first time visiting: what shouldn't be missed? (Washington: to rent, hotel)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm visiting Washington for the first time in few days with my family.
We'll stay near downtown (no plan to rent a car) for around a week.
I did my homework for museum, architectures, etc... but I'd love to get from the locals: what shouldn't be missed? to see, to visit, to eat (any good restaurant, no chains please as we can get them even here in TX :-) ).
Any suggestion would be very welcome! thanks!
Which hotel will you be at? What are all your ages, and your special interests or hobbies?
Be warned that our climate is very hot and humid. And although most of our museums and monuments are free of charge, other things like lodging, meals, and entertainment can be expensive, as you would expect in a sophisticated metropolis.
Last edited by slowlane3; 08-10-2012 at 09:32 PM..
I'm visiting Washington for the first time in few days with my family.
We'll stay near downtown (no plan to rent a car) for around a week.
I did my homework for museum, architectures, etc... but I'd love to get from the locals: what shouldn't be missed? to see, to visit, to eat (any good restaurant, no chains please as we can get them even here in TX :-) ).
Any suggestion would be very welcome! thanks!
Location: the wrong side of the tracks Richmond, VA
585 posts, read 2,015,123 times
Reputation: 794
Moderator cut: personal
Anacostia is actually rich with DC history. If you have the chance, the Anacostia Community Museum is a great chance to absorb what makes DC what it is and has been Anacostia Community Museum
Anyway, depends on what you and your family are into. As slowlane3 pointed out, the humidity can make a day of sightseeing pretty awful depending on what you have planned but thankfully it's not so bad now if you're headed here soon. I'd try to make a run at the major Smithsonian museums - Air and Space, Natural History, etc. It could take you days just to get through them Museums and Zoo | Smithsonian most are free.
One of my favorite restaurants is Belga Cafe at Eastern Market but it depends on if you have kids or not. Still an easy walk from Metro.
Adams Morgan, U street, Dupont Circle, H street NE, Georgetown, Eastern Market, Old Town Alexandria, National Harbor
Penn Quarter are places that are a must go.
Which hotel will you be at? What are all your ages, and your special interests or hobbies?
We'll stay at a Homewood/Hilton in downtown, we're in our 40s and our son is a teen. We definitively like to visit museum, architecture and sightseeing, but when we visit a new town we like to see it's real side like we were planning to move there :-)
We've lived last year here in Texas, but we're originally from overseas, so the heat doesn't scare us, maybe will not like the humid a lot.
We like to try and taste any food available and meet new cultures, 360 degrees :-)
I would agree to go to Historic Anacostia. Plus the LOCAL restaurants in the area are really good. Sunny's Chinese out on Good Hope Road SE is a really good place to eat (carry out only sadly). They sell chinese as well as some really good burgers for a cheap price. The Neisha out in Wisconsin Ave is really good for Thai food as well.
We'll stay at a Homewood/Hilton in downtown, we're in our 40s and our son is a teen. We definitively like to visit museum, architecture and sightseeing, but when we visit a new town we like to see it's real side like we were planning to move there :-)
We've lived last year here in Texas, but we're originally from overseas, so the heat doesn't scare us, maybe will not like the humid a lot.
We like to try and taste any food available and meet new cultures, 360 degrees :-)
If you really want to get into DC, I would suggest going to a go-go. Go-go is this type of music native to DC, and it's something different you wouldn't experience in any other city/region.
I would recommend this place called Indulj on U Street, specifically on Saturday nights; they play go-go music there.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
