Hi,
with my wife we are planning a one week trip (including flights) to Washington DC.
It's our first time there, could you please give us all suggestions on how to organize our trip: best place to see, better area for the hotel, lodging / restaurants to stay (not very expensive..).
Grazie, I find the info I get from this "Talk" very useful thanks to all of You.
Arrivederci.
Gianni

All hotels in DC will be expensive (really depends what expensive for you is). If $300 a night or higher is too much, you might want to stay in Crystal City, VA. It's about 10 minutes to DC. Most restaurants in DC are expensive also ($100 + for one - including wine and tip). Your hotels and restaurants are best in Northwest DC (business area). You need to visit all the museums in the "Mall", White House, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial. They have a bus that you can hop on and hop off that will take you all around DC.

Alexandria is also a good option if the downtown hotels are too expensive. It's right on the Metro and many of its hotels are walking distance. The Smithsonian museums are huge and you couldn't possibly see them all but you might want to pick one or two that meet your interests...art/history/aeronautics. Mount Vernon, George Washington's "country" home, is about 15 minutes from D.C. proper and very interesting. On the way there is also Arlington National Cemetary which you may find interesting. For non-"government" related items, the market in D.C. is supposed to be great. I've never been there but either Conde Nast Traveller or Travel and Leisure just did an article on it-you may want to check their websites.

In addition to Alexandria, Arlington can sometimes be a more inexpensive alternative to hotels in D.C. Arlington is also on the metro lines.

The Holocaust museum is a favorite of mine. While it doesn't specifically relate to American history and what one might expect to see in our nation's capital, it is a very emotional & interesting experience.

I second the advice to pick only one or two of the Smithsonian museums. I, personally, enjoy the Musuem of American History and the Air & Space musuem. Being from Italy, you probably have seen a great deal of good art. So, unless there's a particular piece or artist housed at the National Gallery or other art museums that interests you, I'd skip the art museums. The great thing about all the Smithsonian museums is that admission is free!

I think the Dupont Circle area is the best place for tourists to stay. Lots of hotel choices, and restaurants too.

I'd recomend George Washington's home at Mt.Vernon as a good way to spend one of your days here. Old Town Alexandria (King Street Metro station) is a nice place to wander around, also.

What time of year will your trip be?

donnabee - why scare Gianni off? There are much cheaper hotels than you suggest, and certainly cheaper restaurants.

Gainni - Dupont Circle is a popular area to stay in and quite central.

The Courtyard by Marriott on Connecticut Ave is about $100 a night, so you can certainly find some good deals. Do some searching on the web for hotel discounts (type "dc hotels" in www.google.com to get you started).

Dupont Circle has tons of restaurants in a variety of price ranges as well.

Check out www.washingtonian.com and look for "Best Cheap Eats" for ideas.

As for places to see, it depends on your interests: you could spend the whole week at the different Smithsonian museums if that's what you like. But, most people hit the usual:

Smithsonian (Natural History, Air and Space, whatever else interests you - check their website)

The Monuments - Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson, Vietnam, etc. The White House. The new International Spy museum. The zoo. You can walk around Georgetown, visit Arlington National Cemetery; get a guidebook or read about DC on this website under "destinations" tab.

Have fun, and welcome to DC (my home)

Karen

Guess everyone has different tastes, but I would not stay in Dupont Circle.

Karen has given you some great ideas to get you started.

I was in DC for 5 days in a year or so back and I would recommend the Dupont Circle area as a place to stay, it has a good location, not far from many of the the major sites, lots of good restaurants nearby and it seemed a very safe area. I personally wouldn't want to stay that far from the central district.

I stayed in the Radisson Barcelo (in Dupont Circle) for under $100 per night and quite a few people have reported getting these rates here. A bonus is it's proxmity to the metro - only a couple of blocks from memory.

Obviously the time of year you are travelling will impact on hotel rates.

I always tell my visiting friends "If you're coming to Washington, then why not stay in Washington?" There are many specials that hotels run and once you decide what area you'd like to stay in (yes, Dupont Circle is very nice and has many hotels and restaurants) then you can also try Priceline.

Most all museums in Washington are free and you'll undoubtedly have a great time touring here. You could try taking one of the scenic tourmobiles for 1/2 day and then stop off at all of the sights that you'd like to see.

You'll get more help if you tell us what time of year that you're planning your visit.

Ciao!

