the building

Moselle, if you have 12 people in your group, it would be MUCH cheaper to find a parking garage in D.C. and leave your van. I also think it would be less of a hassle than trying to get 12 people around on Metro. Check this website for locations and rates for D.C. parking garages: http://washingtondc.bestparking.com/index.php

Rosslang: If you have reserved tickets to get into the National Archives, your wait will be short as you get to go through security before anyone in the general admission line. Once you get into the building, there is a line to see the documents in the Rotunda. We were lucky in that the line was very short when we arrived for our visit. As we were leaving, we noticed the line was very long. So you could have quite a wait...just depends.

Thank you, longhorn!

Depending on how long your tour is of the Capitol, you may want to consider visiting the Library of Congress immediately after. There is a tunnel from the Capitol Visitor's Center to the LOC, so you do not have to go outside or go through security to get to the LOC. If you arrived at the Capitol early enough, you could visit the exhibits in the visitor's center prior to your tour, which would make getting to the LOC with enough time to explore easier.

The Library of Congress is a breathtakingly beautiful building, and the various exhibits, especially Thomas Jefferson's library, make it a must-see for History Buffs (IMO). It closes at 4:30, I believe, so keep that in mind. I wouldn't rush the Capitol, but if you happen to be finished before 4:00 or so, it is definitely worth it!