DC on a budget
 

Im travelling to Washington DC, flying into Dulles, from the UK in July and would like some ideas, especially where to stay. I need to find somewhere cheap as were out in the US for all the summer hollidays and are travelling around the states. We intend to be in DC for 3-4 days ...is this long enough...dont mind travelling into the city so somewhere on the outskirts is fine as long as i dont have to drive, so the metro would be great...by the way theres two adults and three children 6 9 and 12 who dont mind sharing the same bed to sleep so we dont need a suite just a room with two double beds.............also any links to road trips would be great as we have 40 days of freedom and intend to head down to florida but how we get there and by what route we dont mind.........thanks

adehug,

Can you give an indication of what your daily hotel budget will be?

First of all 3 or 4 days is a perfect amount of time to see DC. For lodging, check out http://www.capitolhillsuites.com/
This is an excellent (but still inexpensive) location: one block from Capitol South Metro stop and 2 blocks from the Capitol building and in a very nice, quiet residential area. The 5 of you can share a suite for about $100 a night. On route Florida, go along the coast and hit the beach towns: Virginia Beach, VA -Mrtyle Beach SC - Charleston, SC - Also plan to see Savannah, Geogia. It's not a beach town but it's a beautiful, unique city.

you can also stay at the HI hostel
http://www.hiwashingtondc.org/
There are family rooms available and the hostel takes guests on various guided tours

For good hotel rates, check out www.washingtondchotels.com
In the past, we've gotten a rate well under $100 for the Best Western New Hampshire Suites, which is in a convenient location in the Foggy Bottom area and includes a continental breakfast.

Recently, I got an EXCELLENT rate on that same web site a an Embassy Suites because of a typograhical error, which the hotel honored ($18 rather than $189). So scan all the listings!

Thanks for all the info............been looking on the various web sites and think i can get a suite for about $99 + tax in Dupont...however, how easy is it to get to from Dulles bearing in mind i havent a clue of the roads etc...any help appreciated .... thanks

From Dulles, you'll need to either take a shuttle service or a cab. With 5 of you, a cab would probably be the cheapest way. Although I do remember hearing about a Metro bus that runs between the city and Dulles. Maybe someone else knows the details.

I live in the Virgina suburbs, and we'll sometimes stay in DC for a weekend. I've gotten great rates through Priceline. $75 for one of the Hiltons and $55 for the Melrose. And what's nice is that you can bid through both priceline.com or priceline.co.uk, so you have a few chances to place different bids.

As for traveling to Florida, again with 5 people, you might be better off driving. From DC, it's about 12 hours just over the border into Florida. Just get on 95 south, and after sitting or rolling along slowly for 2 hours, you'll be away from the DC area, and can drive along after that.

The cheapest way to get from Dulles to your hotel is to take the shuttle bus from Dulles to the West Falls Church Metro and then take the Metro downtown. Kids generally love riding the Metro and it is a tourist attraction by itself.

If you have a ton of luggage, and given that there are 5 of you, I would advise a taxi. That would probably be $40-50 but probably worth every penny.

I believe the shuttle bus to West Falls Church is $2 a person (I have never personally taken it so I could be wrong). Metro from West Falls Church to the hotels is generally less than $2.00 a person in non rush hours. It can be more during the rush hour.

We just returned from a DC visit this weekend! We had a great time..
First we booked The Holiday Inn on the Hill on NJ Avenue! Very clean and they just put $6 million in renovations into it so it has new carpeting, wallpaper, decor,beds, bedding and the bathroom, altho, small are very neat and plenty of towels, etc. We booked it at $149 per night - kingsize bed - 2 days before the trip I went on the Holiday Inn Website and looked up our particular one we had booked to see if we could get a good internet deal. There it was - same room for $89 per night.I booked it through the internet and called and cancelled the room we had booked on the phone.. Saved alot of $. Also, it is right next to the Capitol - very easy walk to everything -
And Safe!
Have a great time!

The WMATA bus #5A (go to www.wmata.com ) will cost $2 with stops at Rosslyn & L'Enfant Metro stations. The Washington Flyer shuttle from IAD to Falls Church (?) is considerably more. Click on my name above & search thru my postings, I posted some info a few weeks ago.

Monday night I stayed at Days Inn Camp Springs MD, with a rate of $45 (internet price). I couldn't see it at night, someone told me the route was dark with no sidewalks, so I took a cab ($4.75+tip) - but there were sidewalks & street lights ... I don't know that your 6 y/o would want to walk it with luggage tho.

