How bad will DC be during Sping break?
 

We are starting to plan a trip to DC during my son's spring break. He has always wanted to go - and this is his senior yr in HS. Now looks to be the last opportunity we have. Will Spring break just be too crowded to see the sites? Will there be anything we will just have to skip? I was looking at spending 4 full days there - but we don't want to go if we will spend all of our time standing in lines. Thanks for your help.

Washington is used to crowds and "Spring Break" is not a defined time - ocurring anytime in March and much of April for different school districts and colleges. In much of the northeast US there are 2 breaks - one in Feb and one in April; for a lot of the rest of the country and for most colleges it is a week in March.

Easter is 4/4; cherry blossoms are also popular time, although I have no idea when official time is for that.

Go, make hotel reservations soon and have a good time.

One of the busiest times is when the Cherry Blossoms bloom - which is usually around Easter (depends on the weather).

"Lines" are not usually bad - more like crowds around the memorials and monuments.

TIP: If you plan to visit the capital - order tickets in advance. ALSO - if you plan to go to the top of the Washington Monument - order tickets in advance to avoid waiting in a long line to try to get them. Free, timed-entry tickets can be reserved for a transaction fee by calling 1-877-444-6777

I love D.C.!

8-)

Aloso contact your US Rep's office - they can offer a variety of tickets, tours, etc. Or call their DC office when in town. DH and I misunderstood who was going to call out Congressman's office and so we ended up calling the DC office when we arrive (admittedly, in an August when no one was in town). Ended up getting a private tour of the Capitol by an incredibly well-informed and pleasant intern in his office.

The Washington cherry blossoms' peak period is around April 1 (give or take a week for weather extremes). The National Park Service begins its predictions for the season in mid-march each year. The festival runs for two weeks, generally about March 25-April 10, and that is when crowds are largest, especially if Easter falls within those dates.

The White House and Spy Museum also have timed tickets but don't know how far in advance you can get them. During spring break times it is best to get timed tickets ahead of time instead of waiting until your arrival. Plan on walking and using the Metro.

The Cherry Blossom Festival is March 27 thru April 11 2010. Downtown is jammed during the festival esp around the Jefferson Memorial where the Cherry Blossoms are. Walking is much easier than driving so if you plan on coming during that time, plan on walking everywhere or taking the metro. I think March thru the end of the summer DC is pretty busy with tourists with some peaks during various holidays and the festival. Springtime is a beautiful time to visit DC, come and enjoy it and don't worry about crowds.

Come! Yes, there will be a lot of people here, but with good planning, you should be able to avoid waiting in lines. Definitely contact your Congressional office to find out what tickets/tours they can arrange for you. Get advance tickets when possible for anyplace that you want to visit which requires a ticket. Other places offering advance tickets will be: Holocaust Museum (for the Permanent Exhibition only) and Ford's Theatre tours. You can arrange for special entry to the National Archives which allows you to bypass the general admission line. Also, the Bureau of Printing and Engraving requires tickets, but they are only offered on-site for same day admission. You need to get there early for those. Go the websites for all the the sites you want to visit to find out about tickets and hours as some places may have entended hours during your visit.
Finally, I can really recommend doing a Segway tour with your high school senior. Even though we are locals, we did the Segway tour with our college-aged and high-school aged kids a year ago and they still talk about how fun it was. It's a good thing to do early in your visit because the guides have a lot of good info about things to see and do in the city. It's also something you can do after the museums close because they have a twilight tour (which we did).