Washington DC itinerary - take a look?

[KrisM]

We are going to DC and I'm trying to at least sketch out an itinerary. I'm sure things will change, but I like having a loose plan to hit the highlights :)

We are staying at the Embassy Suites in Old Town Alexandria.

Dates are April 2 (Sat) to April 9 (Sat)
Sat – drive to SIL's house in Anapolis. We should be able to be there around dinner time.
Sun – visit with SIL. Tour Naval Academy.
Mon – leave SIL’s and drive to National Cryptologic Museum. Then arrive at the hotel.
Tuesday – visit Natural History Museum, Capitol Tour(1:50pm), visit American History Museum
Wednesday – Spy Museum, Postal Museum, Bureau of Engravingand Printing (4:15pm)
Thursday – National Archives, Newseum, American IndianMuseum, night time monument tour
Friday – Air and Space Museum, National Harbor
Saturday – visit Mount Vernon. Drive home.

We tend to do well in the mornings and arrive before things open. My kids are always up by 7:30 at latest. We could go in earlier and see monuments before museums open, and probably will do that at least one day. I'm not sure how long to plan at each museum and if we have too many or too few planned. We are still hoping for the White House tour and should hear soon.

Any thoughts? Something we are clearly missing?

ETA: Updated itinerary in post #14.

[TwinFoxes]

My first thought was "there's a National Cryptologic Museum?"

My second thought was "I need a nap" after reading your itineraries. Thursday might actually kill me.

I think you can completely skip National Harbor. They have that cool Ferris wheel, but other than that it's really just a big outdoor mall. And the Ferris wheel is $$$. The Air and Space museum is usually super popular with kids. Taking them away to go to National Harbor would be a mistake IMO.

I don't think you're giving the American History museum enough time. By the time you finish at the Capitol and get back down the Mall, you'll probably only have an hour. It's a personal preference thing, but I'd give more time the American History museum than the National History museum.

Mount Vernon is nice, but I'd save Saturday for anything you wanted to go back and revisit. It's more field trip nice, not really a must see.

I think you should try to get tickets for the Washington Monument. Maybe do that on Saturday and revisit other sights.

I'm assuming you know the National Zoo exists, so I won't push it. :)

[ett]

I don't think you're giving the American History museum enough time. By the time you finish at the Capitol and get back down the Mall, you'll probably only have an hour. It's a personal preference thing, but I'd give more time the American History museum than the National History museum.



:yeahthat: My kids loved the American History Museum. We were there last April when they were ages 8 and 11. We spent 5 hours at the museum.

[StantonHyde]

I agree with Twin Foxes. That is waaaay too much on your plate. The last time we went, the kids were 10 and 7. We stayed in Alexandria and took the Metro in every day.
Day One; Walked all the monuments and then did Natural History in the afternoon
Day Two: The Zoo--its great. But if you have been to other great zoos, I would skip it. We won't go on our next visit. (SIL lives in DC so we go every few years)
Day Three: The American History Museum--loved this place!!!
Day Four: Mt Vernon--I would say this is a must see only because we can only do so many museums in a row. For you to do it on the way home makes sense. My kids really liked it because they ran all over the grounds and they really liked seeing all the baby animals.
Day 5: Air and Space Museum--truly the best :-)

I would have loved to have seen the American Indian Museum but nobody else was keen. The Spy Museum would be cool and so would a Capitol tour.

Here is a big factor in your visit--spring break. We went at the same time. The crowds of kids on trips are incredible. You will not be zipping about from place to place. You have to make time for lots of people. We were done every day by 3 or 4. Enough time to go back to the hotel, let the kids swim, then get dinner and relax.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I don't think you're overdoing it. :). It looks like our weekend visits. But, I'm sure you'll pace yourselves if it looks like breaks are needed. Maybe make a list of must dos and see what can be skipped.
Neither of my kids is into the Air and Space Museum. They liked the one out by Dulles a little more but it's always been a miss for us. They enjoyed the ferry to the National Harbor and playing at the Awakening. But, I could easily see skipping it.
They like the American Indian museum though, especially the food court. :)
Just be flexible and willing to scratch things if people are really enjoying a place. Don't rush them along so you can hit another place. You don't have to do it all.


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[KrisM]

Hmmm.

