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Washington DC in July - hotel, and what items to book now

Washington DC in July - hotel, and what items to book now

Old Apr 24th, 2017, 11:43 AM
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Washington DC in July - hotel, and what items to book now

My husband and I are headed to DC in July with our teenage son. Looking for hotel recommendations including what area to stay in, and concerned if we're too late to get tickets/passes to key places. Want to visit Supreme Court, Senate & House offices (would be great if we can see one or both in session too), Pentagon, White House, Georgetown, Smithsonian(s), monuments at night, Newseum, Holocaust Museum, African-American History Museum. Haven't reached out to our congressman yet, as our dates are not set, know we need to do that ASAP. Also, recommendations on airport? Have seen a variety of comments in other threads, looking for clarification. Thanks in advance!
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 12:04 PM
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Airport = DCA (Washington Reagan). Why is this in question?

Supreme Court = not in session.
Senate & House offices = likely not in session. Both Congress and SCOTUS have visitor information available publicly.
Pentagon + White House = need to look up their visitation requirements - you can use the web and each will have the info on its site
Georgetown - the university or the area? The area is open and does not need a ticket or pass
Smithsonian(s) - these are all over the Mall and have free admission. Only special exhibitions would require tickets.
Monuments at night - The memorials are open at night, no tickets required. Washington Monument may be different.
Newseum - you can get advance tix on its site, may be semi-necessary at most
Holocaust Museum - advisable to get advance tickets
African-American History Museum - advance tickets available on its website, still advisable afaik.
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 12:36 PM
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Thank you BigRuss, you provided lots of details. I mentioned most of those places to give a feel for where we want to spend our time, to help with hotel recommendations. I know many items on itinerary don't require advance tix - looks like Holocaust and African American Museums are main ones to try to get ASAP. Thank you!
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 12:48 PM
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You won't be able to get tickets to the African American History and Culture museum. No tickets are available for July, they were already given out, and they are real hard to get anyway, they go in just a few minutes when available once a month. You can buy an online advance ticket for the HOlocaust museum.

I think it's too late to get a White House tour, but you can try.

The Senate and House are in session in most of July, they don't recess until July 31st. Both are in session from the 11th to the 20th and the 24th to 28th. Not the first week, though.

I don't know how to tell you where to stay, people have different ideas. The city isn't that big, obviously staying in the center would be most convenient but the suburbs are cheaper. I'd stay in the city, rates aren't too bad in July.

There are 3 airports near the city, BWI is the farthest away so I wouldn't choose that, but it mainly depends on your schedule, what you have a choice of, and ticket prices, of course. If everything is equal, DCA is the closest, then IAD.
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 01:08 PM
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Thanks Christina! On some previous threads I heard rec's for BWI and that IAD was horrible, but then others contradicted. I'll follow your advice. Tix details were helpful too!
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Old Apr 24th, 2017, 03:48 PM
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Contact your Congressman/woman and Senators for entry and or tours to White House, FBI, Library of Congress and The Capital. This should be your first place to go. They each have a website with a place on it dedicated to Visits to Washington, DC. We were asked to send in our SS#s, children too, for pre security screening.
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