MaloBalo

Aloha to all of you,

as we - meaning my better half and I (both in our late twenties) - are planning a four week trip to the east coast of the US, I'd love to hear some suggestions regarding our itinerary. Basically, we'll kick off with five nice days in NYC, next heading towards Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington DC, taking a day-trip over to the Niagara Falls before we spend about two more weeks in Florida. As covering all of the stuff in one big topic would be messy, I'd rather go bit by bit. You can find the first part regarding NYC here (http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...-part1-nyc.cfm).

So next on our schedule would be Phily and the DC-area, with anything nearby as a possible stop, staying only a single day in Philadelphia. As far as research goes, DC simply seems to offer so much more interesting stuff. Correct me, if I am mistaken. Also, we considered Baltimore and Atlantic City as possible side attractions. However, after checking the usual suspects of sights, activities etc., it feels we might simply skip both and rather add a day in Washington. What's your take on this?

Part 2: (days in brackets)
Phily (1):
DC (3)
Niagara Falls (1)

When checking on sights in Philadelphia, I found the National Constitution Center, the Liberty Bell Center as a must-see as well as the Magic Gardens with it's mosaic most interesting. What else would you recommend?

As to Washington, I've got tons of stuff on my list. I was a bit surprised at its plenty to be honest. But Washington seems to offer a lot of amazing stuff. So I could definately use your help to fill three days of great adventure in DC. My lists consits of the White House, the Capitol, the Library of Congress, a great moonlight tour to visit all the monuments in town, Georgetown, Eastern Market, the Newseum, the Smithosian Institution, the Dupont Circle for a cool evening, the Hillwood Museum & Gardens, the WNC, the Tidal Basin and the Arboretum. Realisticly speaking we want to enjoy our days, so we'll have to find a compromise here and there. I'm curious on how you'd spend three days in DC.

On a side note, we are also looking into visiting Mount Vernon, the Great Falls Park as well as Alexandria. Any comments on that?

Before scheduling all that, we highly considerd renting a car in NYC, driving to Phily and checking out worthy things in the Phily/DC-area. Is there anything special to recommend? In case we end up sticking to the aforementioned, going by bus/train should be the better idea, I believe?

If any of you guys can share excellent experiences from the NY, NJ, Delaware, Maryland and DC-area, we might profit by, we'd be more than happy to spend one or two more days in that region.

Our connecting flights to Buffalo and the next day to Orlando match up just perfectly, so that we won't lose more time than needed and have a whole day to spend in Buffalo, before sallying out to Florida.

vjpblovesitaly

"the Phily/DC-area"

There is no such thing.

tomfuller

Niagara Falls is not a day trip from anyplace other than Buffalo and Toronto. Depending on where you are coming from, fly to Buffalo and rent a car.
You can either fly from Buffalo to Washington, New York, Philadelphia or Baltimore Washington (BWI) to cover the other parts of your trip.
The other choice from Buffalo and Niagara Falls is an Amtrak train to New York City (Penn Station).
The best views of the falls are from the Canadian side-bring your passport.

vjpblovesitaly

"the White House
the Capitol
the Library of Congress
a great moonlight tour to visit all the monuments in town
Georgetown
Eastern Market
Newseum
Smithsonian Institution
Dupont Circle for a cool evening
Hillwood Museum & Gardens
WNC
Tidal Basin
Arboretum
Mount Vernon
Great Falls Park
Alexandria"

The stuff you list is three days worth in DC. I am sure you know that the Smithsonian is multiple museums. You will have to pick which ones most appeal to you. I guess WNC is Washington National Cathedral.

The Eastern Market area is nice to walk around for an evening. The outdoor market is open on the weekends and Sunday is better to my knowledge. The food hall is open Tuesday – Sunday. Not worth the trip for just that if you ask me .

The Arboretum is also really nice but I would probably leave it off for a short trip like yours. I would also forget about Great Falls for this trip. Mount Vernon combined with Old Town Alexandria is nice but, again, this is a short trip so you have to decide if you want to include it.

nytraveler

Agree there is no "philly-DC area.

Philly is uch closer to NYC.