How long is the Capitol tour? We start at 1:50pm and the American History museum is open until 7:30pm. I was thinking we'd have a few hours there. I have a hard time estimating how long we'd spend at any museum.

I don't see us spending too long in air and space. It's not really their interest. I could be wrong of course, but I was trying to gauge based on visits to The Henry Ford museum here and what they are drawn to. Likewise, they really aren't into zoos.

National Harbor - I wasn't going to put it on but then people kept telling me it was a must do! Maybe we will skip it after all and move a couple things around.

National Cryptologic Museum: https://www.nsa.gov/about/cryptologic_heritage/museum/

We are not really sit in hotel people. I think we'll be busy all day and into the evening. Hotel for sleep :). We will take breaks as needed, sit down for meals, etc. And we will rearrange days as needed.

Thanks for the input. I'll give it more thought and rearrange.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I bet TF thought the museum closed at 5, not 7:30. You should be fine.

[KrisM]

I bet TF thought the museum closed at 5, not 7:30. You should be fine.

Well, it's funny. I just double checked wondering if I had the time wrong, and now it's 5:30 that day. It used to be 7:30 for 3-4 weeks straight, but it looks like some were taken off.

[ett]

Well, it's funny. I just double checked wondering if I had the time wrong, and now it's 5:30 that day. It used to be 7:30 for 3-4 weeks straight, but it looks like some were taken off.

Some of the museums have extended hours on certain days but I don't know how far in advance that schedule is set.

[TwinFoxes]

I bet TF thought the museum closed at 5, not 7:30. You should be fine.

Exactly. 7:30 would be really late for it to stay open. I wonder if it's a typo. If it is 7:30, that should be plenty of time.

I think the thing that seems tiring to me is going to a bunch of different places in one day. We are not sit in a hotel people at all, but going from here, to there, to here, to there is tiring. I prefer spending as much time as I want in one place, rather than trying to hit a bunch of places in one day. I also think it'd be better to try to do attractions that are closer together. I would go the American History museum and plan to spend half a day there. There's a lot to see. Then I'd go do the capitol tour. After that, I'd probably walk across the street to the Supreme court, not trek all the way back down the mall to the National History Museum.

I don't know if you guys are walkers/hikers. A lot of people come and are surprised at the distances between attractions. From the American History Museum to the Capitol is over a mile walk (not even taking into account the steps). Taking metro would make no sense, it's not like the NY subway where there are stops almost every block.

The Postal Museum to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a long haul. BTW, I love the Postal Museum. It's the most underrated museum in DC in my book. Bureau of Engraving and Printing is pretty cool too.

Anyway, I think all of the places you pick are worth doing, except National Harbor, the Awakening isn't worth the trip to me if you're driving all the way from Michigan. Even Mt. Vernon is interesting (albeit not free like most other attractions). Not sure about the cryptologic museum, that definitely seems second tier to me, but I hadn't even heard of it. Considering it's the NSA, I'm sure the museum is just a front to collect your data. ;) kiddding. :)

[KrisM]

Not a typo. It's open until 7:30 most days in spring/summer it looks like. They have rearranged the days a bit. I had it then because it was a later day. Here is the calendar with the hours. Blanks are 5:30. http://americanhistory.si.edu/visit/hours#/?i=15


I am starting over :). I had a plan and I think I lost it somewhere. It wasn't supposed to be so much walking back and forth. I must have looked at the map all wonky.

I don't mind spending time in one place, but we only have so many days. I can't do an entire day per museum or tour, as I think we'd have disappointed kids. They have different interests, so I'm trying to find some things each day for each kid. I'm going to redo and I'll update.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I figure it's like a Disney vacation for people who don't go regularly. If you live close by or visit often, you wouldn't cram as much. But, for once in a lifetime type trips, you cram more in. :). It'll be fun no matter what!



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[ett]

Some more suggestions to add to your already full list of sites to see :) ...

The Library of Congress is very nice too and it's near the Capitol.

National Gallery if you're into art.

If your kids have different interests, perhaps it would be possible to split up one day or part of a day. We went to the National Gallery for about an hour last year. But DS1 is so not an art person, so the next day, DH took the kids to the Air and Space Museum while I went back to the National Gallery myself. DS2 was torn as he wanted to go back to the National Gallery and also see Air and Space but there just wasn't enough time for both so he ultimately chose Air and Space.

