Where to stay with 11 year old??
 

Hello all - went to D.C. when I was 11 and now we're taking our 12 year old daughter next April. We want to stay in a clean, safe area with ample food choices and close enough to the sights/metro for sightseeing purposes. What area of D.C./Virginia should we stay? Any particular hotel you can suggest?

If you want to see the sights in DC then definitely stay in the heart of the city, which is a safe place to be. There are many hotels, use priceline. I've stayed at the Wyndham, the Marriot, the Radisson Barcelo, Capitol Suites, the Capitol Holiday Inn, they are all nice. Be prepared to pay for parking in addition to your hotel room if you drive. If you fly, there's no need to rent a car. The Metro subway extends to Reagan National Airport and is a great way to get around DC. The few places that the Metro passes by are easily accessible by taxi.

It is best to book now for DC next April, you can always cancel if you find a better rate at another hotel (not if you use Priceline though of course). April is the start of peak tourist season plus the Cherry Blossom Festival takes place.

Depending on what rate you are willing to pay, I would stay at the JW Marriott on 14th & Pennsylvania Ave. It is 2 blocks from the White House, 3 blocks from the Washington Monument, 5 blocks to the Holocaust museum and 2 blocks from the Metro Center station. Plus there are tons of restaurants within walking distance. Otherwise, try the Washington Marriott or Embassy Suites in Foggy Bottom. They are both 4 blocks from the Foggy Bottom metro and the Dupont Circle metro. At these hotels, you are within walking distance to Georgetown to shopping and restaurants (8 blocks) and Dupont Circle restaurants (4 blocks) .

If you are staying with an 11 year old, all you need is a safe place near a metro stop that has a pool. The cheaper the better.
Last year I cashed in hotel points so I stayed for free. Yes, we were in Maryland but it was absolutely no problem.
Sans children, you might want to be closer to nightlife and justify paying a premium hotel price.

Thanks for your responses - what about staying in Arlington to save some $$?

Arlington is probably as good as any of the Metro stop possibilities. You might want to repost the question?

The Radisson Barcello (Dupont circle) and the Capitol Hill Suites (Capitol Hill) are both great choices, especially if you're looking to save bucks. They are both only a litte more than the Arlington budget motels. I would not stay in Arlington unless money is your main, over-riding concern. Stay in DC and you'll have a better time.

I would stay in Old Town Alexandria over Arlington. The Hilton, Embassy Suites and Hampton Inn are all next to the King St metro station on the blue line. These hotels are about a 10 minute walk to old town historical sites, restaurants and shopping. Plus you could probably get a tour to Mt Vernon if you are interested. My husband works in DC (we live in Western NY) and frequently stays at the Hilton Old Town - he loves it and I believe it may be an all suite hotel.

HI Last fall we had a girls road trip to DC. Two Moms, four daughters 10 and 11 year olds. We needed two rooms in a safe place near enough to everything and at a decent price. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn -I believe it is on Franklin St. It was clean, had a nice breakfast, and was near the whitehouse. We could walk to the Mall area and there was a metro stop near the hotel. I would highly recommend this hotel and it cost about 140 per night. Call your state senator and ask for a private tour of the capitol building. We did it while we were there and his office set up a girl to take us around. It was very cool for the girls. We got to ride underground between the senate office building and the capitol in a mini train type thing. I have heard others say they couldn't do it because they were booked, so call ahead!

OK - thanks for your help - I am going to do all of this through Priceline and am thinking of narrowing it all down to the following general locations:

White House - Downtown
GeorgeTown - Foggy Bottom
Dupont Circle - Woodley Park
Convention Ctr - Capital Hill

But what about the Georgetown/Foggy Bottom area - yes? No? Opinions? Anyone want to rank the above in order of your preference? Thanks so much!

