Washington DC- Dupont Cir?
Feb 10th, 2005, 04:20 AM
#21
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My husband is pretty comfortable driving in an unknown city. We are originally from Chicago & he drives in heavy trafic every day going from Ft Worth to Dallas. I figure he can find the office he needs to get to or the guys at the office can give him more specific directions. I am going to start the bidding process for the Dupont Circle area. Now we are trying to decide which airport to arrive at. Is there public transportation from Dulles to the DC area? I might need to use it to get to the hotel when I arrive. Thanks for all your help.
Feb 10th, 2005, 05:06 AM
#22
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Reagan National is by far your best bet: about 15 minutes to downtown and there's is a metro stop right at the station. BWI and Dulles are both about an hour. If plane fare to Reagan does not exceed plane fare to BWI or Dulles by more than $50, then it is money very well spent.
There IS public transportation from Dulles to DC, but if it was me I would just spring for a taxi or a shuttle service.
There IS public transportation from Dulles to DC, but if it was me I would just spring for a taxi or a shuttle service.
Feb 10th, 2005, 05:27 AM
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Mike, you do need to know that your objective as you leave D.C. on 16th St.is Route 29--Colesville Rd. thru Silver Spring and, as you emerge from DC on 16th, follow the big sign which directs much of the flow of traffic to a jog to the right on that route. Not a big deal. Then the intersection of Georgia and Colesville is the principal downtown intersection. Whether you would need to turn on Georgia depends on the specific address.
I very much disagree that the West End is dead at night and has no street life. I've had the occosite experience. Many excellent restaurants and hotels in this area. Somewhat more adult and upscale compared with Dupont's identification with youth and gay cultures. And the Watergate is definitely part of this neighborhood, if at the edge of it. I join Stephanie above in very much recommending it to sparks.
sparks, Reagan National is by far the most convenient airport if you will be staying in DC. Of course, if your husband will still be in Chantilly when you arrive, you might want to consider Dulles, which is next to Chantilly. If you are going to have a car in DC, your husband should drive it in from Chantilly/Dulles as the other alternatives are expensive or time consuming or both.
I very much disagree that the West End is dead at night and has no street life. I've had the occosite experience. Many excellent restaurants and hotels in this area. Somewhat more adult and upscale compared with Dupont's identification with youth and gay cultures. And the Watergate is definitely part of this neighborhood, if at the edge of it. I join Stephanie above in very much recommending it to sparks.
sparks, Reagan National is by far the most convenient airport if you will be staying in DC. Of course, if your husband will still be in Chantilly when you arrive, you might want to consider Dulles, which is next to Chantilly. If you are going to have a car in DC, your husband should drive it in from Chantilly/Dulles as the other alternatives are expensive or time consuming or both.
Feb 10th, 2005, 08:07 AM
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JB, that's what's great about these forums because you can get people who have varying persepctives.
I work in the West End and find there is little to do here after 6pm, and not even much during the day. There are many very nice hotels, for sure, but if one doesn't want to dine in an expensive hotel restaurant, there are few options in this area. There are few options for a light breakfast or lunch, and no bars or lounges beyond those in hotels.
The Watergate is easily a 15 minute walk from the heart of the West End, and all you really get is a small, dismal Safeway. It is, however, the only real market in that neighborhood since so few people actually live in the area.
I work in the West End and find there is little to do here after 6pm, and not even much during the day. There are many very nice hotels, for sure, but if one doesn't want to dine in an expensive hotel restaurant, there are few options in this area. There are few options for a light breakfast or lunch, and no bars or lounges beyond those in hotels.
The Watergate is easily a 15 minute walk from the heart of the West End, and all you really get is a small, dismal Safeway. It is, however, the only real market in that neighborhood since so few people actually live in the area.
Feb 17th, 2005, 05:36 PM
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I recommend the Churchill Hotel. Right on the cusp of Dupont - your husband could drive out, and commute againts traffic that is coming into DC. You would be near the metro. Safe area. Lots of restaurants in the area. Affordable.
Feb 18th, 2005, 11:23 AM
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$ 875,000 for a Dupont town house is accurate. Heck, I have a customer whose Logan Circle (one step lower than Dupont) town house goes for $ 850,000. Crazy. When is this house inflation going to end?
