We will be going to DC and NYC in June with our kids ages 11 and 15. I am thinking we should probably only do one Natural History Museum, if so would you recommend the one in DC or the one in NYC? Or is there something we MUST see in both? Thanks!

I prefer the one in NYC - a lot of which has just been redone recently. As well as the new dino section and the display on human evolution and gems/minerals that have a selection of IMAX movies showing every day.

Well, I don't have kids myself, but I would think kids like dinosaurs. The N.Y. museum has a T-Rex skeleton, which the D.C. does not (D.C. does have a nice triceratops).

On the "plus" side for D.C., the museum is free, and it has the Hope Diamond which I have yet to figure out how to steal.

While I prefer the one in NYC, you can't beat free in D.C.

I liked the one in NY better also. If you are going to visit both cities, then the American museum was very good in Washington. My daughters liked the first ladies' gowns exhibit. The art museum (not the modern) was excellent as well in DC. And, like the above posters have mentioned, all the Smithsonians are free.

(Not on topic, but in response to the last post, please note that the American History Museum is now closed for renovation. Some highlights from the collection are on display at the Air and Space Museum.)

Another vote for the one in New York City. I have taken kids to both, and we will be doing so again NYC on a just planned return trip. The dinosaur exhibit is very large, and there is just so much to see. The planetarium exhibits are very good also.

Thanks to all for your quick replies. I think we will go with the one in NYC - but may do a quick run in to see the Hope Diamond - one of those things I still remember seeing from my childhood!

Why not pop into the one in DC while you're on the Mall? Thats' the beauty of free! There's a cool taxidermied elephant... But yes, save the big block of time for the one in NYC, it's awesome. If you have tiime, check out the adjacent Rose Center for Earth and Space, at least from the outside--you'll see what I mean when you get there.

I suspect my kids would love to see the one in NYC since they have seen the movie "Night at the Museum." You might rent it if somehow you missed it.

Both are beautiful but I enjoy the DC one better. Doing both would be fun!

To speed up your entrance to the DC museum, don't bring a backpack. It will need to be searched and the line can get very long.

For history buffs visiting DC while American History is closed for renovation, I recommed the National Postal Museum. Stamps are only a small part of what that undervisited off the Mall museum has. It is more about transportation and how the mail was delivered than anything else.

Take the Metro red line to Union Station. When you exit the station, the museum is on the left. Then have a an inexpensive lunch at the food court on the bottom level of Union Station.

The museum is grossly undervisited and is a nice antidote to the packed museums on The Mall.

Enjoy DC!

I can't speak for New York but I was just in D.C. and went to the Natural History Museum. Frankly, except for the Hope Diamond there is nothing memorable about the museum. Unfortunately, the American History Museum was closed. It is far more interesting to me.

Whew, you found nothing memorable about the National Museum of Natural History?

You must not have been looking too closely.

I haven't been to the NYC one in years (I used to go there a lot as a kid and now live in the DC area).

To anyone going to both cities on a trip, I would suggest that you only do one of the museums. Many natural history museums get their dinosaur "skeletons" from the same cast. There are no really complete skeletons because no complete skeleton has been found. Most of the supposed skeletons are casts.

Again, for history buffs visiting DC, I recommend the National Postal Museum. No, it is not American History, but it is interesting and full of transportation history.

Since there are so many other museums of interest at the Smithsonian, it may be a good idea to go to the NYC museum of natural history and to pop into the Washington DC counterpart for a quick look at the amazing stuffed animals in natural settings.