And DC going north you hit Baltimore first and then a lot of stuff before Philly.

tchoiniere

The most obvious must-see in DC that you are missing is Arlington Cemetery. But you will have to pick / choose depending on interests. You have too much listed.

What is WNC?

vjpblovesitaly

I think it is Washington National Cathedral. At first I thought it was ANC with a typo but when I typed WNC into google it actually came up a little bit down the page. I am not a big fan of self-made abbreviations.

MaloBalo

Hi vjpblovesitaly. Thank your for your help thus far. As to Philadelphia and Washington DC and all the stuff inbetween, I hope you take no offense in my version. What I really wanted to say was, I am basically looking for interesting sights/nature/activities in and around those cities. As mentioned, we are thinking about renting a car, if there was plenty of stuff to see around there, also being able to add a day or two, if need be.

You got it all right as to WNC being Washington National Cathedral. It's not that I was too fancy and made it up myself really. Hence, I simply copied it, not knowing it was uncommon.

Thanks also for sharing the exact dates of the Eastern Market. Luckily enough, we'll be there for the weekend.

As to Great Falls, Mount Vernon and Old Town Alexandria, would you consider adding a day for the latter two or rather spend a day more in Washington?

--

nytraveler, I do know that of course, no worries. However, I have to do some compromises on planning and discussing on the forum. For that purpose I regard Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington DC as one part of the trip. Otherwise I could hardly keep up with the thread and it would simply be too long to read. Do you have any recommendations as to Baltimore e.g.?

--

tchoiniere, that's why I am trying to get information on where to make a cut. Honestly, I cut the Arlington Cemetry at first. Why would you say is it more interesting than any other place?

Amy

There is much, much more to do in Philadelphia than what is on your list; depending on where your interests lie, here are just a few suggestions of some of my favorites:

Food/culture: Reading Terminal Market South Street Italian Market

Museums: Barnes Foundation Philadelphia Museum of Art University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology Mutter Museum (medical) Philadelphia History Museum National Museum of American Jewish History Franklin Institute Academy of Natural Sciences

Houses/Churches: Fairmount Park houses Shofuso (Pine Breeze Villa) Todd House Cliveden Betsy Ross House Elfreth's Alley Arch Street Meeting House Christ Church

Attractions: Dream Garden mosaic in Curtis Building (Magic Garden on South Street, as mentioned, as well; very different from each other!) Franklin, Washington, and Logan Squares City Hall building Wanamaker building (organ concerts at noon and 5pm; now a Macy's) Foundation for Architecture tours Waterworks

Okay, that's just off the top of my head. As I said, it does depend on your interests, of course, but I'll be happy to give you more specific information.

http://missalg.tumblr.com/

Amy

PS: Personally, I'd skip Niagara Falls (and Atlantic City, for sure). Niagara is really out of the way of your itinerary, and your NYC/Philadelphia/Baltimore/Washington DC segment can be very easily accomplished via bus or train; you really don't need/want a car in most of these places.

longhorn55

I, too, would drop Niagara Falls from your itinerary--not just because it's out of the way (which it is), but also because it's just not that interesting. There are SO many interesting things to see/do in NYC, Philly and D.C. that are more deserving of your time. Also, as already mentioned, Niagara Falls is not a day trip from any of the places you have listed. (Why do so many overseas visitors mention wanting to go to Niagara Falls? It's not really a major attraction for most Americans.)

I think your plan for D.C. is too ambitious. First of all, there is not just one "Smithsonian Institution". It's a collection of many museums and each one could take you a full day to see completely. Also, the Newseum is a great museum, but it will also take a full day to see. (Because all of the Smithsonian museums are free, you could get by with just spending a couple of hours in them. But if you are paying $20+ for the Newseum, you will want to see it all and that takes a full day.)

I would include Arlington National Cemetery in your itinerary. It is both a sobering and inspiring place. The Changing of the Guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is not to be missed. It is a very moving ceremony and I'll bet you won't be leaving it with dry eyes.

panecott

You can book a guided tour of the Capitol online if you're interested.
http://www.aoc.gov/guided-tours-buildings-capitol-hill

You can also just visit it on your own.

I believe White House tours have been canceled due to Sequestration, so you will only be able to see it from the outside -- unless they are reinstated before you arrive.

