3 Days in Washington DC
 

I will be in DC for 3 days in June with my teenage son. Can anyone suggest a budget friendly hotel, as well as the "must see" places to visit.

You need to give EXACT dates and nightly budget in order to get useful info. Will you be sharing a bed or do you need two?

I am guessing you already know many of the things that are in DC (why else would you be going?). The Smithsonian Institution (www.si.edu), the White House, the Capitol, the monuments and memorials, etc. Those are your so-called "must see" places. Unless those don't appeal to you, in which case don't see them and tell us what interests you.

As vjpb pointed out, you'll need to narrow down your and your son's interests before anyone can make suggestions. The link provided above will give you a good start regarding the Smithsonians (which is a collection of museums, not just one).

Also, what is your idea of "budget?" Give a price range and what amenities you want, and more specific recommendations can be given. You can start with kayak.com and use filters to specify your needs.

Hotel rates can be wildly variable, depending on the dates. I have stayed in the same hotel for about $150/night on one trip and $340/night on another trip.

When I book hotels in DC, I usually check hotels.com and expedia.com to check out the general rates. The Metro is efficient and easy to use, so if you stay outside the downtown area, you can easily get around on the Metro. Just consider the cost-benefit - time, convenience, cost of metro.

I have found the cost of Metro to be worth not having to park a car in DC. :)

The Embassy Row Hotel
2015 Massachusetts Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
Neighborhood: Dupont Circle
We have stayed here, very close to the metro but cab fares are not bad in DC. Nice walkable safe area though the hotel could use a rehab. For the money it was ok and free breakfast.

If you have time, try to get out to Mount Vernon. It is beautiful with lots to see. I don't have and budget hotel recs, but the DuPont Circle area is nice and handy to the metro.

Lisa, see response to your query re: budget-friendly lodging on the school-field-trip thread.

PS I realize now you aren't talking about a group rate, but I have done well with AAA rates in the Rosslyn area, where I much prefer to stay.

<You need to give EXACT dates and nightly budget in order to get useful info.>
No, you don't need to give exact dates. A budget is necessary, though; ideas of what is affordable vary.

As for must-sees, the list for DC is vast: monuments/memorials, museums, institutions/buildings (such as the White House, Library of Congress, National Archives, Supreme Court), historic homes, there are more than you could cover in a year. Could you indicate some of your interests, or dislikes? Is there some reason in particular you're going there in the first place?

The best budget hotel option in the DC area, IMO, is the Americana Motel in Arlington's Crystal City where you will almost certainly get a room for under $100 nearly any time of year. Free breakfast, free parking (virtually unheard of that close to the city), free wifi, free shuttle to metro though it is easily walkable to two metro stations. Minutes from downtown on metro. Lots of restaurants and a couple of grocery stores nearby. It gets a lot of positive mention on this forum.

It is often a lot cheaper to stay in DC on weekends when business people are out of town, than weekdays. Rates can vary a lot, just based on that. And hotels in the suburbs are cheaper, of course. You want a place near a metro stop if you do that. The Americana does have standard rooms for around $90, so that is a good option. If that isn't really what you mean by budget (as cheap as possible), just use a standard booking tool to see the options, like kayak or expedia.

Just do not stay in a any cheap hotel out in the burbs on main roads (eg, NY Ave) that you know nothing about.

The cheapest "tourist" hotel right in center of DC I know of is the Harrington. Without a car, it really is a good location just a few blocks from the mall. A friend of mine stayed there and said it was okay, not a nightmare (as I had feared).

On weekends, you can get plenty of hotels for $100 or less, though, such as the chains in Ballston or Rosslyn or Silver Spring.

I like to stay in the Dupont Circle neighborhood as well. It is only a couple metro stops from the major sites downtown and it is an interesting neighborhood with lots of small restaurants, etc. I find it to be a nice area to stay in. I have not stayed in the Embassy Row Hotel that flpab mentioned, but it was on the short list of contenders for our trip to DC next week. We picked the Dupont Hotel instead - rates were comparable and the Dupont Hotel has some of the most comfy hotel beds I've ever slept in. The Courtyard Marriot Dupont is also good - it is a few blocks from the Metro, but they are interesting blocks and in June the weather should be quite nice.

tenthumbs mentioned parking - and YES, I think if you are driving to DC and will have a car to park, staying in the 'burbs can be a good deal. The money you save on parking can pay for your Metro fare. Just make sure that you are very close to a metro station though.

I'll second obxgirl's recommendation of the Americana. www.americanahotel.com My husband, then 16yo son, and I stayed there in 2011. We were very pleased with the cost, room quality, free breakfast, and its location.

Are you open to a B&B? If so, you might consider the Tabard Inn, Woodley Park Guesthouse, or Kalorama Guest House.

Don't drive in DC! It's terrible! They have a great bike share system that you can get a three day pass for, and all the museums are free! And if you are really cheap you can live off of lobbyist mixers and think tank lunch talks during your whole trip! ;)

Well, MOST, but not ALL the museums are free. For example, the marvelous Phillips Collection is private and charges an entrance fee. MANY museums - including the National Gallery and all the Smithsonian museums -- are free.

I agree with lisamarkuson that you should avoid trying to drive in DC -- too many divergences from a grid, too much traffic, and too few options for affordable parking. Fortunately, although the metro is not free, it is inexpensive.

When we have had a car in DC, we pretty much always just garage it until we are ready to leave - unless we use it for a day trip or something like that.

Several options depending on where you are coming from:
Fly into Reagan National and take the Metro into the city
Fly into BWI and take Amtrak into Union Station and the Metro from there to a point near your hotel.
Drive into the city and pay lots for parking
There is a HI Hostel in Washington if you want cheap lodging.
http://www.hihostels.com/web/index.e...FatxQgod9TEA1g
Another option is to drive to the Greenbelt MD Metro station (free parking) and take the green line into the city.

The 3 budget-friendly hotels that I always recommend are, in alphabetical order: 1) Americana Hotel, 2) Best Western Iwo Jima Hotel and 3) Holiday Inn Rosslyn @Key Bridge. All offer free parking if you are driving. All are in Arlington, VA and are within easy walking distance of a Metro station. The Americana Hotel offers a free continental breakfast. The Best Western and Holiday Inn have indoor swimming pools.