Lodging outside of Washington DC?
 

I am planning a two or three day visit in late June to Washington DC with wife and two kids (12 & 10). Would like to stay outside of DC, along the Metro with good access to Downtown/Smithsonian.

Can anyone suggest economical lodging? Would prefer hotel or motel, maybe a pool, nice surroundings, etc...

Thanks for your thoughts.

You can look in Bethesda or Rockville, MD. I'm not sure how much cheaper the rooms will be. They're both on the red line (metro) so you'd have to transfer to the blue line to get to the Smithsonian.

In Rockville, there is a Ramada Inn and a Doubletree. In Bethesda, there's a Hyatt, and I think a Holiday Inn and Residence Inn. There's also Friendship Heights (Chevy Chase) which has an Embassy Suites that's part of a mall.

All of these hotels are within reasonable walking distance from their respective metro stations.

The Holiday Inn Select on King Street in Alexandria VA has shuttle service to and from the airport and the metro stop. Plus, it's in a great location to explore Alexandria.

Also try Ballston in Arlington, VA. There is a metro station there with orange line trains that go to smithsonian. I'm sure there is a hilton right by the station, and a holiday inn a few minutes away.

When we're in the DC area on business, we normally stay at Embassy Suites by King Street metro.

I'm not that familiar with the metro area, but isn't Rockville far afield from the downtown area? I've read the commute into DC is horrible for most of the day.

I would think using Metro and walking would be the best bet for a family.

Sheraton Suites in Alexandria has a summer special of $79/night in the summer. They are true suites, the pool and jacuzzi are well maintained and great for kids. Metro stop is still in $1.10 zone, not the $3.00 zone like Rockville or Vienna.

A great number of the hotels in the Arlington/Alexandria areas of Virginia offer free shuttle service to and from the metro stations, even if they are not in easy walking distance. The Bethesda area of Maryland is a nice area as far as places to eat and things to do, so that's a good suggestion, although 'internetwiz' may be right about the area not necessarily being any cheaper than DC (there are deals to be had within DC, so don't give up looking there if money is the key factor).

Although I'm not sure what you seek as far as "nice surroundings" (residential, trees, or things to do), here are some more ideas:

The Embassy Suites Alexandria (http://www.embassysuites.com/en/es/h...tyhocn=WASOTES) that was suggested is a pretty good idea. It's right across the parking lot from the King Street metro station on the Blue line.

The Hyatt Arlington (http://arlington.hyatt.com/property/index.jhtml) is a nice hotel and right by the Rosslyn metro station on the Orange line. I don't think it has a pool, but it's nice and has a lot of restaurants nearby. Outside of being in DC itself, it may be one of the closest ones.

The Hilton McLean (http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/hotels/i...tyhocn=MCLMHHH) is in a business district (office buildings on treed/grassy lots) but is surrounded by quite a bit of grass and trees, so it feels a little removed from the hustle and bustle. It isn't within walking distance to the metro, but has a shuttle bus that can take you there. Has a pool.

On what may be the more obviously economical end, there is the Comfort Inn Ballston (http://www3.choicehotels.com/ires/en...DC.2tteyFQrb.3). I've only seen it from the outside, but it's a few blocks from the Ballston metro station and has a pool.

As an FYI regarding the metro (www.wmata.com), both the Orange and Blue lines will take you to and from the Smithsonian/mall area. Transferring between trains is pretty easy, so even if you select a place not on the Orange or Blue lines, you're still likely to have the convenience you seek.

With DC tourism being lower than other years, deals can be found in the entire DC metro area, so don't overlook the possibility of staying within DC and trying Hotwire or Priceline. You may be surprised at what you can get!

Two suggestions:

1. Plenty of hotels in the Crystal City, VA area (from Days Inn to Marriott) and some decent deals on the weekend. Crystal City is on the blue line of the metro and minutes from DC.

2. Try Priceline for hotels in DC and the other areas mentioned. Go to biddingfortravel.com for bid successes and failures of others. Lots of good info for submitting a winning Priceline bid at the best prices.

Ditto to another poster's suggestion of the Holiday Inn Select on King Street. It's in a great location of Old Town Alexandria and has shuttle service to the King St. Metro.

On another trip we stayed at a different Holiday Inn in Old Town, but I'm having a senior moment and can't remember what street it's on. The shuttlg St. Metro, but it does go to Ronald Reagan airport, where there's a Metro stop, as well.

Of the two, we preferred the Holiday Inn on King St.

Uh, not quite sure what happened with my last post, but I mean to say that the other Holiday Inn doesn't have shuttle service to the King St. Metro. Maybe I should do "preview my reply" before hitting "post"! :-o

I've stayed several times at the Quality Inn Iwo Jima, in Arlington near the Rosslyn Metro. It has a pool, restaurant, and free parking. It's a quiet, safe neighborhood of mostly offices & high-rise pricy apartments, so there's not much "night life". You probably would not want to walk to the Metro with luggage, but otherwise, it's maybe 1/3 mile & ok to walk. Both Orange & Blue lines serve Rosslyn station.

The Holiday Inn Eisenhower Ave is adjacent to a Metro (Yellow). The surroundings are not much to brag about, but it often has weekend rates of about $60.

Days Inn - Camp Springs MD is close to the Beltway, 3 blocks from Branch Ave metro, I think this (former Hampton Inn) hotel has an indoor pool. Again, the neigborhood while not bad is nothing to brag about either.

Sometimes good deals are to be found at DC's own RedRoof Inn. It's a block from Gallery Place Metro. It's a highrise, not the typical roadside "Roof". Not sure if it has a pool. Stayed there in December for $55 and it's no-frills but clean & convenient lodging.

Embassy Suites is across the street from Kings Street Metro - 300 feet. No need for a shuttle. Lots of families stay there.