There is a ballet I want to see at The Kennedy Center on Oct 23, but I will need to head home to Pittsburgh the next day. To make it more of a "trip" I'm planning on visiting Shenandoah NP and Monticello, and perhaps another historic site or two.

This is the beginning of my planning; the ballet tickets don't go on sale until later this month, and I don't want to commit too much before then. I do have some questions:

I'm thinking that to cut down on the drive, we might stop for the first night at the northern tip/end of the park, if there are attractions to fill a day or two. I'd rather have a two night stay, and leave the third morning for Monticello, driving south through the park if possible. We wouldn't mind if this took all day with stops. Is this reasonable, possible?

Then maybe the 3rd and 4th nights visiting historic spots in and around Monticello/Charlottesville for two nights. On the 5th day we would head to DC where we would stay just two nights, which are a Tuesday and Wednesday. 6 nights all together.

I've read on another thread about lots of wineries and breweries in this part of Virginia, but we don't drink and are much more interested in history, scenery, and food, and maybe art if there is any before DC.

I've also been looking at weeknight rooms with parking in DC and I'm thinking of renting an apartment. There seem to be plenty available. We've always stayed in hotels in the past, but these weekday prices are daunting.

I would love some general feedback on the plan, as well as specific recommendations for beauty spots, historic spots, and short hikes (more like walks) and your thoughts and ideas for Shenandoah National Park.
The only parts of Virginia we've visited are those outside of DC.
Thanks.

No replies yet, but I'm thinking of tweaking this itinerary to be in Charlottesville first. Pittsburgh > Charlottesville> DC> Pittsburgh.

Weekend rates in Charlottesville Oct 19 to 21 are very high. I checked the UVA football schedules before I looked, and it appears to be an away game that weekend. Could it be rates are extra high for an October weekend in Charlottesville? I read about the wineries so maybe that's the draw....

Thoughts?

You don't want or need a car (yours or a rental) in Washington DC. For a solo trip, take the Capitol Limited from Pittsburgh to Washington Union Station. You can rent a car there and take I-66 west to Front Royal.
When on time, the train arrives in WAS between 1 and 2 PM. The fare ($42-$53) is about what you might pay for parking in DC.
Check on lodging prices around Front Royal and then drive the Skyline Drive south from there the next day.
If you don't have the time for the return trip by Amtrak, Washington National (Reagan) is just a Metro ride away from Union station.

My guess would be the weekends in all of October are likely to be higher than normal due to fall foliage peak. An inn we used to stay in would raise their rates by more than 50% for the October peak.

In addition to Monticello, there's also Ashlawn-Highland, James Monroe's home, just a few miles away. Low key and much smaller than Monticello, but we found it interesting. And James Madison's home, Montpelier, is a short distance from Charlottesville. The Woodrow Wilson house and museum are also in that part of Virginia, but an hour away and probably not worth it unless it's on your way.

I did a similar driving trip a couple of years ago, during the same week that you're planning. In my case I started in Philly, visited Gettysburg, stayed the night in Front Royal VA at the north end of the national park, and drove Skyline Drive south the next day as far as Waynesboro, then back north on I-81. The next day I visited Harpers Ferry before ending at Dulles Airport for my flight home. I had previously visited Charlottesville so chose not to revisit that lovely town this time.

Observations: The year I visited (2016) fall color was far from its peak all along Skyline Drive, and barely visible in the lowlands. Which is not to say there was none, but it was far from what I had hoped for. Example -





The drive down Skyline Drive (a part of which I had done previously, but in the spring - wow) was splendid, and the speed limit and ample places to pull over meant I never felt hurried; however it doesn't take very long to cover the distance I did (maybe 4-5 hours) which would leave plenty of time to explore historic sites, of which the area is crammed.

In addition to Monticello I would strongly recommend you walk around what in my mind is Jefferson's real masterpiece, the University of Virginia campus in Charlottesville. This is nothing short of stunning; pictures don't do it justice, but here are a couple -







And if you're really keen on Jefferson, a visit to his "second home," Poplar Forest (near Lynchburg) is also very rewarding -



It's a marvelous area, worth as many days as you can make available.

Thanks all.

