OT: I'm planning to visit Washington

[fendilim]

I'm planning to visit Washington for the 1st time on April 6th to 9th. Are there any recommendations or things to do? Where should I stay? If New York has Times' Square, what is Washington's? By this I mean the most convenient place to stay. .

[MikeTheKid]

^^^It kinda depends on money in that case. The Mayflower is top of the line in Downtown DC. I'm guessing its mainly for sightseeing so downtown is where you wanna stay. There are also cheaper hotels in NE DC.

1 word of advice, don't go to Anacostia on the green line. Having family there its pretty crazy on that side

Enjoy the many sites

[GhostsOfGil]

I'm planning to visit Washington for the 1st time on April 6th to 9th. Are there any recommendations or things to do? Where should I stay? If New York has Times' Square, what is Washington's? By this I mean the most convenient place to stay. .

How old are you? H street has a ton of really fun bars but has no metro access. Georgetown is very nice although expensive. Ben's Chili Bowl in Adams Morgan is a must and a historical land mark. DC improv is a great comedy club in Dupont. If you can afford it, Fogo De Chao is the best Brazilian steak house in the city. If your into art, the smithsonian mall has some great museums. Air space museum is fun if you have never been. The Holocaust museum is interesting but can be very tough to get through at parts. Newsuem on Pennsylvania Ave is fun too.

Also the Wizards are playing the Pacers on the 6th..

[pancakes3]

DC is a pretty small city, and the "fun" parts for a tourist make it even smaller. The "best" part to stay is irrelevant since between metros, $1 circulators, and cheap taxis, it wouldn't make much of a difference. If you pressed anyone to say, stay somewhere on Dupont just because it's got a lot of restaurants and bars right there and also a metro stop.

- If all things being equal and you don't have friend/family picking you up? Opt to fly into Reagan instead of Dulles. The taxi ride from Dulles into DC could run from $60-$100+. Reagan on the other hand is right on a metro stop.

- Seeing as how you only have 3 nights, and it's your first time here, you should knock out the big stuff rather than try and explore the little things.

- Daytime events are all pretty much centered around a 2 mile long strip of grass called the National Mall. It starts at the capital building and stretches due west until it hits the potomac. Starting at that end going west you have (I'm only naming imo the notable ones, and not a comprehensive list):

- The Library of Congress, the Supreme Court, the Capital Building, the Botanical Gardens, 2 buildings for the art galleries (one modern, one historical), Air and Space museum (overrated), Natural History Museum (good one), American History Museum, the Washington Monument - turn North to get to the White House, WW2 memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. Keep walking for a scenic loop around the tidal basin and to get to the Jefferson Memorial (this is where the Cherry Blossoms are).

From here you can either go back to the mall and try to find Fogo de Chao or take a cab to some other restaurant you like, or keep along the river to go to the DC Fish Market. There's also a Phillip's seafood here - a seafood buffet.

Keep in mind this is a lot of walking, but it's pretty much standard for anyone visiting DC for the first time - the Time Square experience that you're looking for. However it's tiring as hell and will take up a complete day assuming you start around 11 and keep going until 5-7pm.

Other daytime activities include the Zoo, off-mall museums like the National Portrait Gallery (very cool museum. they had an exhibit on video games but I think that's gone now.) The National Portrait Gallery is right next to the Verizon Center where the Wizards and Capitals play, and also in the heart of DC's Chinatown. Lots of cool bars here too. Or you could visit embassy row.

[DCZards]

1 word of advice, don't go to Anacostia on the green line. Having family there its pretty crazy on that side

Yeah, and there are also some parts of Chevy Chase DC (Ward 3) that I'd stay away from. Some crazies there as well.

But it really depends on where you're at culturally. My first stop would be the Moorland-Spingarn Room in Founders Library at Howard U. Ben's Chili Bowl is cool (especially for tourists and newbies to the city) but if you want to know some of the history behind Ben's and the U St. area, you want to stop by HU, which is only a few blocks from Ben's.

[BigA]

If you don't have a place to stay already you better get going on that. April 6-9 is prime cherry blossom time, the kick-off to our busiest tourist season.