You can stay in Georgetown, but there is no metro access. (this is what I remember). It is great to walk around at night(very safe area with lots of people). You can also get on one of those tours (Old towne trolley?) They pick you up and drop you from place to place around the sights. It would be the thing to do if you are staying in Georgetown. Whitehouse area is the best for walking to things, but less safe for walking around at night.

My personal order of preference would be:

White House - Downtown
GeorgeTown - Foggy Bottom
Dupont Circle - Woodley Park
Convention Ctr - Capital Hill

The areas that you have listed are very broad and I assume they are coming from Priceline's location choices. The White House/Downtown area is the most "centrally" located with several metro stops and the bulk of tourist attractions. As a previous poster mentioned, Georgetown does not have a metro stop but I just the shopping and restaurants so that is why it is second on my list. Foggy Bottom is a great area as well and there are several hotels that may accept your Priceline offer. Dupont Circle is very eclectic (an artsy area that many young people and gay people live in) and has an excellent array of international restaurants as well. I would not stay by the Capital or the Convention Center because it can be pretty desolute at night.

The trouble with Priceline's G'town-Foggy Bottom area is that FB is the only metro station, and it is on the very edge of that large area. Parts of G'town are a mile or more from the FB metro station, so I'd rule that out if you want to rely on Metro for getting around.

Priceline's Downtown-White House and Dupont-Woodley would be much better for Metro access from anywhere within those areas. Almost any hotel you'd get from Priceline in either area would be good for walking too.

Thanks for all of your great responses. I think I'm going to concentrate on the WhiteHouse/Dtown area and also Dupont Circle. Question - since I'm going to try and secure my hotel through Priceline - and 9 nights is a long stretch for Priceline - shall I perhaps try to split it up with say a 1-night trip to the Mt. Vernon area or something - stay at a B&B or something? Or Williamsburg? Thoughts?

How about Baltimore? I love the Inner Harbor. The Aquarium would interest your daughter. And they have great water taxis that take you cheaply from there to Fells Point (for one). There are quaint streets to walk on and sometimes street entertainment. And those yummy crab cakes. The Lexington Market is a great spot to have a food extravaganza. Definitely have some fried chicken, the best!

Mt. Vernon would be a good daytrip. It's delightful. It's not that far although it's been a while since I've been and I don't recall exactly how long it takes. Willisamsburg (2 hrs.) is really wonderful for that age. They reenact history and it's so interesting to feel what it would have been like then. Does your daughter read American Girl? There must be a federalist American Girl. My son loved Williamsburg, and so did I.

Another great spot nearby is Harpers Ferry.

Your daughter will love Georgetown. Be sure to go to Urban Outfitters there. They have a great bargain basement.

Mount Vernon is in southern Alexandria. It's south of Old Town, and you don't need to change your accommodations to go there.

BTW, it's very rare to find a hotel in DC with a pool, in case your daughter likes to swim.

The Foggy Bottom/G'town area on Priceline really isn't that big, when you consider that most of G'towns hotel are fairly close to Foggy Bottom. I've used that choice a couple of times, and have always been very close to the metro.

I've stayed in DC with my kids via Priceline several times, and now my dd's in college there.

Our favorite PL zone is actually Convention Center/Capitol Hill -- there are 3 hotels that PL awards that are 3*, and two are literally on top of Metro stations. You'll probably be close to the Metro if you bid on Dupont/Woodley, also. I would avoid Georgetown.

You need to go to www.biddingfortravel.com, where you can read up on every aspect of PL, from basic rules to bidding strategies to lists of hotels that people have won and what they paid. It's important to know that PL changes the borders of its zones quite regularly, for arbitrary reasons, so you have to double-check the PL map before bidding.

Yes, you should split your bid into 2 sections to improve your chances, but no need to leave town in between! You might try for 2 different sections, just to see more of DC -- a couple of PL's Woodley Park hotels are near the zoo. I had to split a 5-day stay last April!

If you do decide to split your visit, Williamsburg would be a good choice, and accesible by Amtrak.

