, 2024

Wanderlusting Mama’s tips for Washington DC

Lincoln Memorial
Lincoln Memorial

 

Here are my tips for a Washington DC trip!


A train-ride away: We didn’t stay in downtown DC, we actually got a hotel in Alexandria. Prices were more reasonable and we had free parking and breakfast! I was told later on that Bethesda is nicer, so you can consider that as well. It is so convenient to take the train to downtown DC.

Old Town Alexandria
Old Town Alexandria

 Cheaper or More Convenient depends on your group: If you are more than 3 in your group, you may want to consider driving into DC and getting parking for $25. However, you would have to contend with traffic and the confusing signage. You will be driving along in a lane which suddenly turns into the highway or be forced to take a left/right or go straight, with no option to change lanes. If you want the convenience, taking the Metro is a breeze. Fares are based on time/distance. Ours cost about $8 round trip so it was definitely more expensive for our group of 5. We also had to pay for Metro station parking.

Washington Memorial and the reflecting pool
Washington Memorial and the reflecting pool

 Don’t forget your timed-entry tickets: some of the more popular museums such as Air and Space and African American Museum have timed-entry tickets. Be sure to check the main website in advance and book your tickets. These are free.

US Capitol
US Capitol

 

WWI memorial
WWI memorial

Which museums to go to? The Smithsonian museums take anywhere from 1-3 full days to explore. We only had about 3 hours for each museum we went to. Museums are generally open from 10am to 5pm. Here are our picks:

  • National Air and Space Museum—undergoing a multi-year makeover, but still with lots to see such as the Wright flyer, Apollo Lunar module and various enormous air and spacecraft dangling from the ceiling

National Air and Space Museum
National Air and Space Museum
  • National Museum of Natural History—check out the 45 carat Hope Diamond and their 14-ft-tall elephant

National Museum of Natural History
National Museum of Natural History

  • National Museum of African American History and Culture —the newest among the museums. It tells a great, albeit heavy on the heart, story of slavery and the oppression of the African American people

National Museum of African American History and Culture
Contemplative Court @National Museum of African American History and Culture

  • National Museum of American History—see Abraham Lincoln’s iconic top hat and various war artifacts

National Museum of American History
from the Vietnam war @National Museum of American History

  • While not a technically called a museum, I loved the National Gallery of Art. They had a wonderful collection including some from my favourite Impressionist artists, Van Gogh and Monet. The gallery is home to da Vinci's Ginevra de' Benci, his only painting for public viewing in this side of the world.

National Gallery of Art in DC
National Gallery of Art in DC

 What about food in the museums?

Mitsitam Native Foods café inside the National Museum of the American Indian is good. We got some bison chili and bison burger for a taste of something different. Not bad at all. 

National Museum of the American Indian
National Museum of the American Indian

National Museum of the American Indian
Bison burger @National Museum of the American Indian

I do highly recommend Sweet Home café inside National Museum of African American History and Culture—their Southern fried chicken with corn bread is still something we crave long after our visit. There are many food trucks outside the museums, though the museums with timed-entry will not allow you re-entry privileges. For those where you can go outside (if you are willing to go through security again, which is almost like airport security), there are many food trucks. Be sure to walk a little bit farther from the entrance. The same half-smokes or burgers cost $1 less for the trucks farther along the street. The ice cream and cold drinks are pricey so hold off if you can. Grandma was so thirsty, she ended up paying $10 for a glass of lemonade half-filled with ice.

Food trucks @Washington DC
Food trucks @Washington DC

We really enjoyed DC. It did take quite some planning but the whole family enjoyed learning and exploring. 

No comments:

Post a Comment