Hi All,
Has anyone ever taken the water taxi to Alexandria from DC? How about the train?
(I'll be staying near Georgetown and am only using public transportation)
I would love to get feedback on how you liked/disliked your choice. How long did the transportation take? Is the water taxi worth it or a waste of time? How's the tour narration? Is the train back to D.C. at all scary at night? Is there a time period to be definately cautious? Some trains in cities are always safe and populated, but since some city trains aren't, I thought I'd check with you experts.
My idea was to leave in the morning from Georgetown for a nice day trip to Alexandria. Ideally I was thinking to take the train one way and the boat the other way. I was thinking though, that it would be nice to stay late and have dinner there but I wasn't sure how practical or safe that would be.
I would appreciate all your feedback on this. Thanks for your help!
(I put some of this question out on a more generalized 'Alexandria' forum but I thought I might get more specific for this question.)
Transportation from D.C. to Alexandria--Recommend water taxi or train?
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Anyplace a tourist would want to go in Georgetown, DC, or Alexandria is quite safe. I don't think there is any subway system in the world with all the security that Metro does, so yes, more than safe.
Please be aware that the subway/train service does not serve Georgetown. There is the "Georgetown Shuttle" that will take you to GTown from the Rosslyn, Foggy Bottom, or Dupont Circle stations, as well as the DC Circulator bus, which runs between Union Station and GTown. Check their schedules.
I will adknowledge that a walk from Foggy Bottom to Gtown does seem just a little creepy ... but if it's that late you may wish to use a cab instead.
Also, I am not sure that the tourboats (they are NOT "water taxis" offer a one-way fare. We were not impressed with the narration when we rode from Alexandria to Gtown on one, and opted not to return by boat ... as we had ended up walking to Dupont Circle anyway. Feel safe to use Metro to any "usual" tourist site.
http://www.potomacriverboatco.com/watertaxi.php
Don't miss the coupon link from the URL that bardo1 posted.
While the web page calls itself a watertaxi .. since they still only appear to sell roundtrip tickets to the 3 locations, I don't consider it a water-taxi - at least not in the sense of the water-taxi services in Baltimore or Ft Lauderdale. It was a nice ride from Alexandria to Georgetown, with great scenery. By all means, try it.
Thanks for the great input.
Yes, I find the walk from the Foggy Bottom area to Georgetown a bit unnerving at night myself. Do you think it is an unsafe walk, or is just the look of it? I like your idea of the shuttle that can take one closer into Georgetown though.
Yes, I was hoping the water taxi was more of a....water taxi. I looked at the timetables and it seems to start a bit late. Ideally I was thinking to come back on it, but if there are no one ways...don't know if its worth it now. I liked the idea of cruising on the potamic at nite so we'll see.
It's great to hear your personal viewpoints. Thank you for sharing, it's very helpful.
I've done the boat once, from Alexandria to Georgetown. It was a nice change of pace, as we would usually drive to take metro to show friends around the area. I don't remember much about the narration, but just that it was a pleasant trip.
I never thought the walk from Foggy Bottom to Georgetown was creepy in any way. But your other option would be to metro to Rosslyn, and walk across the bridge. Or just take a taxi.
Not sure what would be creepy about the walk from Foggy Bottom to Gtown. It's a major thoroughfare, lots of people.
Maybe its not creepy anymore. When I was in DC a few years ago, walking across that walkway from the Foggy Bottom area to Georgetown was creepy because it was desolate and dark and we were among the only people walking on it. This was in October at night, probably after 10pm. Perhaps things have changed? Or is it much more populated in June?
I started at GW in 1987, and never once felt the walk to Georgetown was creepy. So no, it hasn't changed much since 2003.
Hi,
The walk from Foggy to Gtown is OK. Depending on where you are staying in Gtown, you could just as easily walk over the Key Bridge and take the metro (not the "train") to King Street. The metro runs quite late, so you'll be fine. I take the blue line all the time at all hours, often by myself, and have never felt unsafe.
Karen