Feb 23rd, 2005, 02:02 PM
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Thanks for all the help. We decided to stay in the Dupont area because we really enjoy walking to restaurants & just plain walking around & exploring. I found a great rate for the Omni Shoreham so that is where we will stay. Hubby will just have to drive in traffic.
Feb 23rd, 2005, 02:38 PM
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Very handy. From the Omni Shoreham you can just hop on the Metro at Woodley Park and be at Dupont Circle in no time. There are a few interesting restaurants right on Connecticut near the Woodley Park station, too. Several have charming sidewlk cafes, which there mostly isn't room for down at the Dupont area; if the weather stays nice, they might be open then.
The Omni has lovely grounds in the back, and the nearby Marriott Wardman Park has landscaping with chery trees and thousands of bulbs that were in full bloom last year when we visited in mid-April.
The Omni has lovely grounds in the back, and the nearby Marriott Wardman Park has landscaping with chery trees and thousands of bulbs that were in full bloom last year when we visited in mid-April.
Feb 23rd, 2005, 03:12 PM
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Nice neighborhood, good hotel. Hubby will get to know Connecticut Ave. well.
For Silver Spring, it's up Conn and right on East-West Highway if he's headed to downtown SS. (But Metro might still be an option -- it's a long Red Line ride, tho.
For Linthicum, he's likely looking at up Conn to the Beltway, then 95.
For Silver Spring, it's up Conn and right on East-West Highway if he's headed to downtown SS. (But Metro might still be an option -- it's a long Red Line ride, tho.
For Linthicum, he's likely looking at up Conn to the Beltway, then 95.
Feb 23rd, 2005, 05:27 PM
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Good choice, sparks. The Shoreham will definitely meet your desire for a "destination" type hotel. It's been one of the top hotels in DC for a long time. Among other things, it's where Harry Truman used to slip away to play poker with his buddies, even while President.
May I guess that you took our advice and tried Priceline? I noticed on Betterbidding.com (my preferred Priceline resorce site) that most people who were making successful bids on Dupont Circle/Woodley Park were getting the Shoreham.
But--disagree strongly with repete's directions for your husband to get to both Silver Spring and Linthicum. He should not get familiar with Connecticut Ave., which will take him West at an angle when instead he wants to angle East for both. He should not use the horrible and infamous Beltway. That is the long way around in either case.
If his destination is in downtown Silver Spring within walking distance of the Metro station there, I really recommend he use Metro even though, strangely, he will start off going south towards downtown, not north into Maryland, before ending up in Silver Spring. The Red Line, which runs through the Woodley Park station, starts in one Maryland suburb, does a loop through downtown and then ends in a different Maryland suburb. But being on the Red Line, he will have one train service between Woodley Park and Silver Spring, and I really think he will find his trip probably faster and definitely more relaxing if he uses Metro. Maybe you can ride as far as downtown with him. He'll be going not only to Dupont Circle but through the closest stations for the National Gallery of Art, the Capitol, and Union Station.
If he doesn't use Metro, instead of using Connecticut which heads out in the ten o'clock direction while Siver Spring is at one o'clock, he should go east on Calvert (the street the Shoreham is actually on) to Columbia Rd. north to 16th St. He should ask for directions at the hotel to 16th St. heading out of town, it's less than a mile away. Then he just stays on 16th all the way out of DC. As soon as he enters Maryland, he should follow the big sign to a right jog to Route 29 - Colesville Rd. Silver Spring. He will be in downtown Silver Spring within four or five blocks.
To Linthicum, again he should not take Connecticut towards 10 o'clock when his objective should be 2 o'clock to get to the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Again he should take Calvert, this time over to U St. where he should go east, merging into Florida Ave. and eventually northwest on New York Ave. He should ask directions at the hotel to New York Ave. heading out of town, or get a good map if he is more comfortable with that (as I am.) Once he gets on New York Ave., again he just stays on it all the way out of the city. It becomes U.S. 50 and will lead him directly to the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, the best and pleasantest (it's run by the National Park Service!) way towards Linthicum.
May I guess that you took our advice and tried Priceline? I noticed on Betterbidding.com (my preferred Priceline resorce site) that most people who were making successful bids on Dupont Circle/Woodley Park were getting the Shoreham.
