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