The Summerfield Suites Embassy Sq often have some very good prices, sometimes the best ones available only by phone. It's not far from the DuPont Cr Metro and in a nice neighborhood.

Motel 50, in Arlington near the Rosslyn Metro looked satisfactory. I stayed at the Quality Inn next door to it, so I'm judging only by outside appearence - it is walkable. Red Roof Inn - DC also has very good prices quite often, and it's 1.5 blocks to Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro station.

Welcome! Please enjoy your holiday with us.

40 days of freedom! Sounds wonderful! How come we Yanks can't have that much time off?

I took Metrobus 5A from Dulles on Sunday after first reading about it on this forum. It was great.

I walked out the exit that is right by baggage carousel 6, and there, just to the left, was the bus. I waited about 3 minutes and the bus left on time at 6:35 PM. Arrived at Herndon park-and-ride at 6:42. Arrived at the Westpark stop (International Drive at the toll road) at 6:57. From there it goes to Rosslyn and L'Enfant Plaza. I'd definitely use it to go into the District if I was arriving at a non-rush hour time.

The Wash. Flyer bus to W. Falls Church costs $8.

Thank you all once again cant get over how friendly you all are......we brits could learn alot!!
Forgot to say that we have hired a car for the duration of the trip and this is my primary concern about driving into DC trying to find an hotel in the Dupont area....would it not be easier to stay at one just off the interstate in say Arlington...must be one with a metro stop close by???? Thanks once again and by the way weve saved up all our leave so we could have the vacation of a lifetime

There are several hotels in the Ballston area of Arlington, which is just off route 66 coming from Dulles Airport. There's a Holiday Inn on Fairfax Drive, and a Comfort Inn on Washington Blvd (or Glebe Rd?). They both have free parking, and are within walking distance of the Ballston Metro station. There's also a Hilton directly above the station, but it's more expensive.

Pardon my language problem, but is "hiring a car" the same as rental? Or does it mean car+driver? Anyway, I just wanted to suggest not getting a car until AFTER your visit to DC, as a car is more a liability than an asset, as you might have to pay $20 or more for parking at some hotels. However, in the outskirts of the District, hotel parking is often free. I really like the Quality Inn Iwo Jima (Arlington) that I mentioned before: free parking and a pool, walking distance to the Metro. If you will have a car, I would definately stay outside town - jnn1964's comments are on-target too. Don't forget about the taxes! Many cities add hotel & occupancy taxes to the hotel bill, beyond the sales taxes already imposed. $5 here, $10 there really adds up after 40 days!

Hi again and once again thanks for the information....sorry about the language problem and yes hiring a car is the same rental and unfortunately we had to book the car at the time of booking the flights to get the best deals on the flights...

Definitely stay outside the city since you have the car.

The Holiday Inn near Ballston is a good suggestion. It's an easy walk to the metro, and there are a fair amount of restaurants that you can walk to. And, of course, free parking is key. You can buy all-day passes for the metro--you just can't use them before 9:30 a.m. Not that you'd want to, anyway, as it's a zoo during rush hour. I think there's a family pass, too. Again, I'm sure one of my fellow posters can give more details on that.

I knew someone would come up with the Dulles bus info!

Have a great trip. Hope you don't get typical DC July weather.

Well, you learn somethng new every day. I live here and did not know about bus 5A. I presume that is because it would not help me get home. I usually take a cab or have someone pick me up. Bus 5A sounds like a winner.

And, I had no idea that the bus to West Falls Church was $8 a person. With 3 or more people in your party a cab might be about the same or cheaper. Yikes!

i love the 5A. it's quicker than even the cars on the 66 because it uses the shoulder during rush hour. i dropped a friend off at Dulles during the holidays and was extremely aggravated that the metro bus was going faster than i was.
and if you get on from exiting metro, fare is only a quarter.

Using the transfer pass saves 85 cents from the regular fare ... ($1.10 "normal" bus fare - .85 = .25 for most buses) ... but that's still only $1.15 fare from DC back to Dulles.

Check http://www.wmata.com/riding/visitors...s-interest.cfm for some walking tours near various Metro stations.

If you take a hotel without free parking, 3 stations y Greenbelt, Huntington and Franconia-Springfield y permit parking for multiple days. Each of these stations has between 15 and 17 spaces allocated for multi-day use, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis. See http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/daily-parking.cfm

For you folks in DC area, look into the 30A bus from BWI to Greenbelt Metro station with no stops: also $2 but runs more often.