But--disagree strongly with repete's directions for your husband to get to both Silver Spring and Linthicum. He should not get familiar with Connecticut Ave., which will take him West at an angle when instead he wants to angle East for both. He should not use the horrible and infamous Beltway. That is the long way around in either case.
If his destination is in downtown Silver Spring within walking distance of the Metro station there, I really recommend he use Metro even though, strangely, he will start off going south towards downtown, not north into Maryland, before ending up in Silver Spring. The Red Line, which runs through the Woodley Park station, starts in one Maryland suburb, does a loop through downtown and then ends in a different Maryland suburb. But being on the Red Line, he will have one train service between Woodley Park and Silver Spring, and I really think he will find his trip probably faster and definitely more relaxing if he uses Metro. Maybe you can ride as far as downtown with him. He'll be going not only to Dupont Circle but through the closest stations for the National Gallery of Art, the Capitol, and Union Station.
If he doesn't use Metro, instead of using Connecticut which heads out in the ten o'clock direction while Siver Spring is at one o'clock, he should go east on Calvert (the street the Shoreham is actually on) to Columbia Rd. north to 16th St. He should ask for directions at the hotel to 16th St. heading out of town, it's less than a mile away. Then he just stays on 16th all the way out of DC. As soon as he enters Maryland, he should follow the big sign to a right jog to Route 29 - Colesville Rd. Silver Spring. He will be in downtown Silver Spring within four or five blocks.
To Linthicum, again he should not take Connecticut towards 10 o'clock when his objective should be 2 o'clock to get to the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Again he should take Calvert, this time over to U St. where he should go east, merging into Florida Ave. and eventually northwest on New York Ave. He should ask directions at the hotel to New York Ave. heading out of town, or get a good map if he is more comfortable with that (as I am.) Once he gets on New York Ave., again he just stays on it all the way out of the city. It becomes U.S. 50 and will lead him directly to the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, the best and pleasantest (it's run by the National Park Service!) way towards Linthicum.
Feb 23rd, 2005, 06:55 PM
#34
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sparks,
If your hubby gets lost, perhaps he can call JBC411. You'll note that both of his/her alternatives include the wildcard of ``ask for directions'' or ``get a good map.''
While Conn. does veer slightly north-northwest (not west), it's far easier for a unfamiliar driver and traffic moves much better. Hubby can basically get on Conn. at the hotel and make only one turn -- at East-West to reach downtown Silver Spring.
Using JBC's route, he first must wind his way to 16th, where he gets the pleasure of driving on one of the worst roads in NW DC. What's not under construction is potholed and easily snaarled. The Columbia Road intersection can tie up at the slightest mishap.
As for Linthicum, again taking Conn. to the Beltway eliminates the need of winding your way through a variety of strange city streets. He hops on Connecticut and gambles on the Beltway, where the odds of congestion are similar to the B-W Parkway.
The alternative is even crazier. JBC complains about the Connecticut route going ``west,'' but consider that the alternative route runs southeasterly through the various city streets. Calvert actually turns into 17th or 18th NW before it hits U, then Florida. New York Ave. can get horrible.
I do agree that if Metro works for SS, he should take it. I think I was the first to suggest that to the OP.
If your hubby gets lost, perhaps he can call JBC411. You'll note that both of his/her alternatives include the wildcard of ``ask for directions'' or ``get a good map.''
While Conn. does veer slightly north-northwest (not west), it's far easier for a unfamiliar driver and traffic moves much better. Hubby can basically get on Conn. at the hotel and make only one turn -- at East-West to reach downtown Silver Spring.
Using JBC's route, he first must wind his way to 16th, where he gets the pleasure of driving on one of the worst roads in NW DC. What's not under construction is potholed and easily snaarled. The Columbia Road intersection can tie up at the slightest mishap.
As for Linthicum, again taking Conn. to the Beltway eliminates the need of winding your way through a variety of strange city streets. He hops on Connecticut and gambles on the Beltway, where the odds of congestion are similar to the B-W Parkway.
The alternative is even crazier. JBC complains about the Connecticut route going ``west,'' but consider that the alternative route runs southeasterly through the various city streets. Calvert actually turns into 17th or 18th NW before it hits U, then Florida. New York Ave. can get horrible.
I do agree that if Metro works for SS, he should take it. I think I was the first to suggest that to the OP.