Gardyloo, the description of your drive from north to south on Skyline Drive is very helpful, as are the lovely photos. I take your recommendation to visit the the U of VA campus seriously; we plan to do that.

dreamer320: (Is 320 a birthday? It was the birthday of my late son and sister). Thank you. I guess I wasn't thinking about visitors to the area seeking fall color. I should have been. I think I can easily flip the plan so that we are in Chalottesville before the weekend.

tomfuller, thank you for all the tips. We are driving because it's less expensive for us, and I'm blowing the budget on the ballet tickets.

I'm sorry to hear that it may not be peak color in VA, but the drive from Pittsburgh headed east, through the mountains, usually packs a punch in the middle of October. In any case, the trip was originally just to DC but I'm throwing Shenandoah NP in to the mix because I've always wanted to go there.

Typically peak fall foliage in that area is mid October, but you never know. We used to spend lots of weekends in the area near Charlottesville and always enjoyed driving the country roads and visiting the small tows. Lots of festivals and fairs that time of the year. Charlottesville has several galleries always worth checking out. Other than local craft fairs, if there is other art around the area, we missed it.

I think you could maybe do something in Richmond, also, if you need to fill time. As for DC, October is peak hotel rates, of course, sort of the beginning of Fall prime govt/business season, hotel rates are always higher during the week in a city with a lot of business. No hotel in DC is going to give you cheap parking (except one I can think of, but it's very low-level so doubt if you want to stay there). Most charge around $40-55 per night for parking, of course, real estate is expensive in the middle of a dense city. Even hotels just outside the city in the suburbs around DCA often charge at least $40, but you can find some cheaper, depends how far you go. Sounds like you just want to pay it, though, for location. I don't know why you want to rent an apt for two days, seems a lot of hassle and possible problems for two days. Some places are rented illegally, of course, if they are in a condo or apt building. If it's someone renting a room or part of their own house, it's legal. But many of those places you'll find on websites like Airbnb lie/exaggerate about where they are and you can't tell from the maps. You can on VRBO. And then you'll have to figure out proximity to a metro and parking, also.

I don't know what you consider too much, it will probably cost about $250 a night for a hotel in DC that midweek, the Kimptons have some of the most reasonable prices and that's what they are. By contrast, the Hilton Garden Inn Courthouse (in Arlington) is about $200 a night and parking would be only $25 a day (which is about what you'd pay in DC if you park in some public facilities like Union Station, rather than a garage at the hotel). That's only a couple metro stops to the city anyway.

Thank you, yestravel and Christina.

I would love to spend time driving around the area near Charlottesville to see pretty roads and cute towns, and maybe a festival. Any names or places would be great.

I have found several affordable apartments in homes with parking. I've been disappointed occasionally, but have a lot of experience at researching rentals so I'm willing for two nights. Location is kind of important since it's a quick stop in DC. It appears that there are rather nice places that people have added to their homes for renters. I should be able to do that for $150 with parking. If I'm wrong, oh well. I can always bail and take whatever Priceline will give me.

I'm not making a reservations until the 16th, the day the ballet tickets go on sale. Once I have them, I can post links and get feedback from all you helpful Fodorites.

It really depends upon your dates as to what may be happening. I would check out websites like VA is for Lovers https://www.virginia.org or other such sites. They will list what's going on when you are there. Some of the nearby wineries have fall harvet festivals that can be fun whether you drink the wine or not. There is also an arts and crafts fair that takes you from town to town which is always fun to do. I doubt that you will lack for things to do in that part of VA.

If you find places to stay in DC and want advice on locations, be glad to try & help. I live here so never rented in DC, but we rent all over the world and never had a problem yet. I would also consider an apt for 2 days -- sometimes you can save a little $ and you will get more space.

Thanks again yestravel. As soon as I secure my ballet tickets that go up for sale on the 16th of this month, I will post some locations of apartments. We are regular apartment renters in our travels, and there really does seem to be good availability in DC. I think that residents pay so much for their homes, that basement studios seem to be common.

This is one of the only times we've traveled to DC on a trip that involves weekdays. I've always done well on weekends with hotel specials, Hotwire or Priceline, but I think we have decided to rent for two nights because we can get free parking with several apartments I've looked at. I like hotels but I also like my budget and this seems like a very viable choice for this trip.