Hello, we will be in Washington for three nights in early to mid july (Fri, Sat, Sun Night). Any hints on good areas to stay. We want to be close to as much of the 'tourist' stuff people go to Washington to see if possible. We arrive by rental vehicle, so it would be great to have parking on the first night. We leave by train from the Amtrak station to Baltimore. It doesn't have to be swish, just moderate and in a good position mainly. Thanks for the help here, Lissa

I got a great deal at the Liason on Capitol Hill from travelocity. I like capitol hill because it is near metros and restaurants as well as the capitol mall. You could stay also in Foggy Bottom which is more residential but near the White House. Parking would have to be at your hotel though. Check the recommendations at tripadvisor.com for specific hotels.

Capitol Hill and Foggy Bottom are both good ideas. It's probably best to stay somewhere around downtown or Georgetown. There are also some newer hotels in the Navy Yard area in Southeast DC around the Nationals' new ball park. That could also be a decent area to stay in, though not as nice as locations closer to the Mall. Just make sure your hotel is west of the Anacostia River.

If you want to save money, you could look at a few locations in Northwest DC in the Wisconsin & Connecticut Ave corridors, even as far north as Friendship Heights or Bethesda in MD. As long as you are close to a metro station, you won't have too much difficulty getting downtown where the tourist attractions are. The same is true for close in metro locations in Virginia, such as Pentagon City, Old Town Alexandria, or Rosslyn.

But if you go outside of the downtown area you need to be careful. There are a number of hotels around DC that seem to cater to tourists looking for a bargain, and who evidently do not know DC very well - one of these areas is along New York Ave, NE, but I would think there are others as well. Be sure to stay away from these places, because the neighborhoods aren't so great, nor is access to downtown.

Look at Dupont Circle, Downtown, Penn Quarter.

I'd look for a place that's handy to Union Station, both for returning the rental car as well as your Amtrak departure.

Any hotel near Metro, especially on the Red Line, would be convenient for Union Station. A Capitol Hill location would be a short taxi ride to the station. So, the Hill, downtown, and Dupont would all be fine. I'd put Foggy Bottom lower on the list, though there is nothing wrong with the area, just not as convenient for your arrival and departure from DC as a Hill or Red Line location would be (though equal to the others in most respects).
The SE ballpark area could be very quiet if the team is not in town, or pretty noisy if there are home games.

Do some browsing at your favorite hotel booking sites, and look at stationmasters.com to see hotels and attractions around each Metro station.

We just got back from a 3 day stay in DC. We stayed at the Sofitel on 15th Street and Ave H. Just a couple of blocks from the White House and we easily walked to the Mall, specifically the National Art Gallery, Museum of Natural History, National Archives, etc. Also lots of restaurant choices in the neighborhood.

If you are looking for a lesser priced hotel, check out the Hilton Garden Inn, same great location for less bucks. They have a great $12.99 buffet breakfast and offer packages that include free breakfast.

Don't miss the Monuments by Night Tour, 3 hours and well worth the cost.

Just a note to clarify a few things Frank said above: the walk from 15th and H Streets (the Avenues have state names) to the National Gallery of Art and the Archives at 6th Street is well over a mile. But the 15th street location is handy for the White House, Washington Monument and American History Museum. The Mall is two miles long from the National Gallery at 4th to the Lincoln Memorial at 23rd, so anywhere downtown would be close to some attractions and require Metro, taxi, or a long walk for others.
Why not drop the car off at Union Station as soon as you get to DC and avoid the overnight hotel parking? Taxi from the station to your hotel would surely be cheaper and not much more hassle (unless your arrival is a time when the car rental desk is closed).

Thanks so much, yes kayd our arrival time is very late in the evening, thus the need for parking (or we could drop it off at an airport car rental counter and catch a shuttle back in). I guess I'll do a bit more research given this information and see if I can find somewhere within budget. Thanks, Lissa

No shuttles from airports to downtown that I know of, but airport drop-off and taxi to the hotel would work if your arrival falls after closing at Union Station but before the airport rental desk shuts down. Cabfare for DCA to downtown is under $25.

If you are arriving late at night, you can just park on the street. Check the signage -- most zones will want you to move the car by 7 or 9am.

I just bit the bullet and tried priceline. For $75 plus taxes I got the Renaissance Washington. Very happy with this. Maybe I'll be brave and try it for NYC

With that great room rate, the $25 parking for one night shouldn't hurt too much, if you arrive too late for rental drop-off. You'll be very centrally located for just about everything. Enjoy your visit.

I love Hotel Washington which is very close to everything (definitely visit the roof top bar for the view at night). For less money stay in Arlington near a metro station (pentagon city, Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon, Virginia Square, but Ballston is the farthest you want to go). These provide easy, safe & cheap access via metro to the monuments. To tour the actual city buy the two day tour mobile pass so you can get on/get off as you want. If you have time you can even take tour mobile to Mt Vernon.