We're not real close to DC (8hrs, closer than you though) but we know we'd be back in the future, so we focused on seeing all the free museums this first time.

[KrisM]

Library of Congress is a maybe. It's on the itinerary for the 8th grade school trip, so I'm inclined to skip it as a family and let the kids go in 8th.

I am thinking maybe 9 hours? Oddly, it's only about 30 miles further from home to Annapolis than it is home to Michigan Tech, where I went to college.

Here is my redone itinerary:
Mon – leave SIL’s and drive to National Cryptologic Museum. Then arrive at the hotel. Do something I think.

Tuesday – visit American Indian Museum, lunch, (10-5:30), Capitol Tour(1:50pm. Arrive 1pm, end ~4pm), Air and Space Museum (closes 5:30)

Wednesday – Natural History Museum, lunch, American History Museum, Bureau of Engraving and Printing (arrive by 4. 4:15pm, 1 hour), return to American History (closes at 7:30pm)

Thursday – Spy Museum (2 hours),start trolley tour, lunch at Union Station, National Postal Museum, continue trolley tour stop at memorials

Friday – National Archives (buy tickets), repeat attractions

Saturday – repeat or hit 1-2 missed attractions, visit Mount Vernon. Drive home.

[SummerBaby]

I think it's too much based on the time of year. I had similar plans when we went during spring break two years ago and we only did 1/3 of it due to the tremendous crowds. I completely underestimated how much time needed to be added to everything due to crowds. There were lines for everything. Lines to get into the Smithsonian, and then once you're in the exhibits are so crowded you need to wait for people to move just so you can see what's behind the glass. We did the Spy Museum and it took about 3 hours- due to crowds, ate lunch and then did the museum of natural history. That was a very full day.

[egoldber]

Well I guess in part it depends on how your kids experience museums. We barely cover one in a day because my kids *love* to read all the signs, see all the exhibits, and explore as many areas as they can. They both recently spent over 2 HOURS just in the Qrius section of the Natural History Museum and probably could have spent longer!

Mount Vernon is large and requires a fair bit of time to see things. The grounds are very extensive and there is a lot of walking to outer areas to see and experience the interactive exhibits. My kids love it, but it isn't for everyone. If you've been to Greenfield Village though, this kind of pales in comparison. :)

My kids love both Air and Spaces (the one on the Mall and the one near Dulles).

Also, if the museums are open late it is because they expect to be CROWDED.

ETA: Don't waste time at the National Zoo. The Detroit Zoo is far superior.

[KrisM]

Yes, we've gone to Greenfield Village. We went there and Henry Ford each twice last summer and spent the entire day at both (so 4 days total) going in and out, reading, etc. We still missed spots at both. I am sure we will miss things in DC and miss large parts of museums. Hoping to hit the highlights for them! I know it'll be tough and it'll be crowded. We are hoping that it's like a lot of places with first thing in the morning not being too crowded and maybe later at night be less crowded again. Perhaps people won't realize the Am History is open until 7:30 :) I guess it is what it is and we'll see how it goes! The kids will each go in 8th grade for a few extremely packed days, so we are skipping much of what is on that trip. I don't think DS2 is old enough to appreciate Arlington, and the school trip goes there, so we are not going this time.

I'm not sure I've ever heard someone say the Detroit Zoo is better than any other! it's so big and there is just a ton of walking. My kids are not thrilled by it and it's probably been 2 years since we've gone.

[egoldber]

The Detroit Zoo is fabulous! It does have a lot of walking, but so does the National Zoo which has the "advantage" of being hilly. ;) But I thought the quality of the exhibits and the attractions at the Detroit Zoo was vastly superior. We spent all day there in the summer of 2014 and my kids loved it. :) The one thing the National Zoo has is the pandas. But frankly you can barely see them, IMO, and not worth the crowds or the wait.

[KrisM]

Very good to know. We will definitely skip it!

[TwinFoxes]

I think this is much more doable. You hit all the high points. Since your kids have varied interests, I'd try to make sure they each got to see their number one pick. For me, it would be the American History Museum or Archives. There's something about seeing original documents that can't be matched.

I guess I've never thought of DC as once in a lifetime, especially coming from Michigan, which is driving distance. DH is a Michigander. We drive there fairly often. I'll have to put the Detroit zoo on our to do list.