This place is in my neighborhood, close to Pentagon City Metro, which is two stops from downtown DC. Not fancy, but clean and a good value (check TripAdvisor).

http://www.americanahotel.com/

[AFM]

DC Zards trashing my hometown.

[Wes_Tiny_Abe_]

You can hang out all day in Downtown DC with Gumby just like I used to during the off-season when there were no Bullets, Capitals, Redskins or Georgetown Hoyas games on television for me to watch.

[DCZards]

DC Zards trashing my hometown.

Nah, love DC. Just responding to MiketheKid trashing Anacostia.

[Wes_Tiny_Abe_]

Be sure to plan a trip over to Iverson Mall so you can visit one of the few REAL DC blocks thats still left but unfortunately you now have to travel to MD to experience it.
You will find a Kemp Mill located right next to door to a DownTown LockerRoom.
What more could one ask for?

[BigA]

Be sure to plan a trip over to Iverson Mall so you can visit one of the few REAL DC blocks thats still left but unfortunately you now have to travel to MD to experience it.
You will find a Kemp Mill located right next to door to a DownTown LockerRoom.
What more could one ask for?

Also Sam's Car Wash, lots of seafood places, and lots of Dallas Cowboy car flags.

[Wes_Tiny_Abe_]

If you want to visit a city with nice, friendly, honest, hard working people dont come to DC, go to Baltimore.

[MikeTheKid]

Trust me not trashing Anacostia, my family is from there and Sarsum Corda so I'm from the roughest of the rough areas in Dc. I love where I'm from and ill never turn my back from there and im blessed that i could move on to a better situation for myself. Just giving a dose of reality. I've had friends come to visit and they always tell me why don't you say anything about the rough spots when they go outside of DC on the metro so I got it out of the way before everyone tells you about the good spots in the city.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

[montestewart]

Be sure to plan a trip over to Iverson Mall so you can visit one of the few REAL DC blocks thats still left but unfortunately you now have to travel to MD to experience it.
You will find a Kemp Mill located right next to door to a DownTown LockerRoom.
What more could one ask for?

Where Springtime is Forever!

[noworriesinmd]

Everything in DC depends on your budget.
If you are a baller stay at the Mandarin Oriental (perfect hotel to see the cherry blossoms). I also think it is central to the "tourist" sites. Capital, Mall, Cherry Blossoms, China Town, etc). You are also close to the Orange line.
My favorite hotel is the Ritz Carlton G-town. Awesome hotel, but it is not close to any public transportation. It's quiet, but you can walk around in your robe and eat roasted smores.

If your budget is not baller, I'd try to for any of the Kimpton hotels (I see deals for those ALL the time. Try to stay at the one near Verizon Center) that is really close. There is also a Hyatt on Capital Hill that most of my friends stay at...at that is normally reasonable < $200


There is ALOT to do in DC. Depends on what you like doing.
I HATE Georgetown. Most tourist go there, but I don't know many locals who hang there.
Drink a lot ( chill near Ust, Hst or Adams Morgan). Lots of cool people.
History (walk around the mall and got to the museums)
Foodie (City Zen, America East(might have closed and become Mini Bar...must eat)
Jogger (Mall, jogs from capital building to lincoln memorial and back)
Mall (need a car, but Tyson's Corner...Pentagon City is on the metro and ok)
Education ( George Washington, American & Howard have hot chicks)

There is a lot to do. Just depends on your budget and interest. Most things, you don't have to pay for.

[Wes_Tiny_Abe_]

If you want to see what traffic in front of the white house looks like well here you go because when you come you definitely wont be seeing any traffic in front of the white house thanks to the current pussification of this once great city.

[tontoz]

Did anyone on the board think that WTA wouldn't troll this thread?

[Wes_Tiny_Abe_]

[pancakes3]

I normally don't mind WTA's single-platform posting style but somehow the contributions to this thread gets under my skin.

[jmrosenth]

Because there's not a Duane Reade on every corner in NYC.

PS: one of these CVS's WTA posted is my work building. Can't beat the convenience.