Things to do in D.C. area - kid-free?

[MommytoEliana]

DH and I are going to take a long weekend in two weeks, and D.C. is one of our options (see poll in Lounge). What are some of your favorite things to do in the area? We'd love recommendations for restaurants, museums, monuments, cultural/touristy things, or just plain beautiful areas. Thanks!

[SnuggleBuggles]

Favorite museums:
Museum of the American Indian
Natural History
American History
Art

other:
Botanical Gardens
Int'l Spy Museum (there is a fee but it is a lot of fun and it's geared toward teens-adults...ie., it's not great for little ones as I just found out!)
walk the Mall and Memorials

I have a giant list of restaurants that I organized by Metro stop once. :) But, we recently enjoyed Cava for Greek tapas. I wanted to try We the Pizza or the Good Stuff Eatery but they were closed when we went. I have Matchbox Pizza on my list for next time. The cafeteria at the American Indian museum is unique and delicious!! Zatinya was really tasty but it booked up fast. Call for a reservation if you want to go. Lots of good hole in the wall places as well. I like La Madeline (I think that's the name??) for breakfast over in Georgetown or Alexandria.

When I go without kids we usually do a mix of shopping and museums plus eating out. Always a fun weekend. :)

I recently stayed in Alexandria for the 1st time and would do that again because the King Street restaurant and shops are fun. We didn't stay in a hotel but the Embassy Suites looked like a good choice. Easy trip into town on the Metro as well. I also really like the Hilton Garden Inn in the Arlington Courthouse area. There's a movie theater one block away as well as a Metro stop. Sometimes there is a Farmers' Market in the parking lot nearby and that's a nice place to stroll and eat. eta- I prefer the outside downtown DC hotels for the cheaper parking but you probably won't have a car, right? If you do stay in downtown DC, the Grand Hyatt is fine- huge though and possible wait for elevators. Do not stay at the Hotel Palomar. Walls are flimsy and noisy neighbors were an issue for us even after we switched rooms.

Beth

[MommytoEliana]

Thanks for the hotel recommendations! I'd forgotten to put that in my original post, but yes, we will need a place to stay. We probably won't rent a car unless we decide to do a day trip to Baltimore (and maybe even that we could do public transportation) or drive into Virgina or something for a day. For the D.C. metro area we'd plan to just use the Metro.

[karstmama]

if you think it's something you & your dh would enjoy, i like to go to dupont circle & see the beautiful gay guys. my bf & i play 'gay or not?' to help tune his gaydar since he's from south dakota where they don't acknowledge such things. this isn't done in a mean-spirited way, more a people-watching way.

[jammytoast]

I'd stay in one of the Klimpton hotels:
http://www.kimptonhotels.com/hotels/hotels-washingtondc.aspx

and spend my day wandering Georgetown and the 14th street/U street corridor, drooling over things at Room and Board. AND see if anyone good is playing at the Black Cat

And drink lots of beer at Churchkey.

hell, I think I need to do a staycation!

[MommytoEliana]

I'd stay in one of the Klimpton hotels:
http://www.kimptonhotels.com/hotels/hotels-washingtondc.aspx

and spend my day wandering Georgetown and the 14th street/U street corridor, drooling over things at Room and Board. AND see if anyone good is playing at the Black Cat

And drink lots of beer at Churchkey.

hell, I think I need to do a staycation!

Well, the beer is out for me. ;-) Actually, both DH and I are more wine drinkers than beer...but wine is out for me right now too (main reason we're not looking at San Francisco for our getaway).

But it sounds like you should definitely do a staycation! :-)

[jse107]

We stayed at the Hotal Monaco downtown a couple of years ago for our "staycation" and loved it. We walked to almost everything and hotel itself is really cool--it's in the old Post Office building. Not to spendy either.

[crl]

I love Jaleo's for tapas--near the Archives/Navy Memorial metro stop and not too far from the National Gallery.

I also love the Renwick Museum, depending on the special exhibit. It is a small and less busy museum. The first floor is always a special exhibit related to craft. So I have seen a quilt exhibit there, a couple of furniture exhibits, an art glass exhibit, etc.

Have fun!
Catherine

[citymama]

Mojitos at Cafe Citron in Dupont Circle! :jammin:

Salsa dancing at Havana Village in Adams Morgan.

Museum of the American Indian and the National Gallery.

Romantic dinner at Coppi's on U St. Sigh. Or the Tabard Inn on N St south of Dupont.

Shopping day in Georgetown.

And stay FAR away from the Zoo! (I love it, but it's kiddie central!)

[crl]

Oh, I forgot, the Kennedy Center. Check out what's running while you are there. And they used to have a free show every day in the early evening at the Millennium Stage (I moved a few years ago so this might have changed).

And there is a great old style movie theater in Georgetown, with a balcony and everything.

Catherine

ETA. It's the Uptown and it is actually in Cleveland Park.

[star04]

I can't think of the place (maybe someone else can), there's a place that has broadway shows and also check out events at the Verizon center.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Shopping day in Georgetown.

And stay FAR away from the Zoo! (I love it, but it's kiddie central!)

On my last trip I decided that Old Town Alexandria was going to replace Georgetown for shopping for me. I do love the shops in Georgetown though.

The zoo...if you go at 4:30pm it's *awesome!* You have to mve quickly to get through the buildings before they close but it's so empty and peaceful. That's my zoo plan whenever I go. Parking is ridiculously expensive to balance out the free zoo admission.

Beth

[rlu]

The last time we went to DC was before 9/11 so I don't know what restrictions, if any, there are BUT one of our highlights was seeing/photographing the mall at night. The Wall is haunting, Lincoln magnificent, the White House spectacular, Washington inspiring, etc. I think we ended up cabbing it back to the hotel that night/early morning as we were a little leary of the Metro given the late (early) hour and DH was packing his camera and tripod and our feet hurt like heck.

I'm not a fancy eater - Popeyes down the street from Ford's Theatre and Fuddruckers off the Metro (Chinatown?) worked for us. I don't even remember where else we ate.

Are they still doing tours of the Pentagon? Another highlight for us. We enjoyed the zoo, but we have always been zoo people.

[hollybloom24]

I like the Westin on M Street and have stayed there several times. There is a restaurant called Bread and Chocolate (or something like that) very nearby that is nice for breakfast.

I have also stayed at the Four Seasons in Georgetown when work was paying and that was fabulous!

In addition to all the usual sites, I really liked the Portrait Museum. Keep in mind if you want to go to the Washington Monument you need to get tickets ahead of time.