Planning a trip to Washington DC, what is there to go see besides the obvious?
35 replies, posted
Planning a 3 day trip to Washington DC in March.
Is there anything of note around the city worth going to besides all the monuments and museums around the National Mall?
I would like to stick to within the city limits if possible, unless there's something nearby the city really worth going to for a few hours at most.
The crime and prostitutes.
[QUOTE=matt000024;51587388]The crime and prostitutes.[/QUOTE]
I meant besides the Capitol Building
i've heard arlington national cemetery is a sobering experience
additionally, the newseum is an interesting place to visit
I completely forgot Arlington is right across the river
Go go music and bands?
Mount Vernon, not really in the city, but very close. Obviously don't miss the National Air and Space Museum, my favorite museum by far. Also the theater where Lincoln was shot.
If it's within a 30 minute drive from the city, it's reasonable to go to I think.
holocaust museum is second only to the one in Israel, i'd recommend stopping by there
[QUOTE=Svinnik;51587551]holocaust museum is second only to the one in Israel, i'd recommend stopping by there[/QUOTE]
I'm on the fence about it. I've been to it before on a field trip in middle school over a decade ago and it was by far the most depressing thing I've ever been to.
On the other hand, it's a significant part of human history that shouldn't be ignored.
If you like the Air & Space Museum, don't miss the Udar-Hazy Center at Dulles Airport. That's where the best collection is imo.
[QUOTE=noh_mercy;51587600]Luray Caverns[/QUOTE]
Never heard of these before, but after googling it I think it's going on the itinerary
An hour drive may be a bit much. I'm going with my fiance and while I am completely in love with anything of historical value, she not so much. She'll be impressed enough with the general stuff but specific things like a spy museum may not keep her interest much.
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;51587668]An hour drive may be a bit much. I'm going with my fiance and while I am completely in love with anything of historical value, she not so much. She'll be impressed enough with the general stuff but specific things like a spy museum may not keep her interest much.[/QUOTE]
Please look up go go music and learn how to dance.
The Smithsonian's got some neat exhibits, not sure what they have in particular at the moment but the last time I visited D.C. it was a treat to see some of the neat stuff they've got on display.
Trump
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;51587668]An hour drive may be a bit much. I'm going with my fiance and while I am completely in love with anything of historical value, she not so much. She'll be impressed enough with the general stuff but specific things like a spy museum may not keep her interest much.[/QUOTE]
Fredericksburg is boring as shit and depressing. I would know, I'm from there. It's not worth an hour's drive. I am in the same boat as you, I grew up a massive history buff (my grandfather owns one of the most valuable Civil War relic collections in the state and my great uncle runs the Civil War museum, I guess it's in my blood) but even I was bored to death when we took field trips to the historical sites in school.
All the Smithsonians in DC are free to the public and will certainly take an entire 3 day trip if you meander through them and really enjoy what they have to offer. If your fiance gets bored of historical shit, it's like a 35 minute drive south to Tyson's Corner or to Potomac Mills. Those can eat up a few hours.
[editline]28th December 2016[/editline]
Also, I'm sure this isn't necessary, but you should definitely find a parking garage beforehand. Driving and parking in DC is hell, but you're from Jersey so the driving should at least be on par to what you're used to.
The Smithsonian Art Museum is superb if you're into the arts. The Early American art is a bit boring, but once you enter the 20th century/African-American collections, it gets much more interesting and eye-catching. The Isamu Noguchi exhibition will also be there until March 19, and he's a very influential and particularly interesting sculptor, with some very mesmerizing pieces.
The food, man. DC has some extremely diverse and high-class restaurants that are amazing.
Do a bit of Yelp exploring.
Seconding the food, [url=http://blackfinnameripub.com/washingtondc/]BlackFinn[/url] had some insanely good heart attack inducing stuff if Farragut West isn't too far of a metro stop from where you're staying.
I went around 8 years ago and I was pretty disappointed. I think a lot of it depends on when you go. The reflecting pool was a fucking vile mess of goose shit and algae, and you couldn't walk 10 feet around it without ruining your shoes, it was disgraceful. Lincoln Memorial was undergoing renovations too. Also had a bomb threat while we were looking at the capitol building. The homeless stuff isn't a meme either, they're everywhere and it's sad.
Don't bother with the Zoo, it's shit. Also any aquariums, they're extremely dull.
Didn't get to try any food, so yeah as mentioned you should check that out. Wasted opportunity otherwise. Of course check out the Vietnam memorial and all of the museums, ogle at the downtown architecture wherever you go. You can get a pretty good view of the White House in a few places also. I thought the holocaust museum was kind of boring honestly, maybe I'm just a bad person. If you've seen it once I don't see why you'd make a second trip.
[QUOTE=Propane Addict;51594617]Fredericksburg is boring as shit and depressing. I would know, I'm from there. It's not worth an hour's drive. I am in the same boat as you, I grew up a massive history buff (my grandfather owns one of the most valuable Civil War relic collections in the state and my great uncle runs the Civil War museum, I guess it's in my blood) but even I was bored to death when we took field trips to the historical sites in school.
All the Smithsonians in DC are free to the public and will certainly take an entire 3 day trip if you meander through them and really enjoy what they have to offer. If your fiance gets bored of historical shit, it's like a 35 minute drive south to Tyson's Corner or to Potomac Mills. Those can eat up a few hours.
[editline]28th December 2016[/editline]
Also, I'm sure this isn't necessary, but you should definitely find a parking garage beforehand. Driving and parking in DC is hell, but you're from Jersey so the driving should at least be on par to what you're used to.[/QUOTE]
We found a hotel that has free parking, we're planning to just keep the car there and take the metro to the city and walk everywhere from there so driving shouldn't be too much of a hassle.
She knows I love historical stuff and she finds some things interesting, but if we were to spend an entire day in a historical museum she would probably get bored after a while.
[editline]29th December 2016[/editline]
[QUOTE=Benzine;51595254]Seconding the food, [url=http://blackfinnameripub.com/washingtondc/]BlackFinn[/url] had some insanely good heart attack inducing stuff if Farragut West isn't too far of a metro stop from where you're staying.[/QUOTE]
This place looks good, may stop there
Second the Air & Space Museum. 90% of the pictures from my D.C. trip were from there.
Holocaust museum is also very good, and close to air&space.
The Pentagon's 9/11 memorial is interesting if you're into that. Is it worth the walk around the building? Debatable.
I've heard the Newseum is very interesting, albeit it does have an entry fee.
If you're willing to head out to Dulles in Chantilly, the Udvar-Hazy center houses a bunch of neato stuff like Concorde F-BVFA, a blackbird, space shuttle Discovery, the Enola Gay (actually kinda creepy to see in person), and a bunch of other stuff that can make any aviation nerd (or just normal nerd) go haywire, including engines and satellites and stuff
Went there two weeks ago, seconding the International Spy Museum and Air & Space Museum.
Expect to stay at the Air & Space Museum for upwards of 3-4 hours if you want to see everything, that place is packed with exhibits. Took us two hours to get through the second floor alone. Got to see the midnight showing of Rogue One on their 5-story IMAX screen, that was a blast.
Pack warm clothes if you want to go see the monuments, it's a long walk to the Lincoln memorial unless you want to shell out for a Lyft. Caught a cold walking through the park on my way to it.
go see obama
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center and Arlington are a must.
[QUOTE=Mr.Brown;51596496]go see obama[/QUOTE]
He won't be in office when I get there and I sure as hell don't want to meet Trump.
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