Get a restaurant guide preferably zagat for D.C. Have a meal at a reputable place that serves crab.

If you are up for a day trip outside of the city Baltimore is about a 45-minute train ride. The largest Aquarium on the East Coast is there, possibly the country? Ever see the movie as good as it gets, that is Baltimore they take the weekend trip to. Perhaps someone else can tell us the name of that restaurant. If it was a Philips Forget it! I have had wonderfully fresh seafood in Baltimore though. I clearly remember amazingly tender fresh catch calamari.

Nothing to rival the beautiful landscape you have in Italy but the Marriott in Baltimore has a nice location right on the water. This is a great area for seafood also.

A word of caution on D.C tourist boards they are dreadfully misinformed you should try to do much of your planning before you come. Depending on where you are staying you won't always be able to rely on the concierge. That was my experience at the Hilton near the White House and also at the Sheraton 4 points.

Great town though and you will have a good time. Just want to find out a few things before you come. You have to cue up for the capital rotunda and something link 8-9am. If you miss this you miss your chance at a look. Don't venture into any Phillips for seafood, YUCK. The White House tourist board sent me there. Find out what's on what's not before you go. This will cut down on travel and I am sorry to say wrong info given out by different tourist boards. I had the Smithsonian send me to an exhibit that was not even open yet. Brochure was published and distributed before the exhibit was on. I am guessing that would not happen if you went online first.

There are plenty of online deals to be had in D.C. I paid $99 at the Hilton and $60 at the Sheraton Four Points, both in summer. Coming all the way from Italy and for such a short time. I would pick a central location and not mess around with even a two stop subway trip. I did that last year and found myself walking 5 blocks just to the subway.

Having said that many of the hotels nearest to tourist destinations are huttled around the white house. This is a non-residential location and that can be sterile. I suppose I would suggest Georgetown but near the subway just outside. I forget how much walking that would be so factor that in. Might still want to stay in a central location.

You've received a lot of recommendations here, but I would like to offer you one travel-related tip:

Become familiar with the subway system (metro) before you arrive. You can do that by going to http://www.wmata.com/ -- they even have information in Italian. Using the system can make your trip a lot better.

The system is clean, quick and safe, but try to avoid using it during rush hour.

Buon viaggio. Benvenuti!

I would recommend staying in the city, also, but I don't care for suburbs when being a tourist. I think most places in DC with good hotels are reasonable -- Dupont Circle, Woodley Park, Foggy Bottom or downtown. I wouldn't recommend Georgetown myself because there's no metro stop.

Hotels in DC don't cost $300+, you'd have to stay in the most deluxe places for that. Rates vary by season and days, but there are many many nice hotels (4*) for between $125-$200. YOu don't have to use Priceline or anything for that, just look at www.quikbook.com, for example.

Gianni-

What are your interests? I have lived just outside of Washington DC for 6 1/2 years and this is what I would reccommend: whether you stay in DC, Virginia, or Maryland make sure that you are within walking distance to the Metro (local public trasportation) as this will make your life much easier. As others have said, many of Washington DC's sites/museums are paid for by the government and are therefore free so you will save quite a bit of money and can spend it on food and lodging. There are also three airports (Ronald Reagan National, Dulles International, and Baltimore-Washington International) with Ronald Reagan being the closest to the city and BWI being the farthest.If you are at all interested in Colonial America, then I would suggest that you try eating dinner one night at Gadsby's Tavern in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. The restaurant is historic, the food is excellent (had our wedding rehearsal dinner there), and they dress in colonial costume with entertainment for a fun night. As far as sites to see, walking along the Tidal Basin near the Potomac River in Wash DC will allow you to see many of the memorials (Lincoln, FDR, Jefferson, etc.)It can be relaxing and fun to just stoll around the area and look at memorials. The holocaust memorial museum as well as the air and space museum are worthwhile (both are free). The FBI tour is kind of neat (also free) and the International Spy Museum is pretty neat (plan to spend about 2-3 hours there) but is not free. The US mint (near the FBI exhibit is interesting to see how the US makes our money and attempts to prevent counterfeiting. When spending time at the monuments or the museums, there is slim pickings for food. It is not that big of a deal just be aware of that and either bring food with you or eat at the museum cafe as nothing is worse than being so hungry you could eat your finger and being in a foreign country and not finding ANYTHING or anywhere to eat! Hope this helps!

Karin