Mt Vernon is a little boring for kids. We had a third grade field trip there and the kids were bored. A ten minute tour of the house and that is it. Nice grounds, but not much to do. I think Baltimore is an excellent choice. Good for a two night stay. The inner harbor is very nice. I also understand there is a great Little Italy there for dining. Williamsburg is interesting if you take a guided tour. You can see it all in one day really. Others may argue, but one day is enough for an 11 year old girl. In Washington the Hilton Garden Inn I mentioned did have a pool. I didn't take my girls, but my friend did.

Every kid is different; my daughters thoroughly enjoyed both Mt. Vernon and Williamsburg (3 days wasn't enough). Third-graders' interests and attention span are very different from a 12-year-old's. An 11-year-old is grown up enough to research a few web sites and express her own preferences.

We went last year and stayed at the Embassy Suites in Georgetown. It was clean and convenient ( a few blocks from the Foggy Bottom Metro station and close to the DuPont Circle stop), had a pool and we liked having the extra room to spread out. My daughter was 7 at the time and loved staying there and really loved Washington. We can't way to go back!

The Embassy Suites (22nd and N) is convenient to Foggy Bottom, Georgetown, and Dupont Circle, but it is located in the West End area, not Georgetown. I walk past the hotel every day and can confirm that it is very popular with families. It could be a good choice if you decide not to take a chance with Priceline. You might reserve there now and cancel without penalty later if you get lucky with Priceline closer to your travel dates.

What do you think of the following hotels with the following rates for my Priceline backup plan? Pros? Cons?

Embassy Inn on 16th St. NW $115
Windsor Park Hotel Kalorama Rd. NW $95
Hilton Garden Inn $143

Every girl is different! But mine are at that age and would be bored after an hour at MtVernon.
Also, Williamsburg is lovely, but one day of the historic part would be enough. If Busch gardens is open, that is a great day in Williamsburg too.
Just my two cents.

Webbah:
Hilton Garden Inn is at Franklin Sq (14th and I). That's near Metro stations and in walking distance of many sites you'll want to visit (eg Smithsonian museums, White House), but in a business district that doesn't see much activity at night.

Embassy Inn on 16th near Q is in the Dupont Circle area, with a lively restaurant strip nearby on 17th. Metro is 4 blocks away at 20th.

Windsor Park (Kalorama and Conn.) is in a residential area a bit off the tourist track but its location should be fine if you don't mind walking 6 blocks to Metro and restaurants on Conn Ave near Dupont or Woodley stations.

Both Hilton Garden and Embassy Inn are in the central taxi zone that includes all the major sites, Windsor Park is in the next zone.

Can't help you with the interiors, but the prices you quote reflect the hotels' distance from the White House, I guess.

Regarding your 3 backup hotels, they are all 3 perfectly fine choices. Kayd described the locations pretty well. I would rank them as follows:

1st - Embassy Inn on 16th St.

2nd - Hilton Garden Inn

3rd - Windsor Park Hotel Kalorama Rd.

Although I live in the DC area, I've stayed in the Garden Inn -- it was our office backup when a huge snowstorm hit a couple of years ago.

It was new, very comfortable and -- although the area is mostly business with little nightlife -- there are many advantages.

It's close to Metro -- right across the street. There are a variety of restaurants and a CVS pharmacy close. If your child needs a fast-food fix, there are McDonald's, Quiznos and Subways all within a block or two. There's also the best bargain in downtown -- the Old Ebbitt's Grill Express. (Check out the daily pasta special.) Cosi is nearby and a great place for a quick meal. A couple blocks away, you'll find Red Sage, which is kid friendly in the upstairs room, and a Corner Bakery.

If you need a cab, most of the tourist sites are in the same zone (DC cabs are priced by zone rather than meters.) Plus it's not a bad walk to the Mall or White House from the hotel.

I'd also look at the JW Marriott, which is several blocks closer to most attractions.