DC Tourist Advice

Maybe not for a 16-year-old, but I'd like to see the WWII Memorial.

Back in what must have been '88, my brother and his friend took me to the Vietnam Memorial. I really had no interest in going. But, I have to say, it was incredibly captivating & moving. It just draws you in.

 

Don't do your White House visit the last day. I never got to go in the White House for a tour because the day we were going to go (last day of the trip), Bill Clinton was giving a speech and nobody was allowed in.

 

If she's 16, you have to stop at Tyson's Corner. Maybe you'll end up buying that handbag, anyway.

And you can take the bus from Dulles to West Falls Church and get on the Metro there, although I've never done it. If you're really adventurous, fly into BWI and take the MARC into town.

Take Moddy's advice on the Hamilton. It had the best beds I've ever slept in.

 

Thoughts on the Spy Museum?

 

I've been wanting to go to the Spy Museum for a while now. Sounds pretty cool. Other than that, I know nothing about it.

Eat at Ben's on U St.

 

Did the Spy Museum when I was there last January. It was fun, but there are many museums in D.C. that I'd rank ahead of it. It is true about there being a lot of reading. It's not a real breezy museum that a teenager would enjoy, in my opinion.

 

It's going to be a lot easier to make recommendations if we know a) what she likes to do, and b) has she been there before?

 

I haven't but I really want to and my D.C. Frommer's highly recommends it. It also recommends the Holocaust Museum.

 

She was there with the obligatory 8th grade trip a few years ago, and was annoyed that her friends didn't take it seriously. Really bright kid, loves the history and grandeur and the whole concept of the White House. She won't care about shopping, she can do that every day at home. She doesn't know it but she's getting a private tour of the White House, I have no idea what that means but it should be good. Going through my senator to do a tour of Congress. Praying the weather isn't horrible so we can walk the memorials, etc. But assuming the weather will be horrible, we're talking about late Feb.

It's a quick trip, probably get in Thurs night, leave Sunday, so we'll hit the highlights and that's it. Now thinking a Caps game instead of Hoyas.

Thanks to all for this great advice, I really appreciate it!

 

The Spy Museum is fun, but yes, there's a lot of reading. If you're there when it's crowded, it can be annoying, because you can't get close enough to the exhibits to read. I've been there three or four times. My visitors always enjoy it.

I haven't been to the new Newseum. I used to go to it a lot before the move into the city. I always really enjoyed it and I know it's only gotten better.

Are you more into history or art? That will help dictate which other museums you should check out. I love the American History Museum. That's where they have the First Ladies' gowns, Julia Child's kitchen and the pop culture stuff, like Dorothy's ruby red slippers and Fonzie's jacket. The National Gallery has some great guided tours, if you want to see some art. (Of course, you go on your own, too, but all the guided tours I've been on have been very worthwhile.)

If you want to go up to the top of the Washington Monument, you can get same day (free) timed tickets by waiting on line at the Monument box office or you can get advance tickets through the Park Service at http://www.recreation.gov/tourParkDetail.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=77811. I think they charge $1.50 or so and it's nice to have the tickets in advance.

If you want to visit the National Archives, you can wait on line to get in (sometimes the line is very long), or, again, you can get advance, timed tickets for a nominal fee - http://www.archives.gov/nae/; http://www.archives.gov/nae/visit/reserved-visits.html

Unless the weather is really nice, I'd advise skipping Arlington Cemetery. There's a lot of walking and not much of anyplace to escape from the weather. If you do go, want to avoid the walking and want to hit all the important spots, there's a Tourmobile tour of the cemetery. You can buy tickets at the visitors' center.

The great thing about the Smithsonian museums is that since they're free, if you're bored, you can just leave and not feel like you're wasting your money.

I already gave you some thoughts on where to stay. Where to eat is the bigger question. There are a lot of good restaurants in DC, so it would be helpful to know what kind of food you're interested in. Are you looking for hotspots where the food might be as good but you might get to see a visiting celebrity? If so, go to Cafe Milano in Georgetown.

The W has a great rooftop bar that's turned into quite the scene. It's got a great view of the Mall and the White House. It used to be the place to bring mom and Aunt Sadie when they came to visit, but now that the hotel is a W, there's velvet ropes and staffers with headsets guarding the elevators. If you're a hotel guest, you have access, I think. Not sure if they'd let LinZee in, but I thought I'd mention it.

I'm a big shopper, but I wouldn't say that you need to go out to the malls at Tysons. Presumably, there's a mall where LinZee lives and while there are great stores at Tysons, if she wants you to buy her stuff to shop, she might like the smaller boutiquey shops in Georgetown.

PM me if you have any specific questions.