Manhattan To Washington D.C.
 

We are planning a trip to NY in September and would like to visit the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC. How long does it take to drive from Manhattan to DC on a weekday morning? What about weekend morning? Would it be easier to take a train?

Thanks

I would rather hop on one foot to DC from Manhattan than drive down I-95.

Your best options are by train or the shuttle. I would go for Amtrak because Union Station is on Capitol Hill and with the shuttle you would have to taxi into DC.

It took us 5 hours the one and only time we drove. That was on a good traffic day.
Train is the best option.

yes,definitely take the train. I've done both and the train wins hands down. Relaxing, easy, and oftentimes faster.

As others have said, take the train.

The Holocaust Museum takes at least 3-4 hours to see.

Thanks everyone for your quick reply's. We will be taking the train. Do you know how far the train station is from the Holocaust Museum? How long is the ride from Manhattan to DC? Thanks

Union Station is at one end of the Mall, and the Holocaust Museum is at the other end; you'll need to take a cab or the Metro. The trip from NYC to DC is about 4 hours, the Amtrak site will give you specifics.

IIRC, admission to the Holocaust Museum is based on timed tickets; you probably can't just show up and walk in, better check on this.

Metroliner does it in less than 3 hours

If there are 4 or more of you (adults), and you already have a car, I would consider the drive (even tho I hate to drive), otherwise, I'd take the train. I'm not sure about the morning drive time, but would NOT drive down in the morning for a same-day visit. Drive only if you are going to stay in the greater DC area overnight.

You can purchase reserved tickets for the Holocaust Museum for a fee ... we were in line at 9 at the museum, and when they started issuing tix at 10am, we got 10:45 tickets ... but if that museum is the focus of your trip, I'd pay the fee for reserved 10am tickets.

How long it takes can depend upon your level of interest. We started at 10:45 and were still looking at exhibits when the place closed!

If you drive, park at the Greenbelt Metro Station -- it's the first exit on the inner Beltway after I-95 south becomes the Beltway ... large parking lot that never fills.

Check www.wmata.com for Metro & Metro parking info.

About how much is a round-trip ticket on the train from Manhattan to DC?

If you decide to take the Metro from Union Station, take the train in the direction of "Shady Grove." Change at "Metro Center" (3 station stops) for the Orange Line headed for "New Carrollton." (Go downstairs to catch the Orange Line.) Get off at the "Smithsonian" stop (2 stations). There are signs in the station that will direct you to the closest exit for the Holocaust Museum.

Ronnie

The internet is your friend. You can find out prices on www.amtrak.com

Yes, the Holocaust Museum has timed tickets. So if you show up first thig in the morning, you will receive timed entry tickets for sometime that day. That said, a few years ago we went to DC in the second week in September during the week. It was an excellent time to go--all the kids are back in school and school trips haven't yet begun. We approached the Holocaust Museum ticket counter at 10:40AM and received our timed entry tickets for 10:30AM. We encountered few or brief lines at most sights.

I believe at one time you could order advance tickets for the Holocause museum from Ticketmaster. The tickets are free, but you do pay a service charge per ticket. It may be worthwhile to do that if you know that you are only visiting DC for the day and you want as much time as possible to see the museum.

If you purchase tickets for Amtrak - it will be roughly $150 or so for the cheapest roundtrip (per person) between NY and DC. Much higher if you take Acela Express. There are discounts on Amtrak for AAA members and they do run frequent 25% off fare promotions, which usually only apply to mid-week fares. The train ride will probably be about 4 hours if no delays from NY to DC.

We just got back from a trip on Amtrak(Williamsburg by way of Washington & NY) and it was such a nightmare, I doubt I will use them again. We were delayed 4 hours without seats, power, food (our 12 hour trip became a 16 hour trip). Others had had similar stories, so it wasn't an isolated incident. People were actually crammed into luggage racks and it was even packed between trains. The safety hazards are obvious, never mind the inconvenience. We will drive or fly next time!
We spent a few days in Washington too and it was great.

Carolv - what trains did you take? On what routes did you have problems?

This spring, Amtrak changed some of the schedules ... all the trains to Williamsburg used to travel all the way between Boston & Newport News. Now some of them are only between DC & NN. And not as convenient as the old schedule either. I know some of the trains between NY & DC get packed, but I never had the trouble you did ... but then I haven't done that route since the new schedule went into effect either.

Two alternatives to purchasing the regular fare from Amtrak are Rail Sales or on eBay, Amtrak is offering certain routes for bid.

You can purchase a reserved seat on certain amtrak trains from DC to NY, and these are not Acela or Metroliner, so not as expensive. This means that they only sell as many tickets as there are seats, so guaranteed a seat, although there are no "reserved" seats in that sense. Not all trains offer reserved seating, so check internet. The regular train is only 30 min longer than metroliner or acela, so not a big deal. I just booked three tickets -- with one AAA adult discount, one student and one senior, the round trip price per ticket was $120 -- well worth it rather than be stuck on the NJ turnpike or at any of the toll booths for hours.