[KrisM]

I think this is much more doable. You hit all the high points. Since your kids have varied interests, I'd try to make sure they each got to see their number one pick. For me, it would be the American History Museum or Archives. There's something about seeing original documents that can't be matched.

I guess I've never thought of DC as once in a lifetime, especially coming from Michigan, which is driving distance. DH is a Michigander. We drive there fairly often. I'll have to put the Detroit zoo on our to do list.

DD and DS1 are really looking forward to the Archives. DS1 wants to see the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. I think DD will enjoy Natural History Museum a lot. I'm much less sure on DS2.

I went to DC in 8th grade...1983. My parents went for the first time last spring. It is completely driveable, but we have a long list of places we want to see. We are trying to do a vacation every other year, but it makes it hard to repeat. In 2 years, we plan to do Yellowstone, etc. And we'd like to go further west after that. Repeating would mean missing something else, unless we can find a way to vacation more often. Right now, it's too expensive, really. We'd love to go more often, but it's just not doable :(

[SummerBaby]

I saw your update and noticed you want to do a trolley tour. Is that the hop on hop off double decker bus? We had a horrible experience with it. It was spring break and ultra crowded. The traffic was so bad that it took us over an hour just to get from the Washington monument around the mall to the White House. We just sat in traffic not moving. It would have been far more expedient to walk. And they won't let you off unless it's an official stop. Just something to think about...

[KrisM]

I saw your update and noticed you want to do a trolley tour. Is that the hop on hop off double decker bus? We had a horrible experience with it. It was spring break and ultra crowded. The traffic was so bad that it took us over an hour just to get from the Washington monument around the mall to the White House. We just sat in traffic not moving. It would have been far more expedient to walk. And they won't let you off unless it's an official stop. Just something to think about...

I was looking at this one http://www.trolleytours.com/. But that is a really good point! I will look carefully before committing.

[cmo]

One possible saving grace you may have is that your spring break week is not connected to Easter this year (meaning: Easter is not the first or last weekend of the week). Over the years, I've noticed that that makes a decent-sized difference in crowd levels, as some school districts tie their spring breaks to Easter, while others are fixed. If the two converge = big crowds!

[KrisM]

One possible saving grace you may have is that your spring break week is not connected to Easter this year (meaning: Easter is not the first or last weekend of the week). Over the years, I've noticed that that makes a decent-sized difference in crowd levels, as some school districts tie their spring breaks to Easter, while others are fixed. If the two converge = big crowds!

This is why I posted a poll on spring break weeks :). It did definitely make a difference when we went to Disney 2 years ago. It was a bit crowded, but not terribly at all. On a Disney scale, it was mostly 5s. I realize Cherry Blossoms don't help us, generally, but they will beat us this year, too.

[westwoodmom04]

This is why I posted a poll on spring break weeks :). It did definitely make a difference when we went to Disney 2 years ago. It was a bit crowded, but not terribly at all. On a Disney scale, it was mostly 5s. I realize Cherry Blossoms don't help us, generally, but they will beat us this year, too.

DC does not work the same way. A large percentage of the spring crowds are school groups and the level is pretty constant from late March through the end of June with spikes for events like the cherry blossom festival. I say this as someone who spent many years working in downtown DC.

It sounds like you will be fine as you are planning for crowds. it is still a pretty packed schedule, I'd have maybe one event a day as a maybe to drop if crowds impact you more than you are expecting. Also, although you plan to start early, public transportation such as the metro and the roads will be packed during rush hour, roughly 7 to 9 am and 4 to 6 :30 pm. DC has some of the worst traffic in the country, so expect delays during these times.

[KrisM]

Thanks for the info. The crowds will be what they will be, I guess. We don't have a ton of options on timing. We could do july or August, but I really dislike being hot! I'd rather deal with crowds.

We'll give ourselves extra time for the trip in as well. At least the Metro should be open :)

[TwinFoxes]

Thanks for the info. The crowds will be what they will be, I guess. We don't have a ton of options on timing. We could do july or August, but I really dislike being hot! I'd rather deal with crowds.

We'll give ourselves extra time for the trip in as well. At least the Metro should be open :)

I love DC in the spring, crowds or no. I think it's the best time of year. The summer is crowded, AND hot, AND humid.

Yes, Metro should be open. Yay? ;)