I may be taking my nearly 80 year old mother to Washington, DC this spring. My questions are:1} where would you stay that is really nice and clean, safe and perhaps has a balony with a great view?
2)is it just too crowded to go at this time-would waiting until June be any better?(just skip the trees)
3)does anyone have an idea on how difficult it would be to take a train from here to Savannah?
Thanks....

I can recommend the Marriott Wardman Park, which is in the Woodley Park neighborhood, which is mostly residential and very pleasant and safe. It's next to the Metro station, across the street from a strip of nice restaurants, and not far from the zoo. Best of all, it has lots of lovely cherry trees right on the premises.

Last April, I stayed there (for $60 per night, thanks to Priceline) and my bedroom and bathroom both had lovely views of cherry trees and huge plantings of tulips and other bulbs. Ask for a room in the towers that has a view of the grounds, they'll know what you mean; some of the rooms have balconies, but I'm not sure whether you can specifically reserve them.

Don't wait until June -- the crowds will not be better, and the weather will be worse.

I agree with Anonymous. Don't wait until June. Seeing the cherry blossoms is a must! I went the 2nd or 3rd week in April a few years ago, and it seemed to be past the peak blooming time, though. In March or April, you'll be encountering school groups on Spring Break, but I didn't find that to be a problem at all. There are probably as many or more visitors in June. (My daughter's school group went the 1st week in June.)

Donna

One advantage of the Wardman Park Marriott is that their cherry trees are later bloomers than the famous Japanese ones that the festival is based on, so you're bound to see something!

Thanks for your input about the spring or June decision. I'll look into the Marriot at Woodley Park. I currently have reservations at the Grand Hyatt-but using that as a back up to be sure I at least have something booked.