I've been to DC countless times, and I'm not familiar with some of the places you mentioned. vjp's suggestions on some of the lesser attractions make sense.

I agree with Longhorn about the Smithsonian and the Newseum - all are wonderful museums and each can easily take up your whole day. You're going to have to do some picking and choosing - but try not to miss the Newseum, b/c it's really one of a kind.
Also agree about Arlington. Don't miss it, and don't miss the memorials - Jefferson, Lincoln, WWII, Vietnam, Korea. They should all be seen.

I do disagree with longhorn about Niagara Falls, however. There is always disagreement on these boards about Niagara, and just as many people like it, as not. So don't let others' opinions discourage you and if you want to see it, then by all means, go. As I said on your NYC thread, I love the falls. I've been there a few times and would go back again.

Question -- is it too late to take a few days from FL to add to one or two of your other places? I haven't seen your FL installment, but you seem to come from Hawaii, and I'm wondering why you want to spend so much time in FL -- especially in the summer. It will be very hot and humid.

MaloBalo

Amy, longhorn55, panecott you are simply awesome. The stuff you bring up makes it so much easier to get an idea of what is really special and should be seen. Also, your experience and advice makes planning the trip sooooooo much easier. I'll sit down and try to post a DC-itinerary asap. As to Philly, I am still waiting for some information of relatives, who are living in that particular area. I am pretty sure Philly has much more to give than what I found out to be interesting for us thus fur. However, you know yourself best that Tripadvisor&Co can hardly depict all of the stuff worth seeing appropriately.

Amy,
I will take on Philly in depth as soon as I get the DC-itinerary done. We are really into regional cuisine/food, so your suggestions with the Reading Terminal Market and the Italian Market will be implemented somehow.

As to museums, it really depends on the topic. We're much more into stuff like the Newseum than a national gallery of art e.g. But I'll definately look them up to see what's behind the curtain. Thank you a lot for your response, especially, since we hardly got feedback as to Philly so far.

longhorn55,
I know about the Smithsonian. We'll surely check out and find something suitable for us. Your remark regarding the schedule of the Newseum is really valuable. Would you say, five hours could still do the trick? We've been to tons of museums of different kinds, and say the V&A in London is surely one of those, but we've never spent a full day so far.

Arlington Cemetery seems to be fascinating to all of you. I had it on a previous list and will have to see, what I can do here. Have you ever been to London e.g. to compare the changing of the guard? Thanks in advance, if you found the time to respond once more.

panecott,
first off, thank you so much yet again. As to your question: You can find our FL installment here (http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...t3-florida.cfm). Unfortunately I missed to add the FL tag once I posted it and haven't had the time to repop the thread. Also, we've a couple of friends who regularly fly to FL, so that it's definately the part with the least help required.

Actually, we're from Europe. Florida eating up a major portion of our total trip has various reasons: We are definately looking into as much variety as possible. My girlfriend has never been to the US before. We'd love to experience as many facets of the US as possible. Besides, both of us need some days off and we love "beach hopping" a lot since our trip to the Algarve in Portugal. That being said, city trips, some nature, some beaches, some shopping, great food, getting to know the different culture in any part at least a bit is what should make our trips most enjoyable and fun.

More important - coming back to your question - we are still very flexible as to the whole itinerary. We've only bought the tickets into the US (NYC) and back (MIA). Anything else is still to be determined. With all your guys feedback we've already decided to spend at least one more day in DC and maybe two nights in total in Buffalo/Niagara.

As to your feedback: Smithsonian needs further "investigation" for sure, the Newseum is on. We'll probably have to do it by the ear on sight and see, if we spend 3, 5 or 8 hours there. I'll check up the Arlington as aforementioned. When it comes to the memorials, we'll probably end up booking a moonlight tour, as they are all lit up at night.

Last but not least: Niagara Falls. I know it's a lot of pros and cons. But since we'll have to take a flight to Florida anyway, flying to the Niagara Falls is only a single flight more to be added, plus an hour or two for the flight itself. We won't do a roundtrip, so that it's only 50EUR more p.p. I can imagine the hotels being more expensive in Buffalo and the Canadian side especially, however, we'll make sure to visit the Niagara falls around midweek and definately not on the weekend. The first thing on our mind was to even spend one or dwo more days in Toronto. We've only heard positive stuff about the city but it's also said to be somewhat of the Canadian NYC and that it needs at least a couple of days to take it all in.

