First Time to DC
 

My husband and are are going to DC over Memorial Day weekend. It will be our first time. We are driving so will have a car. Got a great deal on the Marriott Suites near Dulles airport. Since we will have our car, is this a good place to stay? Would rather not pay $20+ for parking downtown. Any suggestions? Also, what are the must-dos while there? Will be there Sat - Wed. Thanks!

Dulles is not a great location for visiting DC. It's a long drive. You could, I guess, drive to the East Falls Church Metro station and park your car there and take Metro into the city.

This will work on the weekend, but not on Tuesday and Wednesday, when the lot will fill fast with commuters.

Staying by the Dulles airport, IMO, is just too far out. It's about a 30 min drive into DC without any traffic. Plus, parking in DC is a huge pain! I would try to stay near a metro station. I would look into the hotels around Rosslyn, Crystal City and maybe even Bethesda. You'll still have to pay for parking but certainly not DC rates.

As for must-do's, go to www.si.edu and pick out some museums. I love the National Gallery and Natural History Museums. On my next trip to DC, I'll be visiting the Musuem of the American Indian. Do you like to shop? Then definitely visit Georgetown and the Eastern market. I'd also consider a visit to Old Town Alexandria (about 1 mile walk from the King St metro).

I agree with MikeT. You'll essentially be commuting into the city. There's nothing really around Dulles, Reston Town Center is nice but if you're going to DC for the first time I should think you'd really want to explore.

If you're trying to save money, try a hotel in Arlington. You'll be right on the metro with only a few stops to DC and parking costs will probably be cheaper. I don't have any recs but if you do a search on this board you'll probably find something.

As far as must-do's, obviously the monuments. Kcapuani gave you some good advice too. Exploring the Dupont Circle and Adams-Morgan neighborhoods would be high on my list. You should probably see Georgetown and maybe a stop in Old Town Alexandria.

This is not a great idea - since you're almost 30 miles from anything you want to see.

If you don;t want to pay the hotel prices/parking for central DC you should look for something nearby in Virginia that's on/near the Metro line.

If you do a search below you'll find a lot of options.

I had a chance a few years ago for a "great deal" on Embassy Suites near IAD, but one writer here stated preference to being poked in the eye than staying out there to visit DC.

You can get hotels w/ no parking charge near Rosslyn Metro stop. Also look at Courthouse. Even Van Dorn area.

DO use the Metro. Don't purchase tickets with "just enough" credit on them for one trip, or one round trip ... you'll be spending too much time at the ticket vending machines ... with 5 days I would purchase maybe $15 fare cards for each person, $10 minimum, as you'll probably use them. Remember that you keep your ticket, swiping it both entering and exiting the Metro system, so it works kind of like pre-paid phone cards.

Also take a look at Old Town Alexandria. We have some big chain hotels and some charming B & B type places. From the King Street metro, it is an easy ride into DC right across the river, but Old Town itself is a lovely place to stroll, shop, dine, etc. as well with charming colonial houses, cute shops, etc.

Here's a link: http://www.funside.com/

Note that some of the hotels listed are in the suburbs, not in Old Town proper. Hilton, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, etc. are right in Old Town, among others.

Thanks for all of your suggestions. I cancelled the room booked at Dulles and have resigned myself to the fact that I will have to pay a little more for a room. So, here's the choices I've come up with so far - Hotel Lombardy, St. Gregory, Washington Mariott (downtown - they have a memorial day special), Holiday Inn Rosslyn at Key Bridge, The River Inn and Washington Suites Georgetown. I know that's a long list, but if anyone has suggestions I'd be happy to hear them!! THanks so much :)

I used to work at the Washington Marriott - it's a basic Marriott hotel with a good location. You can walk to Georgetown (about 7 blocks) and to the Dupont Circle area (4-5 blocks). There is a metro station at Dupont Circle, and also at Foggy Bottom which is about 5 blocks away.

I've never stayed at the St Gregory but it looks like a nice boutique hotel. It is 2 blocks from the Marriott and closer to Dupont Circle.

Personally, I would not stay in Georgetown because there is no metro station nearby.

I've stayed at the River Inn - a quiet, residential location about two and a half blocks from the Foggy Bottom metro station. I stayed in a one bedroom suite which was large and had a kitchenette (very handy). The staff was pleasant and professional.

I believe the Washington Suites is on the edge of Georgetown and is two blocks away from a metro station. I haven't stayed there, so can't personally vouch for it.

We stayed at the Rosslyn Holiday Inn and found it fine - nothing fancy but clean and a great location. It's maybe a half block from the metro station and only a 10 minute ride or so into the mall area. They have free parking, which is pretty rare in DC, and an indoor pool if that matters. The other thing was that if you joined their priority club you got a free breakfast which was great. I'd stay there again.

