I am planning to be in Washington with my two teenagers in mid July. They are both interested in checking out colleges, so I figured we'd stay near Georgetown so that they could see not only the university but the area where students hang out. Is my assumption that students do indeed live and socialize in that neighborhood correct?

You might get a better response to your posting if your title was a little more descriptive. Something like "Looking for taste of university life near Georgetown in Wash DC" would give folks a clear understanding of what you're looking for!

I don't think that's true for G-town, actually. DC is a geographically small city and most G-town students don't live on campus.

That said, staying in G-town is fine although your options will be limited. If you wanted to see how students live, I wouldn't stay in G-town proper, but further up Wisconsin Ave near the Holiday Inn.

Thanks for the suggestion Grcxx3--as if you couldn't tell, I'm a first time poster.

We were all 1st timers at some point......just passing along the lessons we have all learned (often the hard way!). Have a great trip to DC!

I don't think it matters where you stay. Just spend the late afternoon and evening wandering around the campus and the nearby neighborhood, striking up conversations with students. Strolling through the streets near the Georgetown campus is a pleasure, as the homes are charming.

Don't know if they are interested in other campuses, but they are all relatively near (as Mike says, it's a small city) yet very distinct.

Absolutely stay in or near Georgetown University to get a flavor of student life. All freshmen and sophomores are required to live on campus so that will be a student's experience for the first two years.

You can stay in Georgetown or West End (a few blocks away) or walk across the bridge from Rosslyn.

George Washington University is also in the West End (Foggy Bottom).

American University is a Metro ride away.