MaloBalo

panecott,
thank's a lot for the information regarding the Niagara Falls. I've read about most of the stuff you mention. We will need some time and discussions and probably have to see, where we end up moving and adding a day here and there.

sf7307

MB, the ticket you buy for the Newseum is good for two consecutive days. The first time we went, we spent 4 hours the first day. On the second day, I had a business appt., so my husband went back and spent another 2 hours without me, then I joined him for another hour. It's an amazing place. Also, the cafe is pretty good - so you don't even have to leave for lunch!

sf7307

Oh, and two other suggestions for DC - last time we were there, on a Sunday (very little traffic), we rented bikes from Bike'nRoll (behind the Old Post Office?) and rode all over - Capitol Hill, Eastern Market, Tidal Basin, Jefferson Memorial, Georgetown U. It was so much fun, we'd definitely do it again (and will, since starting in September, son and DIL will be living there fulltime). Also, one time my husband was there without me and he rented a bike and rode along the old C&O canal path and has been wanting to do that again, too.

MaloBalo

Well, I've put some stuff together. Basically, as usual, saving time in travelling/walking is priority. We plan on visiting the memorials by booking a walking tour at night. I also like the idea of renting a bike for some time and would like to hear, if it made sense for any part of our DC-itinerary, which is as follows:

D1:
Capitol
Library of Congress
Eastern Market
Capitol Hill

D2:
White House
Newseum
Memorial Walking Tour at night

D3:
Pentagon (quick stint)
Arlington Cemetery
Georgetown
Washington National Cathedral

We are highly considering to add a day to our DC-itinerary, which would then consist of

D4:
Smithsonian (still have to figure out which museum to visit)
Tidal Basin
C&O Canal
Dupont Circle

If you could tell me whether any day is too ambitious or still offers room for something else, I'd be grateful.

tchoiniere

Definitely add a day to your itinerary so that you can visit some of the Smithsonian. You would be missing a lot if you didn't visit them while in DC.

I would not do an organized tour of the Monuments, rather I would do it on your own. You can do it via cabs and walking. I would cab it to either Jefferson (furthest outlier of the Monuments) and then depending on how much walking you want - start at FDR and go to Jefferson via cab a different day. Then walk in a clockwise pattern visiting the Monuments. You will end up walking past the Washingon Monument and could continue to the White House.

But for Day 4, you would have already seen the Tidal Basin by touring the Monuments unless you wanted to leave Jefferson and FDR Memorials until here - which isnt a bad idea. If that is the case, start your Monument tour at Lincoln Memorial and then cab it to Jefferson on D4 early in the morning. I would then cab it to the museum from FDR, assuming you can get one to save time. Try to have most of the day for Smithsonian viewing.

For Smithsonians, my 3 favorites are the Air & Space, American History and the Portrait Gallery.

yestravel

Visiting some of the Smithsonian Museums is really a wonderful activity -- they are free. Pick the one or two that most fits your interest.
Capital Bikesahre is a great way to get around. You could get on the Capital Crescent Trail in Georgetown and wind your way down the canal as far as you like.
http://www.google.com/search?client=...UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

MaloBalo

Hey guys,

since you've been so helpful in the past especially as to my DC-itinerary, I wondered if you could help me with some details regarding Philadelphia. We finally decided to add another day and spend two full days there.

We'll be arriving from NYC at night by amtrak. It's going to be my girlfriend's birthday the next day so I'd be glad to receive some help regarding a well-located as well as well-run hotel downtown. My research has the following to offer and as always, I'm curious on what you guys have to say

a) Radisson Plaza-Warwick
b) Philadelphia Marriott Downtown
c) Holiday Inn Express Philadelphia
d) Penn's View
e) Courtyard Philadelphia Downtown
f) Hampton Inn Philadelphia

In no particular order I found those options as the ones with the highest rating. We really don't care about the chain or name, as long as the location is fine and the breakfast is above average. I'm looking forward to hearing from you.