Hi tdmort,

That's kind of a tough weekend in DC with all the veterans around. The hotels are packed with Rolling Thunder motorcycle groups. I'd book something fairly quickly.

Yep, it could be a hassle to come in from Dulles airport everyday. The parking lots fill up at the Metro (subway/light rail) garages and so you'd have no place to park to get on the convenient train.

Of the places you list I think the Marriott would be best. Most of those you list are in the area of GW University/Foggy Bottom/WestEnd. It's walkable to the Mall/Museums if you don't mind a bit of a hike and there are Metro stations within a few blocks
in a couple of directions. The Metro line also will drop you in the center of all of the Smithsonian museums if you don't want to walk far.

River Inn, Lombardy and Washington Suites serve the University quite a bit but depending on when they were last freshened up I don't know if I'd chance them. I don't know St.Gregory at all but that doesn't mean anything.

If people here say the Holiday Inn Keybridge is clean then that alternative might be okay with a close Metro stop and you can walk across the bridge to Georgetown in the evenings which is fun.

You can also walk there from the Marriott from the other direction.

Tell me more about what you like to do and I'll tell you where to go.

On Memorial Day the President usually goes to Arlington Cemetary and I've taken guests there for that. It is also pretty cool to see the motorcycles come rolling across the Memorial Bridge.

dsquared - thanks for the post. Was the River Inn within walking distance of the metro? What about food/shopping - was it nearby?

Phew...glad you canceled your hotel near Dulles. I live near Dulles and it took me 1 hour and 45 minutes to get to work in DC on Tuesday -- and I left at 6:15 a.m.!

I stayed at the St Gregory about 1.5 yrs ago for a special evening around the town. The room was very nice - large, and had a kitchenette which would be great if you're there for a few nights. The hotel has a restaurant on the main floor and another restaurant, David Greggory, is right across the street. Dinner there is just okay, but I do enjoy a drink and appetizers. Galielo, a much acclaimed Italian restaurant, is a short 1.5 block walk away.

St Gregory is convenient to the metro which means you're convenient to all sites and restaurants.

Yes, the River Inn was an easy walk to the metro station. Trying to remember about restaurants; we mostly ate dinner/lunch in other areas of the city. There were restaurants in the area (mostly appealing to GWU students, I think) though, and there was a grocery store at the Watergate (another easy walk). Their website is www.theriverinn.com

Sorry I don't know anything about the other hotels you're considering.

Tdmort:

Are you talking about the Marriott at Metro Center? if so, that would be in an excellent location for getting around on public transport and within walking distance of various sites.

You say they have a good rate for Mem Day..does it include parking?

The HI in Rosslyn would be within easy walking distance of the Metro as well.

The RiverInn is within walking distance of some sections of Georgetown (as is anything in Rosslyn) and near Kincaid's (seafood) restaurant which some people really like.

I would also suggest the St. Gregory. It's a great location (although I am partial to it, since I live in the neighborhood!). On Memorial Day weekend, the metro will be a mess. If you are up for walking a good bit, you will be able to walk to many sites from this hotel and (hopefully) avoid the metro as much as possible. Also, with the zone cab system, you and your husband can take an $8 cab ride to almost anywhere downtown (I don't know how much cab rides would cost from Rosslyn).

As for the car, depending on where you are coming from, you might be able to park out at a metro station in VA or MD(and leave your car out there for the weekend); take the metro out and pick it up when you are ready to leave or if you want to drive to any particular sites. This could be a hassle, but if the cost of parking is a real problem, it is one solution.

Chelsea:
"On Memorial Day weekend, the metro will be a mess." Can you elaborate? Some places worse/better than others?

Thank you.

Thank you all for your help! The Marriott is simply called Washington Marriott and is on 22nd St NW. Parking is not included and is $23 per day! I also found a package deal at the River Inn that includes breakfast, a free metro pass and parking so I'm kinda leaning towards that. I just wasn't sure how convenient it was to the metro, etc. My husband likes the free parking at HI Rosslyn but HI can go either way in terms of quality.

Thanks for the post kakalena. I wasn't sure if we should try to be at Arlington for Memorial Day. Is there any way to find out if the Pres is going to be there? We're going to be there for 3 1/2 days. I was thinking 1 day for museums, 1 day for monuments - is that reasonable?

Oh no....I hadn't even thought about the metro being extra busy because of Memorial Day! :(

Re: the metro:

All I meant is that it will be very crowded downtown, as there will probably be many visitors/metro riders for the holiday weekend. I'm not saying that you shouldn't take the metro; just consider taking a nice walk if you are only going a stop or two. DC is really much smaller than it seems. If you are willing to take the time (and don't have a condition that keeps you from walking a good bit), it is much better to see the city on foot by walking from one place to another!