Feb 23rd, 2005, 07:08 PM
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Anonymous, why should a tourist take such complicated--albeit, maybe quicker--routes when there are reasonable routes that are much more direct.
Your routes are probably faster but are complicated to figure out if you've never driven through the city.
Your routes are probably faster but are complicated to figure out if you've never driven through the city.
Feb 24th, 2005, 09:58 AM
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Never thought I'd encounter so many map-averse people on a travel site.
When this issue came up earlier, sparks said her husband was not one to be daunted by big city driving, and if so, he is probably map literate. Or, he can follow driving directions from mapquest.com which most business travelers I know seek when they are heading for an area with which they are unfamiliar. I would be very surprised if it would direct him out Connecticut to go to Silver Spring or Linthicum.
Given what she had said about him, I just wanted to be sure that he was aware that he was being given a very roundabout route suitable for those who can operate only on the simplest verbal directions. Anyone used to using maps or Mapquest.com in big cities, or who can follow verbal directions which involve more than a couple of steps, and is not intimidated by the idea of making a couple or three turns on city streets, will seek an alternative to northwest-heading Connecticut to get to destinations which are northeast of DC.
Yes, I know 16th is patched up from potholes, but it has never taken me an hour to go three miles on it, as it has on the Beltway when a lane or two are taken for repairs or an accident. And I have been tied up in slow-moving traffic on Florida Ave. and New York Ave. but also on Connecticut and the East-West too. You can get bogged down in traffic anywhere in the DC area, so might as well at least try to minimize mileage and avoid heading in a different direction entirely from where you want to go. And take public transportation if you can.
When this issue came up earlier, sparks said her husband was not one to be daunted by big city driving, and if so, he is probably map literate. Or, he can follow driving directions from mapquest.com which most business travelers I know seek when they are heading for an area with which they are unfamiliar. I would be very surprised if it would direct him out Connecticut to go to Silver Spring or Linthicum.
Given what she had said about him, I just wanted to be sure that he was aware that he was being given a very roundabout route suitable for those who can operate only on the simplest verbal directions. Anyone used to using maps or Mapquest.com in big cities, or who can follow verbal directions which involve more than a couple of steps, and is not intimidated by the idea of making a couple or three turns on city streets, will seek an alternative to northwest-heading Connecticut to get to destinations which are northeast of DC.
Yes, I know 16th is patched up from potholes, but it has never taken me an hour to go three miles on it, as it has on the Beltway when a lane or two are taken for repairs or an accident. And I have been tied up in slow-moving traffic on Florida Ave. and New York Ave. but also on Connecticut and the East-West too. You can get bogged down in traffic anywhere in the DC area, so might as well at least try to minimize mileage and avoid heading in a different direction entirely from where you want to go. And take public transportation if you can.
Feb 24th, 2005, 02:48 PM
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Mapquest's computer-generated, untouched- by-human-brain results routes certainly aren't the standard I'd cite to illustrate quality.
They regularly are wrong and they often use street/road designations that don't follow the common and/or posted names on signage. Is it Md. 355, the Rockville Pike, the Frederick Road? Until recently Mapquest was calling it Wisconsin Ave. deep into Rockville.
No doubt some routing possibilities make more sense for residents than strangers and there's no way Mapquest takes that into account and makes that distinction.
BTW, here are the directions from the Omni Shoreham website to BWI, which is basically Linthicum:
Proceed through the airport and follow the signs for I-95 South. Take 495 West towards Silver Spring to Exit 33 (Connecticut Avenue South) towards Washington, DC. Proceed South on Connecticut Avenue for approximately five miles. The National Zoo will be on your left. Proceed another five blocks and make a right onto Calvert Street. The Omni Shoreham Hotel will on your left at 2500 Calvert Street, NW.
So perhaps he should ask at the hotel ...
They regularly are wrong and they often use street/road designations that don't follow the common and/or posted names on signage. Is it Md. 355, the Rockville Pike, the Frederick Road? Until recently Mapquest was calling it Wisconsin Ave. deep into Rockville.
No doubt some routing possibilities make more sense for residents than strangers and there's no way Mapquest takes that into account and makes that distinction.
BTW, here are the directions from the Omni Shoreham website to BWI, which is basically Linthicum:
Proceed through the airport and follow the signs for I-95 South. Take 495 West towards Silver Spring to Exit 33 (Connecticut Avenue South) towards Washington, DC. Proceed South on Connecticut Avenue for approximately five miles. The National Zoo will be on your left. Proceed another five blocks and make a right onto Calvert Street. The Omni Shoreham Hotel will on your left at 2500 Calvert Street, NW.
So perhaps he should ask at the hotel ...
Feb 24th, 2005, 08:19 PM
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repete, the situation and the audience always affects ones choices in giving directions.
If I were writing directions which needed to fit in a couple of sentences on my hotels web site, to an unknown audience which probably includes many people who are frightened and overwhelmed by big city driving, I'd probably do the same thing the hotel has--take people the long way around in order to be able to give them directions which are short and easy to follow.
But here we're neither limited to one paragraph or an unknown audience. We're advising sparks' husband, whom she has described as an experienced business traveler who is unintimidated by finding his way in big cities. To a person like that would I give the directions I would like to get myself from BWI or Linthicum to Calvert and Connecticut: Take the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and 50/New York Ave. Consult a map between New York Ave. and the hotel, there will be some turns.
If you had just given some sort of qualifier to sparks like "This may not be the shortest or quickest route, but it's the easiest to explain" I would never have spoken up. I've given directions like that often, when it seemed appropriate given the situation and the audience. But you and MikeT should not assume that everyone finds city driving as difficult as the two of you seem to. Some of us do, some of us don't.
You should realize that many visitors are going to be much more confident and competent in finding their way around any town with maps and Mapquest than many locals are with whatever limited means they are competent to use. An experienced business traveler, pressed for time to make business meetings, should not be given directions which take him or her a roundabout route for simplicity's sake, without some clarification that that's what they're getting.
I would not want to be given such a route without warning. Let the consumer of the information know whether they're getting the simplest to explain instead of the shortest and quickest route, and let them decide which they want. sparks' husband may not need or want a route "dumbed down" for simplicity, and deserved to know there are better alternatives for more competent city drivers.
repete, you can quibble with Mapquest all you want--and sometimes you'll be right. But clearly, from its longevity and success, millions of business and other serious travelers rely on it daily to find the absolutely fastest route, and return to it again and again because thet have found it overall remarkably accurate in doing that. You didn't tell us if you checked out the directions in question to find out whether Mapquest recommends the same routes I did. My guess is that you did take a peek. In case you really didn't go look--they do.
If I were writing directions which needed to fit in a couple of sentences on my hotels web site, to an unknown audience which probably includes many people who are frightened and overwhelmed by big city driving, I'd probably do the same thing the hotel has--take people the long way around in order to be able to give them directions which are short and easy to follow.
But here we're neither limited to one paragraph or an unknown audience. We're advising sparks' husband, whom she has described as an experienced business traveler who is unintimidated by finding his way in big cities. To a person like that would I give the directions I would like to get myself from BWI or Linthicum to Calvert and Connecticut: Take the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and 50/New York Ave. Consult a map between New York Ave. and the hotel, there will be some turns.
If you had just given some sort of qualifier to sparks like "This may not be the shortest or quickest route, but it's the easiest to explain" I would never have spoken up. I've given directions like that often, when it seemed appropriate given the situation and the audience. But you and MikeT should not assume that everyone finds city driving as difficult as the two of you seem to. Some of us do, some of us don't.
You should realize that many visitors are going to be much more confident and competent in finding their way around any town with maps and Mapquest than many locals are with whatever limited means they are competent to use. An experienced business traveler, pressed for time to make business meetings, should not be given directions which take him or her a roundabout route for simplicity's sake, without some clarification that that's what they're getting.
I would not want to be given such a route without warning. Let the consumer of the information know whether they're getting the simplest to explain instead of the shortest and quickest route, and let them decide which they want. sparks' husband may not need or want a route "dumbed down" for simplicity, and deserved to know there are better alternatives for more competent city drivers.
repete, you can quibble with Mapquest all you want--and sometimes you'll be right. But clearly, from its longevity and success, millions of business and other serious travelers rely on it daily to find the absolutely fastest route, and return to it again and again because thet have found it overall remarkably accurate in doing that. You didn't tell us if you checked out the directions in question to find out whether Mapquest recommends the same routes I did. My guess is that you did take a peek. In case you really didn't go look--they do.