Dsquared: I can't say for sure which areas would be the most crowded, but my guess would be anywhere downtown (near the monuments) and coming in from VA, particularly the orange line.

tdmort: I don't know anything about the River Inn, but it is metro accessible (Foggy Bottom stop on the blue and orange lines).

We stayed at the St. Gregory a few years ago in the summer. Great location, and nice kitchen in the large (for DC) room, too. I believe the location of the hotel would protect you from the masses of motorcyclists in town :)

"masses of motorcyclists" ..... sounds like DC becomes Sturgis! :-)

check out www.biddingfortravel before you make your final decision. There are lots of DC hotels on Priceline in great areas and for fantastic savings---some in the $80-$100 range. Of course, the car fees are additional, but it's still good value if you understand the bidding strategy and can get a hotel in an area you desire. good luck--

What is this about motorcycles anyway? Also, thanks for the tip on biddingfortravel. I did read the DC section and frankly priceline.com scares me. I know it shouldn't, and I can't tell you how many times I've read on tripadvisor about great prices people have gotten. If I do priceline I would have to wait until right before we go. My dad is very sick and we're praying he will be doing fine but if he isn't then we will have to put off our trip or change the dates. I am still going to book a room, but just make sure I can cancel it if need be.

Hi again tdmort,

Hopefully here is the map for the River Inn.

http://www.theriverinn.com/directions.php

You can see how close it is to the Metro stop and it's in a historic townhouse neighborhood/university area.

Put the address in on Mapquest and you'll see how close all the hotels (but HI) are to one another and to the museums etc.

River Inn also very close to the Kennedy Center and very walkable to Georgetown or Dupont Circle in the evening. With the exception of HI everything else you are looking at is in this same area.

I'm just not sure which of the properties would be the most recently updated/freshest for you and you'll have to decide what to do about the parking.

Chelsea seems to like ST Gregory.

Don't give the DC tourist crowds another thought except to get a hotel room reserved. Memorial Day is busy but nothing you can't handle including the Metro. 4th of July is a whole other realm of chaos. Remember there won't be any workers over the weekend and a lot of the tourists will disappear come Tueday.

If you had a large group I would recommend restaurant reservations. I waited a couple of hours at Clydes bar on Memorial Day a couple of years ago but everyone was having a good time and didn't notice. It would be good to get reservations for two people if you can but some places don't even take them in DC anymore.

Yes, the President usually shows up for Memorial Day at Arlington so it should be a photo op. You never can tell with how crazy security is. Check the Washington Post for the day and time
of the festivities. They change actual holidays for Mondays but sometimes they'll do the ceremony on the actual day.

Put the HI address in Mapquest too and you'll see it's on the opposite end of Georgetown from River Inn vicinity. I walk from there to the museums but you wouldn't want to do it everyday unless you like hiking. It's a very short Metro ride to the museums.

It's really kind of romantic to walk into Georgetown over the Potomac at night. The Virginia side of the river is very trendy now too although you'll have to walk a few blocks to get into the thick of it.

This is what the motorcycles are all about.


http://www.rollingthunder1.com/

Just to make things more complicated my husband found a good rate at the Hilton Alexandria. Not sure - its a toss up between that, River Inn and the HI Key Bridge. I just need to decide and book something now! Thanks everyone for your suggestions....now I have to think about what to do and where to eat! I'm going to be ready for a vacation by the time I get all of this figured out!! :)

Alexandria is a historic town and worth a trip if you have time but off the beaten path.

You don't say which Alexandria Hilton. If it's next door to the Metro on King Street it's better than the Mark Hilton which isn't close to much of anything.

I'd probably stay at one of the Dulles locations instead of the Mark Hilton and take the express bus to the Metro into DC out of Reston which has lots of free parking.

oops...sorry meant Arlington Hilton, not Alexandria! :)

Okay, i'll bite. The Hilton Garden Inn or the Arlington Hilton?

The HGI is in the trendy Virginia area I mentioned previously. The AH is right in there too. Both are very close to Metro stops and close to DC(I believe AH sits on top of Ballston). Either would work for you.

Don't stay out by Dulles. Too far away. If you don't want to stay in the city stay at the Key Bridge Marriott, a classic, and with good views, or in Georgetown at the Laytham House on M Street, where the rates are okay. Also check out the Georgetown Suites. Save one night or weekend brunch to hang out at Nathans at the corner of Wisconsin and M and watch all the Georgetown action. If the weather is good it can feel like the center of the universe. Also, the waffles are excellent.

tdmort, I hope your father gets better and that your trip goes as planned. good luck--k